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Posted on July 15, 2011

carrie jo and nathan… married… berry hill plantation, south boston, virginia.  “i think we are the weirdest couple because we have strange mutual hobbies, like bowhunting…”, carrie jo said about her and nathan’s relationship.  so as i entered into the bridal suite looking for a “bowhunter” i had to stop in my tracks when i saw carrie jo.  she looked Stunning to put it mildly!  those gorgeous long blonde curls and her tall, narrow body, and a laugh that you couldn’t keep a straight face watching….  last saturday on the front lawn of berry hill she became nathan’s wife.  berry hill is such an amazing venue, and no matter how many times we shoot a wedding there, its greatness never ceases to amaze me.  carrie jo and nathan, you had a Perfect day saturday and richie and i feel priveleged to have been able to be a part of it.  the following is what was supposed to be a short preview of some of our favorite images from your day.  but it’s a Little more than “short”.  <3

venue:  berry hill plantation

hair/makeup: megan snipes… drove in from greensboro and i def see why carrie jo loves her so!

cake: la bella torta

band: class act

 

Posted on May 5, 2011

and now for the full blog post of chelsey and wesley’s wedding from last weekend!!  and i must share with you the scariest/sweetest story about them…. when they were dating, one rainy day they were walking in their neighborhood in DC, and as they went to cross the street, chelsey was more worried about her hair than where she was going (SO something i would do!!) and as they stepped out into the street wesley yelled “watch out!!!”   and as chelsey looked over to her side, BAM, she got hit by a car!!  as chelsey came to, and opened her eyes and saw wes standing over her, she knew this was the man she was going to marry…  and she did!!  a stunning couple, a gorgeous day, an incredible venue, and all their closest family and friends…. all came together for a PERFECT day! oh, and by the way, minus a few scrapes, chelsey was ok after the car incident!  wesley took perfect care of her… and i know he Always will…  <3

venue:  berry hill estate in south boston virginia

makeup/hair:  emily hudspeth, richmond va

flowers:  gregory florist, south boston va

DJ:  kent @ joe bunn dj company, raleigh nc

videography:  southern video design, raleigh nc

we have been So lucky to have couples who totally trust our direction and advice and who have been completely excited to do a “first look”!  chelsey and wesley were so happy with sharing that time together when they first got to see each other as just a couple, and not in front of all their friends and family.  and after doing pictures of the two of them, we did All their family shots and group shots before the ceremony which made it so they could spend time with their guests during the cocktail hour.  first looks change the flow of the whole day, all for the better!  we haven’t had one couple yet who wasn’t thrilled about their first look!  before long, i think the first look will become standard across the wedding industry, pushing to the side a tradition that has been in place for hundreds of years that was directed towards arranged marriages and fear the groom would not marry a lady who he thought was unattractive…. def NOT applicable to todays marriages!  here are a few shots from chelsey and wesley’s first look….

but what would a posting be without a shot of richie and i and chelsey and wesley???  well we’d hate to disappoint… so here goes!!!!

chelsey and wesley, you know the massive amounts of love we have for you guys!!  we are so thankful you ran across our names last year!  congratulations on becoming mr and mrs winn… you look aMazing together!  and we will def be coming to see you in DC!  much love, us.  <3

Posted on February 16, 2011

this has been a Big product week for us!  we got in two Gorgeous wedding albums, one amazing engagement book, and our new 2011 marketing stuff started arriving!!  even though its not all in yet, we are so excited to show off all the new little things we have now….

we will start with our business card!  picking images for all our new marketing stuff was HARD!!  anyone who knows me is fully aware that i do Not like picking things…  lots of things played into whos shots we used, including composition, crop, colors of the image, but most importantly we wanted the shot to show how richie and i photograph.  our style.  what we love to do….  i love the interaction between two people in love!  and so i tried to pick images that show that.   it was SO hard to pick!  we went with amanda and josh on the front because i just love that image.  its simple.  theres no crazy background.  its not overly fancy.  its just amanda and josh and their love for each other…. and Everytime i look at that shot i smile.  i think about that day with them in durham and i remember the homeless guy following us around and i remember how warm it was that day and the way richie and i picked and played with each other during the shoot.  and for whatever reason, that shot makes me happy.  so i picked it for the front.  i want to also give a shout out to the other couples who are on our card…. jessica and kyle, kassie and trent, kassies flowers haha (well i loved the colors and i needed a detail shot on here), elizabeth and john, and then callie, not once but twice cause i love the green in her close up, and i love the brick and her stance in the bridal shot.   by the way, gotprint is the company who printed our cards and we LOVE them!!!  i’ve used gotprint for three years now and i have not one time been disappointed in them!

next up is our new preprinted envelopes!!  i know, i know… they are just envelopes… but i am THRILLED to get them!  no more printing them myself!  yeah… its the simple pleasures in life….  : )   oh, and these were printed at vistaprint and i am Very happy with them!  we will def be ordering more when we run out of these!!

here’s another little thingy we like to do….  for our couples who do engagement sessions with us, we have cards printed with one of their shots and we put them out at the wedding reception.  the cards have all the info their guests need to be able to look at their wedding pics after the wedding.  if the couple is going to have a new address, we put that on there too.  just a quick, easy way to get all the info to all their wedding guests!  these are charlotte and marks, who are getting married in ten days, and sara and joel who are getting married in april!

now… album time……  we got in jess and kyle’s album and tyra and keith’s album this week!  looooove them!!!!  jess and kyle’s is a black 10″x10″ 34 page album, and tyra and keith’s is an expresso 12″x12″ forty page album!   both have the silver engraving on the front and square corner pages.

here is where i can brag about my amazing husband…..  he sewed these album covers yesterday all by himself!  i looove loooove looooove them!  what a great touch to a beautiful album!!!   he is right handy with some fabric and thread and a sewing machine!  <3

this is jess and kyles album….   my sweet jess and kyle…..  i can’t even imagine our life without them!  we clicked from day one (no pun intended) and we have become such great friends!  funny how life throws such wonderful people into our lives….  : )

and now for tyra and keith’s album……  tyra and keith had a GREAT wedding and a huge, but soooo much fun, wedding party!!   i so miss them and their fabulous family!!  they were a total pleasure to work with!!  : )

finally, we got in chelsey and wesley’s engagement book!  absolutely Love this super awesome couple!!  they are getting married at the end of april at berry hill!  i’ll never forget chelsey’s first email to me… “oh how i love your mad skills…”  i knew then.  this was going to be a girl i would love.  and i do.  <3

and whats a post without a shot of US?!  i love this man… and i am soooo lucky to be able to do what i love to do with my very best friend and the love of my life!  i love you richie staggs!!!!  xxox

Posted on January 22, 2011

jessica and brandon were married in the snow at berry hill estate earlier this month.  we’ve been to berry hill several times but this time it looked different…. this time it was WHITE!   berry hill in the snow has a whole new feeling to it.   i just wanted to stand in the cold and look up at the sky with its huge flakes blowing all around me.  but this day was jessica and brandon’s day.  and even though i was fighting the flu, i couldn’t help but smile as i watched how Happy they were that they were finally becoming husband and wife.  jessica amazed me at her self-made bouquet and the cakes they made themselves.   the groomsmen gifts she made… WOW!  how totally special!! (pics below)   jessica and brandon, i am So happy richie and i got to share your day with you!  you have a perfect love together and such a wonderful and supportive family.  we hope you love your images!!

xxoo, richie and jamie.