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Emina + Aaron’s wedding – West Belmont Place, Leesburg, VA

From my first meeting with Emina it was obvious how excited she was to marry Aaron. And on their wedding day, her smile just never quit. Except to shed a few tears during their first look and during their family toasts. It didn’t turn out to be a sunny day but a few raindrops didn’t linger to interfere with the outdoor ceremony at West Belmont Park, a conference center in Leesburg. And of course, we had to take advantage of the fall foliage for their portraits! The venue had an interesting mix of industrial looking concrete (I love the couple photos taken against a large cement wall) and a pretty line of trees just a short walk away. There were lots of special fall touches throughout the ceremony and reception—pumpkins of all sizes, candy apples and a nice contrast with a bright pop of green for the bridal party. The party continued into the night with a crowded dance floor and an impromptu Hora ending with a sparkler sendoff and one of my favorite photos of the night of the couple under the lit awning near the ballroom.

Wedding and Reception West Belmont Place, Leesburg, VA coordinator Rachael Rutherford 570.442.3679

Florist Karin’s Florist Vienna, VA 703.667.4782

Hair by Natasha 571.426.1771

Makeup by Tommy Price 202.557.9754

DJ Chuck Miller with Washington Talent Agency 240.997.1789

Cake Fluffy Thoughts McLean 703.942.5538

Chu + David engagement session – Meadowlark Gardens Vienna, VA

A little mid-week love from my recent engagement session with Chu + David. Lovely late August blooms at the park and three wardrobe changes made for some very cute photos. Looking forward to their wedding coming up in just a few weeks.

Elizabeth + Gene’s Leesburg, Virginia wedding

Elizabeth and Gene planned a small, family only wedding. First was their ceremony at the historic and charming chapel of their church adjacent to Oatlands. Nexct came a lovely outdoor late luncheon filled with laughter and toasts. And finally, a party under a tent on the rolling hills of their stunning Aldie home. The twist came when it was revealed to those invited to the party that the couple had gotten married earlier in the day. Everything throughout the day was impeccable. From the flower arrangements on the lunch table laid out on a burlap runner to the backdrop of their property with an historic main stone house, red barns and a pretty pond overlooking a wide expanse of land. It was also a treat for me to catch up with Molly and Chris, Gene’s daughter and son-in-law and their growing family. I photographed their wedding in my first year in business!

And with this blog post I am off on a family vacation to California for two weeks to watch my daughter swim in a national swim meet (go Hannah!) and then to be a tourist in LA and San Fran. If you want to find out what we’re doing, follow  me on Instagram at deblindsey! And stay tuned for lots more great weddings to come this fall 🙂

Wedding Church of Our Saviour – Oatlands Leesburg, VA

Reception Private Residence, Aldie, VA

Caterer Savoir Fare Limited 540.338.8300

Flowers Petals and Hedges 540.882.9113

Band Retrospect 301.438.2400

 

 

 

Susan + Jason’s wedding – Airlie Center – Warrenton, Virginia

Airlie Center in Warrenton is a bit of a hike but such a beautiful place. Airlie in the spring with everything is bloom is a photographer’s paradise. Add a beautiful bride and a handsome groom and it’s hard to make bad photos. It had been about a year and a half since I’d been to Airlie so I was excited to be back for Susan + Jason’s wedding. From their vows in the garden to wandering the grounds to make romantic portraits, it was just a perfect day. I loved their special touches like Jason’s bespoke suit made especially for the wedding and those adorable flower girls who amazingly all made it down the aisle. It was great to be working again with Elizabeth Duncan who made the day run like clockwork!

