Wild Berries Photography

Western Ky Wedding | Kayli + Daniel

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Sat, 06 Dec 2014 13:29:00 +0000

Kayli and Daniel had such a beautiful, God-honoring wedding, and I was so thankful to be asked to capture their big day!

It's such a good thing that this was the last wedding I booked before my "retirement," because two weeks before their wedding, we added three new kids to our family! That, combined with Josh finishing his first semester of Ph.D. work, has made editing and getting the pictures to them take so much longer than usual, and they have been so wonderfully patient and understanding with me, even though I'm sure they've been dying to see their pictures!

The pictures are finally on their way to them, but I told them I'd get a blog post up so they could see a few highlights! I hope y'all enjoy them!

Western Kentucky Wedding | Staci + Ryan

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Fri, 12 Sep 2014 17:59:00 +0000

It's been a long time since I've blogged a wedding, but I promised Staci that I would share a few of my favorites! They were married last Sunday and I am so glad she called us out of retirement to photograph their wedding! It was gorgeous and perfect in every possible way!

This one of Jerry Ray seeing his daughter in her dress for the first time really choked me up.

The girls got ready in the basement of the church, and Jerry Ray drove Staci over to the open-air tabernacle in an old truck.

I loved that Staci rode to the ceremony in the truck with her dad, and left the ceremony in the truck with her husband.

Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Blackburn!

Western Ky Wedding Photographer | Ali + Steffin

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Tue, 06 Aug 2013 17:43:00 +0000

Ali and Steffin had a beautiful purple and white wedding at Hardin Baptist Church. I had the joy of doing their engagement pictures a few months ago, and they are just such a precious and Godly couple. They were both full of a calm excitement as they prepared and waited for the ceremony, neither of them stressed or nervous. I know that feeling was also helped by the fun and loving bridesmaids and groomsmen that they chose to surround themselves with that day. They held a small reception in the foyer of the church immediately after the ceremony where they cut the cake and served cupcakes, and then we went out to Ali's mom's home to finish the festivities.

I also have to give a shout-out to my awesome brother-in-law, Mark, who was my second shooter for their wedding. He got some great shots, a few of which are featured below along with mine!

Western Ky Wedding Photographer | Tamara + Matt

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 16:47:00 +0000

Tamara and Matt had a beautiful, spunky wedding at First Baptist Church in Fredonia, Kentucky. From the excitement inside the church, you'd never know it rained most of the day.

Matt's dad was his best man. I am always so moved when grooms choose to do that.

Tamara and Matt had a sort of half first look where Matt was blindfolded (with a zebra print scarf, of course) so they could pray together before the ceremony. It was so sweet!

This one of Tamara looking at her dad as he said, "Her mother and I," chokes me up every time I see it!

Talk about a grand first kiss:

Josh captured this sweet moment between the two of them in the vestibule just after they'd walked down the aisle. It wasn't until editing that I noticed what the mischievous little ring bearer was doing!

They really wanted their dog, Lexie, to be in the wedding, but settled for having someone bring her to the church after the ceremony so they could say goodbye and get a couple of pictures with her. I loved that Tamara was so excited to see her baby that she didn't even care about getting her dress dirty!

Paris TN Wedding Photographer | Rebekah + Dustin

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 16:36:00 +0000

I've been to a good number of weddings in my life, and I can truly say that I have rarely seen such a beautifully God-honoring event as Rebekah and Dustin's wedding. From Rebekah's dad (who officiated the wedding) giving Dustin a key that she had given her dad when she was 13 as a symbol of her purity, to their first ever kiss, to the beautiful blessing that her dad spoke over them at the end (the same one he spoke over all of his children at bedtime as they were growing up). I could hardly see through my tears to keep taking pictures after that!

The worship continued into the reception as friends and family toasted the couple with affirmations of God's faithfulness in their lives and blessings for their future. To say that I was blessed and honored to be there would be an understatement.

Leitchfield Wedding Photographer | Kelly + Mike

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 21:03:00 +0000

Kelly and Mike recently had a beautiful, country, laid-back outdoor wedding at their Leitchfield, Kentucky home. Every detail of the wedding was Pinterest-worthy and perfectly complemented this match of a Pennsylvania city girl and a Kentucky country boy. Mike's son was his Best Man, while Kelly's son was the junior groomsman, and Kelly's sister and niece were the Matron of Honor and junior bridesmaid. It was such a sweet, intimate event, and you could just feel the love and kinship in the air all day. My fab second shooter, Elise, and I were so honored to be a part of their big day!

Elise got some really great ones of the guys, including these next two:

Kelly's dad drove the gals, sitting on the tailgate of the truck, around from the side of the house to the back of the spot set up for the ceremony.

Kelly and Mike wrote their own vows, which were both serious and hilarious.

