Baby Makes Three!

A little over three years ago I received an email from a photographer looking for work as a second shooter. My good friend and fellow wedding photographer, Jennie Tewell, sent him my way. I had been looking for someone to work with me on a few weddings, so the email was quite timely. We arranged a meeting at Carpe Diem. I didn’t know what to expect. At the time I was an associate photographer with Jennie’s business and new to weddings. I wasn’t even sure how I should conduct the meeting. Was it an interview? That didn’t seem right. I finally decided to approach our meeting as I would if I were just grabbing a cup of coffee with a friend.

I walked into the crowded coffee shop in Springhill and found him sitting at a table by the front window. “Hi, I’m Jacob,” he said as he reached out his hand to shake mine. I don’t remember how long we met for, but I do remember that about five minutes into our conversation I found out Jacob is from Memphis. “I have family up that way,” was my reply. That led to Jacob asking me if I was related to a Michael Gelineau. I love small-world moments, but this one had me in disbelief. It turns out that Jacob grew up playing baseball and my uncle, who lives in Memphis, was one of his coaches. How in the world do our paths end up crossing out of all the other photographers in Mobile he could have contacted?! I took it as a sign that we were meant to work together.

Three years later, Jacob and I have photographed a slew of weddings together. In fact, I think I’ve worked more weddings with him than I have with any other photographer. At this point, he can practically read my mind. One thing I learned about Jacob at our first meeting, is how much he adores his sweet wife, Aubrey. He absolutely lights up every time he talks about her. I felt like I knew her long before we actually met. Last fall, Aubrey worked as my assistant on one of my weddings. It was so much fun working with both of them on the same day!

At the end of an insanely busy season last fall, I told Jacob that I wanted to do a portrait session for him and Aubrey as a thank you for all his hard work throughout the year. As it turns out, they had a special surprise to share by the time that session date arrived. On our first wedding together for this year, Jacob told me that Aubrey is expecting their first child! I am SO excited for these two and was so happy that we could incorporate some baby announcement photos into their portrait session! Talk about perfect timing!

Now that they have shared the news with their family and friends, I’m excited to share some of my favorites from their session. Fun fact, even though Jacob is a photographer, it’s been quite a while since he and Aubrey have had a formal portrait session! Jacob said it was definitely weird being on the other side of things and not having a camera in his hand. I absolutely LOVED getting to photograph them during this special season in their lives. I am so thankful to call them friends and can’t wait to meet their little one later this year!

Carpe Diem is one of Jacob and Aubrey’s favorite spots in town. They’re regular visitors to this little coffee shop, so of course we had to work it into some of their portraits. I still can’t believe that we were able to get a few shots in without anyone on the porch. This place is always so busy! These turned out to be some of my favorites too!

Aubrey’s Hair Styled by Mackenzie Smith at Cara & Company Salon