Ohhhhhh this was such a sweet and southern wedding friends!! I am bursting to share more with you!!

The first night I actually was able to hang out with Jared, a big group of friends went to Jason’s Deli.  I checked out with my food before he did so I took my time getting my drink and utensils hoping he would be out of the line by the time I walked over to the table.  I stopped to talk to some people and slowly made my way over to the table.  I sat down in the middle area of a long line of tables, just hoping that he would be able to sit close to me.  Luckily a few seconds later he sat directly across from me.  I didn’t know it at the time, but he was trying to sit near me as well.  I giddily laughed at his jokes and held his eyes a little longer than necessary.  I had the biggest crush on him.  And, thankfully he had a big crush on me.

Today is Jared and I’s 4 year anniversary and I couldn’t be happier!  We are living our happiest times right now.  High school was pretty fun.  College was even better, but right now?  This time in our lives is my favorite.

Tonight we continue our tradition of having dinner at a restaurant starting with the corresponding letter of the alphabet to how many years we have been married.

Our first anniversary we went to Acacia Midtown, then Bacchus, and last year we went to Continental.  Tonight we are eating at Deco!

Love you babe!! Thank you Katelyn James for the picture! 

This was such a sweet wedding friends!  I am beyond thrilled to share more of it with you soon!

It’s been a while since I’ve been able to do Highs and Lows, and I thought today would be the perfect day to jump back in!  Because its the busy season, its hard to dedicate blog time for something that isn’t completely wedding/engagement related, but I do think that semi-regular Highs and Lows are doable during these months.  Not a lot has changed since Jared and I try to keep our lives very routine and mostly drama free (although I do enjoy yelling at other drivers while on the road.)  I do want to share one thing though…

You know how I have been promising to share more of our home with you?  Well, I really am this time.  I am making it a goal to share our Kitchen remodel, and our Dining Room makeover with you in June.  No excuses.  To be honest, the reason why I haven’t shared them yet is because they aren’t COMPLETELY finished.  This isn’t a home design blog so showing in progress images feels weird to me.  I know a lot of people do that, but for me it just doesn’t feel right.  However, we are within 2 minor details of being finished and so I am going to try to get those taken care of, but I will be showing the rooms off either way.  SWEAR.  Seeing into the lives of my online friends is one of my favorite parts of the online community, so I really do want to follow through on promises to show you the two rooms I have been promising for almost an entire year.  YEESH.  We are also going to start work on the upstairs bathroom soon, Pinterest board seen here, and I promise I will be sharing that as well. We wont be finished in June, but hopefully done by August.  We have to save up for things in this house, so updates come slowly.

Now! Onto Highs and Lows…

Highs:

• Tomorrow is a wedding I have been looking forward to for a long time.  Its going to be a good one.  Please pray for some clouds as it is supposed to be 92 degrees.
• I’ve started a little routine in the morning that I am really liking.  Who knew eating breakfast could help you start the day right? Also: Garlic Sauteed Spinach in my Cast Iron Skillet is the reason I wake up in the morning.
• New things will be happening with LGP in the next year or so.  Im so excited to continue updating my brand, investing in new gear, and updating my marketing strategy.  2014 brides GET STOKED.

Lows:

• Cicadas.  Enough said.

Another reason to get up in the morning! Happy Weekending!

Johnny and Anna’s wedding was held at the Greek Orthodox Church here in Richmond, and the Cathedral was STUNNING.  Im sorta glad it started raining and we were unable to take detail shots outside.  Aren’t those doors beautiful??

Anna’s Dad passed away a couple years ago, and this was her way of having him walk with her down the aisle.  Such a sweet and precious detail. 

This headpiece was worn by Ann’a Mother and then by her sister, and now by her…

SUCH a gorgeous place!

Anna walked a few steps with just her Dad and was then joined by her Mom. 

The Greek wedding service is one of my very favorites so far.  Everything about it was lovely and intentional.  One of my favorites parts was when the Reverend called out the prayers, a woman in the balcony with us called/sang back to him.  Her voice was beautiful! 

