Catie & Justin at Boone Hall Plantation

What a blessing in my life, to be able to share in the happiest day of other’s lives!!!

Catie & Justin are one of my favorite couples EVER!!! It’s been such a joy getting to know them over this past year on the many photo shoots we’ve shared, leading up to their beautiful wedding last weekend. They are such a unique couple, with a genuine love for each other that is pure and true!

I have to send a HUGE shout out to another one of my favorite couples, Jay & Erin, for introducing us. I had the distinct honor of photographing their wedding four years ago, in which Justin was Jay’s Best Man. Last weekend the roles were reversed, with Jay returning the favor…quite enthusiastically I might add!

The ceremony was held at the historic Boone Hall Plantation, on the rustic Cotton Dock, overlooking the tranquil marsh.  With such a beautiful backdrop, an awesome wedding party, and such an incredible couple, Laura & I were able to capture so many wonderful images of their special day!  Many thanks to Christy Loftin for making sure everything ran perfectly throughout the day, to DJ Wade for spinning those amazing tunes, and to all the other vendors that made this celebration so special.  To view their entire collection of images, visit:  http://chrisandcami.zenfolio.com/p336963658.

Originally from Delaware, Catie us a nurse. Justin is an IT engineer. There is an amazing story about how Justin & Catie had their first blind date whem they went out with Jay & Erin for an afternoon on their boat. It was the first time Erin had met Catie.  The two became instant friends! Naturally, Erin went to put Catie’s number in her phone. And when she did, she added her contact as: “The Future Mrs. Boucher”!!! 🙂

Well, Catie, you are no longer the “Future” Mrs. Boucher! You are THE Mrs. Boucher!!! CONGRATULATIONS to both of you…may your love go stronger day by day!

“In as much as love grows in you, so in you beauty grows. For love is the beauty of the soul.”
            – St. Augustine

Charlestowne Landing Bridal Portrait

Waiting…

That’s the one thing I can’t stand about photographing Bridal Shoots!   🙂

I’ve been dying to share images from Catie’s beautiful Bridal Session last month. But of course her gorgeous wedding gown had to be kept a secret until the Big Day. Now that her and Justin tied the knot this weekend, I can finally show off how amazing Catie looked in her elegant and unique wedding dress.  The waiting is over!!!

I love this southern tradition of photographing Bridal Portraits about a month before the wedding. It’s quite likely that this is the most expensive garment a young lady will ever own in her life! Sure she’ll have a few shots of herself in the dress on her wedding day. But with the hustle and hurry of that stressful day, there just isn’t time to truly do it justice.  I always encourage my brides to schedule a Bridal Shoot to truly document how gorgeous they look in the gown of their choice.

These fun “fashion style” photo shoots are scheduled for a more relaxed time and place. Hair and make-up is fresh. It can be planned around the best light of the day (instead of being squeezed in wherever it fits among the zillions of other pictures to be taken on the wedding day). Due to time constraints, all the photos on wedding day are done at the wedding or reception venue. Bridal Sessions allow brides to pick a totally different location. Maybe it’s somewhere special to them (where they had their first date?). Maybe their wedding is downtown, but they want some photos at a plantation? A Bridal Shoot is a great time to be creative and come up with some cool and creative wedding photos that simply can’t be done on the wedding day due to the constraints of time and space.

Catie & Justin LOVE the many beautiful plantations around Charleston! After all, their wedding was held at the historic Boone Hall Plantation. However, leading up to the wedding, they also had photo shoots with me at Runnymede Plantation, Magnolia Plantation & Gardens, and finally these inspirational images from Charlestowne Landing.

Catie…you were absolutely STUNNING!!! What a pleasure it was to share this afternoon with you and your parents, capturing your amazing spirit, and documenting the spirit of your stunning wedding gown.

The Silly Outtakes

I could have titled this so many ways!
   “When Photo Shoots Go Awry”
   “The Train Goes off the Tracks”
   “You’re on Candid Camera”

The truth is, I absolutely love what I do! Life is just too short not to have fun, right? Plus I try to dig deep to bring out each person’s personality…really capture who they are (not just a thin fake representation).

So even when photographing what some photographers would view as boring old stuffy head-shots, I do a lot of goofing off to help my clients relax. When it’s working right, it’s contageous! Pretty soon they’re hamming it up and joking around with me in between takes. SOMETIMES…I just can’t resist snapping those moments just for the heck of it!!!

Here then, are a few of the silly outtakes from an awesome shoot I had for the amazing folks at ECS Carolinas LLP. They are an amazing engineering firm in town. I highly recommend them if you’re looking for any environmental consulting or geotechnical engineering on an up-coming project!

Amanda & Alicia’s Wedding at Medecine Wind Farms

What a joyful celebration of genuine love!!! It was truly an honor to be a part of Amanda & Alicia’s joyful wedding at Medecine Wind Farms last weekend! 🙂

Amanda & Alicia dated in high-school, though they lost touch afterwards when they went separate ways. But hearts drawn together by true love can’t stay apart for long! These two re-united several years later, and have been inseperable ever since.

According to her big brother, Alicia asked Amanda to marry her more than once. 😉 But the one that stuck was when she proposed in Azalea Park. This beautiful sanctuary in the heart of Summerville is a very special place to these two, where they always enjoy spending time together.

