These two really are seriously cute together. The way they look at one another, the way Max fluffed Karen’s dress for the photos and how excited they obviously were to be together. Love these photos!

You know I’m a sucker for vintage details and I loved the paper flowers attached to the last row of chairs. The second photo just felt to me like it was from another time and place – love how together they look straight out of the 1960s.

Karen’s bouquet is beautiful. Her veil and the flowers in her hair are perfect with her dress.

Each bridesmaid accessorized her dress differently and it added a personal touch to the look. The maid of honor carried a bouquet similar to the bride’s but smaller and the rest of the bridesmaids carried bouquets with more of a wildflower look that matched their coral dresses. Love!

The lace detail on Karen’s dress makes it one of my favorites from this year so far!

The ceremony took place while the sun was still relatively bright, so the bridal party had sunglasses waiting on the seats for them. It added character and an air of fun informality in addition to being very helpful!

Love the expressions on their faces in this one.

Really liked the combination of chocolate brown with coral for the wedding party.

Family Mini Session attendees – these ideas may come in handy for planning your session wardrobe. And if you’d like to schedule a mini portrait session on October 9, please do so this week, as I anticipate filling the final remaining spots this week.

(Click on the image to load the What to Wear Guide images. Clicking each image takes you to the next one.)

First Family Look

Mom

• Jacket
• Dress – Nordstrom
• Necklace (similar)
• Earrings
• Shoes (or boots would be great)

Dad

• Blazer
• Shirt – Nordstrom
• Vest

Boy

• Jacket
• Shirt
• Hat – Gap
• Tee

Girl

• Dress
• Hat – Children’s Place
• Tights – Boden
• Jacket
• Boots

Baby Girl
Baby Boy

Second Family Look

Mom

• Same dress as above
• Cardigan
• Flower
• Necklace (similar)
• Skinny Belt (similar)

Dad – Tie

Boy

• Sweater
• Onesie – Macy’s

Girl

• Same jacket as above
• Skirt
• Shirt – Macy’s
• Tights

Baby Girl

• Romper
• Hat

Baby Boy

Couples & Engagement

Woman

• Top
• Sweater
• Skirt
• Tights
• Shoes
• Bag
• Earrings

Man

• Shirt (similar)
• Tee

First Senior Girl

• Dress & belt – Nordstrom
• Cardigan
• Necklace, boots, tights – Forever 21

Second Senior Girl

• Shirt
• Skirt
• Military jacket
• Tights – Forever 21
• Headband – Forever 21

First Senior Boy

• Jacket
• Tee
• Shirt
• Bag
• Jeans

Second Senior Boy

• Jacket
• Tee
• Shirt

First Maternity

• Dress (similar)
• Shoes

Second Maternity

• Top
• Sweater
• Leggings

Thank you Michelle, with pinkletoes4photographers for putting together this amazing fall/winter fashion guide. Guide photos used with full permission.

Looking for fashion inspiration this fall? Try these websites:

Banana Republic (they have collections for weddings, too)
Boden (women’s and children’s clothing)
Chasing Fireflies (children’s clothing, also amazing Halloween costumes for children)
Forever 21
Gap
J Crew
Old Navy
A Pea in a Pod (maternity clothes)
Ruche
Talbots (not fuddy-duddy anymore! And, full line of plus-size options)
Tea (children’s clothing)

He’s an amazing dad, so kind, seriously funny (don’t tell him I said that!) and is a fully vested partner in our marriage and in fatherhood. He watches entirely too much sports but does not complain when I buy another camera lens even after I say I am done buying lenses.   His British accent could use a little work, but Olivia and I laugh like crazy when he says, “Chip, chip cheerio!”  (Confession: We like to talk with British accents for fun around the house. And Olivia’s getting pretty good!)

The older I get and the more I look around, the more I realize how lucky I am. It’s too easy to take a person for granted. In short, Steve is a fantastic husband. And a fantastic, hands-on dad. We couldn’t be luckier. Our wedding photos were taken with film, so I can’t easily share them, but I do have a few scanned. That’s us dancing together – our first dance. We look so young!

My wedding ring setting was custom made and holds diamonds that were given to us by my mom, my Steve’s mom and some that we picked together. I don’t know why I got it set in yellow gold, but I did despite never wearing yellow gold! So for our 10th anniversary, we decided it would be a nice time to have the stones reset. It was a challenge finding a setting that would work with the stones I already had, but it was important to me to keep the family stones in my ring.