The couple walks around the cross three times, along with the Reverend, the best men and women, to help the couple remember to keep Christ at the center of their marriage and to follow the Gospel.  This is called the Dance of Isaiah.

A favorite!

Johnny and Anna had a Greek Band play 30 minute sets throughout the night.  It was so fun to see the dancing! The person leading the line decides the steps for those in the line and does special steps as well.  The person holding the red cloth (a napkin!) helps them do the special steps in case they need extra support or balance.  Also, you will see money flying everywhere and all over the floor, which is another tradition in Greek Weddings.   If Im totally messing up the traditions, you’ll have to forgive me!  

When I first arrived and checked in with Anna, I asked her how she was felling.  She said wasn’t nervous at all and was so ready to see Johnny.  She told me she jokingly told him she was going to sprint down the aisle toward him.  I think that perfectly describes Anna and Johnny.  They are both so fun, loving, and kind.  After spending this day with them, I quickly found out that their families are the same way!  I kept saying to myself all throughout the reception, I want to be Greek! The entire day was so joyful!

Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Melis!! I hope Aruba was perfect!  Huge thanks to Kristin for shooting with me!

Vendor Info:

Flowers: Coleman Brothers
Catering: Edwards Catering
Makeup and Hair: Faces by Joy
Cake: Baker’s Kitchen
Lighting: Lighting Professors
Greek Band: Achilleas

More coming soon!!

I saw this on my friend Christy’s blog and wanted to join in!  Jared and I normally only make a list of things to do in October (its our favorite month of the year,) but I think having one for the summer is just the kind of motivation we need to enjoy these next few months even though its BOTH of our busy seasons.  Here is what I am hoping we can do from now until August/September!

• Go to Kings Dominion at least once.
• Swimming at the pool.  (There are a lot of options for us to choose from!)
• Camping.
• Vacation at the Beach with the Sledds.  (Already on the books!)
• Flying Squirrels Games.
• Sit out on our deck or front porch more often for dinner or after dinner.  (We need a better system for keeping mosquitos off of us for this one!)
• Spend an afternoon running through the sprinkler.  (We did this last year and it was SO FUN.)
• Grill out.  (We need to do this more often just for us!)
• Go to the Drive In Theatre.
• Visit the VMFA 3-4 times.
• Watch the Sun set from Libby Hill a few more times.
• Go paddle boarding with Nikki and Alex.
• Play more corn hole.  (We have the boards we made but we never play by ourselves!)

And there are more Im sure Im forgetting!

Do you have any summer bucket list items?  Tell me, I need ideas! 

I just LOVED Ashley’s dress!!  It’s Priscilla of Boston, which is the same designer of her Mom’s wedding gown.  When they heard they were closing, they immediately scheduled an appointment to try on dresses!

First Look!! These are my absolute FAVES!  As soon and Mark and Ashley were done chatting and looking at each other’s clothes, Mark said to me, “Im really glad we decided to do that.  I feel so much better.” 

Aren’t Ashley’s flowers stunning?! I loved them.  They were so unique, but still super elegant and classy. 

A favorite!

Ohhhh!!! The flowers keep getting better and better!

Family Formals outside are the best!  

Ashley and Mark love to travel!  Their table “numbers” were all of their favorite places. 

Such a gorgeous cake!

The Carnegie Institute is a really unique venue!  Definitely one of my favorites ever!

Then the party started!  Their DJ was one of the bests I have EVER heard.  Ever. 

The end!  This has become one of my favorite new weddings!!

