norfolk botanical garden wedding

2019 Wedding Favorites

2019 Wedding Favorites

This year was different than any other, in a lot of good ways. I got to photograph two gorgeous elopements, one at Fort Monroe Beach and one at The Historic Post Office in Hampton. I had two military weddings, my first Jewish wedding, and almost zero travel all year long…and as much as I love travel, it was wonderful to sleep in my bed the night after a wedding most of the time!

Each time I approach a wedding, I put pressure on myself to do something different. I truly want to capture the individual personalities of the bride, groom, and their friends and family, because no two weddings are the same…and they shouldn’t look like each other, either! Fortunately, when I walk into weddings and already know the couple from their engagement session, it’s easy to remember why I love them as a couple and why they love each other. From there, each pose and each moment is completely individual, and while I will always take the smiling-at-the-camera family pictures, so many of the in-betweens are uniquely beautiful to every day…

Norfolk Botanical Garden Wedding | TJ + Jessica

Norfolk Botanical Garden Wedding | TJ + Jessica

Hurricane Dorian threatened to ruin their day in a dozen different ways. First, there was the outdoor ceremony - it would have to be moved from the original place. Then, there was the Botanical Gardens themselves - would it be too muddy to get good pictures? On top of that, many family and friends were traveling from far away, and one bridesmaid got stuck in Los Angeles, frantically trying to arrive before the ceremony started.

Yet somehow, everything fell into place on Saturday for TJ and Jessica. What started as a backup ceremony location turned into a spot even more beautiful than the first. The Gardens dried up quickly and between the Rose Garden and the wildflowers, their portraits couldn’t have been more beautiful. Miraculously, Jessica’s final bridesmaid landed just over an hour before the wedding and, because the venue was so close to the airport, she made it in time. The rain held off, the sun came out, and their wedding day was one for the record books…

Wedding at Norfolk Botanical Garden | Marco + Lydia

Wedding at Norfolk Botanical Garden | Marco + Lydia

When Marco landed in Virginia just a few short weeks ago, he was about to embark on a whirlwind adventure that started with meeting Lydia’s family for the very first time, even though they were getting married in less than a month! Marco is from Peru, and he met Lydia when she followed God’s calling there without any intention of leaving with a husband. Their joy over God’s goodness and all their answered prayers was the main theme of the day, and it’s what made their wedding over-the-top beautiful.

Because of their unique circumstances, Marco and Lydia chose to have two receptions - one directly after their ceremony so the whole church could celebrate, followed by an intimate family dinner at Norfolk Botanical Garden, with the added bonus of portraits all around the beautiful end-of-summer blooms. My favorite part of the day was their first look. Lydia promised she would make him cry, but Marco had no idea she meant to record special messages from the friends and family who couldn’t travel internationally but still wanted to be a part of his special day. Between the videos playing on his phone, their special song in the background, and seeing his beautiful bride dressed in white, tears were quickly rolling down his face…