flowers

Austin + Madi

Aug 23 2021

Madi and I first chatted back in September of 2020 and when she told me they were getting married at Jerris Wadsworth Wedding Barn I was elated! I love everything about Jerris and knew that they would have amazing scenery for their wedding portraits an delicious catering from Colby’s Catering !

When I first arrived on their wedding day, I found Madi upstairs in the bridal suite getting her hair done. My assistant photographer and I took some getting ready photos and then together carried Madi’s dress down to the ceremony doors outside for a little portrait session! When we returned Madi was getting her makeup done and I continued to stay with her as Dan went to go find Austin and the groomsmen.

When the ceremony started, it was amazing to finally watch Austin’s reaction as his bride walked down the aisle towards him. She had a confident smile on her face and her Dad was beaming proud. Her beautiful bouquet, the boutonnieres and the wedding arch floral arrangements were done by the very talented Avon Floral World. Their ceremony was about 20 minutes and they had a beautiful sand ceremony before Austin was allowed to kiss his bride. It was perfection!

At the end of family formals, it started to pour so we all went inside for announcing the bridal party and into Austin and Madi’s first dance as husband and wife. As soon as the rain cleared we ran back out for some portraits of just the two of them before another rain storm came rolling in! We had maybe 5 minutes before it started to rain again and because Dan and I have been trained to work under time constraints on wedding days it proved especially helpful on this day; we were able to get a good amount of images for their gallery in that short time!

We moved on to dinner, then dancing and there was one more break in the clouds that we took advantage of to sneak the rest of the bridal party outside for some quick bridal party photos. After that it was so fun to watch Madi, Austin and the rest of their wedding guests dance it up for the rest of the evening. It was an amazing day for them and I couldn’t be more humble to have been chosen to capture their day! Here are a few of my favorite images from their gallery!

Matt + Nichole

May 20 2021

I first met Nichole when my daughter was in cheer camp a couple of years ago. While we didn’t have a chance to really get to know each other, but I always was excited to see her whenever I did the teams annual Christmas photos. When she contacted me that she was going to be getting married in May of 2021, I was elated to hear that she was going to be marrying a colleagues son that I had a chance to work with before a while back. We discussed their Engagement Session and when we would like to schedule it and they booked their wedding after our bridal consult!

We had their Engagement session at a private location in Caledonia and it was so fun to teach them the simple poses we use the day of their wedding to get natural and beautiful images.

We had a few phone calls the days leading up to their wedding day and we were growing more and more excited the closer we got! We met them at St James Episcopal Church in Batavia, NY for their rehearsal and got to see everything come together perfectly. Once everyone felt comfortable, we parted ways, but not for long. The next morning, I made my way to Oak Knolls Manor a little early to get a sneak peak at the barn and all of the glorious details that were waiting for everyone once the ceremony was complete. What a sight to see! What a barn! It was built by J.T. Wells & Sons which are known for their amazing structurally sound barns and it is still amazing people this many years later.

I made my way into the beautiful house where I first found balloons and sprinkled rose petals throughout the entire house. I found Nichole getting her makeup perfected and then hair. I went into the bedroom to find her breathtaking dress hanging on the mirror and a box full of invitations, rings, her necklace, ribbons and shoes and used her veil to create a nice little background for them to lie on.

After details, Nichole got in her dress and we made our way to a first look with her Father and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house. We then made our way to St James Episcopal Church in Batavia for the ceremony.

Violinists, scriptures, blessings, communion, piano playing and praying, were just parts of a beautiful ceremony in the church that has also married Nichole’s parents and grandparents; but after all that, they were now pronounced, Mr and Mrs Heins! After their kiss, they made their way outside to an intimate toast of champagne between the two of them.

After family formals, we made our way to a requested area of Caledonia on Main Street to capture a few images and then back to Oak Knolls Manor for their reception and of course we had to wait until sunset to go capture the bridal party and bridal portraits of the day! We then made our way back in the barn for cake cutting and dancing the rest of the night away. I also couldn’t help sneak their rings and STUNNING wooden flower bouquet out for a quick photo session while everyone was eating. (Bouquets and boutonnieres made by the incredibly talented Dusty Dog Designs)

Their day was filled with such love and laughter and I am so humbled to have been trusted with their memories. Here’s just a few of my favorites from their day!

Ben + Nicole | One Year Later

Sep 16 2020

Last year I had the honor of being Ben and Nicole’s Wedding photographer. This year they are celebrating their first year as Husband and Wife and when we started talking about their Anniversary session, I had the perfect idea!

