allie + allan = married! cary wedding photographer

Hoo-boy, was this wedding amazing! The weather was perfect. The venue was amazing! The guests were so much fun! The bride and groom were stunning! And the lighting was unreal--I loved every picture-snapping second of it!

It took place at the incredible Page-Walker Arts & History Center in downtown Cary, the same place where we took Allie's bridal portraits. I can't say enough good things about this venue--so many great details, the amazing setup, the way the light looks when the sun sets--me oh my!

But let's get to the couple, shall we? This is Allie and Allan's favorite picture from their day. And it very well be mine, too. I love the way they're looking at each other!



and these napkins made me smile--and were great for a ring shot!



And there's a few things you should know about these photos...yes, everything really was that pretty. The dress, the rings, the gals--and yes, even the cupcakes. And yes, you're right about those both being the Mountaineers. They have an ongoing debate about who the real Mountaineers are--hence the picture.



Thanks again Allie and Allan!

lindsay + bob = married! cary wedding photographer

The Matthews House in Cary is GORGEOUS! I was amazed by all of the thought they put into every single detail of the day!

And Lindsay and Bob were ROCK STARS! I felt like I was working with real models--and I loved it! Check out their awesomeness!




I could've blogged all day about their wedding--the sentimental details (including the prayer book), the emotional moments, the crazy games of bamboozle, the hilarious groomsmen, the crazy dancing, and more! LOVE it! Go check out more of their photos in my recent weddings section here!

michele + quent = married! raleigh wedding photographer

what an amazing saturday afternoon! and an amazing couple! michele and quent were married in raleigh at pleasant grove united methodist church--the sun was shining, the breeze was blowing and the light was incredible!



I loved that they served danny's bar-b-que at their reception--what a southern touch! it was held at the raleigh elks lodge and both the reception area and the grounds were gorgeous! I loved it that there were so many special touches for their day--they gave away seed paper flowers, michele had her grandmothers' pins on her bouquet and quent even found a penny (heads up!) when we were doing some of the couple pictures! such a special day, indeed :)

lauren + pat =married! mebane wedding photographer

if I had to sum up lauren and pat's wedding in a word, that word would be incredible--the venue was picturesque, I loved the colors, lauren looked radiant, pat looked polished, and it was a sunny (and hot!) day! I loved it that everyone partied the night away too!

and pine lake pavilion was just fantastic! the light in the trees, the details of the venue, and just the overall gorgeousness--I was blown away!

I had been looking forward to this wedding for over a year--and especially since I did their engagement photos! and it did not disappoint :)



I must say--the guys totally rocked their pink, yes? and the horse drawn carriage was unbelievable! and at the bottom, those are lauren's something olds--so sweet!

love these? go check out the rest of their wedding under "recent weddings" here!

kristin + erik = married! charleston wedding photographer

you've seen their engagement photos, now it's time for their wedding. it was a hot afternoon in charleston, but it quickly led into a beautiful evening, complete with a light breeze and gorgeous light for their rooftop wedding at the harbor club. kristin looked amazing in her adorable gown, and erik couldn't stop smiling!



it was at this wedding that I was reminded of how important photographers are--how we have the duty and privilege of capturing the moments that people spent hours and hours crafting, but also the moments that the bride and groom never thought of, or, most importantly, those they never saw coming. In this case it was when erik kissed kristin's hand during a prayer (which totally brought tears to my eyes) and the horse and carriage that the maid of honor surprised them with when they exited!

and I loved loved LOVED that they had someone doing caricatures at their wedding. His name was Chad Straka, and you can see his website here. I thought this was a totally fun idea for a wedding favor--and judging by the line to get them done, I think the guests agreed!

it was also pretty awesome to photograph this wedding because these two are/were, literally, my next door neighbors! they now live in a home about a two minute walk away in the same neighborhood, and I love seeing them and hearing how they're enjoying their photos! it always makes me smile :)

katie + ben = married! durham wedding photographer

you already saw katie and ben's engagement photos--now it's time for their lovely, lovely wedding!



I loved all of the details of their wedding, some of which aren't pictured here. Katie's dress had a blue bow and a piece of her mother's dress sewn into the lining. Ben had special earrings for her to open during their first look. Their bubbles were placed in the shape of a heart, they had an awesome candy table and it seemed like every single element had special meaning--I loved it! And a super-shout out to these two for their thoughtfulness--they put extra thought into where we should sit and we had an excellent time with our kickball-playing tablemates :)

sarah + evan = married! blowing rock wedding photographer

I just love the mountains of north carolina. maybe it's because they are still a novel thing to me--in tulsa we had plenty of rolling hills and lots of shoreline from our lakes and rivers, but I rarely saw real mountains. and there's such an awesome vibe when you travel out west--I just love it!

so of course I was thrilled when sarah and evan's wedding rolled around! I had such fun doing their engagement photos and their wedding was simply gorgeous. see?



