Dana + Ben tied the knot in a beautiful DIY outdoor ceremony at Duke Gardens on September 24, 2016.

I photographed Dana’s sister’s wedding in 2014, and it was a special treat to document another family celebration just two years later. I loved the laid-back but romantic feel of Dana + Ben’s Duke Gardens wedding and am excited to share these photos!

Read the Q&A with this laid-back couple, featured below, to learn more about their Duke Gardens 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?

Dana: Ben is kind, calm, and very organized. He’s good at remembering the things that might slip through the cracks- like getting a marriage license. I always feel like he’s on my team. He was holding my hand, dancing, and just with me all night.

Ben: Dana makes everyone feel very comfortable, and as a result our wedding was relaxed and friendly.

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

It was important to us that everyone was going to have fun! And also that the wedding reflected us. Our ceremony felt very “ours”- like hugging our parents instead of being given away, and having our friend Virginia as the officiant.

Even though we kept our family in mind, we felt like it fit us. We tried to do some DIY things to keep costs down. We bought these rubber stamps and ink to decorate our invitations, and we used them again for the programs.

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…).

Dana: Seeing Ben’s face as I walked down the aisle is something I won’t forget. Seeing so many loved ones. Getting ready with my sister and girlfriends.

Both: The toasts were truly special- heartfelt and touching.

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

Wedding planning takes a lot of time, especially the small things. Start early, and leave yourself enough time, and try to divide and conquer a bit. It’s so helpful when something is handled by one member of the couple and you know your own task.

Remember to soak up the day. It goes by so fast. Savor being with your partner on the special day.

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

We loved your photography from my sister’s wedding, which was probably the best way to vet you too! You are so comfortable to work with. You are friendly and calm but are not afraid to tell people what you need. The composition in photographs is very nice, and it’s clear that you’re thinking about the whole frame.

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

I’m just looking at these over and over again, re-living the wedding. Social media posts to come, and we’ll certainly pick out a few to frame, and potentially an album. We also gave a few of the group shots to our friends and family as gifts.

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

We have a trip planned just the two of us- without the dog- to New Orleans. Just a short trip but it feels like honeymoon round two. We’re loving living together after being long distance. Life is so much better.

---

Are you planning a laid-back outdoor wedding and looking for an experienced North Carolina wedding photographer who supports your unique vision?

Or maybe you’re renovating your home for your backyard wedding and have no idea where to put all the guests? I love helping you clarify + celebrate your true values on your wedding day. Check out my 3 wedding packages and schedule a 30-minute phone discovery session with me by August 15 and receive 10% off your photography package.

---

Amelia + Mark threw a wicked dance party in their Raleigh outdoor wedding celebration at the Park Alumni Center (go Wolfpack!)

This gregarious couple was intentional about planning a celebration that emphasized inclusion, diversity, and authenticity. The cherry on top: an Irish dance performance during the reception. This wedding was such a unique, refreshing wedding to photograph, and I’m so pumped to share the pictures from their day!

Read the Q&A with this fun couple, featured below, to learn more about their Raleigh outdoor 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?  

Amelia: Mark is so great because he’s so awesome but so humble and unassuming. He has the kindest soul and makes me laugh so hard every day with his dry witty humor. He also has an amazingly calm demeanor, which was a perfect balance to my more anxious, high-energy personality when it came to planning a wedding. Mark really balanced out the whole process for us.

Mark: Amelia brings such passion and enthusiasm to everything she does – it gives me such energy and joy to be around her.  Especially when the day-to-day planning of the wedding got stressful or overwhelming, she made sure we never lost sight of the bigger picture – that we were planning a truly joyful and fun occasion for all the people we care about most.

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

Amelia: My sole priority was to have an amazing party, with all of our favorite people, with lots of food, drinks, and dancing. The dancing part was very important. And it went VERY well.

Mark: The priority for me was having all of our friends and families together for a fun night/weekend.

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…). 

Amelia: Oh man, lots of little things. I unexpectedly wore a pair of diamond earrings borrowed from my cousin and maid of honor, which had diamonds from my late grandmothers wedding ring. That was a very special last minute decision. The best man and maid of honor speeches were INCREDIBLE.

Mark:  The speeches were a highlight for me as well.  I also just really enjoyed seeing everyone gathered when we first walked out for the processional – it was so much fun and overwhelming (in a good way) to have all those people together after all the work that went in to planning everything.

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

I think we did a great job in delegating wedding planning activities to those who wanted to help; one bridesmaid created our seating display, another created our family photo display; family members kindly took care of the thank you gift bags for guests.

It was freeing to let go of those decisions and let others we trusted to use their best judgment. We hired a day-of coordinator to manage all day-of coordination decisions as well – highly recommended!

It’s trite to say, but it’s still worth remembering: don’t sweat the small stuff.  It’s easy to get bogged down in trying to coordinate and plan every minor detail; the reality is that not everything will go exactly as planned, and that fact won’t matter at all when it comes to how you or anyone else remembers the wedding.

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

Ummm…YES! Totally worth it. Your “unconventional” theme of couples and wedding styles sealed the decision for us; checking out your website and seeing that you clearly value diversity in serving your clients/couples; something that is super important to us.

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

Ha!  Framed photos to family, and maybe we’ll make our own photo album.

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

Honeymoon in Thailand and Cambodia in January 2017!

---

Are you planning a laid-back Raleigh outdoor wedding and looking for an experienced North Carolina wedding photographer who supports your values?

Or maybe you’re renovating your home for your backyard wedding and have no idea where to put all the guests? I love helping you clarify + celebrate your true values on your wedding day. Check out my 3 wedding packages and schedule a 30-minute phone discovery session with me by August 15 and receive 10% off your photography package.