Earlier in the summer, Jen sent me a message saying that she and her sister Jamie wanted pictures made of the two of them and their kids. I absolutely loved this idea! Jen and Jamie are so close and raise their kids like siblings. This made for some pretty special pictures that really show the bond they all have! They have some cute kiddos, and I loved getting to photograph them. I hope these pictures are always special to y'all! Sweet kisses for "Bubba Rhett"- which all of them call him! Oh, that little tongue sticking out! Too cute! I just love this shot. Thank you to these sweet families for letting photograph you!
1 Comment
I love when I've got a vision for a shoot, and my clients just roll with it! Meet Christy and Juan. Christy and I went to high school together. We became good friends in our senior year math class, and then we both came to Austin Peay. Freshman year of college, Christy, Leah (another high school friend and Christy's roommate), McKenzie (my roommate) and I would go out for ice cream dates or get together to watch the wedding episodes of 19 Kids and Counting. However, we all changed our living arrangements for our 2nd year of college, and we didn't get to frequent Chick-fil-A quite as often. Christy was currently dating Juan, a guy she'd met on a mission trip to Ecuador. This sparked some Spanish language love in Christy, and she hung out in the Hispanic Cultural Center (where I work my scholarship hours). Soon after I found out that Juan was coming to stay in America and study at Austin Peay. Fast forward a year or so, and Juan and Christy are married! AND they just had their precious baby girl Madelynn! Weddings and babies are my favorite things! ;) Anyways, when I found out Christy was pregnant, I knew I wanted to do maternity pictures with her! We kept having to reschedule due to weather, but we finally were able to take these photos. Christy and Juan have such a deep love for each other and their baby girl. Madelynn should be coming home from the hospital soon, and I'm hoping she's going to make a guest appearance in front of my camera! ;) Juan and Christy, you two are precious souls. Thank you for letting me document this exciting time in your lives! Also, I was really proud of this DIY flower crown made of real flowers! First one I've ever made! ;)
This wedding... I hardly know the words to write. It was just lovely. From the horses to the thrifted dessert china, every detail of the Frank Wedding was special and unique. It was such an honor to get to be a part of this event. Hayley and I were in the band together in high school. She was such a beam of sunshine, always energetic, always funny, and always caring and kind. I looked up to her, and I thought even more of her after we joined the after-school percussion ensemble together. We parted ways when she graduated, but we both ended up at Austin Peay. Hayley's bridesmaid Neely, of Neely Lawson Photography, told Hayley that she should hire me to shoot her wedding. And the rest is pretty much history! I've loved getting to work Hayley and David over the last few months. David is madly in love with Hayley (and vice versa), and it's plain to see. Couples who are so in love make my job easy and so fun. It's a breeze to photograph love when its just always there. The wedding day was full of wonderful people who cared so much about the wedding and all of the vendors. Hayley's mom, Nurse Mary (aka the band nurse), made sure that Carly and I were included, taken care of, and well fed. Nurse Mary told us specifically that we weren't hired help; we were friends. So we ate the meal at the same time as everyone else, and that was such a special thing to us! I also can't speak highly enough of Cactus Creek, the wedding venue. The owners, Ken and Connie, were incredibly sweet to me as well as the bridal party and family. Connie offered to drive us anywhere on the property we wanted to go to take pictures. She brought us carrots and helped the horses visit the bridal suite (pictures of that below!). I was blown away by how much Ken and Connie cared about everyone on their property. Those are the kinds of people who are wonderful to work for. And now for some pictures of the Sunday brunch event... The bridal suite window opens to the horses' stall, and Hayley got to feed some beautiful horses! This necklace was Hayley's great, great, great grandmother's. One of the coolest heirlooms I've seen at a wedding! (I can't imagine being able to keep up with a piece of jewelry that long..) Hayley's maids were incredible. They were so supporting and loving.. A goooorgeous bride! I'm still not over this bouquet. Christie, owner of The Farmer's Florist, grows most of her flowers herself, and the quality is just beyond imagine. I loved these sweet favors! (pun intended) David looked sharp. Navy suits may always be my favorite. Hayley's dad hadn't so much as seen her dress. It was a total surprise, and their "first look" would move anyone to tears. Hayley and David spent a minute together before the ceremony to pray. Watching Mr. Jack walk Hayley down the aisle was a moment I may never forget. Everyone was crying. And.... THEY'RE MARRIED! The barn was set up for the most beautiful reception! More of Christie's perfect floral arrangements atop navy table cloths tied it all together. Hayley and David purposefully kept away from the reception site all day. They wanted to be surprised when they saw it all put together for the first time.. They were pretty blown away! I refuse to apologize for the amount of food pictures in this post. I could write sonnets about the biscuits. House Blend really knocked this Sunday brunch theme out of the park! There were biscuits with assorted butters and spreads, bacon and tomato crostini... fruit salad, candied bacon (!), and quiche.. a gorgeous dessert table with cake, petit fours, cookies, cupcakes... Whether you're 2 or 22, girls still judge a dress by how well it spins... Their first dance was to "Can't Take my Eyes off You" by Frankie Valli, and it was perfection. They started sweet and slow then kicked the dancing up a notch! I LOVE YOU BABY AND IF ITS QUITE ALRIGHT, I NEED YOU BABY TO WARM THE LONELY NIGHTS The sweetest father daughter dance.. Hayley and David's other song is "Brown Eyed Girl", and they were getting it! The guests were grooving too.. Sha la la la la la la la la la ti da! Then we took some bride + groom photos. Connie let us in the field with the horses. Alfalfa was only 1 week old, but he was able to make a guest appearance in some photos as well! There are actually cactus that grow on the farm, hence the name Cactus Creek. I wanted a shot that featured a little bit of that beautiful cactus! Hugs and goodbyes.. ...and then the Franks were honeymoon bound! I'll say it again. I'm so grateful to have worked with Hayley and David. I think that this Sunday brunch wedding was everything they could've hoped for!
Vendors- Venue: Cactus Creek Barn Dress: David's Bridal Hair and Makeup: Kaitlin Roe Flowers: The Farmer's Florist Catering: House Blend Cake and Dessert Table: Sweet 'n Sassy Bakery of Nashville Music: Mike Bromley Favors: Wedding Favors Market Photography: Briana Owen Photography 2 weeks before Hayley became a Mrs. we photographed her bridal session! I get a lot of questions from brides asking what a bridal session is and why they should book one. A bridal session is a photoshoot with just the bride. She gets to wear her dress, accessories, etc and have her hair and makeup done. This works as a PERFECT trial run for hair and makeup. You get to see the whole ensemble before the day of the wedding so that you know it will all look exactly as you've dreamed. Another great reason to book a bridal session? It's just fun! The wedding day is amazing, but it tends to be busy, a wee bit stressful, and a tiny bit chaotic (or so it can be!). You've put a lot into making sure you look perfect, so having plenty of pictures documenting that is always important. Of course you'll have some bridal portraits taken on the day of your wedding, but having a couple of hours with no wedding timeline is stress free. It's all about celebrating how beautiful you are, how incredible the wedding is going to be, and how excited you are to be getting married!
Bridal sessions also allow you to have a variety of locations in gallery of bridal portraits. These of Hayley were taken at her parents' house. The first set of images were taken in her room. Now she's all married and living with her husband and stuff ;) so those pictures are taken in such a special location. One last bonus? You can be totally yourself. The last shots were taken with the fridge to document Hayley as a self-proclaimed foodie. You can't go wrong with some French Onion dip during your bridal session! ;) Hayley, you are so fun and full of love and light. Thanks for being a BOP bride. You always keep me laughing! |
Archives
May 2019
|