I don't think there was a dry eye in the yard when, during his vows, Mike turned around and made some vows to Kelly's son, as well.

The faces everyone made when they kissed for the next picture cracked me up!

The reception got cut a little short by a storm blowing in, but not before a first dance and a few songs for the kids and some of the ladies (including Kelly's mom in that bottom picture) to have a good bit of fun!

Southern Indiana Family Photographer | The Lewis Twins

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 19:20:00 +0000

People, people, people... I hope you're sitting down, because these two little identical twin sisters are going to blow you over with sweetness. Cate and Charlie were 11 weeks old when we did our photo session, which also just happened to be their original due date! As you can probably imagine, they both spent a good bit of time in the NICU, and sweet Cate had just been home for a couple of days when I got to meet them. But, praise the Lord, they are both just as healthy and sweet as can be!

Paducah Engagement Photographer | Tamara + Matt

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 19:18:00 +0000

When Matt was in the eighth grade, he played high school varsity basketball. At one of the games, he walked by the bleachers and laid eyes on the most beautiful cheerleader he'd ever seen. He was immediately in love! Unfortunately for Matt, she was a junior in high school, and we all know that eleventh grade cheerleaders don't make a practice out of dating eighth graders. Matt knew this sad fact, and that's why it took him SEVEN YEARS to ask her out! As you might have guessed, Matt's patience paid off and they are now planning a December wedding!

We had a great time together in Paducah a few weekends ago, and we even took pictures right in the middle of BBQ on the River downtown. I can't wait to photograph their wedding!

Louisville Family Photographer | The Young Family

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 19:50:00 +0000

If you've been following this blog for a while, you've probably picked up on how much I enjoy meeting awesome new people through doing photography. The Young family was no exception! We spent an hour together on the Anchorage Trail, enjoying the beautiful fall day. Their boys are a bit older than most of the kids I photograph, which made me nervous at first, but once I met them I realized that, as much as I love photographing toddlers, these guys were so much more cooperative!

Unless you think my job this day was too easy, they also brought along their two dogs for the family pictures. Courtney warned me beforehand that they were enough like toddlers that I wouldn't feel too out of my element! Ha! They were a delight to hang out with, and I could easily keep writing, but I won't keep you waiting any longer to see their good-looking faces!

Louisville Family Photographer | The Smith Family

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 18:36:00 +0000

If you've checked my blog recently, you might assume that I haven't been very busy, because it hasn't been updated much, but you would be wrong! I've been so crazy busy that blogging has been all but forgotten. I'm no less busy (actually MORE... October and November are craaaaazy), BUT I am going to take some time out to finally introduce you to some of the families I've gotten to spend time with lately.

I had the privilege of doing a four generations photo session with the Smith family recently, and I loved every minute of our session. Little Preston was nothing if not heart-breakingly adorable, and I have to admit that I particularly fell in love with the eldest Mr. and Mrs. Smith. They were just so old and spunky and precious, and I couldn't get enough of Mrs. Smith's German accent! At one point, they wandered off looking for 4-leaf clovers, and when she came back and handed one to Kristi and said, "Dis one doesn't have a vish on it yet," I almost fell over.

I'm going to get a little sentimental on y'all, and I'm already about to cry as I write this, but I just want to encourage everyone who reads this to spend more time with your parents, grandparents, and great-grand parents if you are blessed enough to still have them around. Appreciate them, and take so many pictures of them and with them. My papaw died last year at 97 years old and I can tell you that NOBODY in our family regrets the time we spent with him or the pictures we took with him, especially during the last few years. If you can afford to hire a professional, do it, but even if you can't, take pictures anyway.

Okay, I have to stop because I am out in public and people are starting to stare at the weirdo who is sitting at her computer sobbing.

Phew. Okay. Anyway... enough talk. I know you want to see this adorable family while I try to pull my emotional self together.

Louisville Family Photographer | The Koerber Family

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 17:47:00 +0000

First, I'd like to give the Koerber a big, public "Welcome to Louisville!" They are brand new to the area, and Jeana clearly has her priorities straight, because one of the first things she did was to find a family photographer! We had a great time recently playing together on a nice cool (compared to how hot it's been this summer, anyway) morning in Cherokee Park. Sweet little Lucy and I made quick friends, and, in true two year-old fashion, she kept us on our toes the entire time!

I had to include this next picture because it so perfectly catches how much fun they are! There aren't a whole lot of dads who would be willing to twirl like a ballerina in a busy, public park, but when Lucy wanted to be ballerinas, Mike didn't even hesitate!

Louisville Lifestyle Photographer | Teach Me to Talk

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 13:38:00 +0000

Let me tell you something about Laura Mize of Teach Me to Talk. She is amazing. Anyone who knows her will agree with me. She has been in our lives for about a year and a half or so, and she has been nothing if not a huge blessing to us. You may even recognize the sweet little fella who is with her on the cover of Teach Me to Talk's facebook page. :)

So when she told me that she needed a few professional pictures of her and her new office/play space, and that she also wanted a few of "those great pics like you see of all those 20 somethings who are giddy in love" with her husband, of course I said yes!

