Jessica in front of the cabin at Delfosse Vineyard and Winery just before the ceremony

Charlotte and Phil at a private farm stealing a moment to themselves after the ceremony

Lauren at Veritas Vineyard and Winery

Tonquise and Adam in front of a graffiti wall, Downtown Charlottesville

Tonquise

Julie and Ehren at Khimaira Farm

Samantha and Tony by the fountain at the Double Tree Inn

Kristen and Martin at Barboursville Vineyards enjoying each other's company just after their ceremony

Amanda and Tony- Veritas. "First look" is always fun to document. It was so lovely to witness Tony's anticipation before looking at his breathtaking bride

Amanda and Tony - Veritas - It was so sweet when their little daughter, Sophia clapped when she saw her mom walking down the aisle.

Trisha getting ready at the Clifton Inn. It expresses pure joy and love from a mother.

Caitleen at Pollak Vineyards with Barb Wired. Even though we had torrential rains in May, it did not stop Caitlin from enjoying the outdoors.She was probably one of the most exuberant yet relaxed brides I know.

Sarah and Daniel at the UVA Chapel and UVA Alumni Hall. It was one of those super sweltering July afternoons and we did the portrait photos in the UVA gardens . I asked them if they wanted to sit in the shade and relax and that is what happened.

Laura and Jim at the UVA Chapel and UVA Alumni Hall with Harvest Moon and Blue Ridge Flowers. Friends were a big part of their wedding. I love the camaraderie of that shot.

Elana and Rich at Ash Lawn with Couture design .Their wedding was such a blissful family celebration filled with traditions and laughter.

Elana and Rich at Ash Lawn

Hope and Eric at Pippin Hill with Easton Events. I love Hope's beauty and serenity as she watches her guests arrive.

Hope & Eric at Pippin Hill (Easton Events)

Susan and Timo at her parents' home with Barb Wired and Pat's Floral Design. I adored their wedding. I guess it was due partly to the fact it was an international celebration and reminded me of my own wedding. I love when cultures blend so naturally.

Susan and Timo (Barb Wired Events & Pat's Floral Design)

John and I kicked off our 2011 wedding season with Meghan and Jason’s wedding at UVa’s Darden Business School. This shot was taken right after their ceremony and both were just absolutely giddy with delight. I especially love this photo in black and white set against the clean lines of the columns.

For Sarah and Matt’s wedding, we hopped on a plane and headed out to San Diego. I love this flirty shot of Sarah with her bridesmaids. It was one of the moments that just organically happen. Literally, we were walking from one area to another, I turned around, everyone was in this formation and I just told Sarah to “show me a little sass”. Voila.

Katie and Marco’s wedding took place at the lovely Rosebrook Inn. Katie had a beautiful outdoor ceremony planned, but about five minutes before it was about to start, it began to pour. All I remember was how well both Katie and Marco handled the last minute switch to an indoor ceremony. And although this doesn’t always happen, just after the ceremony, the clouds parted and we had beautiful light for their portraits. I just love this shot because, again, it’s not contrived. Both are just head over heels in love with each other, and it showed in every photo.

Sylvia and Michael had their ceremony in UVa’s Garden X and then headed over to 2nd Street Gallery for their reception. Because they decided on a First Look before the ceremony, we had plenty of time to walk around to the different gardens taking pictures. For this particular shot, they were walking ahead of us and I asked them to turn around and, just instinctively, Michael waved while Sylvia gave us a peace sign. John and I thought it was really cute.

Allie and Adam had their ceremony at Nutmeg Farm and then held their reception at The Omni. Before heading into their reception, they wanted to spend some time taking pictures around the Downtown Mall. There’s just something that I really like about the simple color palette of this image as well as the contrast between the urban and refined. I also love that Allie wanted some shots of the two of them with this bunch of balloons.

Deveryn and Bryce were married at Bryce’s childhood home. This wedding was just bursting at the seams with DIY details, and it all came together so beautifully thanks to the help of Lindsay at LK Events and Design. I love that Deveryn wore her mother’s wedding dress and that they constructed the arbor under which they got married from wood collected around the property. This image was taken right after their ceremony. I love the view of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the background but I also love the sweet simplicity of it.

