Did I Mention...

...that Point Reyes is my favorite place in the whole wide world.  Point Reyes is a National Park just north of San Francisco and you get there by taking Pacific Coast Highway 1 which is the most beautiful stretch of highway I have ever driven.  I have been to Point Reyes two times in my life.  The first time was on a trip to San Francisco to visit my good friends Kevin and Lauren.  They are the ones who introduced the me to Point Reyes.  We hiked the trail the day before I proposed to Lacy. The second time I went to Point Reyes was part of an amazing road trip that Lacy and I took driving my bad 'A' Ford Focus station wagon across the country stopping at National Parks and amazing cities all over the Western Part of the country.  Lacy had to fly back early to start a new job so my good friend John Reed met me in Montana and finished the trip with me.  We arrived at the trail head as the sun was setting.  We hiked the last 3 miles in the moon light knowing we were getting closer as the sound of the Pacific grew louder.  The photos pretty much speak for themselves, but this place is absolutely amazing.  You pitch your tent on a bluff overlooking the Pacific.  The sky is clear as can be and you can see thousands of stars.  This is my favorite place.

This is what my feet looked like after hiking the trail in my trusty Chacos.

Lauren + JJ at Cedarwood

I feel like I've know Lauren and JJ for a long time because they booked me over a year ago and we have been keeping in touch over Facebook and twitter.  In reality, we didn't meet face to face until two days before their wedding.  Lauren and JJ had been living in NYC and now live in San Francisco but decided to have a destination wedding in Nashville at my favorite venue Cedarwood.  I wish they lived in Nashville so I could hang out with them all the time.  The wedding was beautiful, fun, and intimate.  Lauren and JJ were like working with super models who also happen to be totally in love with each other which made my job really easy.  I am so happy for you guys and cannot thank you enough for letting me be part of your wedding.

 

 

Heather + Tyler

I got to spend last Friday with Heather and Tyler for their engagement session.   We started out at Centennial Park which is where Tyler proposed to Heather on a cold but magical evening last winter.  We then headed over to my dream house in Kingston Springs.  A family that Heather baby sits for let us use their amazing farm house for the shoot.  This place was straight out of a magazine and I am starting a new savings account in hopes that I will one day purchase this amazing property.  I had so much fun with you guys and can't wait for your wedding this December!

Rosa + Isaak

Friday night I was reminded of why I love being a wedding photographer and that the talents God has given me are meant as a gift to be shared with his children.  Friday could not have come at a better time.  Maybe it was the weather or the reality of a baby on the way, but I was starting to doubt my career and think about what the heck else I could do to pay the bills and find some sense of purpose in my work.  My mother-in-law told me about Rosa and Issac who were planning on having a wedding later this year, but due to some medical issues that Isaac is struggling through they decided to go ahead and get married as soon as possible.  After hearing my mother-in-law and wife talk about their story and what amazing people they are, I immediately wanted to photograph their wedding. We got in touch with the family at 6pm and the ceremony was going to be around 6:30pm so I grabbed my gear and headed over to Rosa's parents' house where they were having the ceremony.  They were married on the front porch.  Including myself, there were 12 of us at the ceremony.  Rosa's grandfather was the officiant.  The cake topper was a squirrel bride and groom that her grandmother had cut out of a greeting card purchased at the local store.  The reception was in the dining room at the family table where a meal was shared.

Everything about this wedding was perfect.

This wedding was about the marriage.

I live in and often get lost in the 40 billion dollar wedding industry.  There are so many beautiful layers to a wedding day that it is easy to lose the truth about what we are celebrating.  If you take away the fancy clothes, the music, the beautiful venue, the architectural masterpiece of a wedding cake, and the gourmet reception food, what do you see?  A wedding is about two people coming together before God, and the people they love to say, "I choose you."  Above all others, I choose you, and commit all that I am to you.

This is a beautiful thing.  This is what I was reminded of Friday.  And this is why I photograph weddings.

Rosa + Isaak, Thank you for this gift.