Dan & Anne

Photos by Dan & Anne

Hooray, for another wedding brought to you by the absolutely wonderful Amy DiLoreti!  Amy and her lovely assistant Tiffany are two of our FAVES, and they made the entire day truly flawless.

Melissa has become such a dear friend to me, and it was a complete BLAST for Dan and I to celebrate with her and her awesome fiancee – wait, no, HUSBAND – Hunt!  There are so many great photos from their day, and I had to refrain from making this blog post 300 images long… so here are just a few favorites.

I started the day at Melissa’s hotel, where I found this sweet note from her brother…

Hunt’s mom loaned Melissa the beautiful blue ring for her “something borrowed, something blue”…

Showing off her ring to her mom…

Dan started with the guys at Nadine’s Triple Crown, where the guys all were treated to straight razor shaves!

Melissa and her dad…

And really, you can’t be in the Virgina-Highlands without getting burgers and beer at Moe’s & Joe’s, right?

A PERFECT fall day for a wedding at Mount Vernon Baptist Church!

Melissa’s elegant Casablanca gown…

I seriously don’t think Melissa could have been any more beautiful!  She’s a stunning woman as it is, but she totally glowed the entire day!  The lovely Beth Pilgreen did her makeup, and Milly from Salon Carcica created Melissa’s updo.

All of the floral arrangements were by Lamb’s Ear Designs…

Melissa and her mom in the sanctuary…

It’s almost ceremony time!  Melissa’s maid of honor delivered a last-minute note from Melissa to Hunt…

Hunt’s first look at Melissa, as the doors opened for her to walk down the aisle…

During the ceremony, Armonico String Ensemble played.  Let me be honest for one minute: Dan and I hare a LOT of string ensembles at weddings, and, well, most of them are just awful!  Armonico’s pieces, however, were completely perfect in every way.  We hope to see more of them around town!

The parents…

The wedding party…

Everyone hopped in their cars and made the short trip over to Atlanta Country Club for the reception!

The Moxie Band got the party started, and kept everyone on the dance floor all night long!

Publix made the adorable wedding cake, and Melissa and Hunt served Hurricanes as their signature drink.  (Hurricane Katrina was responsible for Hunt relocating to Atlanta — and the reason he met Melissa!)

HAHAHAHA!

Hunt dancing with his mom…

Melissa dancing with her dad…

This happy couple were the matchmakers for Melissa and Hunt — AND they were the last standing on the dance floor at the end of the Anniversary Dance, meaning they had bee married longer than anyone else at the party!

SURPRISE!  Melissa had peach pies from The Varsity brought in as a special gift for Hunt, who LOVES them!

I love the look on Hunt’s face when the waiters walked in wearing Varsity hats!

I had to include a photo of our friends Alissa and Ben, whose wedding we photographed back in 2008.  We knew so many people at Melissa and Hunt’s wedding, it was like a mini-reunion!

The last dance…

The grand exit…

This was a first: Melissa and Hunt invited me to ride with them in their limo back to the hotel, then get a few photos of them in their suite at the St. Regis!  I had fully intended to ride up front with the driver, so Melissa and Hunt would have some privacy, but he already had a passenger with him in the front seat!  So I crawled over all of their bags and gift boxes, and *tried* to just hide away in the corner.  Instead, we all wound up laughing and swapping stories… and I got some of my favorite photos of the night.

Melissa and Hunt, Dan and I are so happy that we got to celebrate with you guys!  You are so, so, SO perfect for each other.  We know that you will be just as happy as we are after 6 years of marriage.  May God bless you both — and bring you to Atlanta often!

I might be completely losing control of my blog posts.  Pretty soon I’ll be posting 500 photos as a “sneak peek” from a wedding!  Sheesh!  But I just can’t help but be a little crazy when we get to photograph such beautiful celebrations!

Rebecca and Isaac were our 10/10/10 wedding, the lucky second wedding of the weekend for us!  I started at Rebecca’s family’s home where the adorable Lauren Bricken did her makeup, and the house swarmed with friends and family, eating and laughing and all completely thrilled to be celebrating Rebecca and Isaac’s wedding day!

Rebecca wore a stunning James Clifford gown.  Her bouquet was designed by the in-house florist at Primrose Cottage, where they hosted their wedding.

While I’m at it, let me just say that we’ve shot several times at Primrose Cottage, and they have been amazing to work with every single time!

Rebecca’s sister helped her with her dress…

This girl has THE most amazing eyes!

