As I said in Alex and Zack's Engagement post, this wedding was a long time coming for me (and the lovely couple, I'm sure!) as we began planning almost a year ago. Even with weeks and months of planning, things always go wrong, but even some minor complications - namely the blazing sun - couldn't quell this couple's and their families' happiness. 

Our two shoots together hit both extremes of the temperature spectrum; our Sylva winter engagement shoot topping out in the mid 20s and the wedding day hitting the high 80s. Sure, that's really not that hot, but when you're a ginger wearing all black and laden with electronics, its a bit balmy. This turned out to be a good thing because it gave us the perfect excuse to use multiple locations for family and party photos. We photographed the bridesmaids and groomsmen separately before the ceremony to capture them immediately post-prep and chose the wide-open field as our backdrop. We then darted outside again to that same spot after the receiving line - before we lost most of the family to cocktail hour - to snap all of the family shots. Once we'd thoroughly exhausted the gorgeous mountain backdrop (as if that actually happens), we took shelter back in the church for bridal party and immediate family portraits. I typically prefer shooting outside to inside, but I rather enjoyed the soft light that the wooden sanctuary provided, creating soft romantic family images. 

As a photographer, one of my favorite parts of each wedding is watching how the families and friends interact, capturing the moments when they let their guard down in front of me and truly act themselves. This typically involves me standing quietly to the side with my camera trained on the subject - sometimes for a couple minutes - waiting for the right moment, much like a wildlife photographer might. And really, at the end of the night when everyone lets loose, isn't that kind of what we wedding photographers turn into? But I digress. In terms of familial interactions, Alex and Zack's wedding was full of many loving moments from tearful speeches to shared broad grins to bear hugs. I must say, probably the hardest part of my job is trying to maintain composure and keep shooting during the most emotional moments. 

As planned, I stole the newly-married couple from their reception under the guise of taking sunset photos - although truly to give them a few minutes to themselves. As we'd at this point become quite familiar with shooting together, we  created some of my favorite couples portraits to date, letting their character and love for each other shine through. 

Now we begin the process of choosing images, vows and quotations for their personalized photo album, picking photos to fill their new home, and ultimately reliving that beautiful day over and over again.