HUGE thank you to Heather for everything that you do! I don’t know what shooting weddings would be like without her anymore! Lol.

Bakery: Cakes Plus
Floral Design: Susan Wenger from SW Floral Design
Caterer: Royal Affairs Catering
DJ: DZ Entertainment
Venue: Oxon Hill Manor
Video: Jurgen Tabaku

-Becca

He also has a side project called “Project Galvanize”.
The purpose of PG is to explore the creative mind’s inner-workings and how many different types of creative individuals in a multitude of professions keep their work fresh and vibrant. Brian chronicles his interviews with writers, dancers, artists and others on the Project Galvanize blog site. No matter what field that the interviewee comes from, they at one point or another, have experienced a period of blandness, or suffered from a lack of creative drive. It is his hope that others can learn from these individuals and to demonstrate that even some of their favorite creatives suffer from a lack of creativity from time-to-time.

Brian has been my go to guy for design questions and designs. He never seems to be at a loss for creative ideas.

-Becca

Even though Brittany and Brendon attended to school with each other and lived on the same island in Maryland, they never met. After graduating from high school, Brittany attended college online and led the Christian rock band, Beyond The Veil (BTV), with her sisters. Brendon left Maryland for Indiana to attend college at Purdue and graduated earlier this year with a degree in astronautical engineering (yeah, he really is a rocket scientist). In 2008, BTV released a Christmas single and after hearing it, Brendon wanted to know more about her. Unfortunately, she was already in a relationship; however, after that relationship closed its doors, she thought of Brendon. She struck up a conversation and they were both intrigued. Despite thinking that they had too much on their schedules to get into a relationship, after an all night talk on the phone, they were in love.

Despite the distance and some rough patches as a couple, their relationship has only grown stronger.

Come on, how can you not appreciate a love story like that?

I had SO much fun photographing this couple, they were up for anything and everything! Brittany, with her performing background, was a natural and definitely knew how to work the camera. And Brendon, he may be a rocket scientist, but he is anything but stiff or serious.

-Becca

The theme was a “Vintage Sewing Birthday Party” and the kids had a ball doing sewing crafts and munching on creative sewing-themed treats. Christine found a vintage sewing machine to be the center piece of the entire party and spared no detail decorating it to perfection.

You can see Pure Joy Events Blog post here. You can also see a tutorial of the cake pops here.
This party was a huge success and has been featured in a number of places, including:
-Amy Atlas’ Sweet Designs Blog
-The DIY hoop design also on the Sweet Designs Blog
-6 Bitter Sweets Blog
-The blog of Celebrations at Home
-The Honor Roll on Making it Lovely

I can’t wait for more of another Pure Joy Events party!

-Becca

Both of my parents retired this summer so there have been parties, parties, and more parties. And apparently retirements bring LOTS of visitors! I am the youngest of five kids and my siblings are all now married and having kids – I have 8 nieces and nephews. In July, my oldest brother, his wife, and their 6 year old twins came to visit from Italy. They were followed by another brother from New Mexico, his wife, and their two kids, ages 3 and 5. I truly love my family, but having four kids under the age of 7 in one house is enough to make a person CRAZY. This was all compounded by the fact that Adam, my boyfriend, was away for an entire month and then had to move as soon as he returned.

Since the kids won’t stay small forever, I made sure to have my camera out and about during the visits.

Right before all the little people arrived my sister’s 10 year old son, Alex, came to stay with us for a few days. I decide to teach him about what I love to do most. So I got out my old D200 with a 35mm 2.0 on it and we headed out to nearby Frying Pan Park to take some pictures.

The smallest of the crew were Brydon (3) and his brother Colter (5) from New Mexico. Brydon was a total ham and loved to be in front of the camera, the little guy knows how to work his charm!

The whole crew went to see a Potomac Nationals baseball game. The twins, Marian and Christopher, are already professional travelers at 6 years of age. They come to visit every summer from the island of Sicily in Italy.

Later this summer, I will be sitting in Key West with a margarita for a much needed vacation. Trust me, there will be LOTS of photos from that!

-Becca

I met up with Ashley and Justin in Old Town Clifton this past Sunday for their engagement photo session. Not only was the light perfect, but everyone was still in bed, so we had the town to ourselves. We did some fun shots near the railroad, a couple next to Justin’s beloved car, and several around scenic Old Town.

