alison + matt // wedding . weaverville nc

As always, we are thrilled when a fellow wedding photographer asks us to shoot their wedding! Alison of [ Alison Church Photography ] traveled all the way from Atlanta for her wedding in the beautiful mountains near Asheville.

It was our first time shooting at [ Claxton Farm ] & I totally fell in love. The venue is still an active farm (complete with llamas & mini horses!) & is surrounded by beautiful mountains & farmland.





Claxton even has a game of horseshoes set up out back. How fun is that?



Alison's dress couldn't have been more perfect for her mountain wedding - she found her vintage wedding dress online.



Hanging out with the guys.




In LOVE with the whole wildflower look to the floral arrangements! Can you believe Alison put these together herself??


And as usual, we were super excited Alison & Matt decided to see each other before the ceremony for some "first look" photos. I know I say this every time, but it makes the day so much less stressful & enjoyable for the bride & groom...


And it gives you cute photos like these! :)


And it gives us tons of time to take a bunch of photos of the couple together, too!






I can't stop raving about how much I loved Alison's wedding details. Everything just fit the mountain theme perfectly. Her gorgeous cake was created by [ Tiffany's Baking Co. ] in Candler, NC. Outside of that, all the details were done in their entirety by Alison with the help of her bridal party. Just goes to show that with some creativity, there are a lot of do-it-yourself things you can do to make your wedding really "you."




The ceremony spot was perfect too, with beautiful light & a gorgeous backdrop of mountains & wide open sky.



Another unique detail that really added that personal touch to Alison & Matt's wedding was the band. The [ Packway Handle Band ] came all the way from their home state of Georgia for the wedding & played for the couple & their guests from the start of the day until the end of the evening. I am always a big fan of live music at weddings, so it was really fun to see a band included in both the ceremony & reception.

I don't usually talk much about officiants at weddings, but I have to tip my hat to [ Howard Hanger ]. This was one of the sweetest ceremonies I've seen. He had a way with words during the ceremony that just really made you feel all the love & devotion that comes together in this big moment for a bride & groom.





I know I already said so, but I love this spot for photos!!










Thanks again, guys!! :)

venues :
ceremony + reception . [ Claxton Farm ]

vendors :
officiant . [ Howard Hanger ]
band . [ Packway Handle Band ]
caterer . [ M7 Event Solutions ] with Claxton Farm
cake . [ Tiffany's Baking Co. ]

kristen + jason . jordan + bo // prom 2009 . greensboro nc

Obviously, this blog post is a little overdue, but I wanted to share some of the photos from my sister's senior prom this past spring. Whether we're doing prom photos or senior portraits, senior sessions always wind up being some of the most fun to shoot! I had a great time hanging out in downtown Greensboro photographing Kristen, Jason, Jordan, & Bo looking all snazzy in their prom get-up. Thanks again for letting me be a part of your special day, guys!

niki + james // wedding . durham nc

We are getting ready to head out of town for another weekend of weddings, but wanted to leave you guys with some of our favorite photos from Niki & James' big day.

I'm so glad this couple & their wonderful family found us after a last minute change of plans to photograph their wedding! I was even more thrilled when I heard that Niki & James wanted to see each other before the ceremony for some "first look" photographs. We encourage all of our couples to do this, as it allows the day to flow so much more smoothly & lets you go straight to the reception from the ceremony, without keeping your guests waiting. Plus, you will have some fun photos to document that special first moment that you lay eyes on each other. :)






Love this shot of the guys! Looking pretty tough. ;)


Niki did her own flower arrangements & they turned out great!




The ceremony & reception were both at [ Bay 7 ] in Durham.



[ C + D Events ] did a great job coordinating & planning the day. Loved the rustic look of the site too. [ Bay 7 ] used to be a tobacco mill, so has lots of great brick walls, exposed metal beams & wooden floors.





I cannot rave enough about how well-put-together & absolutely delicious the cake was!! [ Ashley Cakes ] is a husband & wife team that does an amazing job - definitely check them out if you are in need of a great cake!


The grand entrance.









James was in an acapella group in college called Grain of Time, & they all got together for a fun performance of a few of their songs at the wedding.







Thanks again, Niki & James - & Carol for all of your help! :)

venues :
portraits . [ Duke Gardens ]
ceremony + reception . [ Bay 7 ]

vendors :
wedding planner . [ C + D Events ]
party rentals . [ Raleigh Classic Party Rentals ]
dj . Marcus Ward with [ Morse Entertainment ]
caterer . [ Rocky Top Hospitality ]
cake . [ Ashley Cakes ]