Wedding and Reception venue Airlie Center Lisa Albert 540-347-1300

Event coordinator Elizabeth Duncan 202.243.9985

Florist: Growing Wild Barbara Von Elm 540.364.6246

Make-up Tica Beauty – Marti

Hair  PR & Partners – Alicia Esposito

DJ Musical DJs – Matt

Cake: Heidelberg Bakery

Photography Deb Lindsey Photography + Preston Keres

 

 

Ariana + Al’s wedding – Goose Creek Gardens + Pavillion – Ashburn, Virginia

It’s hard to predict in any given year how many weddings I’ll photograph and which will be my busiest months. Early spring is not generally the most popular time but this year seems to be the exception. And that fact that Ariana found me less than a month before her wedding was a pleasant surprise in an already busy April. And I was especially pleased to find out that she’d been following my work since I photographed her former co-worker Lindsay Nalevanko’s wedding in 2008. And as any frequent blog reader would know, this the same Lindsay who has referred more Virginia Tech brides to me than I can count! Ariana and Al’s wedding was an great mix of Persian and Midwestern culture and made for a very interesting wedding ceremony. The highlight (at least photographically) was the couple at the Sofreh, the elaborate floor spread of food and symbolic decorations. As they sit under a canopy, women who are happily married take sugar cones and softly grind them together above the bride and bridegroom’s head as one of several assurances of a sweet life together. All was going according to tradition until the canopy drooped lower and lower until Ariana was completely hunched over and laughing. It’s definitely one of my favorite photos of the day. There were a few other mishaps during the ceremony—a mirror and a light knocked over, Dad stepping on Ariana’s train—but the couple took it all in with humor. The groom’s Midwest roots were on display with the reception tables named for Ohio sports heros past and present and a bottle of Cleveland whisky and Great Lakes Beer. There was a delicious Persian buffet, lots of Persian dancing on the dance floor and after cutting the cake the couple was showered with rose petals and they danced. I was warned before the wedding that it would be hard to get Al to smile in photos…being photographed is not one of his favorite things. I’m happy to report that I succeeded more than once although I heard later that his gift to Ariana was that he would smile in photos all day long. He was pretty happy…I don’t think he had to try that hard…

Wedding and reception site Goose Creek Gardens & Pavillion, Ashburn, Virginia 703.801.0801

Caterer Farzaneh Catering, Fairfax, Virginia 703.402.5671

Florist Maryam Flowers, Fairfax, Virginia 703.980.2034

Music Violin Soloist during ceremony and cocktail – Chelle Fiddler, 301.366.5579 and DJ Dariush 240.372.8388

Cake Custom Cakes & Confections, 703.326.9235

Happy New Year (baby)!

After a wonderful time over the holidays with friends and family it’s time to get back to work…sort of. I had the pleasure of shooting these two adorable babies right around the holidays. I was so happy to see Anna again–I did her first photo shoot a year ago when she was just a couple weeks old. Stella was a new acquaintance. Really new–12 days old! She was such a good girl, posing solo and with her family including big sis Lauren. But I think the most notable thing about Stella was her hairdo. She had a perfectly coiffed head of hair. It was quite stylish for one so young. 🙂 And I’m particularly fond of the feet shot…

 

Nicole + Michael’s wedding – October 13, 2012 – Vienna, VA and Washington Golf and Country Club, Arlington, VA

Finally–a swimming bride! That sounds like an odd statement but considering how immersed my family has become in swimming over the last 4-5 years I felt like I’d met kindred spirits in Nicole and her mom. Nicole is a swim coach for York Swim Club in Arlington, a group that my kids see often at swim meets in the metropolitan area. We both live in the world of swim practice, meets, chlorine and carpools. Nicole’s bridal party was a great reflection lasting friendships formed at the pool—they all were swimmers. I have great admiration for these coaches who like teachers play such a critical role in the lives of the young kids they spend time with daily.

Enough about swimming, on to the wedding! Nicole and Michael picked a glorious fall day to get married in their hometown of Vienna. I was a little jealous of the groom and groomsmen who got to go to the Vienna Inn before the ceremony. That’s another long story for a different blog post but I used to hang out there—more for the atmosphere than the famous chili dogs.  The day started with a lovely ceremony at Vienna Presbyterian Church followed by a little hiking around the church for portraits and then the trip to Washington Golf and Country Club for the reception. It’d been a couple years since I’d been there and I was happy to make good use of the white Adirondack chairs and the balcony with columns overlooking the golf course. And one last swimming note and maybe a cautionary lesson for me…those swimmers (and everyone else there) know how to have a good time. The dance floor was packed all night long and yes, I saw the York group having a particularly good time!!

