Photographic Expressions

Destination shoots have my heart. They are like mini vacas for me. Destination + camera + ‘ridicously good looking people’ (said in my Zoolander voice) = Super Fun Weekend!

What started out in high school and continued over nine years, John made it official and (finally) asked Kacie to marry him. I was so excited for the engagement, as was the entire region of Middle Georgia (haha!), and was giddy to spend the weekend with them.

Brunswick and Jekyll Island opened up and offered us their crown jewels to climb all over and take in for our shoot and we couldn’t have been luckier. They offered their jewels but what they gave was rain, intense lighting, incredible heat, huge spiders, blood sucking mosquitos….ok, the elements got a bit hairy but we had a great time!!

J&K, we’ve been friends for many years and I’m so darn happy for the two of you. And the fact that I’m heading back to the coast with you in April helps too! haha

See you soon!
~C

I met Therese last year as she stood at the alter supporting her brother and new sister-in-law as they exchanged wedding vows.

Fast forward to this year I was more than excited to get an email inquiring if I was available to document her upcoming wedding this June. As we were hammering out plans and details for the engagement session, I asked Therese to tell me a bit more about their day and I fell in love with her all over again on her reply.

Touching on details of her day Therese wrote, “both of us value our Catholic faith and believe it is one of the most important aspects of our relationship. We plan to have a very orthodox Catholic wedding with a Mass. We really want a bright summer wedding. The colors we have for the wedding will be yellow, orange, reds, and greens.”

Speaking for herself she wrote, “I’m very bubbly and outgoing. I have a love for life as well and enjoy being with close friends and family.”

Describing her soon to be husband Therese wrote, “Peter is a wonderful man who is very giving and generous. Although at times he can be shy and reserved, he has a determined spirit that enjoys life.”

Going back to the grounds where Peter first proposed to Therese, on the grounds of Berry College in Rome, we met to tour the campus with our photo shoot. Since Berry College is the largest campus in the world, it certainly allowed us plenty of space and locations for a fun afternoon out and about.

I simply can not tell you how much fun I had! You two made for a great afternoon, I am so glad that you were given a second chance to meet and that you found your way to each other. Can’t wait to see you in June in TN!!

~C

They grew up miles apart, he in a borough and she on an island. Family and school brought them from Queens and Jamaica to Georgia. Years later it was again, family and school, that led them to finally meet. Introduced by Mike’s cousin while Christine attended law school at the University of Georgia, something sparked between them and they are now inseparable.

For engagement shoots I really encourage my couples to chose a location that is special to them. Locations that are representative of them and most bring me to where they became engaged. Though my passport is up to date, we did not board a plane to Jamaica but I did love hearing how Mike proposed to Christine. With the help of her family, they ventured to the city where she was born and before she knew what was happening Mike surprised her with a ring and a proposal. For their engagement shoot they brought me to Centennial Olympic park, my first visit, and later to Atlantic Station visiting the same park bench where they originally had their first kiss.

My fellow Wesleyan sister, I am so happy for you!! When I think of you I first hear your accent that sings in my head and I am just so happy for your accomplishments in these few short years from when we graduated together. You rocked this photo shoot with your sassy self! Mike, it is always fun to be around you. You are truly the kindest person, so darn funny and it was great to spend time with you both.

See you in April!

~C

Perfect in timing for Valentine’s Day this weekend but I met up with Dean and Allison on the campus of UGA two weeks ago. We finally found a break in the weather, it seems like has has been the only weekend it hasn’t snowed in Georgia.

Needing a break from their studies as both graduate this May (Yay!!) we trucked across campus and took advantage of the school and city’s history for some fantastic photo opps. On a high already by just being in such a cool city that offered such a creative vibe and neat locations, I loved capturing the moments between Dean and Allison, oh and Tucker too! Allison blew me away with her plans to better people’s lives through nutrition and she brought out her inner fierceness throughout the shoot. Dean’s purpose to graduate and take his degree back into the Marines (yes, he’s joining again) really impressed me seeing his dedication and love for his country but it was the way he looked at Allison, wrapped her into his hugs and protective embrace that moved me.

Oh and could Tucker be any cuter?? He’s such a fun car companion and loves affection but he definitely takes after Allison’s interest in nutrition, this pup could care less about his treats! A nutrition lover after Allison’s heart

A&D, I can’t wait to drive to the incredible heights of Rising Fawn, GA to document you coming together as husband and wife in May.

See you soon!

~C

I’m running behind but I’m so excited to give you a preview of what lies ahead for Allison and Dean. I had such a fun afternoon in Athens on the infamous UGA campus and I’m loving the energy from these two, oh and Tucker too!

More soon!

~C

Life is always full of surprises. Just when you think the world is crashing down around you, the most unexpected surprises have a way of springing up around the corner.