Louisville Family Photographer | The Adams Family

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 13:18:00 +0000

No, not THAT Adams family. But I bet they're pretty used to that joke. (Did I just prove that I'm getting old by referencing such an old TV show??) This Adams family could not be more opposite from THE Adams family. They are awesome and sweet little Ellie just stole my heart! I was so glad to be able to help them remember their time at Southern Seminary with our photo session there, and I'm excited for them as they have just moved on to a great new ministry in Virginia Beach!

I just love their matching facial expressions in this one:

They brought a huge bin full of hand-crocheted baby blankets that had been given to Ellie... all made by one grandmother! So we just made a big blanket pile and let her hang out there for a while. She loved it.

Murray Wedding Photographer | Mr. & Mrs. Calhoon

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 13:44:00 +0000

I keep starting to write something meaningful about Bethany and Nick and their wedding day, but words keep failing to do justice to how perfect they are for one another, how proud I am to see the woman that Bethany has become, and how Pinterest-worthy their wedding and reception were. It was a beautiful day filled with people who deeply love Bethany and Nick, and Josh and I were humbled and honored to get to be a part of it (yes, Josh was my handsome and trusty second shooter).

Bethany wore nice shoes for the ceremony and boots for the reception. It was perfect.

Someone happened to drive by on a tractor while we were taking pictures, so we asked to borrow it for a couple of shots!

The following was NOT my idea. This was a hilarious group of guys, to say the least.

My trusty second-shooter managed to get this one of the bridesmaids praying over Bethany just before the ceremony.

Finn wasn't so sure about being in on the AOII cheer.

Louisville Family Photographer | The Reeder Family

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Fri, 31 Aug 2012 02:25:00 +0000

Little Miles recently turned six months old, and guess who got to come commemorate him in all of his six month-old sweetness? Yep, I did! Let me tell you something about the Reeder family: they were so much fun to hang out with, I had a hard time making myself leave when the session was over! At one point, Susan and I were swapping birth stories while she nursed Miles and I kind of forgot that I was actually in the middle of a photo session. Love it.

Louisville Family Photographer | Baby Owen

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 17:58:00 +0000

Oh my. Not only did I have the joy of spending some time recently with squishy little less-than-one-day-old baby Owen and his gorgeous did-she-really-just-have-a-baby-less-than-24-hours-ago mama, I also got to capture Owen meeting his big brother, big sister, and grandma for the first time! It was PRECIOUS.

I arrived before the rest of the crew and sweet baby Owen just lay there looking around as if he was thinking, "Where am I and what in the world is going on?" Then big brother and sister busted in and Owen's life changed forever! They were immediately smitten with him, as is obvious in the pictures. What a precious family of five!

Louisville Family Photographer | The Gadlage Family

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Fri, 06 Jul 2012 01:26:00 +0000

There are few things I enjoy more as a photographer than getting to capture the crazy love that grandparents have for their grandchildren. There is just something magical about the way grandchildren can put a sparkle in the grandparents' eyes and a skip in their step. That's part of the reason why I had such a great time with the delightful Gadlage family recently. It was crazy hot outside, but they never complained!

Louisville Family Photographer | The Snyder Family Again

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Mon, 02 Jul 2012 16:09:00 +0000

Remember when I photographed the gorgeous Snyder family last December? That was fun. So, I was really excited when Kelli called me again and wanted to do a mini session for their prayer cards. Why do they need prayer cards, you might ask? Because they are moving to Madagascar VERY soon to be missionaries! I love them and am so proud of what the Lord is doing in their lives.

We sweated our way around a piece of Bardstown Road and ended up in Carmichael's Bookstore.

I love this next one so much. Also, I told Kelli that I'm going to have to use these pictures to show people how to put together great coordinating family outfits, because she did such an amazing job. They aren't at all matchy-matchy, but their colors all tie together so well. It's also great to only have one person who really stands out with a busy pattern, and keep the others' outfits coordinated, but simple.

Trying to take a serious face picture:

And .02 seconds later:

Then Waverly wanted in on the serious face action. This picture cracks me up every time I see it:

The best part of the whole day, and I didn't even get any pictures of it because we were finished taking pictures by then, was when Waverly found a sticker book in the kids' section and started putting stickers all over herself. It gets better. Kelli told me, "Watch, she loves to put stickers all over us and then exercise." Sure enough, she came over, put one on Mama, and then wanted to exercise right there in Carmichael's! Nobody knows why she does this, but it was hilarious!

