Before I start getting into everything, I will say it was 95 degrees outside and both the ceremony and reception were, you guessed it, outside.  Despite the heat, both the bride & the groom looked awesome and we were lucky enough to be in a chauffeured golf cart to do couples shots around the museum of life & science complex.  I think we probably covered two miles in the cart so I would like to send a special thanks out to Rachel, our driver and venue coordinator for helping us!  In the end, we drove thru every part of the museum and got some absolutely wonderful photographs from around the complex including the lake, dinosaurs, rock climbing and we tried for the wolves but they stayed inside where it was cool!

As the ceremony started, the sun gave us a break and went behind the clouds to give beautiful lighting and a beautiful blue sky.  There ceremony was mostly traditional with a few Jewish elements thrown in.  The mothers planted a flower as part of the ceremony and Erika & Corey watered it as a symbol of the marriage.  I haven’t seen this done before so I definitely thought it was pretty cool.  After the ceremony, and a few high fives, we all hopped on a train and took a few turns around the track.  I was lucky enough to be able to ride on the locomotive and get some great, great shots while dodging the occasional tree branch.

Back at the reception, after some really heartfelt toasts, dances and, of course, an awesome dinner, the party got started with some champagne and great music!  Before we knew it the night had slipped by and it was time to leave for the evening.  Even after going all day, the party was still hopping and I heard alot of plans to continue it in downtown Durham somewhere.

Congratulations to you both Corey & Erika!  Thank you so much for having me capture your day!  It was a lovely wedding and I hope you love your photos!

Their day, for wedding photography at least, turned out wonderful with cloudy skies giving me a ton of flexibility on which locations I could use.  Wedding photographers really love cloudy days because of the beautiful soft light we get to play with. The Fairmont Methodist UMC has a great courtyard with some of the most amazing light to work with.  We dodged a few raindrops did some photography around the church campus then off to Bogarts in downtown Raleigh where I got to take the happily married couple out and around the architecture in downtown(which is a big favorite of mine). Back inside the wedding reception we got to enjoy a wonderful set of dances with the parents and, of course, the newlyweds. Bogarts did a wonderful job with hosting the wedding reception and everyone had an absolute blast dancing and celebrating with Hunter & Melanie! As things began to wind down, a few of the groomsman “prepared” the car as a final salute to the couple – which of course I got some cool photography of.

As it does tend to happen in this area, the skies cleared up after the wedding reception which gave us the chance to the go back out downtown and do some evening photography. I do need to clarify the wedding was on 10/24, so there was some Halloween activity going on in the form of a scavenger hunt – so hopefully the explains the zombies appearing in wedding photos.

DJ: Shannon Pake – Raleigh, NC
Flowers: North Raleigh Florist – Raleigh, NC
Cake: Wandaful Cakes – Raleigh, NC

As always, here are a few photos from the evening!

With a small wedding congregation of about 20 people and the bride & groom, this was a wonderfully intimate affair that (being selfish here) allowed me to really photograph Susan & Corey for quite a while. To say I am pleased with the results would be an understatement and a few of there wedding photographs will certainly be making it onto my main website. The day started off, well, in an interesting fashion as the couple discovered the guys boutonnieres had been left behind. I spoke with the Second Empire Manager and the found some beautiful white roses which were cut and would be perfect for the guys. One sticking point… pins. We didn’t have any pins to attached the flowers to the lapels so again, we had to be resourceful. I pulled out my trusty emergency kit and found needle & thread as well as safety pins to attach them.. the day is saved!!! Of course, as I was their wedding photographer I let someone else attach them while I was photographing.

Let me say, I LOVE the light where Second empire weddings are generally held. With a bay window allowing natural light in behind the couple, it adds a real ethereal quality to the wedding photos. After the ceremony and formals, Susan, Corey & myself hit the streets and photographed for quite a while in the block surrounding the restaurant. With it being a cloudy day, the conditions were perfect for wedding photography and, again, the results are outstanding. After we came back into the reception, champagne was popped and the cake was cut…. well, ok, it took an effort to cut the cake. Personally I think the cake cutter was defective (or Corey possesses Hulk like strength) but, needless to say, it didn’t survive the ordeal – see below photography of said defective knife. A replacement was quickly found (again, thank you to the Second Empire) and we proceeded again.

I’d like to thank both Corey & Susan for having me be their wedding photgrapher.

Officiant: Terry Michael Newell – Raleigh, NC
Cake: Second Empire – Raleigh, NC

When I first entered the church for the wedding ceremony, I was literally floored. I love Catholic churches and this one was absolutely breathtaking. The stonework, adornments, colors and LIGHT all make for great wedding photography. Yes, I had another church with light in it! I have certainly withdrawn a few light credits from my wedding photography bank account so I am sure to run into a few Scottish dungeons soon. (I love the Scots, just saying your wedding dungeons are dark!).

