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 Bride and Groom enjoy their wine at Delaplane Cellars Everyone enjoyed the great views and wine offered by Delaplane Cellars in Delaplane, VA.
Festive Foods topped off the celebration with wonderful food!
The bar and door in this photograph are made of walnut from trees on the property. Guests of the bride and groom enjoyed the backdrop of the Shenandoah Mountains during the wedding service.
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 Bride relaxes before wedding.
One of the important things to do before your wedding begins is to make sure you have time to relax and have a portrait taken. Add at least an hour on to the time that you think it will take you to get ready.
I like to ask the bride to put all the distractions a side for a few moments, sit down, relax for a great portrait. This shot was taken in the Barrel Room at the Oasis Winery.
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 Bride watches time at La Grange Winery in Haymarket VA I had the privilege of photographing the first wedding ever held at the La Grange Winery in Haymarket VA a few years ago. Here the bride is patiently waiting for the wedding to start.
The La Grange Winery’s Barrel Room is a very intimate setting and the grounds are beautiful. They have some of our best Virginia wines ready to be enjoyed.
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 Bride and Maid of Honor at Inn at Kelly's Ford Bride and Maid of Honor have fun on way to Wedding at the Inn at Kelly’s Ford in VA.
It was a great day for an outdoor wedding with an indoor reception. The Inn is very private and remote with wide open views.
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 Bride and Groom exit church The Groom shields the eyes of his new bride after the wedding ceremony as their family and friends blow bubbles in celebration! The wedding was at at Vale United Methodist Church in Oakton, VA and reception at a private residence near by.
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 Bride and Groom with Fauquier Country Club Staff The service by the entire staff at Fauquier Springs Country Club for todays outdoor wedding and reception indoors was fantastic! The staff was very attentive to the wedding parties needs. The food and grounds were exceptional. Here is a link to there web site: Fauquier Country Club
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 Bride announced while ringing bell at Washington Naval Yard It was a beautiful sunny day at the Washington Naval Yard in DC as this handsome bell ringer announced the arrival of the Bride with “Here comes the Bride, Here comes the Bride”, as she was ready to walk down the isle to her anxious husband to be.
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 Hitch Hiking Bride VA Tech This past week I was shooting a beautiful wedding at Virginia Tech. Between the Wedding and the Reception I was taking shots around campus near Virginia Techs Duck Pond. When we were done shooting we found out that the limousine service didn’t come back to pick us up.
Jokingly I asked the bride if we should hitch hike. She stepped right out on the street and waved down the next car as seen by this photo. We were all tempted to yell at the limo service but instead we all laughed and have a unique memory captured through photography!
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 Best Man searches for wedding rings! Some photos will not win an award for esthetics but photos like this are priceless.
Just before the wedding service the best man dropped the wedding rings into the sink by accident as he was washing up. They went down the drain! He thought he was holding up the wedding as he took the sink apart to retrieve the rings but he wasn’t. Good thing nobody told the bride until the end of the wedding reception.
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 Bride and Groom cutting their wedding cake during the reception at the Black Horse Inn We invite you to meet with us before you make the important decision about who you choose as a wedding photographer.
Our professionalism will come out in our discussions with you. Our experience, energy level, and creative thinking has been obvious to our clients.
We are so confident in this that we offer you a free 8×12 pre-wedding photograph that you can use with a signature frame at your reception. If you contract with us we will provide that frame and mat. Please call to make an appointment at your earliest convenience. This photograph was taken during the reception at the Black Horse Inn just outside Warrenton VA.
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 Show the flowers! The bride and groom look great. The flowers are all set to show. While in a wedding party carry those wedding flowers with bride. In the photograph of the bride and groom to the left our bride is showing off her flowers. They are a very important part of great wedding photographs. Do your wedding photographer a favor and carry the flowers in a way that will make the photographs pop! Your beauty and the flowers beauty together makes great photographs. The bride and groom here were taking time between their wedding and the reception at the Hilton Gardens Hotel in Suffolk VA.
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 Kids Play at Red Fox Inn, MIddleburg VA With lots of kids at this wedding there was plenty of fun. Great weather, food, and the lovely outside venue for the service made this wedding special. Coming indoors for the celebration at the Red Fox Inn made it even more special!
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 You are always in the photograph It is very important for parents and the wedding party to realize that they may be in photographs that are not directly of them. As I shoot the bride and groom dancing or exchanging vows I am looking for angles that include parents smiling, bridesmaids emotion, or groomsmen smiling, to capture the tone of the wedding. When you are on the sidelines watching the bride and groom take their first dance, lighting their unity candle, listening to the bridesmaid or best man give that great toast, keep your eyes on them. First, it makes a great photo, and second, it shows respect for them on their special day. The later being the most important. This wedding reception photograph was taken at the Oasis Winery in Virginia.
It is obvious that the bride and groom care for each other. When the bridesmaids are included it makes the photograph special for all
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 Groomsmen before wedding The groomsmen walked around the beautiful grounds of the Blackthorne Inn in Upperville, VA before the wedding. I caught them looking out over the lake.
Information about the Blackthorne Inn can be found here. They have a great indoor and outdoor venue.
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 Standing in the cold water to shoot a bride standing on a rock in the middle of the stream. A good photographer is always looking for the right angle the right light the right composition and the RightExposure (excuse me…). We can’t limit where we will go to get the shot. Sometimes that means rolling up our pants, some times it means we have to get up on a ladder or hang out of a window. We also have to stay in great physical condition as we are constantly moving around with our gear and need to be ready at any time to take that special shot that captures the moment. This was taken near Cabells Mill in Chantilly, VA.
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 A wonderful Strawberry and Chocolate Wedding Cake In all the weddings we have covered we have never seen the same wedding cake twice! They are like snowflakes all different and beautiful. This Wedding Cake was presented during a wedding reception at the Inn at Kellys Ford in VA.