Wedding days are never perfect.  Things just tend to go wrong sometimes.  On Mark and Ashley’s wedding day, Passport DC was happening.  All the embassies along Massachusetts Avenue open their doors to the public and share about their home culture.  Its a really fun event, and it draws a huge crowd.  Well, that also happened to be the road to the church where Mark and Ashley were married.  There were hundreds and hundreds of people.  Everywhere.  So, things ran a tad bit behind.  But, it didn’t matter.  The ceremony started a little late to accomodate guests finding parking, I worked through portraits a bit faster and ran 5 blocks to my car after the ceremony ended, the wedding party helped keep Mark and Ashley organized, and their wedding planner ran back and forth between venues to make sure everything was going smoothly.  And you know what?  The important part was that Mark and Ashley were married and so happy to be starting their lives together as husband and wife!  None of the other things mattered!

Mark and Ashley, thank you so much for choosing me to capture this day in your lives!! It’s an honor.

HUGE thanks to Kristin for shooting with me!

Vendor Info:

Dress: Priscilla of Boston
Shoes: Kate Spade
Handbag: Nordstom
Tuxes: Men’s Warehouse
Bridesmaids: Amsale at Nordstom Wedding Shop
Venue: Carnegie Institute
Caterer: Windows Catering Company
Cake: Windows Catering Company
Hair and Makeup: Alison Harper
Event Planning: Tracy Leaman, Events To A T
Flowers: Devers Design
Music: DJ ONE, Scratch DJ’s
Lighting: Nomad Events

So.  This one time… I fainted at a wedding.

Yeah.

Thankfully I was a second shooter, not the main shooter, and my body carried itself until dinner was just starting.  So, no one really noticed me.  It was a July wedding, and I had only had one glass of water and a banana at the start of the day.  The main shooter was one I admired very much and I was too nervous to eat anything else.  The ceremony was outside and the grounds where we were shooting were very sunny and had lots of little sunken gardens with stairs. Basically, I was getting a workout but not also refueling my body.  Towards the end of cocktail hour I started to feel like I might get sick.  I quickly asked a bar tender where the bathroom was, and walked into the house.  There was a line.  No way was I going to make it through the line.  I turned around and saw the Mistress of the House.  I asked her if there happened to be another bathroom.  She said there was one downstairs and extended her hands out to me.  I guess I had started to look a little woozy, and she tried to stable me.  Unfortunately, it was useless because I already started to see the black dots.  If you’ve ever fainted before, you know what I am referring to.  They creep in from the sides of your eyes and by the time they hit the middle, its over. You’re out.  And you probably fell and haven’t realized it yet.  Well, as she was extending her arms to help me, I started falling.  I kind of remember grabbing the wall to brace myself, and a few seconds later I woke up to her hovering over me.  Again, it was a huge blessing that I was not the main shooter and that dinner had just started.  This kind of behavior is in no way acceptable.  Yes, I am mad at myself because I could have prevented it.  For one, it’s unprofessional.  For two, it’s a distraction.  If I had been smart enough to bring some good snacks and just carry the stupid heavy water bottle with me, it wouldn’t have happened.  Did I immediately learn my lesson?  Nope.  Later that summer I almost fainted again during a portrait session.  Thankfully Jared was with me and was able to run over to a small store and grab me something before it happened.

I do know that I have low blood pressure, so that probably played a part, but the real reason was that I wasn’t drinking enough water and I wasn’t replacing sugars.  I have learned my lesson now.  I suck it up and carry water with me, and I bring a few choice snacks.  There are times when I forget, but I am a lot better now!  Here is what I have found works for me on wedding day…

Fruit Squeeze Pouches.

These are marketed towards children, but I find them perfect for adults.  I also eat them while working from home because I frequently forget to eat throughout the day.  On wedding day, I can quickly snap one open and down it in a few seconds.  They are made with veggies and fruits, basically just purees, and work really well for me!

Clif Shot Bloks.

These are marketed towards athletes.  Well, if you have ever shot a wedding in the summer, I would imagine it is kin to running some sort of long race. (Not that I would know )  Not only are you running around constantly, by your mind is flying so many miles per hour trying to keep track of the days schedule and what you forgot to do.  You sweat.  A lot.  These are little blocks of energy and are super helpful on wedding day.

Water.

