Read the Q&A with this intentional couple, featured below, to learn more about their wedding inspiration and photography experience!

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1. What are some of your favorite things about your partner? How were these attributes expressed during or leading up to your wedding?

Allison: Will’s sense of humor and present-orientedness helped in some stressful times.

Will: I appreciated Allison’s thoughtfulness for other people, attention to detail, organizational skills, and general event-planning mastery.

Our families mean everything to us and they were so, so generous and supportive throughout the process. We tried our best to balance the vision our parents had for the events with our vision—and it seemed to work out pretty well.

2. What was most important to you in planning your inclusive wedding?

Our engagement started with us proposing to each other, and that mutuality and the egalitarian nature of our relationship was reflected in the ceremony and the other traditions we chose to honor, alter, or leave out.

We wanted the ceremony and reception to reflect our values and vision for what we want the world to look like: a just, equitable, welcoming and joyful place where community is strong and everyone can be fully present and fully themselves—with fabulous music, let-loose dancing, and delicious food and drinks of course! We know that having a wedding and a state-recognized marriage is a privilege, and one that couples like us have had longer than others, and it was important for us to acknowledge that, even if in a small way with some text on the bulletin. The ceremony used gender-neutral language, and we didn’t gender our wedding party or their clothes—Will had a posse, I had a posse, and they wore clothes from the same color palette. We spent a lot of time picking out the readings and music for the ceremony and determining how our friends and family would be involved in ways they’d enjoy. We both grew up in the Presbyterian church and it was important in shaping our values and sense of community, so it was special to have the ceremony in the church in which Allison was raised. We’re also both from NC. The Haw River Ballroom reflected both different parts of North Carolina we identify with—the textile mill, the river, the country roads, and the music, arts, microbrew, and proximity to Chapel Hill where we met.

3. Are there any details or moments from your wedding that are particularly special to you? (E.g., you wore your momma’s dress, your partner unexpectedly serenaded you, there was a double rainbow all across the sky…).

• The passing of the peace (an element we added to the ceremony)
• Will’s incredibly talented cousin Joseph singing Be Thou My Vision
• Driving together from the church to the reception, just the two of us
• A father-daughter dance that included spontaneous clogging, a sweet mother-son dance, a mother-daughter dance to the Gilmore Girls theme song, and a dance solo by Will’s dad
• When Will’s family and friends took the life-sized cutout of our dog Wally to the dance floor. Wally danced half the night!
• So many moments with family and friends, many of whom travelled far to celebrate with us, and many of whom contributed in such loving ways

4. Your photography package included a bridal session. What was it like to work with me before the wedding? Do you have a favorite photo or moment from your session?

At first I felt awkward and nervous to be in this special outfit (still having conflicting feelings about wearing a wedding dress!) with attention focused on me, but Courtney was easy to be with and I trusted her direction and vision. Soon we were laughing and cracking jokes. It was really special for both my parents to be there during the session (and I was really doing it for them). My dad put some music on and seeing their smiling faces made me smile. Also, I snuck in a prop—The Essential Feminist Reader. I had to insert at least a little sass and a nod to feminism and the complex tradition of marriage. One of my favorite moments was looking down at my book and reading about Pauli Murray while Courtney was snapping photos. It was poignant in that moment to have the company of a person who courageously laid claim to so many facets of their identity and way of being in the world. My other favorite moment was my parents photo-bombing the final portrait shots. I’ll probably frame that photo.

5. Now that you’ve tied the knot (and survived!), what advice would you give to other folks planning an inclusivewedding?

Trust your instincts, make lists, and recognize the point when it’s time to say “eff that ess” to anything that is negative, overwhelming, or otherwise unneeded. Schedule some time around the wedding to be with friends and hang out. Those are some treasured hours! Also, it’s just one day. It’s an amazing day of solemn vows and celebration and togetherness, but it’s just one. Every day that you share with your partner is a day that you are making promises and building a life together. Honor that, and enjoy it. That’s what it’s all about.

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Allison + Will, thank you for being such thoughtful, inspirational clients! I admired how intentional you were in celebrating your values on your inclusive wedding day, and how you welcomed friends and family from all walks of life. Your love for your community was made manifest in every part of your celebration, and I’m so thrilled to have documented that for you. Thank you for inviting me to be your photographer and share in your joy.

This chill couple wanted a simple party with a laid-back feel, and they incorporated some unique elements I haven’t seen before in my eight years as a wedding photographer–(dinosaurs in the table settings, kitten cake-toppers, not to mention an unforgettable throw-down to Alanis Morissette’s “Uninvited” on the dance floor). And the NC Botanical Garden venue was the perfect colorful fall backdrop for their unconventional day!

Read the Q&A with this quirky couple, featured below, to learn more about their NC Botanical Garden wedding inspiration and photography experience!

1. What are some of your favorite things about your partner? How were these attributes expressed during or leading up to your wedding?  

Julia: Eric is very laid-back and balanced out a lot of my wedding nerves!