Morgan and Michael were married this past summer at the UVa Chapel and then held their reception at Farmington Country Club. John and I loved so many aspects of this wedding, so it was really hard just to choose one favorite photo. I chose this image, however, because it really speaks to what is most important about the wedding day: the relationships. Morgan is really close to her grandfather, and the fact that he was able to play the bagpipes at her wedding was so important to her. I love that this image is able to communicate the priority of the relationship between Morgan and Michael, between Morgan, Michael and her grandfather, and then between all three of them and the other guests

Erica and Tom were married at the UVa Chapel and then held their reception at Alumni Hall – a true Wahoo wedding!! This image was taken just minutes after becoming husband and wife. They had just exited the church and I ran after them with my camera. They had started to walk down the path together and I yelled out “Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Howard!”. When they turned around they both had these ear-to-ear grins of pure joy. Such a great moment!

Robin and B-J were married at Sycamore Presbyterian Church in Midlothian, VA and then held their reception at Richmond Country Club. Robin is a complete romantic at heart and just all girl. B-J is a true southern gentleman. Together they are the perfect match. When we got to Richmond Country Club after the ceremony, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky and then sun was beaming down from directly overhead. I typically shy away from harsh light and do everything I can to find some shade, but as I was looking around trying to find this (in the middle of a golf course, might I add!), I glanced back and saw this image taking shape before my eyes. Click. I pressed the shutter and it’s been one of my favorites ever since.

This image is an example of why John and I love it when our couples choose to do a First Look. Kelly and Adam had decided that they wanted to arrange to see each other in one of the UVa Gardens before their ceremony at the Chapel. John snapped this image moments after Adam had turned around to see his bride for the first time. Adam’s face just gives it all away, and even though you can’t see Kelly’s, you can image her expression. This is just absolutely priceless.

Emily and Tom were married at Ash-Lawn Highland this past October. Both are just so easy to be around and really care about others. They were definitely nervous about being in front of the camera, but as you can see from this photo, they didn’t have anything to worry about. I love shooting along this fence at Ash-Lawn (well, actually, I like fences in general), but I especially love that they’re completely present and absorbed in the moment and not even worrying about the camera.

Whitney & Logan at Mt. Ida Farm: This is one of my all time favorite pictures. Night photography is very challenging, so when we were able to pull off this fairytale setting with the stars surrounding Whitney and Logan in the gazebo at Mt. Ida Farm I was ecstatic. The fountain in the background creating the angel wing on Whitney was the cherry on top! Huge thanks to Blue Ridge Light Forms for stringing the cafe lights in the gazebo as that was essential to capturing the moment .

Sarah & Matt at Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards: I chose this picture because of the gorgeous scenery and the natural awe in Sarah and Matt's faces as they look at each other. Pure Love!

Jing and Jeff at Maymont Botanical Gardens: The overall scene of this picture is awesome. I'm a big fan of reflections, so I asked Jing and Jeff to stand close enough to the edge for me to capture their reflection on the water. Their natural emotions completed the magic of the picture.

Afton & Brian on the Skyline Drive (Blue Ridge Mountains): This picture from Afton and Brian's engagement session on skyline drive is poetic to me. I will remember 2011 as one of the rainiest years ever, but despite so much rain the sun seemed to always find a way to shine through if only for a little bit on our couples' most important day!

Courtney & James on Carter's Mountain: I love when I can capture a completely candid moment between a couple. I had Courtney and James sit in the middle of a row of vines at Carters Mountain, and then James started tickling Courtney, which made for a great (and funny) picture.

Jillian & Chad at Montfair Resort Farm: This picture is so romantic with the bridge and the creek running under it, as Jillian and Chad share a private kiss. I think the colors in this picture are amazing, the greens and blues as well as the purple flowers make it enthralling.

Sarah at Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards: When we have a nice sunny day I love using the sun to create a halo effect around people. Sarah's dress was absolutely gorgeous and I love the way that the light surrounds it making it glow.

Jillian & Chad at MOntfair Resort Farm: This picture is one of my favorites because I have never seen a couple escape their wedding in a row boat, and I love the idea of letting go a wish lantern at the end of a wedding to bring good luck to the couple.

Alex & Shannon: This is a picture from Alex and Shannon's fall engagement session at Mt. Ida Farm. I chose it for the golden light coming through the trees and making a starburst against Alex and Shannon standing on the stump. I think it has a majestic feel to it because of the colors and the tall trees.

Jillian & Chad at Montfair Resort Farm: Picking 12 favorites from the course of a great year can be very hard, so I asked Kelsey to help me out. Kelsey loved this picture because of the creative framing of Jillian & CHad in the mirror of this old pickup truck. As Kelsey pointed out "It is so different, and very intriguing to look at, you have to look twice to understand what you're seeing." This picture was taken after Jillian and Chad's ceremony, and it definitely represents them as a couple because after they saw the old truck and immediately wanted to hop in the back to get some pictures!

