Quick! Quick! Someone pinch me. Am I dreaming? NOPE! Those are my images IN PRINT! Woohoo! OK, give me a moment to regain my professional composure… Alright, I’m ready to behave like an adult. I just can’t help it. I’m so excited to share this news with all of you! In January 2009 I laid out a set of goals that I wanted to achieve this year, and I am so thankful that the Lord chose to bring this goal to life. Both of these images are from Kevin and Christine’s wedding that I shot in June of this year. Thanks to Christine for providing the scans!

This year has been such an incredible adventure! I graduated from college, photographed weddings in Mexico, Canada and all over the Southeast, I was published for the first time (pictures coming soon), and I got to work with some of the most AMAZING clients the wedding world has ever seen. I feel so blessed to have such a great job, and I’m so thankful to all of my clients for helping me live my dream.

Speaking of living the dream, my 2009 wedding season has come to a close, and the next wedding I’ll have pictures to post from will be MINE! I’m getting married in March, and my 2010 season doesn’t start until April, so you’ll be seeing a lot of personal posts here for the next few months. I’m excited to spend this time finding new inspiration for my business, connecting with new clients, and OF COURSE starting a new life with my beloved soon-to-be husband. Thank you for coming on this journey with me. I look forward to seeing what God has in store for the future! Until then, here are a few of my favorite photos from the last year.

From the day Robert and I got engaged, people have been asking me over and over again, “Who will photograph your wedding?” For a while, I responded with a smile and a light hearted, “Who knows!” because I hadn’t signed a contract or made a final decision. Ask anyone who really knew me, though, and they would tell you that my mind had been made up before Robert and I had even started dating. Over three years ago, I stumbled across the work of the ever so fabulous Anne Almasy. I immediately fell in love with her style and I knew that we just HAD to be friends! It took me a while to actually connect with her because I was really nervous to email someone I admired so much out of the blue, but from the first time we got together I knew that I wanted her to photograph my wedding.

Fast forward to August 2009. Robert and I had just got engaged, and I dove head first into the wedding planning process. In the four years since I shot my first wedding, I’ve become friends with some really talented, incredible photographers. Their friendship encourages me and their work inspires me, and I knew it was going to be difficult to select just one person to shoulder the responsibility of preserving my memories for me. I talked to friends from all over the country and did my best to remain objective in finding the right fit for Robert and I. I knew a few things for sure:

• I wanted someone who had a consistent style that I loved and connected with.
• I wanted someone I enjoyed spending time with.
• I wanted to be able to relax on my wedding day, trusting that my photographer would rock out our wedding photos.

Of course cost was also a consideration, but I decided that having a photographer that I absolutely loved was worth investing in. Like I said, I talked to several different people, but my heart still kept running back to Anne. I was excited to share my planning process with her. I was excited for Robert to meet her. I knew I would have her at my wedding whether she photographed it or not, and finally I stopped weighing options and I just went with my heart.

With Anne’s permission, I’m sharing some of the Almasy’s recent work with all of you. I love the warm, timeless emotion that she is able to capture.

I’m in love with pretty much every photo from this shoot, but I thought I’d just post a few of my absolute favorites!

And last but most definitely NOT least, here is a sneak peek from a mini-session that she did of Robert and I this week.