Some of our favorite brides are the ones who seem to know exactly what they want, and want to make sure that everyone knows what they want. Cynthia was unique in that she provided all of her wedding vendors with a detailed schedule, a ceremony layout (color-coded) and a reception layout.
Up on the fourth floor of the Clarion in Shepherdstown, Cynthia was made up, dressed, veiled and powdered. Okay, maybe not powdered. Anyway, there were a lot of people making sure she looked her best.
The ceremony went well. I’m not sure how, but the couple was pronounced, and kissed before their rings were exchanged. Maybe there was a hiccup?
Formals are always a lot of fun. But when I started commenting on how cute a couple they were, they started getting mushy. It relaxed the mood a bit, and we got through formals in record time.
The first dance is often special for everyone. One of our favorite DJs brought along his colored light shows, and I took advantage of them to add a little color to this shot.
Cynthia and Daniel were going to wait to honeymoon.
All the preparations for any wedding cannot prepare you for everything that might happen. But the beauty and grace still goes forward, as it did for Amy and Mark today.
Amy and Mark reside in Jefferson County, WV.
My first time in St. James Catholic Church (the new one) in Ranson, WV. It’s rather an inspiring scene. When we first walked in, the lights were off. Someone there (I couldn’t see them) asked if I wanted the lights on. Well, yes. This made me happy. 🙂
There are often inspiring moments throughout the service. I respect the sanctity of any wedding service, regardless where it is held. There are some moments that are more special than others.
During formals I sometimes have the opportunity to just look around and capture what is going on. This shot, of the bride (obviously) was a catch, not posed. The light was just beautiful on her.
It seems like every wedding has its challenges with the dress. This scene is so typical of a bustling, as every gets involved.
We want to wish Julia and David a happy life together. They were planning a family shortly after their nuptials.
Amy wanted unique bridal portraits. We spent an hour or so in the studio, but then went to a local farm property to do some more portraits. I was kind of in photographer heaven, because there was a pond, ducks, geese, a cat, a barn, and – well you get the point.
Setting up most shots involved nothing more than taking a position and telling the bride to be happy. This particular shot was made late in the day, which gave me some great shadow lines and a hazy sky.
This image, with some enhancement, is more in the fantasy realm. But with the swans on the right edge and the reflection of Amy in the pond, this could not have been a better scenario.
Amy was a wonderful subject, and she braved some cooler weather to take the kind of pictures that she wanted. The second picture shows her wearing a lovely hooded cape that she found online. Quite the shopper.
Amy’s wedding is on January 5, 2008.
Trully one of the biggest blessings a photographer such as myself can receive around the holidays is a wedding where there is a combination of challenges. The biggest challenge at this wedding was there were a LOT of people, and the reception was at the house. 🙂
Getting the bride into her dress was easy. But it seems like every wedding dress has some small button, zipper, latch or hook that is impossible to reach somehow. Here, two of her sisters help fasten the dress before she finishes getting ready. A word of praise for a busy bride, though. She also helped get her young son and daughter ready to go, as well.
This was right after Tracy came down the stairs. There is a small candle-style bulb just below the staircase that was casting this soft light onto the bride.
The staircase was a natural posing point. This is one of a series of about ten images we did on the stairs.
At the reception, there was a lot to do and see. The groom, who helped make quite a mess with the cake, was also quite willing to help clean up. It was a fun moment.
I like home weddings a lot, because you never really know what to expect. But then, I like every wedding for one reason or another.
Many years ago, Sandi worked in our production department and kept things pretty well taken care of. We were sad to see her go, but glad she has found her niche in life. Sandi is just the sweetest person, and Chris seems so completely devoted to her.
This was a wedding reception for family, friends, and coworkers. Sandi and Chris were married in Jamaica in October, where some close family attended. But being who they are, they wanted to share their joy with everyone else, too.
We were grateful to be on hand to not only share their happiness, but to capture a few portraits and memories to put in one of Sandi’s many (many, many) books.
A lovely time was had by all as Witt and Gary tied the knot at Three Onions restaurant in Shepherdstown. Since Diana and I were also guests, I photographed their intimate ceremony and pictures of very close family and friends. Afterward we had a yummy brunch meal and more laughter and fun.
I don’t think there was a single photo that Witt and Gary didn’t like.
Congratulations, you two!