I also wanted to share the prayer card that I got to design for them, and ask that you join me and many others in praying for them and the people they are going to be reaching:

Louisville Family Photographer | Keziah

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Mon, 02 Jul 2012 12:07:00 +0000

It takes a special kind of personality to want to meet me at 6:30am for a photo shoot, which is why I'd only dreamed of dreamy sunrise photos until now. Happily for me, newly two-year old Keziah and her sweet mama were just the kind of folks who were up for tromping around the park with me at the crack of dawn!

I've said this before, but being a boy mom, I get excited about photo sessions with little girls. We had a great time playing with tutus and bubbles and had a tea party with several of her stuffed animals.

If you look closely, you can see the spray from where a bubble popped right on her face!

After the park, we went to nearby Bruegger's Bagels for brunch. It was great!

Keziah kept pointing at the Mac store across the street and saying, "Daddy phone!"

After we'd made quite a scene with all of our excitement and picture-taking, the owner of Bruegger's came over, introduced herself, and gave Keziah a giant cookie!

Happy second birthday, Keziah!

Kentucky Wedding Photographer | Alec + Lindsey

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 17:29:00 +0000

I had the joy recently of being a second shooter at Alec and Lindsey's wedding alongside a good friend, the talented Makenzie Shewcraft. We drove all the way out to Pleasureville, Ky for Alec and Lindsey's wedding, and their reception was at a gem of a place that I'd never heard of, Gallrein Farms.

It rained on and off all day, which I think stressed Makenzie out more than it did Lindsey. Here are just a few of my favorites from their big day!

Kentucky Birth Photographer | Natalia

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 18:07:00 +0000

Oh. My. Goodness. I cannot tell you how excited I was to get a call asking if I could photograph the birth of precious little Natalia. If you know me very well at all, you probably know that I LOVE birth. Since Jude's birth, I've dreamed that one day, when all of the children that the Lord will give us have grown up a bit, I would love to train to be a birth instructor. Or a doula. Probably both.

So you cannot imagine my excitement over getting a chance to combine both of these loves- birth and photography.

This was especially dear to my heart because we don't have very many pictures from Jude's birth. The first picture we have of him is a blurry cell phone picture snapped on Josh's phone (an old school one, not some nice iPhone 4, which might have been passable as an actual photograph), because we didn't think to grab the camera when we transferred to the hospital. I will absolutely be getting a birth photographer for any and all future births of mine, and I'm so humbled to have been trusted with these memories of Natalia's birth.

Kentucky Engagement Photographer | Tyler +Kirby

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 17:49:00 +0000

Tyler and Kirby are the kind of couple where I could totally see them on the cover of a J.Crew magazine, but they are more comfortable on a farm or wrestling with Tyler's Siberian Husky, Ellie. They were adorable together and fun to be around, which made for a very enjoyable, relaxed afternoon of photography.

We weren't really sure if the weather was going to cooperate with us, but by the time I arrived for the session, the rainy day had faded into a gorgeous late afternoon. I also had a fun first with Tyler and Kirby- my first photo session in a kitchen! They wanted some pictures of them cooking together, so we started the session making waffles, which made eating the waffles a great way to end the session (for them anyway... not for gluten-free me).

Louisville Engagement Photographer | Colin + Sarah

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 19:54:00 +0000

As much as I enjoy photographing families, I am really starting to love doing engagement sessions! Newly engaged couples are just so cute, in love, and happy. Colin and Sarah were adorably giddy to be engaged and were more than happy to oblige my requests for them to kiss on the cheek or look lovingly at each other. Okay, I didn't even have to ask them to look lovingly at each other... they did that the whole time anyway! I more often had to tell them to stop looking at each other and look at me for a second. It was precious.

We started out at the seminary, then went to the water tower, and finally to the reservoir, which is where they had their first DTR (Determine The Relationship talk). The bench they are sitting on towards the bottom is the very bench where they had that fateful conversation. What precious memories! Here are some of my favorites from their photo session:

Kentucky Family Photographer | The Prochazka Family

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 15:52:00 +0000

Oh my goodness... did I really have such a crazy last couple of months that I completely forgot to ever blog about my photo session with the incredible Prochazka family? Yes, I really did. I'm so sorry!

We had so much fun exploring Bernheim Forest together; sweet little K and E were just a delight to play with and photograph, and I very much enjoyed getting to know their parents, as well. This photo session doubled as K's four-year pictures, so I got quite a bit more of him, although I could have photographed sweet little E all day as well!

Kentucky Engagement Photographer | Jessi + Mark

noreply@blogger.com (SLHutchens) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 21:37:00 +0000

What can you say when your little sister-in-law falls in love with a Godly man who loves her like crazy and commits to loving her for the rest of their lives? You praise the Lord, that's what.

These two are so in love that their giddiness is contagious. They laughed, giggled, and were generally silly through the entire session because that's just who they are. The pictures say it all, really.