Nothing beats water.  Sure there are sports drinks, but I find them too sweet for drinking throughout the entire day.   I try to drink at least 50 ounces while shooting.  That might be 24 oz before I start shooting, and I drink the rest at the reception, or it might be all throughout the day.  I also prepare the night before and drink tons of water.

What do you do to keep up energy?  Have you ever fainted at a really inappropriate moment?  Tell me in the comments!

I loved Nicole’s dress!! 

This necklace was her Grandmother’s, so beautiful. 

Because the property was small where Joe and Nicole got married, the groomsmen took extreme tactics to make sure he didn’t her before the ceremony.  You can see how this ends…

I love the one on the left! 

I am so thankful my clients care deeply about their pictures!  It was drizzling the entire day, but Nicole and Joe pushed through it because they wanted to get married the way the originally saw it.  Im so grateful!! 

Love this!  Coke is Joe’s favorite drink and their first date was the the Coca-Cola Museum in Atlanta.  It had to be part of their day! 

Nicole, you are so gorgeous!

A favorite!

Their favors were so sweet!  They had recipe’s printed up (coco-cola cupcakes, bbq, etc…) and tied them to individual coke bottles.

Nicole and I first met at a local coffee shop here in Richmond.  We sat outside and both pet every dog that walked by.  We chatted about a lot of things, but the thing I remember most is how Nicole talked about the family she was about to be a part of.  She talked about how they all had welcomed her so completely and that she was so excited to finally be a Teichman!  Their whole wedding day was filled with special touches that honored their relationship, their friends, and their families.  It was so special to be a part of it!!  I mentioned it before, but it was sprinkling for most of the day.  Right before the ceremony, I ran upstairs to see if Nicole had switched to their plan B which was to get married in the reception space.  She said, nope.  We want to get married the way we planned it.  The words came spilling out of my mouth, “Gosh, I just love you!”  Then I high-fived her.

Joe and Nicole, congratulations!! Thank you so much for choosing me to photograph this day.  I had a blast and can’t wait to see where the Lord leads you both!!

Vendor Info:

Venue: Celebrations, Manor House
Catering: Celebrations
Florist: Black Creek Flowers & Sweets
Cake: Cakes by Graham
Wedding Dress: Bella Rosa
Bridesmaids Dresses: Ann Taylor Loft
Groomsmen/Groom Suits: JC Penny
Hair: Lynne Jordan, Divine Design

On Monday, Jared turned the ripe old age of 27.  We celebrated with friends on Friday, and by ourselves on Sunday evening.  Such is the life of wedding photographers!  Before we headed out on our surprise birthday date on Sunday, I made Jared take some pictures with me.  He did well until I turned on continuous shooting and took about 50 pictures of him, getting increasingly annoyed, in about 30 seconds.  I should make a gif…  Totally a cheesy thing to do, taking self timer pictures on our front porch, but I want pictures of us at each stage of life.  I dont want to forget the little moments.

I dont want to get too sappy, but this blog also documents our life, so I do want to publicly wish him a happy birthday!  We have been married for almost 4 years now (June 5th is coming up!) and I can honestly say I love him more now than I ever have.  Someone recently asked on a forum that I am apart of, “who does more household work, you or your spouse?”  My first instinct is to say: ME!  But, after I really thought about it for a few minutes I realized the things I do around our house pale in comparison to the things Jared does for our family.  Acts of Service is my love language, and he loves me so well and I am so thankful for him.    We both believe that love is a choice, and I am so blessed that he chooses to love me, and works hard on our marriage.  He is definitely my best friend!

Happy birthday babe!  I love you very much and thank you for continuing to love me every day!!

Eeeks!! Super pumped to share the rest of this wedding with you!! 

