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Tara + Stephen’s wedding – June 12, 2010

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For the entire month of June it seemed like every Wednesday and Thursday it was sunny and beautiful with low humidity and by the time Friday and Saturday rolled around it was 95 degrees with 100 percent humidity. Which is another argument for getting married in the middle of the week but alas, people tend to want to do it on the weekend! Tara and Stephen’s wedding day was no exception. Hot, sunny, humid. But their calming water themed wedding made it not feel so bad. The day was full of meaningful touches. Tara’s veil was made from the wedding dress of her late mother. The church they were married in was built by Tara’s dad. Lucky for me it was a beautiful and light-filled sanctuary. As Tara and her father came through the massive wooden front door of the church, Stephen teared up. There’s nothing I like better at a wedding than a crying groom. I love the emotion! And every once in awhile he’s take Tara’s hand and kiss it. And through a good part of the ceremony, the bridesmaids were crying as well. For a whimsical touch, they had cupcakes for their guests waiting outside the church after the ceremony. We limoed to Old Town Alexandria for some waterfront photos and got caught in a little rain. Luckily it blew right over and by the time we got to Indigo Landing, the sun had returned and were were able to do shoreline shots there as well. It was a great reception with dancing under a tent overlooking the Potomac River and in the distance the bright lights of the city.

And the vendors who helped make it happen:

Florist: Occasional Flowers, Tonya Evans,

DJ: Norman Voss

Indigo Landing Restaurant

Hotel Monaco, Old Town Alexandria

Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church, Potomac, Maryland

and a special shout out to the bride who did the centerpieces at the reception herself and did a wonderful job on carrying out the water theme!

Paige + Chris’ wedding – May 22, 2010

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Paige and Chris’ wedding day dawned bright and sunny but didn’t stay that way. Unfortunately, I watched the clouds darken as I drove from McLean to Leesburg and it was dusk before it let up. Not a huge deal since it wasn’t an outside ceremony and there’s the old adage about rain on your wedding day (it rained on mine!). As I watched Paige get ready at a familiar hotel (the Hyatt in Reston) I kept thinking she looked like someone but I couldn’t place who. And then one of her bridesmaids said it–she looked like Betty Draper. I’m a big “Mad Men” fan and she was right on the money. I went over to where Chris was getting ready a few doors down and he definitely had the same vibe down…including drink in hand. Together they are one lovely couple–cool and elegant. I really liked seeing how close she was to her bridesmaids, they had a lot of fun waiting in the church for the wedding to begin. The reception at River Creek was lovely, if rainy, but eventually we took a golf cart to an area there they call the Point, where Goose Creek runs into the Potomac River. It was lovely but getting dark and I much appreciate the help I got from the club’s catering manager who held my video light for me! I had the pleasure of working with the fabulous Jonathan Newton (a couple of his shots are included here) and as always, getting the chance to work with my buddy Victoria who planned the event. We go back more years than I’m willing to admit and she always puts together a beautiful day.

Those who made it happen:

Event planner–Victoria Rapoport with Perfect Detail Event Planning

Venue: River Creek Country Club, Leesburg, VA

Church: St. Luke’s Catholic Church, McLean, VA

Quartet–Ensemble Elan

Event planner–Victoria Rapoport with Perfect Detail Event Planning

Florist–J.Morris Flowers

Cake–Edibles Incredible

DJ–James Nalley

Erika + Christian engagement

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A warm and gorgeous Saturday in Old Town was the setting for Erika and Christian’s engagement shoot last week. So it was just a little bit crowded. Luckily we chose to mostly be off the beaten path and to soak up the charm of Alexandria’s side streets. The light was amazing but it was really windy. It didn’t affect us much (as long as Erika’s hair was blowing with the wind) but it showed up in some of the backlit photos where everything that flying around in the air is captured. Pollen, twigs, dust, you name it. We had fun with their puppy Hercules and taking the King St. trolley and just strolling along King St. looking for fun spots to shoot. They’re getting married on 10-10-10 so of course, I’m looking forward to their fall wedding!

Lesley + Chris’ wedding April 24, 2010

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As noted in my last post, it was a mere two days between engagement shoot and wedding day for Lesley and Chris. It was a dicey weather day but Chris was determined that there would be an outdoor ceremony at the lovely River Farm. And he was right. We did decide to do the first look inside the Hotel Monaco in Old Town in one of my favorite hallways. I love the red walls and the big windows. The rain stopped just in time for us to then wander around Old Town a bit and do some portraits on the cobblestones of Prince St. before heading out to ceremony. The ceremony held one surprise, Chris got teary! I wasn’t expecting that but that started Lesley to cry a bit as well. I thought it was really sweet when Lesley grabbed for her mother’s hand as she headed up the aisle after the ceremony. The reception was wonderful as well, the highlight being Chris’ singing a song to his bride accompanied by the band Hipshack and there were some wonderful toasts from Chris’ brother and Lesley’s friends as they cloaked them in the purple blanket of love. It did get a little chilly during dinner!

If you want to see their slide show you can find it here.

I was fortunate to work with the wonderful Katherine Frey as my second photographer and some wonderful vendors including:

Vicky Choy at Event Accomplished

Florist: Bergeron Flowers

Caterer: Complements Catering

Band: Hipshack

Ceremony Musicians: String Poets

Videographer: Blue Sky Films