Meeting up with Emily in her dressing room was, well, exciting! I hadn’t seen her since our engagement photography session in Raleigh and to be greeted with a warm hug and laughs just always sets a wonderful tone for the day! Emily was still getting ready so I had a chance to get photographs of her, her shoes, close friends, families and the wedding dress! I know I have mentioned it before but doing the wedding preparation photography is a favorite of mine… it’s just a wonderful time full of nerves, smiles, laughter and just raw emotion. Emily certainly had all of these going on and we got some great stuff in the room.

While she was getting dressed, I had a few moments to catch up with Mark upstairs. Shot a few portraits of him with his best man with a beautiful stained glass window before heading back down to meet Emily. Off to the ceremony we go (but not before grabbing a mini portrait of her in the church stairwell 5 minutes before the wedding). The ceremony was beautiful and, let me say again, what a beautiful church and the photography aspect was gorgeous!!! After the wedding ceremony, I got my favorite exit shot of the year. This one was not posed, just a quick kiss while they were walking out.

After the wedding, we headed off to the Hayloft for the wedding reception. Having never been there I was anticipating, well, shooting in a barn hayloft. What a cool place to have a wedding reception!  We had a few minutes for more photography outside and a couple of these shots ended up on my portfolio.  After the dances & dinner, the DJ got everyone moving and the Elvis impressions were unveiled (friends & relatives of the couple, not the couple themselves). A few more hours of partying and awesome photography, I capped the night off by spying on the newlyweds a bit and grabbing a few GREAT photographs of them dancing alone, outside.

Congratulations to you both Emily & Mark! You have both been incredible to work with and thank you so much for having me as your wedding photographer.

Wedding Planner: Brenda Cooper – Greensboro, NC
Wedding: Our Lady of Grace – Greensboro, NC
Reception: The Hayloft – Greensboro, NC
DJ: Herron House Florist – Fayetteville, NC
Flowers: Herron House Florist – Greensboro, NC
Cake: Ganache – Greensboro, NC
Caterer: Painted Plate – Greensboro, NC

The wedding day began at Lindsays parents home where all the girls were getting prepared with hair & makeup (and the photographer eating brownies). From there, we all headed over to the Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens in Belmont, NC. Having never been there before, I wasn’t sure what to expect but when I arrived, I can only say one thing – WOW! The gardens are absolutely gorgeous and I was instantly jealous we don’t have anything like this in Raleigh. Not only are the gardens beautiful, but the complex is to die for with beautiful natural light and very ornate furnishings.

So, I don’t normally talk about my wedding photography so much, but this is just too good to pass up. One of the true marks of a wedding photographer is dealing with adverse conditions. The place and surroundings were beautiful and the sun was setting just over the couple. The problem this creates is, of course, sun flare in your camera. There are a couple of ways to combat this but I’ve also learned to embrace it as well. You can see from some of the photographs below, embracing harsh conditions can produce some spectacular results. After the wedding everyone partied the night away to a great band, U-neek Flavur, and celebrated the marriage of Lindsay & Kyle.

Once again, thank you so much for your hospitality and congratulations to you both!!! Here’s a few photos from their wedding day.

Walking down to meet Caitlin, I ran into Justin who certainly had the pre-wedding look in his eye. Not panic or fears fellas, excitement with a twinge of nervousness. I always thought Caitlin would make a beautiful bride and indeed she looked fabulous! After the preparation shots of both the guys and gals, it was time to saddle up and get on with the wedding. After the wedding and formals, the couple departed for the Crabtree Marriott.

Having just been here last week, I had one shot I wanted to duplicate but, other then that, I wanted fresh & new stuff for us. So after a quick tour of the grounds, we got down to the party! The wedding was a beautiful affair and I (as always) was honored to be a small part of their wedding day.

Here’s the photos!

Wedding: Good Shepard Lutheran Church – Raleigh, NC
Reception: Crabtree Marriott – Raleigh, NC
Flowers: Fresh Affairs – Raleigh, NC
DJ: Island Sound – Raleigh, NC
Cake: C.A.K.E. – Raleigh, NC
Ceremony Music: Symphonius Sounds – 919-598-9822 – Raleigh, NC

When Tina and I had discussed the session, it occurred to me that this was going to be very much of a collaborative effort. Photography has come so far from the Sears portrait days and I wanted to do something that would reflect that. Tina wanted something that would capture her in life and leave a legacy for her family to look back on.

So, “her way” was born… This was a 4 hour session with professional hair and makeup, shot in her beautiful home. There were no set plans or poses, in the theme of a lifestyle shoot. My single goal was to capture Tina as she is and as I know her – to let her personality come through in the photos and, in the end, show her how I see her thru my eyes.

