Stories
When it comes to iconic wedding venues in Atlanta, few locations offer the charm of the Trolley Barn. Nestled in the heart of Inman Park, this historic gem is old-world charm that’s perfect for a summer celebration like a wedding! A wedding at The Trolley Barn provides a picturesque backdrop for a wedding that is both intimate and lively.
"For our engagement pictures we knew we wanted to take them in Atlanta. It is where our love story began. Everyone does the park and bridge pictures which are beautiful but we wanted something different to capture who we are. So, thinking back to our first dates, we always went to breakfast. Jarrett worked nights and I worked days and weekends so breakfast was usually the only time we were both free to meet. Homegrown is one of the greats I’m Atlanta, I mean the Comfy Chicken! We were there often.'“
The walls were traditional white marble, which served as an elegant canvas for decor. The focal point was a 15 ft tall archway, which was decorated with cascading greenery and florals highlighted with dozens of candles. The colors were fall inspired, with terracotta bridesmaids dresses and burgundy ties for the groomsmen, but with lighter colored florals with pops of bright colors, such as yellow and periwinkle, in order to keep the visuals bright and fun.
The grooms parents live on a ton of property in Alabama and they wanted to incorporate their home in our big day somehow. The bride saw tree stumps with candles on Pinterest one day and the idea struck her — "we should find a tree on their property, chop it up, and use them during our ceremony". The brides MIL really helped make it come to life in the exact way she wanted. And in doing that, it helped her get the reception decor vision together. They used wood rounds on all of our tables with loose greenery and candlelight that was *chefs kiss* simple and classic — exactly what they wanted.
Never have I ever photographed a maternity session for a dog and can I say, bring on the pregnant puppers! This session was so stinking cute and so much fun. Nothing could have prepared me for the challenge it was going to be to get an uncomfortable mama dog to pose, sit still, and basically do what we wanted. Winnie had the vision of Bella’s maternity session in a shire, magical, whimsical - dreamy.
Imagine having to postpone your wedding in June of 2020 because of a worldwide pandemic. This, unfortunately, is something a lot of us wedding vendors and couples can imagine all too well. Ok, so you have imagined having to postpone your 100+ wedding day.. Now imagine the new date in June of 2021. There is a tropical storm. Tropical Storm Claudette, to be exact. Now, that second scenario might not be as familiar to most.
With so many gorgeous locations around Atlanta it can be hard to know what locations are free to use and which locations require a fee or if you are even allowed on the property at all. Before you decide on a location for your engagement photos it is always best to talk with your wedding photographer about the location.
Located in the Historic West End of Atlanta, Monday Night Garage is the newest location for Monday Night Brewing focusing on sours, barrel aged and experimentation! The space is expansive and eclectic making it the perfect backdrop for a wedding day. From the brick, to the barrels, to greenery and let’s talk about all the mismatched chandeliers throughout - it was easy to see why Lenssa and Shelton fell in love with this space for their wedding day.
When Holly asked me if I travel for weddings, of course, my response was Y E S! Because Holly and Adam’s wedding would be in Charleston we racked our brains to come up with an engagement session location that was travel friendly for me and something a little different for them. After much googling, we found Savannah Rapids Pavilion.
The DeKalb History Center is one of my favorite venues to photograph weddings at. From the grand windows, the marble throughout, and just all around vibe of the wedding venue. If you aren’t familiar with the DeKalb History Center you may know it as the Historic DeKalb Courthouse! ..and if you aren’t familiar with either of those names let me give you a little history about the building.
The building use to serve as the old courthouse! Now it houses permanent and temporary exhibits relating to the County’s history along with a lot of wonderful weddings! Alesha and Nick complimented the venue with greenery and blush colors in the florals along with the bridesmaids in sage and the groomsmen in classic grey with sage ties really sets the stage for this summer wedding.
Alesha and Nick were ready when it came to portrait session time. They also booked an engagement session with me, so they knew my mumbo jumbo wording when it comes to posing and the different cues I like to use. This made it so easy to get a lot of different wedding portraits for their wedding day.
During their engagement session we went to Piedmont Park and then we literally just walked around the streets of Atlanta letting the vibe come to us. See more of their engagement session HERE. Exploring the city and letting the city come to us for their photos really allowed us to get to know each other. They really got a chance to see how I photograph in ALL situations and I really got to know them as a couple.
There were so many special little touches this couple did for their wedding day that truly made it their own. Like you saw above, Alesha had each of her bridesmaids along with her mother help her into her dress. As you are going to see below, Nick had a very special ring security as part of his groomsmen.
The desserts! How fun and perfect the brushing on the cake and in the exact colors of Alesha’s color pallet and who doesn’t love a cupcake with sprinkles! Metrotainment Bakery really pulled out the stops here with this amazing display of wedding dessert!
GLOW STICKS! A wedding exit with glow sticks is a great option if you feel your guests aren’t responsible enough to hold a sparkler (yes, some couples do have that fear, ha ha), or if your venue doesn’t allow sparklers or if you are just looking for something different. There is no right or wrong way to exit from your wedding plus the glow sticks make for a fun reception time! Alesha and Nick handed out their glow stick close to their exit time, so their guests got the opportunity to dance with them and allowed me to capture a different type of dancing photos. When it was time to exit all everyone had to do was go outside. Easy Peasy!
Venue: DeKalb History Center
Photographer: Krisandra Evans
Planner: Wedding Belles
Florist: Candler Park Flowers
Beauty: Shadani Beauty
Caterer: Fox Bros
Desserts: Metrotainment Bakery
DJ: SE Events
Arabia Mountain is the northern of two peaks in the nature preserve, in DeKalb County, Georgia and literally down the road from my house. I had never been there before this engagement session with Shea and Cody, but had heard of the mountain many many times before. This location is special to Shea and Cody because they, as a couple, spend a lot of time here. When they asked if I would take their engagement photos there I was beyond excited. It’s always fun for me to get to explore a new location with an amazing couple. So, I left it in their hands to show me around the mountain and I was able to capture just how much they love Arabia mountain and each other.
When Ann-Hamilton emailed me and said she had found the perfect wedding day first look location I was all ears. You all know by now that I am PRO the first look (HERE are reasons why). She said she had found a castle, yes castle, around the corner from the venue. Excuse me! What did you just say?? A castle in the middle of Decatur, tell me more. She sent me the google listing and thought there was no way we would get access to this place.. but….. WE DID!
You can consider where you first met, where you got engaged, your hometown, a place you visit often OR you can consider a place you have never been to before for your engagement photos. You can then get amazing outfits to compliment those locations and plan the perfect time of day and day of the week with your Atlanta wedding photographer and make killer engagement images! All it takes is a little planning and your engagement session can be more than just a trial run in front of the camera before your big day.
Spring has sprung! Welcome to Spring everyone. Welcome to pollen and mosquitos and BBQ’s and late afternoon hangs and bumble bees and all the fun things that come along with longer days. And welcome to the amazing golden light that fills the air!
McDaniel Farm Park is such a diverse space for every season, but there is just something about when the land starts to bloom and start fresh for the year that I had to suggest it to this family for their session. With concrete and natural paths this park is suitable for everyone. The park has so many great options like the pathways, or the fencing, a bridge, a barn, you name it!
Hitting it off instantly, they had their first date after a week of talking and on their second date he knew she was THE one. After 11+ months he recreated their first date down to what he was wearing and even what was on tv that night. He had his guitar wrapped around him and he played a song he had written officially asking for her hand before getting down on one knee, using her full name, and asked her to marry him. SWOON
