What a wonderful destination wedding I had the opportunity to photograph ( www.jordanashleyphotography.com ) in Cape Charles, Virginia. This was my first time visiting Cape Charles, Virginia and I understand why people fall in love with this small, quaint, beach town. We found a cute Airbnb www.airbnb.com within walking distance to the church and the park where the rehearsal dinner and welcome party was located.
The day was sunny and the weather was perfect. The ceremony was held at St. Charles Catholic Church. What a beautiful ceremony with family and friends attending from Denmark, Texas, Massachusetts, Maryland, and Virginia. The three piece ensemble played before and during the ceremony and was reminiscent of the brides parent’s wedding.
After the ceremony, we went to the famous LOVE sign on the beach and captured some images with the couple This is a popular location at the entrance of the beach and pier for photos. This was the most creative love sign i have ever seen. Look closely to see how each letter is unique and represents this beach town, outside Virginia Beach, Virginia. The sun was high and harsh this time of day, but I was able to use a fill flash to create these images.
Next, we went to The Oyster Farm at Kings Creek https://www.theoysterfarmatkingscreek.com where the wedding reception was held.
While guests were enjoying cocktail hour, I was able to photograph the wedding party at the marina and the beautiful blue scalloped wood walls (fish scale shingles), which gave amazing photos for the bridal party (I love contrast in photos).
The wedding party was sent to the reception to get ready for introductions and I had a few minutes to get some photos of the bride and groom before they were introduced.
Once we finished, we were able to head into the reception hall for introductions of the family, wedding party and the bride and groom. The bride and groom had their first dance, and then a precious father and daughter dance and son and mom dance.
Dinner, Toasts, Flower Toss, and a cling of the glasses for a kiss were some of the other enjoyable times at the reception.
The D.J. did a great job. Gwin Entertainment (Trevor Gwin). http://www.gwinentertainment.com/ . He was the best DJ I have worked with at a wedding. He was friendly, organized, and communicated well with me and the bride, groom, and families. He added lights on the columns and the bride and groom’s name projected on the wall.
The venue coordinator (Lane Noe) was absolutely amazing and allowed me to visit the venue the day before so I was prepared. They helped keep things on schedule, which is really important for a wedding photographer. Without a venue/wedding coordinator, it falls on the photographer. They have a really important job and I really appreciate them and their hard work. The attention to detail was incredible. The family of the bride and groom are very talented and used their gifts to decorate the venue.
Seagrass Floral and Apothecary did a great job with the flowers. I like to take pictures of the decor and flowers and lay the wedding rings on them to get a variety of photos. The hydrangeas made great wedding ring photos.
( www.seagrassfloral.com )
The wedding cake was made by Incredible Edibles www.incredibleediblesbakery.com. It was beautiful and delicious (I got to eat a slice quickly in between photos).
This couple loves games. They integrated games into their reception. (Lawn games, games on the deck, “Jenga” pieces to write well wishes on, and favors for each guest to take home.
A few things that don’t always happen at weddings made this reception so much fun. As a photographer, I enjoyed capturing these events and saw such joy on the faces of the guests. First, there was a sock cutting dance, which is a Denmark tradition. Guests lift the groom up in the air and cut off the tips of the groom’s socks off. The tradition says that the wife’s first job is to “darn” her husband’s socks.
Next, a polka dance instructor taught a variety of dances to the guests. His name is Michael Levinsky. They all had so much fun. and I enjoyed watching and taking photos. When venues have a balcony, I take advantage and get elevated for a different perspective and got photos of the dances from above.
After the last dance, I was able to take the bride and groom outside and photograph them on the beach at sunset. For fun, I took photos of them in the tall lifeguard chairs. It was perfect timing as the sun just went below the horizon.
I love how every exit is different for a bride and groom (my previous blog post shows guests blowing whistles upon exit). Most of the weddings I photograph involve sparklers. For this couple,
they made their exit in a golf cart with cans attached and rode off into the sunset (well it was after sunset lol).
Congratulations Tom & Annalee. May God bless you and your marriage. Put Christ first and everything will fall into place.
d many Christian based concerts a year from alternative to rap to rock. I wanted to share with you a few secrets on how to photograph a concert. First of all, most of them do not allow you to take in a professional camera. So, i leave home my professional grade lenses and bodies (canon id mark iv) (70-200) . I just attended a concert all day Sunday and Sunday evening called Spirit Fest 2014 held at the Round Rock Dell Diamond. It was a blast. We didn’t sit as close as we did last year, but there is no need to sit close in to get great pictures. The secret is not in the camera, not always in the lens (although a good glass lens does make for better photos) and not where you are sitting (although closer seats provide gets closer pictures). The secret lies in knowing your camera and how to use it. 
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