For Brides: Where Should I Print My Wedding Pictures?

This post is part of a series for brides (and grooms!) or for those who are helping someone plan a wedding. My goal for this series is to help you make informed and educated decisions about your wedding day so that it will be as beautiful as possible! If you're joining me for the first time, you can catch up here:

1. Should I Do an Engagement Session?
2. What Should I Wear for My Engagement Session?
3. Should I Do Bridal Portraits?
4. Making a Wedding Day Photography Timeline
5. How to Get Great Getting Ready Pictures
6. 6 Things Every Bride Should Get Ready for Her Photographer
7. Should We Do a First Look?
8. 5 Steps to Great Bride & Groom Portraits
9. How to Get Beautiful Ceremony Pictures
10. 6 Steps to Successful Family Formals
11. How to Get Beautiful Reception Pictures
12. Where Should I Print My Wedding Pictures?

I am ending this series with a post about printing wedding images because I think it's so important! In our day and age, everything has become so digital that people often loose sight of the significance of having tangible, printed things in front of them. There's just something about seeing your beautiful images in print and not just on a computer screen. And in my opinion, when you spend hundreds of dollars on wedding images, they deserve to be printed and displayed in your home! These are keepsakes you're going to treasure and pass on to the next generation.

What many people don't know is that you can tell a BIG difference between prints that come from a professional printing lab and prints that come from a consumer lab. Getting the color printed accurately on your images is very important and professional quality labs will give you drastically better results than other, cheaper options. Professional labs also offer higher quality photo paper, higher quality inks, and special coatings that ensure your images are resistant to things like finger prints, dust, and fading. In case you're still not convinced, here's a post by another photographer that shows you the difference between getting prints from a professional vs. a consumer lab.

I am happy to share with you that I offer professional prints directly through your PASS gallery. All you have to do is click "add to cart" on the image you want and then select the size and quantity. I also offer canvases and albums (I will do a post on this later but you can also tell a HUGE difference between canvases and albums from a professional lab versus a consumer lab).

If professional prints aren't quite in your budget, here's a few good consumer labs I would recommend:

1. MPix
2. Nations Photo Lab

If you found this post helpful or interesting please share it and/or leave your thoughts or feedback in the comments section below! I am sad to share that this is my last post in the "For Brides" series! However, I have some exciting blog posts and series coming up so please visit again soon!

My Graduation and Our Trip to Miami

The past several days have been a whirlwind! You can follow along with what I've been up to below through a mixture of pictures from my camera and from my phone.

My dad came into town last Thursday morning for my graduation. We had a great time exploring Duke's campus (the chapel is under construction but the campus is still as beautiful as ever!) and the Sarah P. Duke Gardens. The Duke Gardens are absolutely AMAZING and I loved showing my dad! Seriously, the flowers right now are to die for. If anyone wants to do a session there soon, please let me know! 

On Friday I graduated from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary with a Master of Divinity degree! I'm still in disbelief that I actually graduated and finished my degree. SEBTS's degree is 90+ hours and has taken me SIX years to complete while working full time! Many people ask me why I got my seminary degree and I hope to write a full post in response to that question at a later date. But for now, I'll just say that I got my degree for the knowledge and because I think every believer (man and woman) should love the Lord with their minds and should pursue theological knowledge. While I'm not going to become a pastor, it is my prayer that this degree will make me a better child of God, mentor, wife, mom, church member, etc. I hope the Lord will use this degree for His glory!

Thank you Jesse Winchester for capturing some of these graduation pictures!!

It was a blessing to be able to graduate with Will, Ryan, and Sean. We have all known each other for many years and have done a discipleship program called "Generation LINK" at Crosspoint Church together. I'm also very thankful for Jeremy Chasteen's influence (pictured in the second image below). Jeremy was my boss for several years (when I was the Assistant Director of Generation LINK) and he has always encouraged me to continue pursuing theological education in the context of the local church. I'm very thankful for his influence and for the influence of Crosspoint Church. Crosspoint made it possible for me to get theological education by paying for a large portion of my degree!

I'm thankful and honored Alex and I got to take a picture with Dr. Finn (pictured above) and that I grabbed a picture with with Danny Akin, President of SEBTS (pictured below). Dr. Finn is one of our favorite professors and is going to be Alex's PhD mentor. 