I love working with people who know what they want, and who aren’t afraid to express their ideas. Sarah wanted me as her photographer, and made sure I understood that she didn’t want to have to select posing and tell me what to do and when. That makes my job a lot easier, because I can look around and see what works best.
My coverage for this wedding was short, but we managed quite a bit in that time. The picture below is of the groom just moments before he was to enter the church. A few well-placed jokes by his groomsmen was why he had the smirk.
The ceremony was practically seamless. There usually ends up being something that comes up, but not here. Both were a bit nervous, but everything went off well.
We took a few more portraits after the wedding, and they seemed so much more relieved to have the ceremony part of their day done. The bright sunshine gave us plenty of warmth, but also a little challenge here and there.
Once at the reception, I was only there for an hour. Their first dance was a particular favorite of mine because they laughed, teased and danced throughout. They enjoyed it so much, they came back a few songs later. Here, Sarah is probably telling Dave that the salad had red onions and she specifically asked for yellow ones.
Or maybe not.
I was very happy when I got a note from Sarah just a few days after the wedding:
“I was blown away by the photographs! I wasn’t expecting to get many pictures from the ceremony, because you were so discreet. But, there were so many good shots. As a journalist, I can really respect that. Thank you for your professional demeanor and wonderful photography!”
Well, Sarah you are quite welcome. It was my honor and pleasure to capture your wedding memories.
Sentimentality is one of the reasons I’m still doing weddings after 25 years. And if there was anything missing from this wedding, it certainly wasn’t sentiment. Another later in life couple, Shannon and Dave are a very special duo.
Before the wedding, a few of the bridal party members started the celebration early. I wasn’t supposed to let you know that. But hey, it was truly a celebration.
Shannon was very emotional coming down the aisle. But Dave was quick to say something to make her smile and settle into their ceremony. It was made more solemn when a candle was lit in honor of fallen parents.
Peek-A-Boo!
A beautiful location at the Bavarian Inn in Shepherdstown lended itself well to images like this. It’s easy to see how happy they were.
The toast was also emotion-filled, but brought out the best in everyone. The reception began shortly after that, and there was plenty of time for talking with old friends, relatives and others.
We have enjoyed working with Shannon and Dave, and look forward to prints, albums and other things from their wedding.
How often do you go to a wedding and think “how could this be more perfect?”
If you’d gone to this wedding today, you would have thought exactly that. The sky was like a huge bright sapphire, the breeze was just about right, and the temperature and humidity were practically tailor-made. Just look at how beautiful that sky was!
Danielle came to us through referrals via magazine work we had done and the wedding work we also do. It was as important a wedding as any other, but somehow this one just seemed charmed. I spent a lot of time on the floor trying to get the right set of images that brought out the beauty of the front of this church.
Because we were fortunate enough to have a beautiful day, I asked the happy couple to take a walk with me after the wedding. At one point we stopped and I was a few feet below them and was making some adjustments to my camera. They looked at each other for a moment, pausing to ask what they should be doing at this point – and then did exactly what I’d hoped for, an impromptu kiss.
I haven’t met too many bridal parties that were so devoted and committed to the bride and groom. Here, Danielle poses with the TWO bridesmaids who caught the bouquet. Unusual, yes… but certainly a lot of fun.
Being afforded the opportunity and time to take some really nice portraits for Danielle and Ronnie gave us time to explore the surrounding woods at the reception site. Danielle ended up with a little tree sap in her hair, which also ended up on my shirt. But the images we got from this location was worth a little sap.
Interestingly, as I was showing some of the images from the wedding to Diana, this one moved her to tears. I suppose there is no greater compliment to me than to take an image that Diana finds such joy with.
It was a great wedding with a wonderful group of people. Don’t get me started on the cake incident or the band leader. Those are stories that you will have to wait for my memoirs on. 🙂
Up on the fourth floor of the Clarion in Shepherdstown, Cynthia was made up, dressed, veiled and powdered. Okay, maybe not powdered. Anyway, there were a lot of people making sure she looked her best.
The ceremony went well. I’m not sure how, but the couple was pronounced, and kissed before their rings were exchanged. Maybe there was a hiccup?
Formals are always a lot of fun. But when I started commenting on how cute a couple they were, they started getting mushy. It relaxed the mood a bit, and we got through formals in record time.
The first dance is often special for everyone. One of our favorite DJs brought along his colored light shows, and I took advantage of them to add a little color to this shot.
