PORTFOLIO | Brittany & Weston purple and brown rustic styled session in Lynchburg, Virginia

This session literally has some of my favorites!   New favorite images, a favorite location, some of my favorite people – it’s all here!  Brittany & Weston have such bright personalities!  These two just enjoy being with each other so much (as they should be!) that their joy is contagious!  I think it’s that fact that helps them to be such naturals in front of the camera!

You may know that I use natural light for the majority of my sessions.  I love natural light and certainly don’t want to stop using it!    However, I do desire to improve myself and my craft for myself and to better serve my clients.  I've been practicing so I put my flash to use for several of the images!  I wanted to create a dramatic feel and I think it worked!

Lastly, this location is quickly becoming a favorite of mine!  It’s literally three minutes from my house and has so many options for portraits!  There are fields with tall grass, fences and gates, an area of pine forest, sprawling red barns, brick pillars, and street lights.  If that wasn’t enough, there is a beautiful view of the sunset as it slips below tree line at night!  

A wonderful couple in love and a gorgeous setting - it was perfect, I'm sure you'll agree!  Enjoy! 

SENIORS | Ethereal Brides Prom Styled Session at The Bedford Columns

I really enjoy shooting high school seniors! They are full of excitement and anticipation as they prepare to leave high school and that comes across in their sessions!  Of course, a huge part of shooting seniors is including their personal interests or accomplishments in their session!  This can even include their prom gowns!  

I want to offer unique opportunities to my senior clients so this spring I worked together with a group of wonderful vendors and three great models to do a styled prom fashion session.  The shoot was scheduled for March and I knew we would need to have a location with lots of indoor options.  So of course, the Bedford Columns was the perfect choice.  Their interior décor varies and provides a lot of different looks as backdrops.  The gorgeous gowns were provided by Ethereal Brides in Wyndhurst.  The shop carries a beautiful selection of both bridal and formalwear gowns that those getting married or going to prom should definitely check out.   Isis Spa & Salon, also in Wyndhurst, did the girls hair and makeup for the session!  They worked with me to make time for the models and even finished ahead of schedule!  The makeup looked fantastic and was perfectly matched for the dresses we selected!  

I hope that the girls had as much fun on the shoot as I did!  I can’t wait to do this again in the future! 

List of Vendors:

Hair & Makeup | Isis Spa & Salon

Prom Gowns* | Ethereal Brides

Venue | The Bedford Columns

*Special note: All but the light blue down provided by Ethereal Brides in Wyndhurst, light blue gown from photographer’s personal collection. 

ENGAGEMENT | Israel & Brianna - A Winter Engagement session at Blackwater Creek Park

Brianna and Israel got engaged last Christmas and I have the privilege of meeting them and getting to know them through our church, Forest Community.  I was thrilled when they asked me to photograph their engagement session. 

Brianna currently lives in Richmond, Virginia where she is a nurse and Israel is living here in Lynchburg.  So we worked together to schedule their engagement session here as soon as Brianna could be in town as well!  We finally met in February!  Winter engagement sessions are fun to show off your winter weather sweaters and boots – even outerwear!  The weather was a little chilly and started to drizzle a little at the end but that didn’t dampen their spirits at all! 

The Blackwater Creek Trail and the Awareness Garden at the Ed Page Entrance was a beautiful backdrop for the session.  Although, I am not photographing their wedding I am thrilled I could capture their joy as they prepare for their day in October! 

PORTFOLIO | Jessica Mae Photography Workshop Fall 2013

I want to share about an opportunity I had this past November to attend my first photography workshop.   I am self taught so I wanted to attend a workshop to further my learning and education in photography.  It was put on by Jessica of Jessica Mae Photography who is based here in Lynchburg as well.  I have assisted her in the past at some previous weddings so it was great to learn more from her (here, here, here, and here).  

This was a perfect first workshop for me!  It was held at the Oakwood Country Club which is literally at the end of the street where I live and it was a small group of about 10 photographers.  We were able to speak comfortably to one another and I didn’t feel like I was lost in a sea of attendees.  There was also a styled shoot as part of the workshop.  This enabled us to see how Jessica works with her clients as well as allow us to gain some images for our portfolios.  There is more than just education to gain when attending a workshop.  Making connections in our industry is important to have someone to bounce ideas off of, encourage, and challenge on another.  I am thankful to have met them all!

I’m displaying some of my favorite images from the styled shoot here but be sure to also check out Jessica Mae Photography’s blog to see her images from that day and her other amazing work here!  There were a lot of fantastic vendors who provided items or services and you should check them out too!  See the list below:

http://jessicamaephotoblog.com/fall-workshop/

Photographer: Jessica Mae Photography | Venue: Oakwood Country Club | Hair and Makeup: Kathryn Miller | Dresses: Celebration Bridal and Church Street Bridal | Florals: Hannah Swanson | Styling: Andrea Pesce + Jessica Mae | Cake: Jessica Mae | Models: Brandon + Alex Wirth