After graduation we hopped on a plane that evening for Miami! Alex grew up in Miami and moved to South Carolina with his family when he was 15. The church Alex grew up in, Emmanuel Baptist Church, invited him to preach on Sunday morning and Sunday evening. We had an absolutely wonderful trip and I loved seeing where Alex grew up and meeting so many of his friends! Pictured below is an incredible picture that one of Alex's close family friends painted for us of one of our wedding pictures! How amazing is that? I love seeing how a photo can be turned into another beautiful piece of art. I know Alex and I will treasure this painting forever!

Our time in FL was pretty jam packed and we loved getting to see Alex's grandma Jo (unfortunately I didn't get a picture with her) and staying in the Barker's home. We did get away for a few hours on Saturday evening and had an AMAZING seafood dinner on the beach.

Alex did a great job, by God's grace, preaching on Sunday morning and Sunday evening. I was so proud of him! His messages really encouraged and convicted me and I think they encouraged the church as well. If you'd like to listen to or watch his messages, you can find them here.

Thank you for following along with me as I shared our whirlwind weekend! 

For Brides: 5 Steps to Great Bride & Groom Portraits | NC Wedding Photographer

This post is part of a series for brides (and grooms!) or for those who are helping someone plan a wedding. My goal for this series is to help you make informed and educated decisions about your wedding day so that it will be as beautiful as possible! If you're joining me for the first time, you can catch up here:

1. Should I Do an Engagement Session?
2. What Should I Wear for My Engagement Session?
3. Should I Do Bridal Portraits?
4. Making a Wedding Day Photography Timeline
5. How to Get Great Getting Ready Pictures
6. 6 Things Every Bride Should Get Ready for Her Photographer
7. Should We Do a First Look?
8. Five Steps to Great Bride & Groom Portraits

Bride and groom portraits are one of my favorite parts of the wedding day! I absolutely love taking these pictures and I think they're extremely important. In fact, as I mentioned in my last post, 90% of the pictures displayed in my homes and bride and groom portraits of me and Alex. So how do you get great "Bride and Groom" portraits? Here's 5 steps:

1. Consider location
Think through the location where you plan to take your bride and groom portraits. Most of my couples opt to have their pictures taken at or around their ceremony and/or reception location and that's great! Just make sure that the location you choose has the "look" that you want. For example, if you're getting married downtown Raleigh but you want to stop in a field on the way to downtown to take your bride and groom portraits, your portraits probably aren't going to match the overall aesthetic of your wedding day. Also, try and find a location that has some versatility with multiple locations or options for getting portraits. Trust your photographer as well and ask them for advice and lean on them to find good light and spots at your location choice once you arrive.

2. Think about the time of day
Consider the time of day and the light when you plan the time of your ceremony and reception. For example: if you plan to do a "first look" at noon and take your portraits at 12:30 so you can make it on time to 2 o'clock reception make sure you realize that is the worst possible lighting of the day. The later in the afternoon or evening (or early in the morning) that you can take your pictures the better! The time of day should also play into your location choice. If you plan to take your pictures at noon, make sure you'll be somewhere that has plenty of shade or diffused light (i.e. light shining through trees or other objects that help "diffuse" its harshness). In addition, depending on the time of your wedding, consider allowing your photographer to steal you away for an additional 15 minutes of portrait time during the "golden hour" (the hour before the sun sets). I always ask my couples if they're willing to do this because I know they'll be so happy they did when they look back on their beautiful sunset pictures!!

3. Leave plenty of time
I can't stress this enough. Leave plenty of time for bride and groom portraits. These really are some of the most important pictures you'll be taking all day! I always ask for at least 30 minutes with just the couple and ideally I like 45 (30 minutes before ceremony if doing a "first look" and 15 minutes during sunset).

4. Consider doing a first look
I've already written a whole blog post on this topic and so I won't spend much time here. I encourage you to consider doing a first look because otherwise, it's very difficult to get 30-45 minutes for bride and groom portraits between the ceremony and the reception. Typically the photographer has an hour between the ceremony and reception and bridal party pictures and family pictures usually take at least 45 minutes which leaves 15 minutes or less for the photographer with the couple. If you aren't planning to do a "first look" I highly encourage you to allow your photographer to pull you away for an additional 15 minutes of portrait time during your reception.