Dan at Chesapeake Beach Resort & Spa: This picture makes me laugh. I thought it was great when Dan and his groomsmen decided to take a fishing break on the dock before the ceremony. … ok I may have encouraged this a little.

Anne at King Family Vineyards: As I reflect on wedding photography as a whole from 2011 I noticed a trend towards creating beautiful images with natural light with bright blown out backgrounds. Now as we transition to 2012 I love to look at what inspires me to create a unique look. One of my biggest inspirations from 2011 was an article on the Knot about fairytale weddings, candlelight weddings, and ballerina inspired themes, which inspired this bridal portrait of Anne at King Family Vineyards.

Maggie & Blair got married at The Haven in Charlottesville then walked to their reception at Random Row Books. We incorporated the reception location by making over 200 paper cranes from the pages of old books. Fun and a great way to recycle! Photo provided by Billy Hunt Photography.

Maggie & Blair at The Haven in Charlottesville - Photo by Billy Hunt Photography.

Ashley & Justin were married at Keswick Vineyards this fall. Turquoise vintage canning jars with pink and white dahlias made for a sweet southern centerpiece. Thanks to Eric Kelley Photography for sharing the beautiful photo.

Catherine & Mike were married at the Inn at Westwood Farm and they were such a blast to work with. They loved herbs, succulents, wood, and oranges (a theme picked up from the fact that they were married in Orange, VA) These wreaths were made for the bride and groom chairs. Rosemary, sage, succulents, rose hips, and clementines.... oh the aroma!! This artistic shot came from Joyeuse Photography.

Christina & Joel were married in Leesburg this November. They came all the way form California and wanted to incorporate some California textures with succulents and artichokes. We enjoyed the wintery feel of their color palette and this bouquet shot by JMK Photography.

Jennifer & Harrison are the proud owners of Brookville Restaurant on the downtown mall in Cville. The restaurant focuses on seasonal, locally grown foods and they wanted the same standard for their wedding flowers. Jennifer wanted a grand, cascading bouquet in which we included dahlias, rosemary, tuberose, sage, mint, and trailing strawberry plants.

Jennifer and Harrison had their reception at Montalto, the event space at Monticello. They wanted something different for their centerpieces and wondered if we could incorporate edible elements. We created entirely edible wreaths with veggies bought from the cville farmers market and scattered chestnuts and persimmons on the table. Included in the wreaths were eggplants, radishes, rosemary, green strawberries, brussel sprouts, persimmons, and pears. Jennifer let us know that the guests at one of the tables ate their centerpiece... probably not a common occurrence! Thanks to Jen Fariello Photography for capturing and sharing these images

Amanda and Gavin were married at the Inn at Westwood Farm this November and we loved working with them! Besides being great, laid back, and fun to work for they also had great style! We incorporated Tallow berries, dahlias, strawflowers, dusty miller, and guinea hen feathers in this bouquet. We loved the result! Cramer Photo took this gorgeous shot.

Hali & Tony were married on a beautiful day in June at Panorama Farms. Hali loves daisies and wildflowers. She wanted to focus on a yellow, green, and white palette for the wedding decor. In this bouquet we used green cone flowers, queen annes lace, helianthus, st. Johns wort, gooseneck loosestrife, rosemary, and autumn fern. Every bit of it was harvested from local growers. Thanks to Aaron Watson Photography for this well executed photo.

Jaclyn and Andrew were married at Veritas Winery this July in a beautiful and traditional style. We made large candelabra arrangements with vintage prisms strung through and silver mercury glass votives at the base. JMK Photography is responsible for capturing this moment.

Leah & Nic were married this September at Wintergreen resort and we had the pleasure of working with them to achieve Leah's vision. Even though the only bits that were locally grown in this bouquet were the berries and smokebush foliage we still loved the end result and more importantly, so did Leah. Thanks to Jason Keefer Photography for zooming in on this bouquet!

This is a bouquet made for a photo shoot we participated in for the Hooks summer wedding edition. I love the garden gathered feel that this bouquet gives, probably even more so because every bloom was harvested fresh from local gardens/growers. This is a perfect example of natures arranging as all these flowers bloom naturally at the same time. They blend together beautifully, clearly they were meant to be together. Stunning photo taken by Jen Fariello.