About a week earlier, my son and I were on our way to go pick up our take out from a local restaurant. While driving through town, I happen to spot this beautiful green truck parked on the side of the road with the owner sitting in the drivers seat. I had about 4 seconds to make a decision to stop and talk to him but I was also in my pajamas so I swallowed my pride and came back around the circle so I could park across the street and run across to get his attention; meanwhile, my son begging me not to embarrass him lol. I walked up on the truck and noticed he was on the phone, whoops! He saw me and gave me a “one minute” look. He hung up and came onto the sidewalk with me. Once I apologized for interrupting AND that I was in my over-sized pajamas, I told him that I loved his truck and would be elated to have use of it for a photo shoot sometime. He gave me his number and told me to contact him when I was ready! YES!

So now what… I have this truck to use and the perfect couple for their anniversary but where should we go? Where can we park this truck so that it’s level, not going to be damaged, not going to be in bright harsh sunlight and have some sunshine behind it like in my vision. So the search was on. Everywhere I went I was searching for the perfect tree. My husband teased me every day about my tree obsession. 🌳 lol There were some good contenders but none gave me the feels like one that I passed on my way to Dunkin Donuts every morning. It sat off the road, gave a good light source from the front and had a beautiful field behind it where the sun fell behind the beautiful leaves and it was just what I was looking for. So after a few weeks of stalking the house for someone to be home, I finally left a card with a little note. About a week later, I get an email from the land owner letting me know that he was willing to let us use his property! This is all coming together!!

My next move was to see if there was another wedding vendor that wanted to join us and I knew just the person! At Ben and Nicole’s wedding, I had met their florist, Val, from Sungrove Blossoms and Events and after seeing the STUNNING arrangements she had for their wedding and becoming friends on social media, I knew I had to ask her if she wanted to join the fun and without missing a BEAT she was on board! All I had asked of her was to bring whatever she wanted and to use her own creativity; and oh did she ever!! Which brings me to the day of! We all arranged to meet and when She brought a beautiful bouquet for Nicole, bucketed florals of all sorts and an unbelievable sunflower garland that she hand made, I couldn’t believe it!! 😲🌻🥳 LOOK AT THESE!!!

Once the truck was in place and the sun was just peaking through the tree, ⛅ just as expected, forals were set up and it was time for our couple to arrive! Ben and Nicole pulled in and came to greet us in such perfect outfits for this session (as always with these two!) It was time to start! It was the vision that I had from the beginning when I saw this truck for the first time. Within minutes of us starting, I knew Ben and Nicole were so comfortable in front of the camera from our previous times working together. They knew their poses so fluently! This was just a perfect example of why I love to watch a couple grow together. Last year I was shooting their wedding with some of these same poses and now, here we are, a year later and so much has changed! They’ve even added a beautiful little daughter to their family (but you’ll have to watch out for the family blog on their family session coming this fall!)

The sun lit perfectly behind the branches of the tree and started falling off towards the right of the field and the rest of us vendors faded away. Ben and Nicole had a few quiet private chats that brought so many natural smiles and laughs. I always wonder what those small conversations are but they are none of my business, I just hope their not making fun of me for being…. well, me.. ha! 🤪

We transitioned to the back of the truck after about 15 minutes and my vision came to life! The garland, the bouquet, the buckets of flowers, the truck, the tree and THE perfect couple, it was everything I wanted it to be!

What a lovely way to celebrate your One Year Anniversary!! They are such a great couple and it was amazing getting to spend some time with them after not seeing them for so long! I cannot wait to meet their beautiful daughter in the fall and capture all the memories of their family of three but for now, I wanted them to be able to spend some time together and document this milestone too which is far too over-looked! Document everything you can 🥰

I am so glad that I decided to act like a crazy person to pull this team together to make all of this happen! Thank you so much to everyone for their patience with me as I navigated through this idea! Nicole and Ben, I’m so glad I got to celebrate another year with you and I can’t wait to spend time with you again this fall and meet your beautiful daughter! To Dan, my second shooter, thank you so much for your help and assistance! I personally think EVERY ONE needs to go check out Sungrove Blossoms website, facebook and instagram pages for all of their floral needs! Thank you so much Val!! And finally Pat and Steve, the gentleman with the car and beautiful property, I cannot thank you guys enough for all of your flexibility with this and it would not have been possible without you! Thank you!

Here are some of my favorites from the shoot! Feel free to pop on my facebook page and give Nicole and Ben a heart ❤ on your favorites and feel free to share this blog post with your friends and family or if you’d like to book your own Anniversary session, feel free to contact here!