5. Interact with one another
You should trust your photographer and allow him/her to pose you. However, I always encourage my couples to interact with one another while I pose them! I want them to consider my poses more as "suggestions." My hope is that posing my clients will lead to them interacting naturally. Remember as your photographer is taking pictures that it's one of the happiest days of your life and try and allow your natural emotions to flow out of you and pretend like your photographer isn't even there (I know, easier said than done)!

If you found this post helpful or interesting please share it and/or leave your thoughts or feedback in the comments section below! Check back next Wednesday and I'll be sharing my next post in the "For Brides" series on how to get beautiful ceremony pictures!

Marie & Ben's Engagement Session at Eno State Park | A Durham, NC Photographer

I met with Marie and Ben at Eno State park in Durham for their engagement session and I had a wonderful time! Marie and Ben spent a lot of time at Eno park while they were dating and so they showed me around and took me to some of their favorite spots. Since moving to NC, I have really enjoyed getting to do photo shoots at so many new places! I loved Eno park and I especially loved the beautiful drawbridge. I definitely plan to come back here for more shoots in the future!

I  loved watching Marie and Ben interact with one another during their session! They were completely natural in front of the camera and their chemistry and love for one another was very obvious. Marie and Ben told me a little history about her engagement ring. The diamond in Marie's ring was Ben's grandma's and has been in Ben's family for many years. 

Marie and Ben, I had a blast and I can't wait until your wedding in September!

For Brides: How to Get Great Getting Ready Pictures | NC Wedding Photographer

This post is part of a series for brides (and grooms!) or for those who are helping someone plan a wedding. My goal for this series is to help you make informed and educated decisions about your wedding day so that it will be as beautiful as possible! If you're joining me for the first time, you can catch up here:

1. Should I Do an Engagement Session?
2. What Should I Wear for My Engagement Session?
3. Should I Do Bridal Portraits?
4. Making a Wedding Day Photography Timeline
5. How to Get Great Getting Ready Pictures

Oftentimes, one of the most overlooked parts of the wedding day is where you get ready. It seems like a small thing, but it can actually make a significant difference in your pictures. Think about it, this is where you'll have pictures that you'll treasure forever of your mom putting you into your dress or your bridesmaids seeing you for the first time. 

Here's a few suggestions for how to get great "getting ready" pictures:

1. Choose a Location With a Lot of Natural Light
For most of the weddings I've shot the bride ends up getting into her dress in a bathroom or some other small, dimly lit room. This is not a good idea! Natural light makes ALL the difference and so you want to make sure you get ready in a room that has plenty of windows. Many venues have a bridal dressing room as part of their package so make sure you look at this room when you're considering your venue and try to get a spacious room with big windows. 

2. Keep Your Room Clutter Free
Communicate with your bridal party beforehand and make sure they know they need to pick up their things and keep them as hidden as possible once your photographer arrives. I recommend designating a bridesmaid or groomsmen to make sure this happens. Having an uncluttered room can make a big difference in your pictures! 

3. Wear Flattering Clothing
During your wedding planning, consider what you and your bridesmaids will be wearing while you get ready. Your "getting ready" outfit may seem like an insignificant detail but if you're going to have several professional pictures of yourself in an outfit, make it a flattering one! Some ideas I've seen are: a white robe or button down shirt for the bride, oversized monogrammed button down shirts for the bridal party, matching tanks, matching PJ's, and matching robes. 

4. Make Sure There's Enough Space
Make sure your room is large enough to fit you and your bridesmaids and to give you enough space to get good shots of you getting into your dress. If you're getting ready at a hotel I highly encourage you to upgrade to a a suite. The extra space is definitely worth it! 

5. Consider the Interior and Exterior Aesthetics 
Getting ready locations with pretty details like unique doors, textured walls, or antique furniture is always a nice, added bonus! Try to find a location to get ready in that matches the style of your wedding day. For example, if your wedding has vintage details try and find an antique or historic venue with vintage details.

I hope you found this post helpful! Check back next Wednesday for my next post in the "For Brides" series. I'll be giving you a bridal detail checklist with all the important things you need to think through in order to get beautiful wedding detail shots.