Eric: Julia is reliable, smart and measured in her priorities and approach, always getting things done well while understanding what really matters. In the lead up to the wedding, she knew what she wanted and how to work together to help make a wonderful time for the two of us and the people we love.

2. What was most important to you in planning your wedding? 

We wanted it to be relaxed and fun – we didn’t want to spend a lot of time agonizing over whether it was the Most Special Thing Ever. It’s a best friends forever party with all the people we love most – we wanted to keep that in mind and keep things in perspective.

3. Are there any details or moments from your wedding that are particularly special to you? (E.g., you wore your momma’s dress, your partner unexpectedly serenaded you, there was a double rainbow all across the sky…). 

This sounds like a cheat, but the whole thing. The entire night was lovely; no one moment really defined it.

4. Now that you’ve tied the knot (and survived!), what advice would you give to other folks planning their wedding? 

Don’t stress. Make a good faith effort to share the burden. Try to be there for one another and do what makes you happy.

5. What drew you to my photography style? Why did you ultimately decide to hire me? Was it worth it? 

Definitely worth it! We were more than pleased with both Courtney’s warm presence at the event and what we’ve seen of the photos.

6. What is the first thing you want to do with the images? Wallpaper the hallway? Internet fame?

Look through them together and share them with friends and family! Then look at them again!

7. What is next for you as a couple? Any big plans? 

We’re headed to Japan for our honeymoon. From there, who knows!

Are you planning a laid-back outdoor wedding and looking for a photographer who is excited about your original ideas?

Or maybe you’re blending two different faith traditions and are not sure where to even start? I love helping you clarify + celebrate your true values on your wedding day. Schedule a 30-minute phone discovery session with me by August 15 and receive 10% off your photography package.

Read the Q&A with this spunky couple, featured below, to learn more about their wedding inspiration and photography experience!

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1. What are some of your favorite things about your partner? How were these attributes expressed during or leading up to your wedding?

Tim: We didn’t have a very long engagement, while I wouldn’t say Teague is super detail-oriented, she was very decisive.  Teague is a creative problem solver and, as a result, our wedding process wasn’t stressful, which is what you often hear.  I also admire Teague’s intelligence, and I think because she thought through everything ahead of time, things came together really well.

Teague: Tim is more optimistic than I am, and sometimes throughout the wedding planning process, his optimism was necessary for me as I would often say “we should have just eloped” anytime something would come up.  Tim is reliable and was solely responsible for our cake and DJ.  It was really wonderful being able to rely on him and not feeling like I had to make every decision.  Tim is a loving and supportive partner, and our wedding planning process really just reiterated how lucky I am to have him.

2. What was most important to you in planning your wedding?

The most important part of our wedding planning was to keep things simple.  So much of the wedding industry has “must do’s” and it was important for us to think through these checklists to determine what was important to us.  We didn’t have a wedding party, which alleviated many of the costs/time involved in planning a wedding.  The venue we selected handled every aspect except the flowers/cake.  Not having to worry about minor details was very important.  As a result, our wedding day honestly wasn’t stressful and we could just enjoy ourselves.

3. Are there any details or moments from your wedding that are particularly special to you? (E.g., you wore your momma’s dress, your partner unexpectedly serenaded you, there was a double rainbow all across the sky…).

Tim: The first look pictures were special as well as Teague’s brother, Charlie, singing while she walked down the aisle with her father.

Teague : My favorite moment was when Tim and I first saw each other, I loved that it was just us plus our awesome photographer.

4. Now that you’ve tied the knot (and survived!), what advice would you give to other folks planning their wedding?

A bit of practical advice first: don’t get a hotel block, there are many online options for guests.  But most importantly, I would say surround yourself with a good team and let them do their jobs, these are professionals that don’t need to be micromanaged.  Focus on yourself, don’t worry about what others will think, just do what makes you happy.

5. What drew you to my photography style? Why did you ultimately decide to hire me? Was it worth it?

I really liked that you didn’t have many staged photos, they all felt like honest moments that you captured.  A lot of the wedding photographers have almost identical photos for every wedding they shoot, and I loved your documentary style that showed the personality of the couples.  We ultimately hired you because we felt comfortable around you and we really enjoyed hanging out with you, you put us at ease.  Choosing a photographer is the biggest decision we made in planning, and we knew you would be trustworthy and give us great photos to keep forever.

6. What is the first things you want to do with the images? Wallpaper the hallway? Internet fame?

We cannot wait to see them and order a ton!  We will use them as thank you cards and gifts.

7. What is next for you as a couple? Any big plans?

We are planning our honeymoon to Australia/Fiji next year!

8. Anything else you’d like to add?

We can’t imagine having a different wedding photographer on our day.  A couple of other photographers we met with had preconceived notions of the photos we “must have”.  You really listened to what we wanted and what was important to us, even if it meant going to our dog’s boarding location and the cemetery!

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Teague + Tim, thank you for being such fun and down-to-earth folks! I honestly couldn’t have imagined a better way to end the 2016 wedding season. I enjoyed every minute with you (especially over beer + giant pretzels) and am looking forward to our post-wedding portrait session later this winter. I hope you enjoy your pictures!