Jordan & Megan | Lynchburg Engagement Photographer

When I met Jordan and Megan in Lynchburg two weeks ago for dinner we talked about  a lot of things, including ideas for their engagement session. When I suggested they go with bright colors for their session attire Jordan quickly said to me "we really like black and white pictures." Well, say no more! Next thing you know we are planning our next dinner date to be followed by a night time available-light-only engagement session. We were all really excited about it. So, we met up again for dinner last week followed by walking around the quaint and lovely downtown Bedford, VA for their night time session (we met before dinner, actually, and got a few day time photos at the local park, too. :)). I had such a good time... shooting a black and white night time session challenges me creatively it is SO much fun for me. Not to mention Jordan and Megan were such great sports about all the awkward places I had to make them stand just so we'd have good lighting. :) Jordan and Megan, I had such a fab time with you guys. Thank you for trusting me with a unique idea for your engagement session... I hope you are thrilled with the results.  Here's a quick sneak peek for you guys!

these two... | Outer Banks Wedding Photographer

Ooh... these two. I love them. Remember them?

And he was just as happy on his wedding day... (they both were!!)

Ahh this brings such joy to my heart. Seriously... I love couples in love!! More to come soon from this beautiful beach wedding!

Matthew and Shannon | Charlottesville Wedding Photographer

I have been asked on more than one occasion "How do you get your clients to look so natural?" The truth is - I allow them to "be natural" and it is my job to simply capture that. I don't do too much directing during sessions unless I can tell that the people being photographed need or want direction. I am blessed to have a number of couples that simply have great chemistry together in front of the camera. These two? TOTAL naturals.

Matthew and Shannon have the sweetest story. They were friends for a long time, began dating, and were engaged very quickly. I have a soft spot for those stories that involve "just knowing," and wasting zero time making it official! (My parents met and were engaged one month later, married just one month after that and are still married to this day.) Matthew is probably the most transparent person I have ever met - it is no surprise to me that he wasted no time after he had made up his mind to ask Shannon to be his bride. These two love children, serving the Lord, and being with each other. I am honored to have been invited to capture their big day and can't wait to see what God has planned for their lives together!

Here are just a few of my favorites from their engagement session:

I can't wait for their wedding in June!

sweet love | Fredericksburg Wedding Photographer

Samantha contacted me last fall to schedule an engagement session and between the busy fall portrait season and the holidays, we were unable to make it happen during that time. Fortunately, she contacted me again a few weeks ago to try again to schedule a session and this time we were able to do it! Samantha and Scott were wonderful models - easy going and relaxed in front of the camera. Beautiful, relaxed and happy subjects always make great portraits, and I am happy to report that I absolutely LOVE the way their session came out. They brought their baby girl, Daisy, along and she couldn't have been better behaved. I was continually impressed by her eagerness to please and obey (especially considering I'm in the process of trying to train my own dogs and it is soooo not easy!) and also how she would just sit off to the side and wait patiently while I took photos of Samantha and Scott alone! I loved having her around and hope to get to hang out with her again sometime in the future!

Without further ado...

I wish you all the best as you get married in Illinois later this year!

family of models | Fredericksburg Portrait Photographer

You probably recognize this momma from some of her previous sessions with me. She originally booked a Baby's First Year plan with me but has since started pursuing a photography career of her own. Needless to say, her baby boy has become her little model and she no longer needs to pay someone else to take more photos of just him. However, she remained committed to the sessions she previously booked with me and we took this opportunity to approach this particular session as a family session instead so that I could get some great shots of the whole family together. As all photographers know, we are always the last to have our own family portraits taken. I was more than happy to adjust our original plan to what worked best for Samantha and her family. I love every time we get together. Being able to see Cohen grow has been such a joy. Not to mention, this family makes my job SO easy with their beauty - seriously! Here are some of my favorite images from their session.