I’ve said this before, but it is always a little nerve wracking to walk into wedding day never having photographed the couple getting married!  However, Adam and Andrea rocked it out for me!  I was so happy when we pulled up to the portrait spot location.  That is a DRIVEWAY.  Yeah.  A driveway.  Wasn’t it incredible though?! I loved it.   At the end of the reception, I found myself jokingly asking Andrea’s Dad if I could be a part of their family.  They all love each other so hard, and make the most of everything, which I think was really evident in the Father/Daughter Dance.  They were both just belting out the song together!  Adam and Andrea have the same friend group which made the toasts extra fun.  Each person had such great stories on BOTH of them.   One of my favorite parts of the whole night though was the game the DJ had them play.  He tried to trick Andrea, by getting Adam to move around after she had already chosen his leg as his, but she picked right again the second time! So funny.

Congratulations Adam and Andrea!! It was an honor to photograph your wedding!! I hope you love the pictures as much as I do!!

Huge thanks to Kristin for shooting with me!

Vendor Info:
Dress: Davids Bridal
Tux: Vera Wang for Men’s Warehouse
Bride’s Shoes: Sperry Top-Siders
Florist: Pollard’s Florist
Cake: Couture Cakes by Nika
Venue: Newport News Marriott at City Center
Hair: Shelly at The Jagged Edge
Event Planning: Theresa Hoffman
DJ: Mark Bradley

Steven and Darcey are full of GRACE.  We had to reschedule their engagement session twice before we were able to get it done!  The first time was on me, I pulled a muscle in my neck and wasn’t able to get out of bed for 4 days, and the second time was due to rain.  But, we did do the session, and it was perfect!  It had been rainy earlier that day, but Darcey and I were determined to power through and do this no matter what!  I am so thankful for my clients.  They are the best!

My absolute favorite moments of their session were when I asked them to snuggle up together.  I could hear Darcey whispering to Steven that she loved him, and was thankful for him, and that she could be snuggled up like this for forever with him.  YEAH.  I have the best clients!!  Enjoy my favorites!!

Excited for their wedding in June!!  

Its going to be great!

Another new thing on the blog!  As I said in a previous blog post, I have been feeling drawn to offering different types of sessions, and senior sessions are included! I’ve done them before, but never shown them.  I am of the camp, if you dont want to shoot it, dont show it.  I had a really hilarious time walking around with Arianna, her sister and her mom during this session.  Im pretty sure my sides hurt the next day from all the laughing.  We were trying to get Arianna to laugh and her sister ended up finding a comedy routine and following us around while playing it loudly on her phone.  :-) It was so great.  Arianna is headed to Liberty in the fall to study photography!  Enjoy some of my favorites…

Today’s post is one that I have been contemplating blogging about for a few weeks, and have finally just decided to just do it.  Im not entirely sure what was holding me back other than its a more personal part of my life, directly related to my faith, and I don’t often share that in this particular space.  But, I do want to share this with you.  Whether you believe in God or not, whether you think the bible is legitimate or not, I really believe that this topic covers a broad spectrum of people.  Christian, or not.

Our small group (gathering of people from our church who we “do life” with, meet with on a regular basis, and take care of one another) has been going through a series by North Point Ministries where Andy Stanley is a pastor.  You may have heard or him, or not.  His sermons and series are gaining more attention and I have yet to hear one that I don’t agree with wholeheartedly.  The current series we are going through is titled…

Breathing Room.

The entire series is about how we like to pack in as much as possible, check off our to do lists, and end up missing out on real life things that actually matter.  In the first sermon he quotes a Hospice nurse who has written books on her experience.  As she spends time with people who are in their last days, she would ask many of them what they would do differently or if they had any regrets.  The number one regret?  They worked too hard/too much.  She says that every single male she spoke with mentioned this.  Women did as well, but every. single. male. said that to her.

You have to come at this in a balanced way of course.  This is not an excuse to be lazy, or to say you are just going to hang out all the time.  For one, life just doesn’t work that way.  And, if you are Christian, that isn’t what God says about work.  However, God did create a sabbath.  He forced his people to stop working, and trust him.  For me, thinking about taking a day off sends me into a panicky place.  I may start sweating, start creating lists of how to catch up, and rush to my computer to “just do a couple more things.”  Can you imagine living thousands of years ago where LITERALLY if you don’t work you dont eat?  That is a different kind of panic, yes?  But, God said…rest. Take a day and rest.  Trust me to provide and rest.

