“There’s a lot of things you need to get across this universe.
Warp drive… wormhole refractors…
You know the thing you need most of all? You need a hand to hold.”
— The Doctor, Season 6, Episode 6 of Dr. Who
These two are die hard fans of Dr. Who. “Who? Precisely.” No kidding, their wedding color is Dr. Who blue.
Meet Kyle and Elizabeth. They are gamers and voracious readers. They love Disney and are easily one of the most interesting couples we’ve ever photographed. And interesting isn’t a euphemism for “we don’t understand them.” We do understand them. They are singular and share the same interests, goals and loves and they are…..in love. What’s fun, as an “old married couple” who still adore each other, is knowing that what’s ahead for them is going to be the ride of their lives, starting with their March 2016 wedding and WE. CANNOT. WAIT.
But let’s set the stage. They met while both were employed at Gamestop in Boone, NC and after realizing how much fun they had working together, they also realized how much they had in common….. which led to wanting to be together all the time …. which led to the biggest epiphany: “We are an US.” It was only a matter of time. They both love games, as I mentioned, they have favorite books and authors they’re devoted to. [To wit: Elizabeth has multiple copies of Black Beauty and couldn’t decide which edition to use for our photo session.] In fact, while shooting the photos of them with their favorite books, we feel confident that they weren’t posing for us – they were actually reading. Each wedding party member was asked to name their favorite book of all time and pages of those books will create the bouquets and boutonnieres for the wedding day. How incredibly cool is that? We got a sneak peek of a bouquet during Elizabeth’s bridal portrait session and let’s just say, it’s amazing!
The details for their March wedding don’t just encompass the things they share as a couple with their friends, but also include family heirlooms and traditions. Elizabeth will be carrying a small silver purse and locket when she walks down the aisle and will wear pearls just as her mother did at her wedding. Kyle’s family has a tradition of dancing as married couples from oldest to youngest and then sharing wisdom during the reception. It’s a nice mix of old and new that is going to make this wedding – and marriage – work.
Harry Potter and Dr. Who scarves made an appearance in photos and these two were naturally candid in front of the camera and totally into one another. Kyle loves photography and not until the end of the day did we know that he came to the session with lots of photo-related concerns and thoughts in mind. At the end of our session he told us that we had taken care of everything and fulfilled all his ideas even better than he had envisioned. It’s a great feeling to know that we’re intuiting before we set up the first shot and it’s why we spend so much time getting to know our clients. We always ask tons of non-photography related questions for this very reason, and the answers allow us to create images that are personal and truly reflect our subjects.
Like the good Doctor, we too are hopers of far-flung hopes, but before we get too far down the road, let’s celebrate the now. We’re excited about the wedding and reception of Elizabeth and Kyle, with the bouquets of sonnets, board and electronic games at the reception, emblems of their beloved interests and family mementos – it should be a wild and beautiful ride.
“When you’re a kid, they tell you it’s all… Grow up, get a job, get married, get a house, have a kid, and that’s it. But the truth is, the world is so much stranger than that. It’s so much darker. And so much madder. And so much better.”
— Elton Pope, Dr. Who, Season 2, Episode 10.
Famous poet, satirist and wit Dorothy Parker once said, “creativity is a wild mind and a disciplined eye.” And to that, we say, “YEP.” Over the last 12 months, we’ve photographed many engaged couples (they weren’t just smiling at each other; he put a ring on it!) using their input, their vibe, family wishes, instinct, experience and our own wild minds and disciplined eyes.
While not every shot conveys adventure, we’ve trekked through woods, waited on the light, tried many angles, changed venues, waited on the weather… you get the idea. You’ll notice that every single one of these portraits (including Kendall and Nathan above) was taken outside – which says a lot about our clients and about us. Nature provides options that an indoor studio simply can’t. So here’s a mini highlight reel of sorts – abbreviated to be sure, but some of our faves.*
* We provided links to each couple’s engagement and wedding blogs, so that you can see more and hear their stories. It goes without saying that we love these duets and being a part of capturing their journey has been an honor and a blast!
See Kendall and Nathan’s wedding day photos.
Micala and Tyler (below). Gorgeous red hair, sunset, cowboy boots…….simply perfect. See the engagement photos and wedding pics!
Awwwww – Elisabeth and Isaac! We loved taking these pics, writing about their story and spending time with them. See more and enjoy their lovely wedding day.
Below are two of the sweetest: Sarah and Danny. Like all of these couples, they were relaxed and game for whatever we asked them to do. Here are rest of the engagement photos and wedding pics.
There’s something about the shot below that is just so tender. These two, Amber and Andy, are down-to-earth, so maybe that’s it. We literally put them in the grass and captured what exists between them – love and anticipation. We’re going to repeat ourselves, but…… we LOVE THESE GUYS. More engagement and then the wedding.
Jamie and Daniel….. our Grove Park Inn “spilled my drink” and “talked all night” couple. See more engagement photos and the amazing wedding day.
While Sharae and David’s wedding was in downtown Charlotte, we still managed to get them outside on a greenway for the engagement session. We love the textures and colors in this shot, but mostly it’s them smiling. That particular engagement shoot was hot, but fun and their glass ceiling wedding was spectacular.
And finally, there’s Whitney and Preston – our “When Harry Met Sally.” We took photos of this pair in quite a few locations for their engagement session. Love them and love their history. See more of their gorgeous wedding at Williams Farm.
Now is the time to book engagement portraits. If your best friend, sister, cousin, co-worker, brother, roommate or loved one is engaged – we’d love to be the photographers to work with them to create portraits they’ll love for the next 50 years.