Follow this link and tell us which one you like the best! Link to wedding cakes…
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 Flower Girl showing off Dress and Smile in Fairfax VA While taking photographs at weddings we are always on the lookout for great shots of children playing, praying, dancing and having fun! Here is a shot taken at a wedding reception in Fairfax Virginia. The flower girl was dancing by herself showing off her beautiful dress and smile! This wedding was held the night of our first big snow storm of the year. It was amazing that everyone came to celebrate. The streets were empty but the wedding hall was full of people dancing and enjoying each others company.
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 While taking formal shots of the wedding party the brides niece played with her doll. The wedding party made a great backdrop with my camera set for a shallow depth of field. What does it take to have a personality that works photographing weddings? There is a subtle balance between staying in the background and being totally engaged with the client and their guests. As a photojournalistic photographer you are doing your best to capture the special moments that are happening during the entire ceremony and celebration, and even when taking formal portraits. That said, in order to be able to capture many of these moments your clients and guests need to be comfortable with me as a photographer. They need to trust me.
At the beginning of each wedding I engage with as many people as I can by taking a complementary photograph of them and showing them the image in my camera. By doing so I get their permission (in the form of a complement by them normally). If I have a shot that comes out not quite the way I like, I’ll intentionally delete the photo after showing them indicating to them that I just want good shots of them and I’ll throw away the ones that do not show them well. I find that after I do this they start spreading the word that the bride and groom have contracted a great photographer and they feel comfortable to act natural around me. I then enlist the guests to point out things around me that I may not see like the flower girl dancing with the ring bearer. The focus of thewedding and celebration is as it should be on the Bride and Groom. I dress in a black shirt, pants, jacket, and tie. I go to the extreme of using black gaffing tape to block out the logos on my equipment so that I can blend in.
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 Many photographers are now promoting a “Trash the Dress” shooting after the wedding. I’d like to say that I’m not the right person for this type of shooting for a number of reasons, this dress may be passed down, or it may have been passed down.
Respect the occasion. Celebration is great but if you really feel like you want to trash that dress you may rethink putting one on. What is your motivation behind trashing the wedding dress?
Maybe some other dress can be worn so you can take that money and pay for your honeymoon!
Someone paid for that dress, in most occasions someone else. Would they like to see it trashed?
That said, if you are a swimmer or a scuba diver and want to take some underwater shots in your dress and tux I’m all for it. As aphotographer after the wedding, I like to see couples focus on the marriage and take an opportunity to take photographs that were not possible do to time and possibly location restrictions. Maybe you made the decision together next to a waterfalls or other favorite location. Reliving that moment as Bride and Groom would have real meaning to your relationship all dressed up.
I focus on just that, the love being expressed, the celebration of that love and union by the Bride, Groom, Family and Friends. I hope that you can see that in my photography.
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 This photograph of lightning striking in background during the wedding ceremony adds a touch of excitement. Many things are happening during most wedding ceremonies. In this case a powerful lightning storm was approaching the Oasis Winery from the Shenandoah Mountains and provided a wonderful backdrop for the wedding. I instructed the second photographer (my son Nathan) to just keep shooting (part of the great thing about shooting digital) until he captured a lightning bolt in the background. It didn’t take long before he had captured it.
Having a collection of photographs without this one in it would not have accurately captured the excitement of the ceremony. Shortly after this bolt hit the wind picked up and the rain came down. We all made a wild dash to finish the ceremony in the reception hall. The bride and groom took it all in stride and maintained the purpose of the occasion. We all had a lot of fun and I’m sure that everyone evolved has a great story to tell about each of the photographs from this wedding.
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 A family members flash adds to the happy glow of the brides face as she and her husband walk down the isle after stating vows, committing themselves to a life together. We are all so busy in our lives and sometimes we don’t take the time to enjoy the special moments along the way. When the vows are made, the first kiss over, when the announcement of marriage is made, it’s time to walk down the isle as husband and wife for the first time. I am amazed at how many couples want to rush this. Maybe they are nervous, maybe they in a hurry to celebrate with their friends. As a photographer this is one of my most challenging moments. Sometimes it’s like catching a race horse crossing the finish line I have to just hold down the button and hope for the best. Remember things moving in low light can become blurred.
Sometimes I wonder who will win the race the husband or wife? In one wedding the husband rushed down the isle and left his wife behind! I suggest that this is the only time you will walk this isle in your life. It is the first time that you will be able to see the joy in your family members and friends faces for you. You are at the center of the universe for a brief time. Slow down! Take this moment in. Everyone in the room is excited for you. Keep your head up. Your wife has you by the arm, your husband has you by the arm. You will not fall. If you do it will make a great photograph that I don’t have. This wedding photograph was taken at Christendom College in Front Royal, VA
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 The first kiss, somehow you are alone together in the midst of a large gathering of friends and family. Since lighting at most locations for wedding ceremonies is poor for photography at best, flash use is limited, and the photographer is normally shooting from the back of the room, quick movements during the service may become blurred.
What better reason is there to hold the first kiss. Remember during this and other special moments like the first dance, and cake cutting if you are in the background of the picture you will be there forever. As a member of the wedding party, an honored guest, or as an official it is a good thing to remember.
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 Bride and Groom release doves and someone steps into the photograph If you have any special events planned for your wedding make sure that the photographer and anyone involved coordinate so the photographer has all the opportunity needed to capture that moment. In the case above just as the doves were being released a person stepped into the scene.
 Photoshop to the rescue Fortunate for all, I was able to remove the gentleman from the photograph with Photoshop. By no means am I implying that every activity be scripted.
The bride and groom releasing doves during their wedding reception in Reston, VA.
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