If you’re not Christian, this idea of rest is still super important, which you probably already know.  Running yourself ragged is a sorry way to live life.  Its a sorry way to treat your spouse and loved ones.  Its a sorry way to treat yourself.

Everyone has limits, yes?  And, everyone’s limits are different.  Some of my friends in this industry travel all over, teach photographers multiple times a year, shoot double the weddings I do, do life things like family events, church activities, etc… and are happy in that place.  Me?  Thats not for me.  I like shooting 20 weddings a year, and taking on one to two second shooters to pour into throughout the season.  Thats about my limit as far as work goes.  Because if I added any more it would take away from the other things that are oh-so important to me: spending LOTS of quality time with our church family, our biological families, serving in our church, alone time to recharge, time to work in the yard, time to work on our house, etc…

We need to have breathing room in our lives.  We need to have some space between the pace we are running our lives at now, versus our limits.  Jared and I have been working on this for the past few weeks, adding new boundaries to our lives.  We no longer are allowed to be on our phones while ALSO watching TV.  We put our phones away within 30 minutes of finishing the work day so we can really be focusing on each other and talking with one another.  We don’t pull our phones out when we are at dinner with friends, or with each other.  Except for the Camera App (NOT Instagram) and to answer calls/texts.  Are you noticing a theme?  For us, our phones, aka Social Media Apps, are what keep us from having that breathing room.  We waste so much time on them, and it’s for nothing.  I want to challenge anyone reading, Christian or not, to really consider the breathing room in your life.  If you have some time, watch the series.  It’s WONDERFUL.  Truly.  Or, just watch the intro…it’s really funny!!

Anyone else have rules like this?  Are you successful in it? Have you been thinking about this, but not acted on it yet?

Y’all. This was one GORGEOUS wedding!
I’m excited to share the rest with you soon!!

Something new on the blog today!  For the past few years, I have only shown wedding photography here on the blog.  I did that because that is what I wanted to be shooting and I think showing other work on your blog that you DON’T want to shoot is just asking for a flood of emails from prospective clients that you are going to turn down.  I have done family photography and senior photography, but I haven’t really shown anything on the blog because I wanted to focus on weddings.  That is changing though!  Lately I have been super interested in broadening my reach, and would love to start shooting other kinds of portraits! Maternity, Senior, Family, Newborn, etc… There are a lot of rules out there that you have to shoot one thing, become an expert in that area, and then only shoot that.  Well, I agree with that for the most part, but I also know that following my instinct will always be my best bet. A lot of my couples actually say to me after their wedding, what am I going to do when we have kids?  I need you to be our photographer!  I am so thankful that Andrew and Catherine trusted me to capture this special time in their life!  They are expecting a baby boy in June!  Andrew is the older brother of one of Jared and I’s closest friends.  We couldn’t be more excited for their family!! Enjoy some of my favorites!

Congratulations Sledd’s!!

This past weekend I had a double header, so today you get to have TWO wedding peeks to enjoy!!

More coming soon!

I know this post is coming late, but its worth it!! Cait and Mason are both nurses at MCV and on the morning of their engagement session, I was a little worried.  The weather wasn’t looking great, and finding another time that worked for all 3 of us would prove to be tricky.  We were all so thankful that it was just cloudy and the session went off without a hitch!  Its always special when couples choose to bring their pets with them, and I fell in love with Chewey.  He whines, a lot.  And while people who are around him more often may find it getting silly after a while, I found it to be endearing.  Perhaps that’s all part of his plan!  Every time he whined a little bit, I just wanted to cover him in kisses!  Future couples reading this, bring your pets with you!! I love it!

Enjoy some of my favorites!

More of Mason and Cait coming in June!! Excited!