also, that top left picture of her dress in a bathtub? tells you just how awesome sarah is! I told her what I wanted to do and, without batting an eye, sarah said "do whatever you want, I trust you completely." and now that is my favorite dress picture EVER. :D

one other awesome thing about this wedding was the venue! It was a lovely little city park and the wedding was on a little peninsula of land with a gazebo. and this wedding helps me answer a question I get all the time. first, the picture:


More often than not I get asked "do I want/need/have to have a second shooter?" It's a totally fair question--weddings have budgets and second shooters cost money! But if you have a second shooter, you can often get perspectives like you do here. These were taken within two seconds of one another. And in this case, my second shooter was my fabulous husband Matt, who second-shoots for me 95% of the time! :)

There are a ton of other amazing moments from Sarah and Evan's wedding I'd like to share with you--and you can see them on my wedding website, under "recent weddings." Go check it out!

karen + rich = married! kernersville wedding photographer

this was such a fun wedding--it was my first of the year, which is a treat in itself, but I also got to document two of my friends getting married!

it was a bit of a stressful day--Rich hails from England, and that volcano with the unpronounceable name threatened to spoil their hope of having all of their family in! But nearly all of them made it in on the first flight to RDU (which I thought was particularly interesting since the purchaser of this ring took the first flight OUT of RDU to London!) It was certainly a joyous occasion, and I knew they would rock the pictures--because they did such an awesome job at their engagement shoot last fall!

he looked handsome.


she looked breathtaking.


and they had a lot of fun!

there were lots of beautiful details, too!

want to see more from their fabulous day? Well....I waited until my first wedding was complete to announce this, but you can see them all at MY NEW WEDDING SITE! check them out under "recent weddings!" I am so excited to have it up and running!

Congrats again, you two! I will always remember your wedding anniversary (it's a week after ours) and I wish us both many, many happy years!

lauren and pat: chapel hill engagement photographer

this was a really fun session! lauren and pat were up for anything, and we got some AMAZING light while we took pictures together. we headed to downtown chapel hill and enjoyed all the area had to offer.



they are such a handsome couple!




and clearly very much in love.




and this is one of my faves from the day. lauren and pat weren't too sure about it when I said "let's take some on the rusty stairs"--heck, even I was just taking advantage of what inspired me! but they obliged, and we are all REALLY pleased with how they turned out!



their doggies, brady and kali, joined us for part of the session. the pups were not really into the whole picture taking part--there was so much to check out! but they cooperated and we got some cute ones of the whole family.





and this bench, right here, is why we chose the location. this is where pat proposed, right at this very spot!



and here's a classic UNC Engagement shot--at The Old Well.



I can't wait for your wedding in August! Really looking forward to it!

ashley and marshall: dallas engagement photographer

marshall contacted me a few months ago to see if I would come to Dallas to shoot his and Ashley's engagement photos, and I couldn't've been more flattered! he and I knew each other in college at The University of Tulsa and had only been in touch on Facebook since. He said he knew I would put them at ease, and I think I did, because we spent the whole time cracking up! :)

I mean, probably a third of the pictures I took look like the one in the upper right hand corner--where both of them are laughing! You can tell they really have fun together!



And the black and white sheep--well, there's a story. And the short version is that they're special to them and that Marshall is the "black sheep"--so of course these sheep had to make a cameo! I love it when clients bring object that have special meaning to them--it adds so much to the photos!





this is one of my favorites--and one of theirs too. such sweetness!


and is this adorable or what?


you all were such a delight, thanks again for letting me be a part of your engagement celebration!!

little lexie-cary newborn photographer

little lexie's daddy and I worked together at my first engineering job. her daddy is a hoot and her mom is a sweetheart and I'm thinking she's going to take after both of them :)

when I got there she was sooooo chill.


and sooooo precious. check out that hat!


is lexie cute as a button or what?


and here she is with her mom and dad--just precious!


their dog, Doc, was AMAZING. he was always keeping an eye on us and was willing to do whatever we needed. including model with some blocks :)





more sweet parent time





and some sock monkey love.


this one makes me smile every time I see it!


and the family feet--SO CUTE!


greg, heather and lexie I had such a great time with you guys! thanks for letting me be a part of this special moment in your lives!

leah and jeff--cermony and reception: durham wedding photographer

if you missed the beginning of this fantastic wedding, go take a gander here!

the light that evening was just GORGEOUS! the weather was just amazing too--you could not have asked for a better evening temperature for an outdoor fall wedding! and that huge tree at the front was so majestic--what a beautiful backdrop for starting your new life together!



and such a sweet kiss!


here's the whole wedding party--did they look amazing or what?


the blushing bride, the dashing groom and the elegant cake topper--wow!


as the light faded and we moved indoors for the night, I was just bowled over by how varied and beautiful the Washington Duke Inn is on the inside. And some of the staff members were just SO polite and helpful--and I really appreciated that! They made me feel right at home and like I was an honored guest at the same time! :) but moving on...

the ballroom was pretty incredible. I loved the magnificent chandelier! here's jeff and leah's first dance


and the ring shot. I was pretty pleased with this one--there were M&Ms in their favors, so I just couldn't help myself!


loving this wedding? want to see more? go check out my cream o' the crop section to see more of the goodness from this wedding!