I was SO glad that it didn't rain until late on Saturday so that Melissa and Ross could have their ceremony outdoors at Whitestone Country Inn in Kingston. They exchanged vows in front of the gazebo overlooking Watts Bar Lake and then moved indoors for a sit-down dinner and dancing. As always, the wedding director Deneise was great to work with, and the food was delicious. It was a perfect beginning for a very sweet couple.

I hope to post more photos later, but they're returning from their Caribbean honeymoon soon so here's a sneak peek - one candid shot from their first dance and my favorite photo from their couple time together.

I'm always surprised at how two people so obviously perfect for each other can be brought together. Afia and Paul have a great story. They met in high school in Senegal even though neither one of them is from Senegal. Years later, here they are about to be married in Tennessee, but neither is from Tennessee.

Paul may be the funniest engineer I've ever met, and he kept us all laughing as we traveled around searching for photography locations. Afia is a natural in front of the camera, and has great style. Isn't this yellow dress adorable?  I'm so excited for their wedding in July!

I recently photographed a bridal session at a new venue in north Knoxville, The Sterchi Mansion. Unfortunately, I can't share any of the photos until after the bride's wedding in July, but I wanted to go ahead and thank the owners for being so welcoming and accommodating. It's a gorgeous, historic home, and anyone interested in an outdoor ceremony should definitely contact Linda and check it out. It would be especially beautiful in the fall.

Now for some photographs from a wedding reception that I photographed back in February. Natalie and James had a destination wedding in Jamaica (lucky ducks!) and then celebrated here in Knoxville with a reception at Southern Graces atop the Sunsphere. It was surprisingly warm for February, and we shot a few quick portraits around the base before heading up for the party.

I really love beautiful portraits so most of my favorite images that end up on the blog are semi-posed. However, I do photograph the majority of the day with a more photojournalistic style so I'm going to try to remember to post more candid wedding photographs this year.























Natalie had once heard about a celebrity serenading his bride on their wedding day and mentioned to James that she thought it was romantic. The idea stuck, and James had a special surprise for Natalie near the end of the reception. It would have been super sweet regardless, but he's a really good singer!

We originally scheduled this photography session for two weeks from now, but then I saw that the Dogwood Arts Festival will be on Market Square that weekend. Not wanting to compete with the crowd, we switched dates. Unfortunately, there is apparently always something going on in downtown Knoxville these days. On Saturday, there was a Red Bull chariot race AND a marathon. We had beautiful weather though, and I had fun traipsing around downtown and shooting urban engagement photos with Matt and Molly.




















I'm looking forward to the wedding in July and hoping that the weather will be just as gorgeous for their outdoor ceremony.

I met Kendra when she was the maid of honor at Candi's wedding last year, and I am honored to have been her wedding photographer this year. Kendra and Matthew's ceremony last Saturday was at The Knoxville Botanical Gardens on what turned out to be a very hot and humid day. Happily, the girls got ready in the lower level of the house which has stone walls and stayed nice and cool. In addition to all of the beautiful plants and trees, the stone walls and buildings are really what make this particular venue so unique and charming. The reception later that evening was held at Regas Restaurant in downtown Knoxville.

Although they didn't want to see each other before the ceremony, the couple did have a short "meeting" on either side of a heavy door.



Kendra was expecting a romantic kiss on the hand from her loving, soon-to-be husband...



Guests were provided with fans and cold drinks to beat the heat before being seated for a short but sweet ceremony in the greenhouse.



Rather than a candle or sand ceremony, the couple performed a unity tree planting which was especially appropriate given the venue.







After a bubble exit and some dress adjustments, we did a few quick formal, bridal, and couple photos in the gardens.







It was great seeing Candi again as she was Kendra's matron of honor, and Kendra's brother also received leave from the navy to attend the wedding.



Kendra and Matthew's wedding was my last for the year as I am now 31 weeks pregnant (and huge). It's going to be tough taking off from weddings until next year, but I couldn't have ended this year's season with a better couple. Special thanks to Marcus who was wonderfully helpful as always and to Sondra of Leban Photography who graciously withstood the heat to help me with this wedding.