Ashley has an amazing sense of style and was incredibly easy to work, she and Justin seemed to naturally fall into perfect poses with minimal coaching or effort.

Ashley and Justin are getting married in October at the Evergreen Country Club in Haymarket, VA. I must confess that I have a weakness for men in uniform and can’t wait to see Ashley in her gown and Justin in his crisp Marine Corps uniform.

Congratulations to Ashley and Justin!

-Becca

While many brides would panic when faced with rain on their wedding day, Kristin was not only calm and collected, she was positively radiant.

Kristin and Jeff held their ceremony at the scenic Sharp Rock Vineyards in Sperryville, Virginia on June 18, 2011. Located on the Hughes River at the base of Old Rag Mountain, the vineyards are incredibly scenic and made for an amazing backdrop for shooting photos.

After much anticipation, Kristin and Jeff were excited that their wedding day had finally arrived. After strolling through the lush grape vines under Old Rag Mountain, where the couple got engaged, Kristin actually took off her shoes and waded into the creek, making for some gorgeous pictures.

TONS of thanks to Heather for shooting with me, you’re an amazing photographer and friend.

A huge heartfelt congratulations to Kristin and Jeff – it was a pleasure being a part of your special day!

-Becca

Anyway…

The winner is:
Brittany and Brendon!

Congrats to you both! I’ll be sending you an email shortly with details, information, and more!

-Becca

Kerri & Jake:

“Jake & I met during sophomore year of high school. He pursued me throughout the rest of high school & I kept pushing another friend towards him. It wasn’t until the week before freshman year of college that I gave him a chance. From that first week until today we have spent a majority of our time apart and I think that makes us unique. Through all the changes you go through between high school, college and graduating college we have remained together even though apart in distance. We now have just 20 more days before I move to Connecticut and we are finally together for good after 5 years of being apart.”

Anna & Lucas:

“Our story starts about three years ago when Anna’s sister, Katie, showed Lucas a picture of Anna. He knew it was meant to be! We didn’t spend time together until a year later when Lucas’ roommates, Chris and Dara, set up a “hangout” (aka – date!) with the help of some of Dara’s yummy mojitos. It was a perfect match and an easy transition – Lucas, being friends with Katie, already knew and loved Anna’s family.

We think our relationship is unique because we both love to travel – we know, sounds pretty normal. But Lucas’ hunger for adventure has really rubbed off on Anna. We recently took a trip to Chile, where we met some great people, climbed a volcano (that’s our picture), hiked the Patagonia… and got engaged! Our plan is to see what our world has to offer, traveling to a new country every year. We would love if we could find opportunities for volunteering during each of our trips. And one day, maybe soon, maybe when we’re old and gray, we’ll take a break from life and travel all the way around the world, inspiring and becoming inspired by the people we meet.”

Brittany & Brendon:

“They say that life is like the ocean. One moment the waters are calm and quiet and the skies are clear. The next, storms are raging, waves are crashing and the thunder roars loud enough to extinguish the sound of your own heart beat. What makes Brendon and I special is what we do when those storms come. The book of 1 Corinthians 13:4 states that love is patient and love is kind. Patience and kindness was our beginning.

Although Brendon and I live on the same island, our relationship started out long distance…actually it was the farthest you could be; we had dreams about one another. It wasn’t until a few years later that he approached me and asked me to coffee. However, life got in the way and we ended up not being able to meet. Two years passed and he came back into my life and on May 9, 2010 I met him on the shore and we watched the sun rise and a beautiful relationship began. Nevertheless, storms came and went.

There were nights where I felt lost at sea, and was afraid of losing who I was to the storm around me and Brendon, would shine his Light patiently and kindly guide me Home. When the waters were deep and Brendon’s questions seemed unanswered, leaving him feeling stranded, I reached out to him patiently and kindly reminded him that Land was never too far away.

Patience and kindness has gotten us through the toughest storms. Neither one of us can stop what comes our way in life…we aren’t superheroes…and we’re not God. But we are in Love and we act and fight for Love. We live for Love and we know, no matter what…when all is said and done, when the storm has run us through…we will meet upon the shore where we first met and watch the sun rise again and know that Love continues on…patiently and kindly. ”

VOTING IS CLOSED

The winner of the free engagement session with Rebecca Watkins Photography will be announced after June 10th!

That’s all of them for now!

-Becca