Adam & Sunita’s Wedding

Adam & Sunita’s wedding took place at the end of September. It was a two part day, the first part started at the Gurdwara Sahib Temple in Concord. It was a Sikh ceremony, full Indian attire.  Sunita’s family came all the way from London, and her grandmother flew alone from India to celebrate their day.

The second part of their day was an evening traditional ceremony on the deck of the Mint Museum in uptown Charlotte, following was a reception on the top floor of the Mint. Gorgeous view of uptown Charlotte.

Thank you Kori Hoffman for being an absolutely incredible friend and second shooter for me.

Congrats Adam & Sunita! Thanks again.

Enjoy! ;D

Kori’s photo above

Kori’s photo above

 

Kori’s photo above

Kori’s photo above

Kori’s photo above

Kori’s photo above

Kori’s photo above

Kori’s photo above

Kori’s photo above

Andrew & Daphne Wedding

Daphne and Andrew’s wedding took place at the end of August at Freedom Park in Charlotte, NC.  The Ceremony and Reception took place on the parks island under lovely willow trees, very breezy (effects from Hurricane Irene) and blue sky. It was gorgeous. Really great.  If you haven’t already seen Daphne & Andrew’s engagement session – check it out here. Daphne and Andrew have such great taste. All their details were handmade and so romantic. The smallest things made the biggest difference in decorating. Simple and romantic. I loved, loved, loved shooting their day.

Daphne pretty much has the best facial expressions when she is happy and excited. I loved it. She was/is a beautiful bride. (Her dress is an Allure if anyone is interested)

Andrew and Daphne are leaving in a few weeks to move to Korea to teach English. They will be missed. Great adventures await them on their new married life together.

Thank you Anna Hollingsworth for being a great 2nd shooter.

Thank you  Daphne and Andrew for letting me a part of of your day, I have enjoyed getting to know you both, and its been great to work with you guys! Congrats!!!

I hope you enjoy these photos!

 

*Anna’s photo (above)

*Anna’s photo (above Left)

*aren’t her Bridesmaid dresses ammmmaaazing?

*Above- You can see that people stopped in the park to watch the ceremony… I love that!

*Anna’s photo (above)

*this is where the food and dancing took place

*Anna’s photo (above- Willow branches)

*During the reception, I had to break away and capture this amazingness in the trees…hahaha!!

*I have to say, best lighting I’ve ever had at a wedding…. so so yummy.

*Daphne and I <3

 

*Yah, thats Andrew on the bass. He totally tore it up for like 15 minutes. He plays in a band here in Charlotte.

*one of my favs (above)

*I took this with my film camera. (above)

 

yeeeeah! Congrats!!

Candace & Oscar Wedding

Asheville, North Carolina. Gorgeous!! It all started when I picked up my friend and mentor up at the Charlotte airport. She flew in from Minnesoooota  (as they say) Shelley Paulson has a been the biggest influence in my journey of photography. Countless hours spent being mentored, taught, and critiqued. She has had patience with my growing. I’ve had the honor of shooting quite a few weddings with her the last three summers. We’ve somehow always found a way for me to visit her in MN or for her to come to the Carolina’s. She had this gorgeous wedding booked in the mountains of North Carolina and wanted me to second shoot and assist her. I jump at the chance to learn from Shelley. I’m blessed to have her in my life. (for real— <3 you Shelley!)

We had a wonderful weekend in Asheville, getting lost every time we got in the car together. The roads in and highways in Asheville are insane!

When we arrived at the rehearsal of Candace and Oscar’s wedding we were stunned at the view surrounding the venue (The Fields at Blackberry Cove).

The wedding was just so, so beautiful. Every detail was perfect and totally “my kind of wedding”. I have posted quite a bit of details from this day. Mostly because I just loved them so much. Candace and Oscar were so wonderful to be around. I’m so happy that I was able to be at their wedding.

The day after the wedding Shelley and I were able to spend the day in Asheville and surrounding cities shopping, and giggling all the way home. It was a fabulous weekend.

I shot quite a few rolls of black and white film with my Canon Elan 7. So I’ve mixed in a few here and there. I hope you enjoy these photos. I really love them.

Congrats Oscar and Candace! I’m so happy I met you both!

 

 

So the night before we shot this wedding, Shelley was teaching me about “Rim lighting” (The photo below) I spent quite a bit of time at the wedding looking to find rim light and learn how to expose for it. It is yummy. I need to use/do it more often.

 

 

 

Please check out Shelley’s photos from this wedding!

Matthew & Lauren Engagement

Lauren contacted me about a year ago. She found my photography through my beautiful sister-in-law being on Girl Meets Gown. Lauren, Matt and I met at a coffee shop last summer and chatted about her plans for a barn wedding filled with antiques. She wanted to do a rustic, country, October wedding.  I am really excited about shooting their wedding in October.

The day before this engagement session, Brandon and I went and spent the day with Lauren and her family at the Steeple Chase out near Waxhaw. (I’ll blog my photos from it later!) We had the best time, eating, laughing, sipping sangria’s and watching the horse race. We so enjoyed getting to know Lauren and her family and feeling like we were in the movie “My Fair Lady”. I felt extremely spoiled by getting to watch the horse race from the paddock area.