Amanda & Alicia’s gorgeous bohemian-themed wedding was held at the rustic Medecine Wind Farms, a picturesque venue just outside of Summerville. Friends and family surrounded the couple with joy and love, in one of the most heart-felt ceremonies I’ve had the privilege of photographing in a long time!

“May the longtime sun shine on you
All love surround you
And the pure light within you
Guide you on your way
Akal, Akal, infinity
Akal, Akal, no end”
      – Irish Blessing

CONGRATULATIONS Alicia & Amanda!

Casey & Bekah’s Secret Proposal at Magnolia Plantation

It’s rare to find true love as genuine as Casey & Bekah’s!!!

A few days ago I had the pleasure of photographing Casey’s secret proposal to Bekah. He and I had been diligently planning every detail of this special moment for months! Finally the big day arrived…and it turned out absolutely PERFECT!!!

Casey had a full day planned out for the two of them, involving sight-seeing together, a picnic at the beach, and eventually a tour of Magnolia Plantation & Gardens. The grand finale of their fairy-tale day was him asking her to be his wife, on bended knee, under this beautiful cathedral of oaks.

“May you always have walls for the winds,
a roof for the rain, tea beside the fire,
laughter to cheer you, those you love near you,
and all your heart might desire.”
– Irish Blessing

CONGRATULATIONS Casey & Bekah!

Washington DC Architecture

Last month, Cami and I had a wonderful time photographing Matt & Caroline’s destination wedding in Turf Valley, VA.

Since we flew into Washington D.C. to get there, we decided to take an extra day to “play tourist” in our country’s capital on the way home. Here are a few architectural studies I did while we visited the many sights.

All images shot with Nikon D810 and Nikkor 16-35 f4 VR.

Migration to Memminger

This week I had the honor of reprising my role as the official photographer for “Migration to Memminger”, which is the annual fund-raising gala for the Center for Birds of Prey.  I absolutely love photographing corporate events that are as fun and rewarding as this one!

This Avian Conservation Center is located approximately 30 minutes north of Charleston, in Awendaw. If you’ve never been, I HIGHLY recommend it!!! Jack Hanna writes:

“I have traveled worldwide and seen countless centers and this is the absolute best of its kind I have ever seen anywhere.”

Many thanks to David Archer for his amazing musical gift, my friend Steven Hyatt for raffling off his beautiful fine-art prints of the raptors in flight, Kara Bale for her amazing leadership and organization, and the zillions of other staff and volunteers who made this evening a huge success!!!

Fashion Model Photo Shoot

A few days ago we wrapped up photography on a project that we’ve been shooting over this past summer. It’s for a super-cool, up-and-coming, yet-to-be-announced publication. Those are the only details I’m allowed to divulge at this time!!!

Many thanks to our clients, Susan and Julie for their vision and talent! Many thanks to Grace, Mary-Catherine, Margaret, Caroline, Brittany, Brenae, and Crystal for all their style and grace in these beautiful outfits! And many thanks to Robbin, Addy, and the many others who helped in so many ways!

I can’t wait to reveal the final details once they are announced!!! 😉

T-Mobile “In Crowd” Awards Banquet

Last night was the annual T-Mobile Awards Banquet in Charleston. It’s always one of my favorite corporate events of the year!

While I photographed the banquet, award recipients, and general event coverage, Gary and Cami handle the setup and operation of the print-on-site “Fashion Booth”. Gary is a MACHINE when it comes to print-on-site service. By the time the award ceremony was over, he and Cami already had beautiful 5×7 prints, nicely matted in elegant folios, ready for the winners to pick up. They printed and delivered 430 photos to this lively and fun-loving bunch!!!

Congratulations to all the top performers and award winners! We’ll see you all again next year!!! 🙂

Olman’s Bridal Shoot

Now that Olman & Craig are married, I can FINALLY share some of her gorgeous Bridal Portraits from downtown Charleston!!!

Believe it or not, it was a dreary and drizzly afternoon. But since Olman & Craig had driven all the way from Atlanta to get these portraits, we had to work around it. Fortunately, I have a few tricks up my sleeve…favorite locations that are dry and covered…lighting techniques to mimic warm sunshine…and equipment that can withstand the weather. 🙂

Olman has such a positive spirit, her mom and best friend Maricar were great support, and we all actually had a BLAST creating these beautiful images together!

Olman & Craig at Charlestowne Landing

What a joy it has been to get to know Olman & Craig over this past year! We absolutely LOVE these guys!!!

Olman & Craig met through work, where they are execs at AT&T in Atlanta. They were looking to for a spot to have a nice destination wedding that had a beautiful courtyart surrounded by nature and greenery. They couldn’t have picked a more AMAZING location than Charlestowne Landing!

Their ceremony was held in the gorgeous courtyard at Founder’s Hall in this beautiful historic plantation. But we took advantage of other scenic locations around the grounds as well! In spite of the threatening weather, the ceremony went off without a hitch. Plus Olman & Craig bravely indulged my “creative geekiness” for a few dramatic shots in the misty sprinkle afterwards. 🙂

Many thanks to everyone who helped make their wedding such a huge success! And a special thank you to Jessica for referring these two beautiful soul-mates to us! What a special priviledge it was to capture all the excitement of their wedding day!!!

CONGRATULATIONS Olman & Craig! May your life hereafter be filled with happiness and delight.