Needing a weekend breather Ashley headed out to the country with her best friend. No pretenses, nothing exciting, just wide open spaces. The last thing on her mind was meeting someone but it was then, when the world was too big and life was complicated, that fate had a surprise for her. Because you see, Ashley’s best friend was taking her to her in-law’s property out in Elberton where she also knew her handsome brother-in-law, Jeremy, might be home. Fate?

What started out as spending weekends out in the county turned into a hilarious trek in the mud for Muddy Buddy and led to having a partner for life. In those same fields that brought a calmness to her life, Jeremy brought Ashley out under the stars and asked for her hand in marriage. It was fate that was acting through her best friend/future sister in law that day so long ago on her first trek to the country.

Ashley it was so fabulous to see you again!! You had such a special light about you back in our college days and I am so glad to see you again. Jeremy, it was great to meet you and I’m sorry for the impromptu mud boggin’ on your clean truck, but it was an experience

~C

I met Jessica and Tom on a recent Saturday evening in between Tom’s run on the bike in a local bike race throughout Midtown Atlanta. In between shoots Tom kept his eye out searching for his teammates just in case they sped by. Being active in sports runs deep with these two, after all it was a softball scholarship that brought Jessica down to the South Georgia campus where she met Tom.

Years passed and Tom realized they had been delaying the next step in their relationship as they waited for each other to finish their undergrad then later graduate school. Finally Tom didn’t want another round of school to stop him from asking Jessica to be his wife so they made a side trip to the jewelers. Jessica states that she didn’t see it coming on the actual day Tom proposed, but surprised she was when he finally popped the question.

This up for anything, fun loving couple enjoy spending time chasing adventure. Well, Tom will have chased it down the slopes and Jessica will enjoy the scenery as she sets her own speed but despite their individual pace, they have fun experiencing it together. Years, a few degrees, and two puppies; these two will be making their walk down the aisle in the next month.

Thanks for introducing me to the beautiful pocket parks that Midtown has to offer. It was so wonderful to meet you and get to know your story. I can’t believe you are getting married next month, see you soon!

~C

Over the weekend, in between rounds in a bike race, Tom and Jessica met me somewhere in Midtown for an impromptu engagement shoot Saturday night. Here is a just a sneak peek of their hotness.

More to come soon,
~C

He opened her car door every time we stopped for a location or left for the next destination. He helped her climb that next hay bale and jump up on bleachers. Despite the distance that comes from living in two different states in opposite sides of the country and interning for the summer five states apart, Ashley and Chris couldn’t have been closer. In one month Chris and Ashley will say I do in the state that houses their future alma mater, the state in which brought them together from across the country to meet and fall in love. State lines and thousands of miles doesn’t have anything on these two.

Ashley and Chris, I wish you the absolute best for your wedding next month. I am so blessed to have met you and I had so much fun with you two! Thank you for being so awesome and open to climb that hay bale and barn : )

~C

The chances of them running into each other in the hallway, out on campus, the local dive or in class were immeasurable. Four years spent on a campus of less than 2500 would normally have brought these two together, their lives would have surely intersected somewhere. However, life at Shorter had Heather busy with Homer and Shakespeare while Andy was strumming along in music and theatre. Fate would have to wait.

Meanwhile threatre beckoned Andy to show off his mad singing/acting skills on stage. One such adventure was The Last Five Years which followed the lives of two characters, Jamie and Cathy, as they experienced life in opposite forces; one backward and the other forward until they meet. In a Benjamin Button sort of way their lives intersected on the fateful day when Jamie proposed to Cathy and they serenaded each other singing “The Next Ten Minutes.”

Years later, after fate introduced Andy and Heather at a party, life brought these two together for a morning stroll on the beach. With the help of the future Maid of Honor, a proposal lay in wait on the beach. Beating the sun up that morning Andy and Heather strolled along the beach and happened upon a blanket laid out perfectly, complete with a guitar. Not one to let an opportunity pass, Andy picked up the guitar and proposed to Heather through singing “The Next Ten Minutes.”  

Will you share your life with me
For the next ten minutes?
For the next ten minutes
We can handle that
We could watch the waves
We could watch the sky
Or just sit and wait
As the time ticks by
And if we make it till then
Can I ask you again
For another ten?
And if you in turn agree
To the next ten minutes
And the next ten minutes
Till the morning comes
Then just holding you
Might compel me to
Ask you for more
There are so many lives I want to share with you
I will never be complete until I do

Just as the song was a key point in the lives of Jamie and Cathy as it finally brought them together in the play, it did the same for Andy and Heather. Though fate kept them apart and brought them together at the most random points in their life, their lives are now intersected forever. 

H&A, thanks for all the fun laughs! You guys are so awesome!! I had a fabulous day in Athens documenting your funny faces as you enticed each other to laugh. I can not wait for October. See you soon!

~C