First week of May we spent a Sunday evening in Waxhaw town, and ventured out in the country to an old general store and massive barn. I was dying, I wanted to shoot everything. The texture was so yummy, and Matt and Lauren were so great to work with. I’m really excited to share these photos. I hope you guys enjoy them!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Joe and Stacey Wedding

“April showers bring May flowers….”

I met Stacey over a year ago when she emailed me a random note telling me how much she enjoyed my music. She had a seen a video of my brothers wedding and saw me sing. We have slowly built a facebook friendship since last year and this year she contacted me to shoot her April wedding. Once we all finally met, it felt like we had known each other for quite sometime.

Joe and Stacey’s wedding took place on a lovely, rainy April day in Thomasville, NC.  Their venue was 12th West Main right downtown Thomasville, NC. Pink flowers were in bloom and a storm was brewing throughout the whole day outside. We were blessed to get to shoot a little outside before there was a downpour. ;D

The ceremony was simple and beautiful. Joe and Stacey washed each other’s feet and did their 1st dance at the alter. I am so happy I was able to be there and witness their happiness.

Thanks Carrie Davis for shooting along side of me.

Congrats Joe and Stacey!! <3 you guys much!

PS: I’m starting to blog my photos a bit smaller in preparation for my new website and blog coming soon!! yeeeeeahhh!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

vacation please. – Wrightsville Beach, NC

So… I needed a short vacation, and my husband surely needed a short vacation. And we really needed to spend time together (which has always been my excuse.) So, we went and visited some friends in the Wilmington, NC area.

Staying a few blocks away from Wrightsville Beach, we spent our first evening from midnight to 2 AM… just walking along the beach, stargazing.

Brandon found out that if you take your hand and write in the wet/hard part of the sand at night, there are small glowing sparks that light up. (He has a whole science lesson on it after he googled it.)

We spent hours the next afternoon catching waves, hanging with our friend, Therese, who we have missed so much.

I got burned to a crisp…

Later that evening, I went out on the beach as the sun was setting and captured some of this…

After all of that, Brandon and I lay under the stars and listened to the waves for a couple hours. We also watched a lightning storm over the ocean…as we drifted…… away……. away…..

Kyle & Christy Wedding

I’ve been second shooting with my friend, Tara Mauldin, quite a bit this year, and we still have a few weddings to go. As a learning photographer, I’m taking the time to get a a solid foundation by second shooting about eighteen or more weddings this year. I’ve already shot seven so far, and with each wedding I either feel like I’ve almost got it or I feel like I don’t know a thing. Since I have an intense justice side in me, I want to give people the justice they deserve in hiring me to do their wedding or portraits. I can’t charge people $3000 for a wedding when I haven’t taken the years to learn. And so that’s what this year is for me. Its my “years” of learning.

I’ve been extremely blessed to be mentored and loved by an excellent photographer based out of Minnesota. (Shelley Paulson) She tells me what’s trendy and what’s timeless. She tells me what’s right and what’s wrong. She tells me if my picture is too yellow, blue, red or green. She helps me see “right.”  It’s rough and tough at times, but it’s incredible love. I sometimes spend hours after I learn something from her trying to put it into practice and trying to get it right, and then I add my touch of “me” to it. I’m learning to find my style and be consistent in my work.  I’ll be talking about Shelley Paulson for probably the rest of my life. haha…

I’ve been getting quite a few emails from old friends and random people asking me photography questions the last few months. When I get asked what “they” should charge to do a wedding or a portrait session, I get extremely frustrated. I’ve been trying to grow in photography for the last three years or more… and even I am feeling like I do not have the “best” to give people for what their money is worth. As for someone who just picked up a point and shoot camera and has created their own photography fan page/business, my advice in the most gentle way is: “learn for a long time, and then you can ask people to give you money for the best work you have to offer.”

With all that being said, here is some of my journey with each wedding I shoot.

Kyle and Kristi are such beautiful people…very photogenic and extremely fun to shoot. Kristi was a bride that I had helped a time or two at the bridal salon I “used” to work at. We recognized each other, and it was a bit random that I would be helping shoot her wedding day.

Their reception took place on the 15th floor at the Bentley’s restaurant in Uptown Charlotte. It was quite a view overlooking the Queen City!

My struggle for this wedding was the dance floor. I’m learning how to use my flash. So with every wedding, I feel like I’m just experimenting with it throughout the dancing. Thank God for low white ceilings where I can bounce the flash!

The thing with second shooting (which can sometimes be frustrating) is that I can only capture so much of the story. So, here is my side of their day….

Enjoy….

Ben & Marie Wedding

On a cloudy March Sunday, my friend Tara Mauldin and I shot Ben and Marie’s lovely wedding at the Morehead Inn. We prayed it wouldn’t rain, and hoped the sun would come out. Well…. it didn’t rain, and the sun did start showing itself by the end of the day.

The ceremony took place under this gorgeous tree with pink flowers falling everywhere. There were about 60 people that attended.  It was a small, simple, and elegant wedding.

Tara and I had a great time shooting this day for Ben and Marie. (We may have even busted a move on the dance floor )

I hope you enjoy these…

Mom & Son Dance…

Oh Tara!

We are quite the pair…

I just had to photograph this guy…..