July 26 Wedding

These are some recent photos from a small wedding I shot at the Golden Horseshoe Inn on July 26, 2012.  It was a lot of fun shooting there as always.  There are so many indoor and outdoor settings that are excellent backdrops for photography and the furniture and decorations there are gorgeous.  Please enjoy this small collection. 

The Bride's dress with Pink Cowboy Boots.  I have photographed many brides who have chosen to wear vibrant colored footwear underneath their dress.  The Pink, you will see, ties in nicely to the bouquet and wedding cake.

 

I love the color and composition of this simple cake photographed with the Champagne glasses and fern in the background.

 The vibrant colors of this bouquet really stand out when photographed with the Bride's wedding dress as a backdrop.

I have always loved veils photographed in Black and White.  The detail of the folds can easily be seen.  This was a close up shot of the bride positioned sitting on an ornate chair.  

"I Do" Glittery lettering on the bottoms of the Bride's Cowboy Boots.  We also had some fun by crossing her feet creating the words "Do I".  

 

Post Ceremony Photography at the front entrance of Golden Horseshoe Inn.  With a hint of ferns in the picture tying to the stems and foliage of the Bride's Bouquet.

It was a hot one on this day.  We used this white umbrella to keep the sun off and get some lovely pictures in the Gardens.  

This is truly a Musical Chair.  The natural light lends a warm touch to this photograph of the Bouquet.

We took some photos of the Bride seated in the gardens.  The trees and natural backdrop really let the subject stand out.

I photographed the Groom by himself in front of these white columns.  Shown here in black and white keeping the color and composition uniform.

We photographed the couple's hands, bouquet, and rings together for this shot.

 I have photographed a lot of rings on the bible and was pleased with this photo of the hands, rings, and bouquet.  This was a really nice angle to pull off all of the elements.  

Come As You Are

How many times have you been told "Just Be Yourself!" or "Do What Makes You Happy!"?  Weddings should be no exception.  For many brides, the wedding day is celebrated with a physical transformation complete with wedding gown, jewelry, new shoes, hair, makeup and a bouquet.  It is almost as if they become a new person for the day.  In choosing what you will wear for your wedding, it is possible to maintain your person style and still look radiant.  The traditional white dress, although beautiful and symbolic, has become the "norm".  But it's not for everybody.  It is important, that your wedding day and ceremony are meaningful and reflect who you are as a person as well.

Shooting small weddings, I have had the great opportunity to meet a diverse group of people.  I was extremely excited to work with this bride who was recently married at the Golden Horseshoe Inn in Stanardsville, Virginia.  Her personality and style go uncompromised in her choices. 

I love the way this bride's tattoo is left uncovered by her choice of dress.  If your body art is prominent and can't be covered, you can try and find a way to accentuate or feature it.  

The shoulder tattoo appears to be a natural part of this beautiful black lace-up dress. 

You can enhance your look and compliment your arms by adding a pair of long bridal gloves.

Dangling earrings are an excellent choice of ornamentation for brides who choose not to wear a veil.

Wearing a multi-color bridal dress can really make your patterns stand out.  Here, you can see how the gloves and the dress compliment one another. 

As a composition, you can see from this photo of the bride looking out of the window how your personal style can really shine through the everyday wedding dress.

The hair clip and necklace complete the look for this strapless dress ornamenting the hair and neck for portrait photography.

 

 This bride's look and feel was very natural and relaxed. 

 A comfortable bride is a happy bride!

It is amazing how all of these colors and contrasts come together in this photograph.  Simply beautiful.

During the vows, you can see how the Bridal Gloves add a touch of elegance to the hands. 

As a Bride embarking in a new stage of your life, I challenge you to find a way to let your personality shine.  The best way to enjoy your day is to be yourself and come as you are.

Family Photos at Home

Have you ever looked through your grandparents old photo albums?  I have recently and it was special for me to see them photographed where they lived and what they wore.  It was like a glimpse at what their lives were like.  These days, it is often hard to get the whole family to step out of their routine and away from work together long enough for pictures.  Some of the best pictures can come from home where you are the most comfortable.  Just like the good old days.  I recently visited "the farm" to take some family portraits for a client.  I love photographing in rustic settings.  There are many colorful and interesting things to shoot or use for a backdrops and with a little love, they just might grow into a wonderful shot.  These are some of my favorites from the day!

 

This was only a portion of the pedal tractors this grandfather had collected over the years.   He has crafted some of tractors and implements himself.  This set of photographs also made for an excellent series of black and whites.

We moved to the front of an old weathered barn that has seen many years for these next few photos.  This was one of the few locations I had scouted where we could escape the glare of the sun overhead.  The knots and separating grain of the wood made for an excellent backdrop here as I snapped this shot of the youngest member of the family.

I changed the angle here to accent the contrasting planks of wood.  As you can see, those old boards look as fantastic in Black and White as they do in color.  

 

A change of angle again gives us part of the old barn door as a backdrop for father and daughter.  

 

Taking a lower stance, I was able to shoot upwards for this shot and show the open loft door and the undersides of the eaves which made for an interesting composition.  This particular image was partially converted to black and white and the shirts were left in color to draw your attention to father and son.

For this photo of mother and son, I had this young man stand on and old timber that lay at the base of the barn.  This brought them to more of an equal height for a better portrait. 

 

We switched directions and crossed the driveway into the sunlight for this group shot with the trees in the background for something a little more vibrant.  

 

Next, we moved back into the shade to take some portraits on this restored tractor.  I love to shoot machinery as well and took some close ups while the family changed into their work and everyday cloths for a few more photographs.

 

This is a black and white showing a little more of the mechanics of the tractor.

 We took many photos with the tractor.  This is one of the few I got with the father by himself.  The sun was getting pretty low on the horizon at this point and I used this angle to stay in the shade of the covered building  to keep from shooting directly into the sun.

This was one of the last photos of the day and came by chance.  The daughter had taken a break to lay in the grass while I prepared to photograph her parents.  Realizing that you can never really escape the camera, she gave this smile as I laid down in the grass as well to snap a photo of her in her straw hat.

All of this smiling makes for a long afternoon.  This photo in a seated position allowed me to use the holly bushes in front of their home for a backdrop.   So the next time you are thinking about family portraits, consider your own back yard.  They are a timeless snapshot of who you are for generations to come.