Whitney and Brian (WB)

Faith and laughter. Those are the two words that pop into my mind when I think of Whitney and Brian. Strong faith in God and an always-at-the-ready sense of humor. The WB, as I came to refer to them in my head, were a pleasure to work with, from engagement portraits, to the bridal session, all the way through to the wedding day. Whitney was sweet and well organized--she was a bride who knew what she wanted but was very pleasant about getting it. That makes my job as the photographer SOOO much easier!!

WB's engagement session was fun and relaxed. It was beautiful day for outdoor portraits and we took advantage of the sunshine and mountain views:

I thought it was cute how the wind caught Whitney's hair and blew it across her face just as she was going in for the smooch

Whitney's bridal portrait session was fraught with challenges, including biting gnats, cars speeding by and a recurrent "hair issue". But Whitney was stalwart and patient and as a result, the pictures were beautiful. Here are a couple of pretty ones from the studio and the bridge over the James River:

I especially love her eyes in this picture

One of my favorite bridal sessions moments of all time occurred as Whitney was poised on the railing of the bridge, and we were taking a break to let a car go by. The car slowed down and rolled down the window. This fella stuck his head out and asked Whitney "where's the groom?" she smiled and replied "I don't know, I can't find him!" The guy, never missing a beat, said "Hang on, I'll be right back!" and made as if to turn his car around and join her. It was straight out of a comedy skit!! I still get a chuckle out of that story.

When the wedding day finally arrived, it was beautifully organized, and the atmosphere was surprisingly relaxed and calm. Trust me, folks, this is not a standard mood on wedding days. The usual gnashing of teeth and sweating of bullets was noticeably absent. Things flowed together like a well oiled machine!

Pate chapel is beautifully equipped to accommodate the bride and her girls, with a private suite to serve as dressing/staging area.

The gals had me chuckling with their very practical approach for preventing any wardrobe problems: duct tape! And it worked! Everyone looked beautifully flawless coming down the aisle!

Speaking of coming down the aisle shots, this is not an easy one to get. But when you CAN get it? Well, just look. The Groom sees his Bride for the first time on their wedding day. A moment of pure, honest emotion captured forever. *Sigh* I love my job.

The service was lovely and included communion for the new couple and a praise song in which all of the guests participated. This was a first for me and I really liked the way it brought the crowd together in celebration of the joyous event taking place. Very touching.

After the service, we had a long list of formal family pictures to get through, but my lighting set up was spot-on and the pics turned out great. Recreating studio lighting on location is a specialty of mine :-)

We ran around to the outside of the chapel with just the bridal party to grab a few fun, romantic shots

WB's reception was joyful and happy; filled with many hugs and much laughter. The newlyweds share a great sense of humor and have a fun group of friends who kept the party upbeat and lively. And yet another first, for me: The bouquet was tossed THREE times and was caught by the same lucky (and very determined) young lady each time. There were rumors of it being "rigged", but I chose not to believe such loose talk (LOL!!)

The expressions in these pics are priceless!!

There are about zillion more gorgeous pictures from this special day that I would love to share here, but I have to stop blogging and get back to editing them all. I am happy that WB's Big Day came off so beautifully well. And I am happy that they allowed me to play a part in such a very meaningful time in their lives. May the Lord richly bless the union of these two special people.