Dan didn’t connect with Isaac and the guys until they all arrived at Primrose, but he didn’t waste any time getting gorgeous shots of Isaac all dressed up for the wedding!

The marriage license is signed!

Rebecca and her mom made the beautiful programs…

LOVE:

Isaac’s parents enter for the ceremony to music played by Poulenc String Quartet…

Rebecca waiting with her dad…

Isaac sees his bride-to-be for the first time that day…

Isaac’s family…

Rebecca’s family…

The wedding party…

First dances…

Cake!

The tiny dance floor was packed ALL night, thanks to Bret with Black Tie Events!

Rebecca and Isaac, we are SO happy that we got to celebrate with you guys!  Thank you for an amazing celebration!

Francine and Gordon may have stood before a judge a few months ago and been legally married, but it seemed that this time, surrounded by the people who love them most in the world, they really felt married. Dan and I were so honored to be a part of Francine and Gordon’s marriage celebration! Their friends and family were absolutely fantastic, and the party was perfection! Bold American did an outstanding job (as always) with one-of-a-kind event design that really captured Francine and Gordon’s creative spirits!

I seriously love ALL wedding gowns, but Francine’s gown?  I COVETED her gown.  I could have tossed away my camera and put her dress on and run away in it, and not thought twice about it!  That’s how much I obsessed over this phenomenal Vera Wang wedding dress.  (Oh, and the Kate Spade shoes were pretty awesome, too!)

Francine’s mom helping her with her gown…

Gordon’s mom…

Francine with her dad…

*drool*

Francine’s bridesmaids have known her since they were all in elementary school!  It’s so special to have friends who have grown up with you, know all your deepest, darkest secrets, and still want to stand up with you on your wedding day!

Another lifelong friend of Francine’s is a minister, and she went over last-minute details with Francine before they lined up for the ceremony…

The ring bearer…

Michelle Smith from Inviting Ideas created the whimsical invitations and programs…

Bicycle wheels?  Draped in roses?  Hanging from the ceiling?  YES, PLEASE!  This arrangement was created by a former window set designer for Anthropologie. Guests took their butterfly place cards to their table, where the butterflies could be added to the centerpiece!

Gordon and his cousin…

Francine’s necklace was her “something borrowed” – on loan from her mom…

The rose-draped arbor that hung over Francine and Gordon during their ceremony also framed the wedding party table during the reception!

Cake!

Toasts…

Francine danced with her dad…

..then Gordon danced with his mom…

…then Francine’s mom and dad took the dance floor…

…then everyone danced around the room in celebration of Francine’s grandmother!

Impromptu photobooth?

Gordon chose songs and Francine designed the cover for this CD that they gave to each of their guests…

Francine and Gordon, thank you SO MUCH for sharing this day with us!  We absolutely adore you guys, and we wish you a lifetime of happiness together!

It has taken me way too long to try to narrow down the images for this blog post!  But enough is enough, and I am forcing myself to STOP, and share these 43 beautiful moments from Marianne and Dave’s wedding day.  Hooray!

I started with Marianne at Twelve, where her friend Mimi was styling her hair…

Just a couple blocks away, Dan was with Dave, who was… checking out his butt in the mirror?  I guess it’s not just us girls!

It was an easy walk on a PERFECT Saturday to get to Atlanta FUMC…

The next 3 pictures make me really happy… I was particularly fond of Marianne’s Angelina gown…

Marianne and Dave decided to see one another before their ceremony — our favorite!  This beautiful corner of the church balcony was a great, private spot to see one another all dressed up in their wedding clothes for the very first time.

My angle…

Dan’s angle…

I set up this shot for a completely different purpose, but Dan got one of my favorite pictures of the day…

We wondered out into downtown Atlanta for some photos…

The stunning floral designs were created by Tulip…

Atlanta FUMC is right on Peachtree St. downtown, so there’s always plenty of traffic.  This Saturday was extra-busy, though, because the BET Music Awards were in town!  M&D heard LOTS of encouragement shouted and whistled from the cars that crept by!

One of the precious little grandmas…

Marianne and her mom…

Marianne waiting with her dad before the ceremony…

She totally broke down as she walked down the aisle.  Nothing makes me tear up like watching couples cry at their weddings, I guess because Dan and I bawled our eyes out at our own ceremony.

Marianne and Dave gave us our first opportunity to shoot at Ventanas, an AMAZING space overlooking the Atlanta skyline.  You know what else is amazing?  A wedding where you get both beer AND little hamburgers!  (Kudos to Proof of the Pudding for the scrumptious food!)

First dances…

I love this moment… I guess it just says so much about a mom when you see her smiling patiently while her son and one of his friends acts ridiculous!

Marianne’s dad surprised everyone with a SWEET slideshow of photos from her and Dave’s growing-up years.  I especially love the shot of Marianne’s grandmother peeking around a column to watch the video!

One of Ventanas’ most fabulous features is the helipad!  I was more that a little petrified, being on a rooftop with no barrier between me and certain-death (okay, so I’m kind of scared of heights), but Dan dragged me up there, and we got some beautiful images right at twilight…

Because the evening was so lovely, the guests spent most of the night on the rooftop patio overlooking the city…

CAKE!

Ending the night…

Congratulations, Marianne and Dave!  We LOVED photographing your wedding!  Thank you so much for sharing your celebration with us!

This wedding was made possible by the fabulously WONDERFUL Amy Diloreti.  We heart you, Amy!

Amanda and David were nothing but EXCITED on their wedding day!  When I got to Amanda’s hotel room I expected her to be anxious, but she was just ready to go!  David was the same way.  When we walked past his hotel room it was all he could do to keep from peeking out at Amanda!

Their wedding day started out rainy, but by mid-day the sun was out and all the clouds had disappeared.  Below, little rain drops were dripping from one of the trees, and a shot of Amanda’s adorable Chinese Laundry flats…

David and his brother…

Amanda and her maid of honor…

We had never before been to Wolf Mountain Vineyards in Dahlonega, so it was especially exciting to be a part of a wedding there…

Our favorite: Amanda and David saw each other before their ceremony!

The talented Tim Bright with Petals designed all of the flowers…

Amanda’s Maggie Sottero gown was phenomenal on her!

Getting married…

Amanda and her dad…

Amanda and David’s dear friend also officiated their ceremony, making for one extra-emotional ceremony!

I DIED when I saw these amazing shoes that Amanda’s bridesmaids wore!  (The girls themselves also almost died, but from falling off of these impossibly high heels!  Really, they looked awesome and catwalked like pros!)

Immediately after the ceremony, ALL of the guests gathered outside the pavilion for one big group photo!

This fondant-free (yum!) cake was from Dahlonega’s friendly neighborhood Publix!

The wedding party…

Each guest took home a little “thank you” give — a beautifully-engraged corkscrew, the PERFECT give for a vineyard wedding!

The newlyweds!

David dancing with his mom…

Amanda’s hair and makeup held up beautifully through the long, hot August day.  Kudos to Belle Avance Salon for gorgeous styling!

Toasts…

Cake-cutting…

DJ Triple M!

David’s dad and sister…

Amanda parents… how cute are they?!?

Amanda and her mom…

The last dance…

Three super-awesome exit pictures! 1…

2…

3…!

Amanda and David, y’all are AWESOME!  Thank you so much for letting us celebrate with you two!  We will be calling you up when we make it out to San Diego!

Tina and Sumon were THE most FANTASTIC couple to share our first Indian wedding with!  They had total faith in us from the get-go, and we felt completely embraced by their friends and family at their gorgeous St. Regis Hotel wedding here in Atlanta.

When we arrived, we went straight up to Tina’s and Sumon’s rooms while they finished getting ready…

The little flower girl, Tina’s neice…

Outside, the guests gathered for Sumon’s formal arrival for the wedding ceremony…

The ballroom was decorated for the ceremony by Weddings In Style.

We snuck away after the ceremony for some quick portraits…

While Tina and Sumon went upstairs to change, we grabbed some shots of the ballroom as it was transformed for the reception.  This super-cool wedding cake was designed by Ramona with Unforgettable Wedding Cakes…

Tina and Sumon reappeared in gorgeous new clothes for their reception… and some more portraits!

Time to party!

Tina’s dad…

Yes, they even had someone there to SING to them!

AMAZING Indian cuisine was catered by Cafe Bombay…

I’m gonna have to learn to pop champagne like this…

Tina was a professional dancer, I think from high school through college.  She and Sumon both TORE UP the dance floor — with a little help from DJ Neal!

Last toast of the night…

Tina and Sumon, thank you guys from the bottom of our hearts for sharing your celebration with us!  We are so honored to have been there with you on such an incredibly special day.  You know you always have friends here in Atlanta!