A Dog River Engagement Session

Caitlin and Ryan have such a sweet love story. It actually began at one of my weddings! Caitlin and one of my 2019 grooms have been friends for years and it just so happened that both she and Ryan were guests at his wedding. Since the night they first met, Caitlin and Ryan have been inseparable. It was love at first sight! Talk about one of the best love stories a wedding photographer could ever hear! Seriously, I was like, “this is a real-life Hallmark movie!”

I had not met these two in person ahead of their engagement session, but I immediately felt like I’d known them forever. I love that they are so joyful! It was also a treat to get to take these photos at Caitlin’s family property, where the two will be married early next year. This waterfront home is literally a photographer’s dream and we had the BEST light you could imagine the day of this session!

Caitlin’s mom is also a photographer, so she totally understood me squealing over the golden glow streaming through the trees. We both kept talking about how perfect the light was! I love that I got to see the property ahead of the wedding day. We even got to chat about where the best spot would be for the ceremony. That’s the bonus of having a mom who is a photographer…she is one hundred percent on board with planning everything around the natural light!

I could have done the entire session with the mossy oak tree background, but the waterfront portion of this property is equally as beautiful! I literally didn’t want the sun to set because I was having so much fun photographing such a happy couple in such a beautiful place.

A Sacred Heart Chapel Wedding

Clay proposed to Mary Emma under an oak tree on the property they purchased for building their future home. It was just the two of them in this place that will be so special to them over the years to come. Mary Emma’s and Clay’s families were both in on the surprise and were waiting to celebrate these two when they returned to Mary Emma’s house afterwards. To know this sweet couple is to know that family is important to them and I love working with couples who are close to their families.

I first worked with Mary Emma’s family for her cousin’s wedding back in 2018. It was such a treat to get to capture another wedding day for this sweet family! Her grandmother told me at the end of the night that she has two more granddaughters who aren’t yet married. I told her that I hope I can be there to capture their days as well because I just adore this family! On top of them being some of the kindest people you’ll meet, they also know how to have a good time, which is always the best combination for a wedding day!

While I hadn’t met Clay’s family prior to Saturday, I did know that they have had a busy year. Clay’s sister, Jill, got married at this same church just a little over a month ago. I can’t imagine having two weddings so close together in the same family, especially during a year where it has been beyond tricky to plan weddings! Thankfully, both weddings were able to go forward as planned!

After their ceremony at Sacred Heart Chapel in Fairhope, everyone headed to the evening reception, which was mostly outdoors. The location was fantastic and everyone danced the night away under the stars!

It was a treat getting to catch up with one of my 2018 couples, Maggie and Ross! It’s hard to believe they will celebrate their third wedding anniversary in April!

VENDORS

Second Photographer | Alexis Williams

Photographer’s Assistant | Regina Gomez-Guillen

Day of Coordination | Kayla Rigby – All Affairs

Ceremony | Sacred Heart Chapel

Reception | Private Property

Bridal Party & Ceremony Florals | Wildflowers

Additional Florals | Sundai Staggers – Mother of the Bride

Caterer | Naman’s Catering

Cake | Pollman’s Bake Shop

Lighting | Willow Bridge

Band | Fountain City Players – Music Garden

Rentals | Port City Rentals

Ceremony Music | Marian Hall

Makeup Artist | Chason Lipscomb

Hair | Garilynn Smith Gillespie – Salon GLS

Bride’s Gown | Bliss Bridal

Bridesmaid Dresses | Bella Bridesmaids – Amsale

Transportation | Beach Bum Trolley

Favors | Sally I Creations

 

A Spring Hill College Engagement

It wouldn’t be a true southern love story if football wasn’t somehow involved, right?! Abby met Aaron when he was visiting Auburn (her Alma Mater) over an Iron Bowl weekend. They were introduced by mutual friends and hit it off right away, despite each of them rooting for a different team. Over four years later, Aaron proposed while they were on vacation in St. John for the Fourth of July holiday weekend.

Abby said Aaron one hundred percent surprised her with his proposal. They were heading out to go snorkeling at a beach Abby was excited to visit. She said that before she knew it, Aaron was down on one knee, asking her to be his wife. Amazingly, the two had only packed one bag for their weekend trip and somehow Aaron managed to hide a ring in it without Abby ever suspecting a thing. She was one hundred percent surprised and swept off her feet! How sweet is that?!

When we chatted about a location for their engagement session, Abby told me that Aaron went to Spring Hill College and that she thought he’d enjoy doing portraits there. As a Spring Hill alum myself, I know how special campus is to all those who went to the school.

I asked Aaron what he studied at SHC at the beginning of the shoot. When he replied that he had studied business, I laughed and said I avoided that building for most of my four years on the hill. Seriously, the one economics class I was required to take just about did me in! Even though I had a wonderful professor for that 101 class, my brain just wasn’t wired for the subject. Aaron said he had the same professor I mentioned during his years at Spring Hill. Ironically, a few minutes after this conversation, we ran into that same professor on campus!

It’s been a busy week of engagement sessions around here! I have loved meeting so many of my 2021 couples in person for the first time this week. I always say I have the best clients and it’s really the truth! All these sweet couples have me so excited for the 2021 weddings that are on my calendar!

 

 

A Fairhope Pier Engagement

November is one of the most popular months for engagement sessions. It’s usually starting to get cool in the Deep South this time of year, but this year we’ve been experiencing a lot of warm temperatures. I haven’t decided if this is a good thing or not. On the one hand, my clients aren’t freezing during their session. But, on the other hand, I think we’re all ready for cozy sweaters and winter boots.