So, I present to you – Tina, her way!

While Kerri got ready in a beautiful suite in the Renaissance Hotel in Raleigh, Greg headed over to the church in downtown Raleigh with the guys and my 2nd photographer captured them doing their thing (Won’t be posting those, sorry guys – but I see there was a table harmed in the process). As Kerri got ready, it was very apparent how close everyone in the bridal party and family was. A big challenge for photographers on the wedding day is finding out the relationships between everyone so we can better tell the story. Well, with Kerri’s party, I couldn’t determine who was immediate family and who were friends – since they were all treated like family, I did the same.

The Sacred Heart Cathedral is beautiful and a great example of architecture in downtown Raleigh and following the ceremony, we were able to get a few quick photos in before everyone took a break. The reception picked up that evening at the Renaissance Hotel in Raleigh at North Hills and, with it being my first time there, I was very excited to check out the property. One words comes immediately to mind – beautiful! With the happy newlyweds and 100 of their friends and family celebrating, Kevin Majoros (Joe Bunn DJ) got the party rolling and, well, let’s just say a few pictures had to be censored for decorum purposes.

Congratulations to you both! I am always honored to be chosen to both document and create artistic imagery during a wedding day – so thank you for choosing me!

Wedding: Sacred Heart Cathedral – Raleigh, NC
Reception – Renaissance Hotel in Raleigh – North Hills – Raleigh, NC
Flowers: The Purple Poppy – Wake Forest, NC
DJ: Joe Bunn DJ – Kevin Majoros – Raleigh, NC

And on to the photos:

21 Wedding Photographers
5 Models
8 Wedding Dresses
2 city blocks

As we laid siege to Glenwood Avenue, it was quite a sight to behold, apparently too much to behold as I did hear of one accident involving two cars, one rear ending the other just after passing one of our gorgeous brides.
After 2 hours of photography, the models & photographers we’re all exhausted but very happy with the end results. In my group, we had 5 photographers working with Lena, our bride, and we visited 8 locations in two hours within 2 city blocks in downtown Raleigh. It’s a wonderful reminder that we don’t always need green pastures or studios to get stunning portraits.

As always, here are a few select photos from the day! You can learn more about the event I organized or our group which holds monthly wedding photography meetings here.

As always, here are a few photos from the day!

A new wedding photography group has been born in Raleigh and I wanted to share it with everyone!

The Wedding Photographic Society (WPS) – a network of professional photographers who share ideas, thoughts and information to help raise the artistic, technical and business level in our profession. Membership in the WPS offers many professional & personal growth opportunities through educational opportunities, networking, critiques and camaraderie. WPS meetings, forums and web pages are open to any and all professional wedding photographers across the world. Although our initial location is in Raleigh NC, we will be opening our doors to photographers all across NC, the US and the World.

This all started with a handful of photographers meeting at a coffee house talking shop in 2005. Four years later the core of WPS was born. The 6 Raleigh Wedding Photographers who started the organization are:

Martha Manning
Shane Snide
Robin Lin
Brian Mullins
Stacy Borelli
Christobal Perez

Our objective is to spread good business practices for wedding photographers and other information to help the growth of photographers across the country. Everyone is invited to help and donate their time so The WPS grow into a international organization.

The WPS was created to help build relationships, share knowledge amongst wedding photography peers and help create a competitive yet supportive photography community. Leaders & Members of the WPS donate their time in order to help find guest speakers, topic discussions and provide advice, guidance and information sharing freely without compensation.

With that goal in mind, the WPS launched their website, forums & blogs to bring together the professional wedding photography community.

You can visit us by going to the The Wedding Photographic Society’s website/blog.

You can also forward any questions to info@weddingphotographicsociety.com.

I did meet one aspiring National Geographic photographer during my visit. He’s using film cameras right now and will be getting a new digital camera for Christmas. If you happen to be reading this blog, I wish you good fortune on your journey! As for everyone else I met, please feel free to call or e-mail me with any photography related questions – whether it be educational, business, technical or artistic.

Here’s a few random portraits I shot in the gymnasium as part of the day.

The evening was packed with fights & music.  14 fights in all and a local band performing for both the opening bout and intermission between the amateur & professional matches.  The evening was packed with excitement and the athletes, band, promoters and referees all did an outstanding job to bring MMA back to the triangle.  A special thanks to Doug Muhle for lobbying to legalize MMA in North Carolina and putting on a great event!

Now, on to the photos:

As we went thru the session I really lost track of time as it was such a pleasure working with the both of them. I’m really looking forward to their wedding in August!

As always, here are a few shots from the session: