WHEW – what a wild ride 2016 was for me.  I photographed more weddings than in any other year in my career (thus far) and December was one of the busiest with 4 weddings and a week off in St. Thomas for Christmas.  I came back to finish the last two weddings of the year on the last two days of the year and got hit with a virus that knocked me out for a solid week.  I’m finally vertical, mostly better (still really sniffly) and ready to finish up blogging my amazing second half of 2016!

At the very end of August I headed out to Louisville to the beautiful Waters Edge venue to celebrate the day with Melissa and Zach.  It was an interesting day because the weather was absolutely chaotic and that’s being kind!  Ohio was completely Ohio on their wedding day but these two couldn’t have been any more relaxed about it.  Their ceremony was moved inside and while many clients of mine have fretted about it, it ended up being absolutely beautiful!  We were able to sneak outside for the formal portraits and as the storms moved through we finished up the bride and groom portraits by running in and out between the rainclouds.  Their patience paid off by the end of the day with a gorgeous double rainbow!!!!  The rain abated by the end of the evening and they were able to still have their glow send off they wanted so all in all, despite the crazy rain and storms, it really was a perfect day!

Part of why it was perfect was these two were just SO happy to be married to one another that the rest of the details were just that – details.  Sure, we all want our wedding days to be perfect but stuff happens and the best part of your wedding day is saying I do!  The rest… well it’s just icing on the cake!  These two embodied this spirit and no matter what happened, they just smiled and rolled with it.  All night they were beaming and holding hands and it was a joy to work with them.  Many congratulations to you both and thank you for trusting me with your day!!

Cake:  Nom Nom Cupcake Factory / Catering:  Old Carolina Barbecue / Ceremony & Reception: Waters Edge / DJ:  Drop the Mic Entertainment / Florist: Nikki’s Perfect Petal Design

When I arrived the ladies were getting ready and they looked fantastic!

Just before getting the dress on Melissa read her letter from Zach.

For the ceremony they had these adorable heart shaped fans.

Their ring box was also lovely!  I loved the heart on their date!

When Zach saw his bride coming down the aisle he was all smiles!

She was also all smiles as soon as she locked eyes with him.

The ceremony was beautiful and perfect!

Waters Edge weddings are beautiful – even if they end up having to use their rain back up plan and have the ceremony inside!

We were able to squeeze in family portraits and a few bridal party shots before the rain came in.

The rain let up during the cocktail hour just long enough for us to go back outside into the vineyard for a few more portraits.

Love!

When the rain started I was so glad they had an umbrella handy – they make for great photos!

The bold red and black decor really looked amazing in the space!

Nikki’s Perfect Petal Designs did the florals and they knocked it out of the park!

Nom Nom Cupcake Company was in charge of the cupcakes and they looked fantastic!

The toasts were sweet, funny and perfection!

It may have been the most perfect cake cutting ever!

Followed by of course the most perfect first dance and parent dances!

I went outside to get a picture of the barn and while it was still raining I realized there was an amazing rainbow and luckily they were game to go out in the rain for this!

The shoe game was played once we got back inside and it was funny.  Grooms – note that awesome socks are a bonus for the shoe game.

The rest of the night was full of dancing and singing on the dance floor.

I also got some time to play with the rings!

At the end of the night Melissa and Zach exited the reception while their friends waved red glowing necklaces!