Brad & Amber

Brad and Amber’s wedding fell on the first weekend in Fall of 2021. Their sweet and fun wedding was held at Catawba Falls Events Center in Lancaster, South Carolina. Surrounded by their friends and family, Brad and Amber finally got married! I personally have known Brad and Amber for close to 7 years now, however Rich grew up with both Brad and Amber. The three of them navigated many seasons of life, and we are excited for Brad and Amber to embark on this new journey of Marriage.

Amber had the sweetest bridal party! Since Brad and Amber have been together for close to 13 years, many of Amber’s friends were emotional to see her become Mrs. Robinson. From the precious matching PJ sets that the bridal party got ready in, to the hair pieces in the bridesmaid’s hair, thoughtfully pulled together the whole group. Amber was very intentional with each part she planned for her wedding day. It is such a joy to be a part of seeing the different stages of the planning process, and being able to photograph all the thoughtful details.

One of my favorite prompts to give my brides as they are getting ready is to put in their earrings. Personally, I have a photo like this from my wedding and I always look back on the photo and I am immediately taken back to that moment. It was just me and my photographer and I had an overwhelmening sense of peace in that moment. It was one of those final touches on finishing the “bridal look”.

While this was an extremely exciting day for Brad and Amber, there was one person that would have made the day complete. A dear friend of theirs, Jordan. Jordan was a local police officer that was unfortunately killed in the line of duty on May 4th, 2019. Jordan’s tragic death shook the community, and broke the hearts of his family and friends. Jordan was a dear friend of Brad and Ambers, and they wanted to make sure there were ways of honoring his memory on their big day. The bracelet that you see Brad wear above is one of the many things they incorporated into remembering him throughout their day.

When it comes time to photograph groomsmen, I always have to mentally prepare myself. I love being able to give fun prompts for the group to interact with each other. (I am going to spare you the graphic photos that I took of these guys!) During Brad and Amber’s engagement session, Brad kept telling me how he did not want posed photos, and that he cannot stand the “fake” looking photos. I totally get it. I love capturing the traditional photos that you will share with your parents and grandparents, but I like to incorporate fun and modern prompts to get more organic looking photos.

With each of my brides, I always like to ask which parts are most important to them on their wedding day. On the top of Amber’s list was her father walking her down the aisle and Brad’s face when he sees her for the first time. Depends on who you ask, but we may have seen a tear or two when he first saw his bride. Brad’s expression was sweet, but check out their ring bearer.. Amber is a NICU nurse at Levines and her ring bearer and flower girl were some of her first babies she had cared for.

This wedding was a long one in the making. From the small intentional details to the breath taking lake view from their ceremony location, Brad and Amber’s wedding was the perfect day to celebrate their journey together. I feel honored and humbled to have been apart of their big day and look forward to watching their marriage grow for the years to come.

The Ridge

The Ridge holds a very special place in my heart. I might be biased, but they have some of the best mountain views in all of Western North Carolina, providing the perfect backdrop for any celebration. The Ridge is the sister venue to the venue that Rich and I got married at in the Spring of 2018.

When I heard that Union Photography Workshops was hosting a styled shoot at The Ridge, I immediately jumped on the opportunity. I love going to workshops, not to get a specific style of photography, but enjoy working alongside so many different creatives. Over the past three years, I have met some dear photography friends that I sometimes have the opportunity to work with and support.

The custom dress designed by Angela Kim Couture was the perfect balance between soft and sophisticated. Modeled by, Rebecca Adele. The gorgeous gown created a brilliant splash on the front lawn of The Ridge.

One of my favorite florists to work with is Flora in Asheville. With creating some of the most stunning arrangement, they actually have a store front with a coffee shop and plant store! Their store front in West Asheville, is one of my favorite spots to work and I have some of their goodies from their store, on display in my home. The owner, Melissa, is always a joy to work with, and I always look forward to working with her on a project or casually running into her at her shop.

Lauren & Dylan

Lauren and I meet in July of 2020 and we instantly connected, we both are intentional with a lot of ways we live our lifes. Lauren originally had planned on an elopement in Italy, however Covid had other plans. Lauren and Dylan decided to have their wedding state side at the Cloister at Sea Island. The Cloister provided a dreamy backdrop for their romantic and timeless wedding. From the Louboutin shoes that Lauren gifted Dylan, to the bagpiper that lead the wedding party and guests to the cocktail hour, their day was nothing short of perfect.

Lauren searched endlessly for a Wedding dress that matched her dream. She was able to build a custom Pnina dress, and Dylan surprised her with the custom veil. I love being able to capture bride and grooms open gifts. There is a raw sense of emotion that you are able to capture.

Lauren really wanted to make sure that her mother and Gammy were pictured throughout the day. Both of these women were extremely important in Lauren’s development into the person she is today. Just like in first dances, I find so much joy in being able to capture the emotions from different family members. I will never forget how excited Gammy was to see Lauren in her wedding dress. When we took Lauren’s Bridals just a couple months before, she was able to show off her dress to Gammy and her grandfather (who was unable to attend due to some health concerns). Even though Gammy had seen Lauren in her dress before this moment, you can see how proud she is of Lauren and the love that the two of them share.

Would you believe me if I told you that Dylan used to be a model? Well he was. I quickly realized this when I photographed the couple’s shower earlier in the year. Dylan had an early teenage modeling career, which you can obviously tell by his poses. Rich was my second shooter for Lauren and Dylan’s wedding, and I Rich really enjoys getting to become friends with the groom and groomsmen. I love being able to trust Rich to run off and grab some candid shots of the groom and wedding party. Rich has a very creative side, and I love being able to see that part of him, especially when I am going through the photos he takes. This sunroom at the Cloister was the perfect space to grab photos of Dylan before the ceremony.

Pretty much all moments of Lauren and Dylan’s wedding were spectacular. They had the most unbelievable dinner. Rich and I still talk about it to this day. One of the highlights of their big day was being lead into their cocktail hour with bagpipes. This was a traditional tribute to Dylan’s heritage. Most people know how much I love tradition and tributes, so of course I freaked out when I saw the bagpipe player and the first note being played. The sound of the bagpipe, an amazing newly wed couple, and the backdrop of Sea Island was a moment that I will never forget. I was overwhelmed by happiness for Lauren and Dylan during this moment.

Traditions are huge for me. I am a very traditional person. If you even come into my home, you can see a lot of my larger pieces of furniture are traditional pieces, but with modern and contemporary elements. Lauren was very adamant on wanting the first time for Dylan to see her was when she walked down the aisle. As a photographer, I understand the importance of a first look and love to capture those sweet and intimate moments, but I also get the bride that wants to have that moment while she is walking down the aisle. I was that bride. The first time that Rich saw me walking down the aisle was the first time he had seen me that day and in a wedding dress. A moment that I will always cherish. Always, Lauren had a secret. Her Pnina dress had a removable skirt, and she wanted to show Dylan during their portraits after the ceremony! Rich quickly distracted Dylan as we slipped Lauren out of the skirt, and set Dylan up for the “first look”. He was so surprised to see Lauren standing there in what looked like a totally different dress. Just because you do not want a first look and you want the more traditional route, doesn’t mean that you have to settle for something that isn’t fun or different.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you Lauren & Dylan for having Rich and I photograph your wedding. The two of you have become such great friends of ours, and we cannot wait to photography all your big events in life to come.