Ceremony Vienna Presbyterian Church, Vienna, VA

Reception Washington Golf and Country Club, Arlington, VA, 703.524.4600

Florist Kathy McGuiness  703.523.3114

Hair  Betsy Allen – 703.389.0280

Make-upMarti Wright  703.282.1347

Band Keynote – 410.697.4931

Cake Pastries by Randolph 703.243.0070

Austin + Andrew’s wedding – September 29, 2012 – Morven Park, Leesburg, Virginia

Austin and Andrew picked a glorious fall day to celebrate their wedding. They also made full use of the whole day. It was my longest wedding day to date but it all went off without a hitch. There was a touch of fall in the air as they made their way to the church for their 11 am ceremony. I loved the pops of color from the sunflower bouquets and all the cute kids in the wedding just made for really fun photos all day long. We got a little break for lunch in Leesburg then headed to the reception site at Morven Park for portraits. I had such a blast with the lovely light and the adorable couple and a vintage Rolls…it was really fun to have time to try out a few locations on the grounds. Morven Park is a lesser known place but completely charming with it’s historic house and gardens and rolling hills. Not to mention a Civil War encampment!  And I just loved the shot of Austin climbing the ladder on the side of the carriage house. All her idea…and there were thorns on those bushes! The tented reception was a great party…lots of dancing to keep folks warm, ending with a lovely sparkler send off.

 

Ceremony St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church, Purcellville, Virginia

Reception Morven Park Leesburg, Virginia/703.777.2414 x 6619

Hair and makeup My Mobile Salon – Trish Langley//703.856.2617

Caterer Vintage 50 Restaurant, Leesburg/ 703.777.2169

Flowers Purcellville Florist/540.338.4161

DJ Bialek’s Music/301.340.6206

Cake Sweet Creations

Video Dolce Studio Films/703.300.9033

Natalie + Hank’s wedding – Washington, DC and Great Falls, Virginia

Some brides plan their weddings for years and sweat all the little details. Natalie planned her wedding in four months. I think it’s fair to say she just wasn’t that into the planning process but thankfully, her mother Linda, more than took up the mantle they were able to plan an amazing affair. Natalie + Hank’s day was elegant and formal and tons of fun. One of my many day weddings this year, they started with their full Mass at St. Peter’s Catholic Church on Capitol Hill. Natalie is a Georgetown Visitation girl so it really wouldn’t have been any other way. Then we were off to the Capitol for group shots and finally on to Natalie’s parents house in Great Falls. To say they have an amazing spread there doesn’t do it justice. And the tent that was erected for the reception was easily one of the best I’ve ever seen. With the Bloody Mary Bar, the Oyster Bar, the Mason jars of salad (!!) cigar and Adirondack chairs outside and the exquisite flower throughout the tent—I was just bowled over. Of course, I was very happy to catch up with Natalie’s bridesmaid Maura (and her husband Pat) at the wedding…Maura was one of my favorite brides from last year and is particularly memorable for the photos we did of her and Pat and their adorable doggies. Sometimes day wedding receptions are sedate affairs with little dancing–something to do with not enough alcohol consumed so early in the day. But I wasn’t worried…those Visi girls know how to have fun. Some of my favorite photos of the day came when Natalie and her girls were the dancing stage. Maybe one reason Natalie wasn’t so wedding-obsessed is because days after the wedding, she and Hank headed to Paris for his next State Department posting. A honeymoon and a new adventure rolled into one.

Wedding venue: St. Peter’s Catholic Church, Capitol Hill

Caterer & cake: Windows/703-519-3500

Florist and tent decor: Amaryllis/202-529-2230


Tent: Capitol Party Rentals/ 703-661-8290

Hair: Melba de laTorre/703.486.8112

Makeup: Akemi Kanazaki/akemi@tastyandfreshness.com/240-423-2977

Band: Onyx/David Cohen/301-762-1800 x117

 

Engagements

I am determined to get these posted before some of these wonderful couples get married! Yes, I’ve been too busy to blog these engagements but August is a great time to revisit earlier summer shoots, right? Here’s some of my favorites and I made my self-imposed deadline…Randi and Mike are getting married in Pa. on Aug. 25. For the rest of the couples, I’m looking forward to shooting their weddings in Sept. + November. And stay tuned for more recent engagements coming next week!