Winter wonderland

First of all, those are not the first two words that come to mind when the thermometer reads 30 below or when I spend my day off digging my car out of a snowbank. There are more choice words that come to mind for situations like that. :) But a few mornings this week, everything was covered with "hoar frost"- frozen dew, basically. It really is a "winter wonderland". So beautiful!! What an AWESOME Creator!




Frost on the window...

Knock-out in Knoxville

Ah, what to say about Jordan and Charlotte? In this post you will only see the beauty on the outside (and there is plenty of that) but let me just tell you that it flows from beauty within. This is truly a God-written love story. Anybody who knows them will agree that God is very much glorified in this beautiful relationship... and it began with two people separately running hard after God.

We were in Knoxville together for a conference and went out on the town one sunny afternoon. These portraits were so easy to do. Not only is the couple good-looking and stylish, they are very much in love. :) Jordan treats Charlotte like such a lady and she returns his love with complete devotion.

A sidewalk cafe...
This is outside of my "typical lighting techniques" box, but I love pretty much everything about this picture.
These are the kind of pictures that make me look forward to the next time I get to photograph two people in love.
We stopped at this little coffee and chocolate cafe and they sat down for a cup of tea, where we took this next little series.
The first thing they did as they sat down was pray together.
Hilarious! Love this.
Seriously. Could they be any cuter?
The sign behind them says "Do not put anything in front of these doors. Thanks." :) These sort of places usually make the best backdrops.

This makes me smile everytime I see it.
And this one. Practicing their dance moves...
This was at the end of the shoot. Charlotte was almost completely frozen. But then we saw this red door. I know they were groaning inside when I asked for one more shot. But I'm so glad we did. This is my favorite shot.I am looking forward to your wedding so much!

More love – family style

Over Thanksgiving weekend, my cousin Alyssa and her husband Jeremiah were in town, so we stepped outside to take some quick family pictures. Her boys, Aiden and Carsen are definitely in the little boy stage, tons of energy!! So cute...
Love the interaction here!Definitely my favorite for the day...
Such a beautiful family, Alyssa and Jeremiah! Its so fun to see your family grow!

Kelvin and Ruby - a preview

Engagement pictures! I love them... Its a little sneak peek into a real, new (considering the rest of their lives) relationship without the "bride and groom" title and pressure. This is just who they are... I could shoot one everyday and twice on sundays I think.

I'm a little late blogging this one, but this was a really fun shoot with two people that I really like.
Fun fact – Kelvin is my cousin who is marrying a family friend, so now I'm sure to keep in contact with both of them for the rest of my life. :) Kelvin has been a great friend to me for a long time and as I watched him being engaged thru my viewfinder, its hard to believe that we are in this stage of our lives! Where does the time go?

We had a little bit of cowboy/farm influence in this shoot...
This is just pretty.

Sweet. :)We found this barn with awesome light...
Love this one!!
One of my personal faves of the day...
More pretty light...
Another personal favorite. Doesn't that just make you say "aww"?
Praying much happiness for you two!!

Zach and Juli

Juli and I have been friends for a really long time... Maybe something about her being born on my due date and myself being born on her due date? At any rate, we had alot in common from the beginning, including lots of brothers. As a result, so many of my memories with her include banding together and trying to outdo the boys at one thing or another. As we got older and outgrew that, our conversations turned to more serious things. We had many talks about singleness and serving God... and then one day, the conversation had a different flavor. :)

Enter Zach. This is one couple that, without a doubt, will make serving God together a priority. I know this because their individual lives up to this point have been nothing less. I couldn't be happier for either of them!

This is Juli, isn't she beautiful?
Anyone who knows Juli and Zach know that they both have a great sense of humor. Here, Juli is striking her best "queen of everything" pose.
Juli, do you ever wonder what Zach will look like when he gets old? The younger version. Zach is also a good friend of outstanding character. He will lead Juli toward Jesus as only he could.
Love the vine-covered wall!
This is one of my favorites of the day.
They were incredibly blessed with good weather and a few leaves still hanging on...
Precious.

May it be everything little girls dream of. ;)
I love you both!

UPDATE: As I was editing the pictures, I came across a better picture for the caption on the picture above. Little tears might have come to my eyes when I saw this...So let me try that again: "May it be everything little girls dream of."

A backyard in Virginia

This summer, my friends Abigail and Jeremiah asked me to photograph their wedding and I have looked forward to it ever since. There are many reasons why, but simply put, because I enjoy Virginia. I love the people there. Abigail and Jeremiah were sweet, laid back and generously treated me like family, and they are surrounded by friends and family like that. And I love the beauty of the state. See below for details! The couple got married in Abigail's back yard on a gorgeous day.

It's wedding day!
Her flowers were so pretty! A little bit of western flair here.

The bling.

The wedding was beach themed...

The food was just as good as it looks, thanks to Abigail's talented friend Stacy.

The dress.
I love this little scene of Heather (another talented friend) doing Abigail's make-up. It reminds me of a little dress up scene that could have happened 10 years ago... this time its for real!The ladies.
The gentlemen.Here is Jeremiah, mustering a smile amidst the tears as he sees Abigail (for the first time that day) walk down the aisle.
Isn't this the best ceremony spot ever?During the ceremony, the couple's niece leaned over to look at me...

Their first dance. Dance lessons paid off!

The couple and I got to sneak away for a few minutes...

This is maybe my favorite of the day. Something about it. The tenderness you see here speaks volumes about their relationship.
They showed me their initials carved in a nearby tree.

Also love this one!A nice portrait.

Congratulations Jeremiah and Abigail!