It was a trip to Tuscaloosa to visit friends that led Mary Cameron to meet her future husband. Eric was a student in Tuscaloosa at the time, while Mary Cameron was going to school closer to her hometown of Fairhope. Mary Cameron said she didn’t think anything of it when Eric said he’d call her sometime, but he kept that promise. After three years of dating, Eric asked Mary Cameron to be his wife! It’s so amazing to think about how some of the smallest decisions lead to life altering circumstances. Imagine if Mary Cameron never went on that trip that particular weekend?! It’s stories like this that always make me smile and I love that my couples share them with me!

A few weeks before I first spoke to Mary Cameron on the phone, I had the chance to photograph a food story for Mobile Bay Magazine at The Hope Farm in Fairhope. During the shoot, I kept thinking about what a beautiful location The Hope Farm would be for a wedding reception. Imagine my surprise when just a few days later that was the venue Mary Cameron told me she had booked for her special day! I was so excited because it’s always fun to get to photograph a wedding at a new venue! Plus, the food at The Hope Farm is amazing!

A Sunset Surprise

Mary Cameron and Eric originally wanted to do their engagement session at Mary Cameron’s grandparents’ bay house, but due to the property being under a landscaping overhaul, we switched plans and chose to do most of their session at the Fairhope Pier. It was another overcast day on Mobile Bay. The clouds made it look much cooler than it actually was! We had to imagine that it felt like fall. Seriously, is this really November?! Bizarre weather is clearly another oddity of 2020.

I was amazed that the Fairhope Pier was practically deserted the day of this session! It’s usually so crowded that I don’t venture past the entrance to the pier. In my experience, no couple wants to get caught between fishermen casting their lines and nets, or have a bunch of people staring at them while they are having their portrait taken. I suggested we make our way to the end of the pier for a few last photos.

Midway to the end of the pier, I noticed a spot I wanted to use. I thought the gate to this area was locked, but Mary Cameron pointed out that it was open! How fantastic, I thought to myself. I knew if the sun came out for a bit before setting that this would be a good spot to capture it. We took a few photos and then Mary Cameron said, “I think we are about to get kicked out.”

I turned around and saw three police officers standing behind me. In my mind all I could think was that we must have been in a forbidden area of the pier! There wasn’t a sign for this section, or was there? I am a rule follower to my core, so you can imagine my inner panic.

It turned out that the officers were just closing the pier at sunset. I hadn’t realized that the power to the pier lights, which typically come on at sunset, was still out from the recent hurricanes. The kind officers, who clearly value photography, let me take my final shots just before sunset. Ironically, we found out as we chatted with the officers on the way to the parking lot that one of them was originally from Tuscaloosa, Eric’s hometown. Talk about a memorable end to an engagement session! I know it’s one I’ll never forget!

 

A Downtown Fairhope Engagement

I think about three things at the start of every engagement session. One, I am excited to meet my couple! If we’ve only met via phone prior to the session, I’m also wondering what they look like and hoping they’ll spot me so I don’t have that awkward moment of wondering if every couple who walks by are my clients. Two, I am always thinking about the lighting. Is it sunny, or cloudy? This affects where I can shoot on any given day. I start making a plan of how I need to time things depending on the intensity of the sun, or presence of clouds. Most importantly, I’m thinking of a good place to start the session. It needs to be a location with good light, a nice background and not super crowded. This last one is the trickiest, especially when shooting in popular locations.

I arrived in downtown Fairhope a little early the day of Lane and Jake’s session. Since we were doing their session on a Friday evening, I anticipated it would be pretty crowded. However, at the time, I didn’t realize it was also art walk Friday. Yikes! It turned out that the downtown area was very crowded! I pulled into a parking spot outside the local bookstore and noticed the parking lot across the street had some good light hitting the shrubs at the back of the lot. I’m always searching for good light first and foremost. So I told Lane and Jake I wanted to start their session at the back of this parking lot. Yes, I realize that sounds crazy! But, in a town that has been the recent victim of two hurricanes and is still dealing with debris cleanup, so many of my favorite spots aren’t looking quite the same these days.

I’m so thankful that Lane and Jake trusted me with this crazy location idea because it worked out great! Not only did it give us a neutral background for starting the session, it was also relatively crowd free. Yay for locations that seem unconventional, but work out great!

A Highlands Proposal

Lane met Jake her freshman year at Auburn University. Her best friend from high school introduced them. I love stories like that! Jake asked Lane to be his wife while they were vacationing in Highlands, NC. These two love hiking, so it was fitting that Jake planned the perfect proposal, timed with sunset, at the end of a hike. Lane said they accidentally ended up parking at the bottom of the trail instead of at the top, so they had to pretty much run up the mountain to get to the top by sunset. All the while, Jake was carrying an engagement ring in his pocket and waiting for the perfect moment!

After the sun went down, a storm began to roll in and Jake proposed. Lane said yes right away and that’s how their new adventure as an engaged couple began! I love hearing proposal stories like this. It helps me get to know my couples and their personalities a bit. Lane and Jake clearly love the outdoors, so wrapping up their downtown Fairhope engagement session at the Fairhope Pier was a perfect choice.

I love that we had just the right amount of cloud cover for soft lighting on this day. We were also lucky that it wasn’t too terribly windy, which is often the case close to sunset! These two giggled their way through most of the session, which I loved. I also loved that they didn’t bat an eye when a random stranger walked up and decided to adjust Lane’s hair. Not everyone would be ok with that (especially amid a pandemic!), but these two are so sweet that they just smiled and said thank you. I have no doubt their wedding day will be full of joy and I can’t wait to capture all those special moments for them!