I found a great ring setting online (you know me, I did most of my research online). And I took the info to Long Jewelers in Virginia Beach. They were incredibly patient and helpful – literally taking several hours with me to figure out what I wanted and how to make it work. (I can’t recommend them enough – I have never seen so many beautiful pieces of jewelry in my life and they custom order and design jewelry.) They also custom-made a band to match the engagement ring and hold the remaining stones. I love it, love it! So I had to take a few “detail shots” of my own rings. For our anniversary, I asked Michele Duncan of One Sweet Day to make us cupcakes that look like our wedding cake, which had chocolate shells on it. She made gorgeous cupcakes and they happened to arrive within an hour of me picking up my new rings. So yes, I did stick my rings on a cupcake and take photos!

P.S. I got Steve and iPad and I haven’t seen him since. (Just kidding. But he absolutely loves it! It fit right in with the fact that the 10th anniversary traditional gift is supposed to be aluminum. Hah!)

P.S.S. Thinking about a Family Mini Portrait Session? (See details in the post below this one.) They are going fast. In fact, out of over a dozen sessions, I have about 2 left to reserve. So don’t wait if you’re interested in booking a session!

• 15-20 minute session for up to 2 children or one immediate family
• 10-15 fully processed, high-resolution digital files presented in a private online gallery and given to you via a downloadable link from the gallery (suitable for printing, enlarging, etc.)
• Printing tips and release so you can print the images and/or use them for photo cards, etc.
• 5-day ordering period for holiday cards, etc. (additional products are an additional fee)

Tips:

• Be on time!  These sessions are booked with very little down time between them. If  you are late, you will have less time for your session.
• If possible, please reserve the time you are assigned for Sunday, October 10 as well. That will be the rain date if we have bad weather on Saturday, October 9.
• Due to the time restrictions, we will focus on capturing a specific shot – family shots, individuals of two children or less, sibling shots, etc. If we have time after we have gotten that shot, we will set-up additional shots. Obviously we won’t be able to get as many shots as a typical session, so come prepared to tell me which groupings are most important to you.
• Because of time and location limitations, mini sessions are not available for babies that are not able to sit unassisted or clients looking for a variety of poses or multiple backgrounds or outfits. (If you have a baby and would like family photos, that will work. I just won’t have my props there to “prop” up baby for individual poses!)
• Mini sessions are perfect for clients who have already had a full session but need just a few updated shots or are thinking about holiday card photos.
• Watch the blog for tips on what to wear – I will be previewing some fall wardrobe tips when the weather gets cooler. (There will not be time for wardrobe changes.)
• For the best printing results, you will want to use the lab recommended on my printing tips sheet, which you will receive when your online gallery is ready.

What I noted about this session is how relaxed and fun they are together. They really know one another. There’s a comfort and real joy between them. They are celebrating their 10th anniversary this month as am I – and I felt a real kindred spirit with where they are in their relationship. Speaking from personal experience, there’s so much more appreciation for that partner who has been through so much with you and knows you better than anyone else in the world. Such a nice sentiment to capture for them together.

On with more photos from their second sneak peek! Love this first one because that’s a surfer with a board in the distance on the walkway behind them. Very beachy.

For some reason, I love “headless” shots. I’m not sure how clients feel about them, so this is your chance to let me know – leave me a comment! I think the reason I love them so much is because they convey emotion in a secondary way without the direct facial expressions – the way they’re holding hands, casually, but comfortably and how she’s leaning into him, it tells a little story in itself.  The photo above is a more traditional take on the same shot – it conveys the same warmth but in a different, more direct way than the photo below.

The way they look at each other is awesome. (Cheesy word but I can’t think of anything better because it’s true, it’s awesome!)

Such beautiful light on the beach and cooler weather, too.

They’ve both got their serious-but-not-really faces on here. This one is one of my favorites, too.

Definitely one of my session favorites – I picture this type of photo framed and sitting on the groom/husband’s desk at work!

Love, love the smiles here.

Emily’s high school senior portrait session took place at two locations in Virginia Beach – one of which was obviously the beach. When possible and when clients are interested, I love to hit two locations. As you can see, it creates such variety in the photos. Emily also bravely and willingly changed clothes (behind a sheet her mom held up – thank you!) several times for more variety. It CAN be done, even outside! And changing clothes is encouraged – you can go for an informal look (jeans and a t-shirt, etc.) and a more formal look (for girls, maybe a skirt/top or dress and for guys, khakis, etc.). All in all, senior sessions should be about you. They can be longer or shorter (guys, I hear you and you typically don’t want to take photos for long and I get that, too!), and they can be personalized to who you are.