the blog

As many of you know, sibling weddings are some of my favorite weddings to photograph. I met Stephanie at her sister’s wedding, where Ashley and Joe got married at Army Navy Country Club. Stephanie was her maid of honor. That wedding was beautiful and you can see it here. Stephanie and Rick’s wedding was totally different though from her sisters wedding which I thought was so neat. I absolutely loved that Stephanie, as a expert in charcuterie, boards and cheese and wine, picked a winery as her venue. It was very fitting for her to get married to Rick in wine country. Steph and Rick got married in beautiful Leesburg at Stone Tower Winery. 

Yah! Hannah and Nick are married and we are so excited we got to be alongside them! When Hannah and Nick hired us, they had 2 requests… a photographer that knew BMI and a photographer that could do a really cool night shot that involved lots of champagne spray. We knew we were perfect for the job!

The whole day was wonderful and fun! Hannah and Nick both got ready at Hotel Monaco surrounded by their wedding parties. I LOVED that Hannah did a first look with Nick on the gorgeous staircases at the hotel. Everyone was on time and we headed to Fort McHenry for some photos on the green and water. Soon after, we headed to BMI to photograph all their immediate family segments, followed by some time for them to hang out before walking down the aisle!

Up on the blog today is Josh and Johnnas beautiful October Turf Valley Wedding! We are so excited to share this wedding for sooo many reasons! First off, Johnna’s family, parents and aunts and uncles are owners of Turf Valley. I jokingly say they all own Howard County… and they are some of the most incredible people. But beyond that, Johnna’s sister Nicole is one of my best friends in the industry and I’m so thankful for her friendship. When Nicole shared with me that her sister was engaged, I was sooo excited! I secretly hoped they would hire us, so when Josh and Johnna reached out, I was ecstatic! I love their families more than they know. A funny story before we dive in… back in 2014 when we went full-time as wedding photographers Turf Valley was on my bucket list of venues. I remember thinking… man, the day we photograph a wedding at Turf Valley, I will feel like I hit the lottery. The relationship we’ve cultivated in the last 10 years has brought great friendships, even with their catering staff and managers I feel like we can really create magic there and have the trust of the staff.

We are so excited to share Jasmine + Brian’s Eagles Nest Country Club wedding! This wedding was shot by our associate team, Melissa and Patrick, and it was a killer day. Jasmine and Brian are such fun couple, and you could totally see their personalities through the details they chose to bring into their wedding. For example, Jasmine’s accent color was “Bling” – from her shoes, to the table decor, to her incredible rhinestone bouquet, the day sparkled! Jasmine also was so organized and detail oriented, it was amazing working with her throughout the planning process, which made for a smooth wedding day.

I absolutely LOVE the mayflower hotel, love our nation and the monuments that surround DC. When michelle and Pat hired us, we were thrilled as we love the mayflower, its elegance, and its beautiful ballrooms and corridors. Subtle beautiful details are throughout.

Michelle and pat both got ready for their big day on site. Michelle wore a family heirloom which was a crowned veil and blusher. Her classy dress was amazing. Neil wore a white tux… fabulous and he looked all good! They didn’t share a first look so the anticipation was real, welcome, and fulfilling. All separates we’re done pre-ceremony. With the the passing of Michelle’s dad, her amazing uncle stepped into the place of her escort and honor. They rode together in a black Cadillac to the wedding. Upon arrival He walked her down the aisle to Pat. The church was beautiful! Full mass followed by a beautiful cocktail hour for guests. While guests mingled, the newlywed, wedding party and is gallivanted through DC and hit up 3 iconic DC locations! The reflecting pool at the Lincoln Memorial, the WWII museum, and the Washington monument… oh and someone ordered ShakeShack Fries midway through!!

I mean there’s just so much… the day was awesome. We left their day feeling so fulfilled. They might go down in history as the most family photos we’ve taken in a day but they may go down also as the best families… attentive, receptive and on time for photo segments! The florals are always a favorite for me. Can’t get enough. And Sami’s gown… OMG… Haley Paige, and the bridesmaids… Sami crushed it. What Sami picked out for her babes… they all looked incredible!

This wedding was one for the books for us. Kristin and Adam are incredible. I felt like I’ve known them forever, but the first time we met in person was at their wedding. K+A were referred to us by one of her bridesmaids, a friend of mine from college, thanks Steph! When they hired us, we were so pumped! We had never shot a wedding at Belmont Country Club in Leesburg VA, so shooting a Loudon County wedding was pretty neat for us. When we arrived, we loved the venue. The guys were in a parlor of a historic house and the girls were in a sitting room that partnered a gorgeous high ceiling bathroom. Probably the prettiest bathroom I’ve ever seen on a wedding day.

Referrals are so incredible. I can’t even think what life would look like not to have a relationship with people. Ashley and Joe are one of those couples. They found us through one of our past couples Abby and Eric, one of our 2016 couples. Ashley and Joe are wonderful people. And their families are also so sweet. We met Ashley and Joe in person at their engagement shoot and what was probably one of the hottest engagement sessions of the entire year, maybe even two years. Joe had just returned from Kuwait from deployment so we were so pumped to be able to spend some time with him pre-wedding day and get to know them at dinner.

We love when friends from other seasons of life come to us to document their wedding. This story is fun because Patrick and Ashley go back to the Chapelgate days in highschool (I think that’s right, maybe even younger!). Fast forward to a few years ago, we were doing an event at Turf Valley. Ms. Kim, what we call her, is Ashley’s mom and she was on staff at Turf Valley and a huge part of the famous Wedding Extravaganza event planning team. We loved our meetings with Kim and team, and soon after re-met Ashley. Fast forward to last year, Ashley invited us and hired us to document the unity of her and Jimmy and their beautiful family. Dang, do they have the sweetest and prettiest kids!

The super bowl is over Someone won. Someone loss. Someone somewhere questions the win, if it was fair, if it was deserved. Regardless of how we felt at the end of the game, you know what all the teams are doing right now. They are strategizing their next season.

Teams across the nation are starting all over in their prep, to prep for the next season. They are hustling and working sooo hard in preparation for what’s to come. It’s kinda like photography and running a business. Now is the time to strategize your year, to team up, to partner with the best, to figure out the ad campaigns you will run, how you’ll recruit more sales. At least that’s what we are doing over here. Today I’m sharing very simple tools we use to strategize the day, week, and year that don’t break the bank!