Last May I visited Newberry, SC to photograph Megan’s bridal portraits.  Newberry is such a nice little town.  Pretty much an idyllic place for a bridal portrait session.

We had the privilege of traveling to Newberry 3 times last year for weddings, and 4 times in a 10 month period.  We really love going down there to photograph weddings.

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Yes, we had 2 bridal portraits and weddings in a row with 2 different brides named Sarah!  In this edition of our portrait session with Sarah, we traveled down to the State House in Columbia, SC for her bridal portraits.  We also ran over to a special place on Lake Murray for a few at the end.

Enjoy the pictures!

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Back in May Sarah and I visited Furman University to shoot her bridal portrait session.  Sarah was away in the Navy when her Mother booked us for her portrait session and wedding, so this bridal portrait was the first time I had ever met her.  When she showed up in her  bridal gown she was absolutely beautiful!

On to the pics!

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I have been really neglectful with blogging lately.  There is a really good reason why though.  We have been working on a top secret project that we will be launching soon!  I really can’t wait for everyone to see it, but it’s gonna be worth the wait, I promise!

In the meantime, we are going to catch everyone up what we’ve been doing the last 6 months.  We literally have dozens of weddings and other photo shoots that we need to blog here.  So from now until the end of January, we will be blogging at least once every single day!  You will see weddings, engagement sessions, bridal portrait sessions and family portraits!  Maybe even some personal work that we’ve worked on!  We have so much to post!

We hope you will visit back with us every day to check out new images.  Thanks for stopping by!

I don’t claim to be an expert on anything, much less writing or wedding advice.  However, we are very blessed to be a part of a couple dozen weddings every year, and we can definately share our experiences with you to help make your wedding planning and wedding day run as smooth as possible.  

Last year I wrote an article that appeared in a couple of places about the benefits of hiring a wedding coordinator.  I re-edited it some and decided to post it here on our blog. 

 

5 Reasons to Hire a Wedding Coordinator

In the beginning stages of planning her wedding, most brides ask the question “do I really need a wedding coordinator?”  Our answer is yes, you absolutely should.  The question should really be “why wouldn’t I hire a wedding coordinator”.  

On average a wedding takes 250 hours of planning time.  It’s 2009!  Who possibly has that much time to dedicate to planning a wedding!  This is reason #1 to hire a wedding coordinator.  You really do need a professional to help you sort through vendors, and plan your special day.  Any professional wedding coordinator will have existing relationships with caterers, florists, DJs, photographers, videographers etc.  They can help you sort through the madness of choosing wedding professionals.
Did you know that some wedding, and wedding reception sites actually require you to have a wedding coordinator?  They have learned from years of experience that having a coordinator on board makes things flow much smoother!  This is reason #2.
You’ve waited your whole life for this day.  You deserve to kick back and relax, and you shouldn’t have to worry about sweating the small stuff.  This is reason #3 to hire a coordinator.  A good coordinator will have everything under control. They will organize the wedding day for you, so you don’t have to worry about a friend or relative having to do it, and they will tell you when you need to cut the cake and have the first dance.  That way you are never wondering what you suppose to do, or where you’re suppose to be next.  
How creative are you?  How artistic are you?  Do you know how to tie all of those cute little bows on all the chairs around the reception table?  This is reason #4 to hire a coordinator.  They know how to do these things.  Even if you do know how, you’re gonna be a little too busy on your wedding day to worry about that.  Hire a coordinator, and let them take care of these kind of details.  
Most brides that hire a professional wedding coordinator, say that they were able to enjoy their wedding day more so, than if they would have tried to do everything themselves.  This is reason #5.  You get married one time.  That’s it.  You have one shot to get it right, one shot to enjoy your one time day.  You deserve to leave it in the hands of a professional.
At this point you’re probably thinking, “OK, I know I should get a coordinator, but I’m not sure that I can afford one”.  Most coordinators offer full wedding coordination, or just day of wedding coordination.  It doesn’t always cost as much as you might think. If you decide that you can’t budget for the full planning package, at least hire a coordinator to help you, and be there for you on your wedding day.  It can make a world of difference in how you remember, and how much you enjoy this once in a lifetime day.  
Jason

I suppose this has turned into engagement session week as we catch everyone up out photo sessions for the last 6 months.

Today I’m introducing you to Megan and Darren.  Back in the Fall I went up to the mountains of NC to photograph their engagement session.  It was a perfect Fall day!  We went on a short hike to Hooker Falls, then finished up at Caesars Head State Park in SC.

On to the pics!

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I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful New Year’s Eve tonight!

Jason

So the beat goes on!  Back in the Fall I met Leah and Patrick at Table Rock State Park for their engagement session.  Like many of our couples, I had never met Leah or Patrick before out engagement session.  It normally takes a few minutes to break the ice at an engagement session, especially if it’s the first time I’m meeting the couple.

This time it was different.  Leah and Patrick opened up to me right way!  We had a great time shooting in the mountains and hanging out together.

Let’s get to the pics!

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Thanks for stopping by!

Jason

About a month ago I got to hang out with Sarah and Joseph and shoot their engagement session.  We met at the caboose at the SC Botanical Gardens in Clemson.

I knew even before the session that we would have a great time shooting.  After meeting Sarah in advance, and knowing how excited she was about the engagement session and shooting at Clemson, I knew it was gonna be a great time.

Here are some pics!

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Thanks for sticking around and looking at all of these images.  I know it was a bunch!  Keep checking back often.  More pictures to come!

Jason

So now we are pretty much finished with our new blog except for adding links to our friends.  That means we get to blog all of our 2008 weddings on here now!  

So starting tomorrow, and for the next couple of weeks, we will be blogging daily all of our weddings and other portrait sessions that we have failed to blog over the last 6 months.  I probably have enough where I could blog everyday for a month and still not put up everything.  

Starting tomorrow, you will see either a wedding, engagement session, bridal portrait session, pics from my family, or whatever fun pictures I choose to add on here.  Either way, stick around.  A lot of fun stuff is coming!

Jason

About a month ago I met with Allison, her Mother, and a friend in Clemson to do her bridal portraits. Now since her wedding has passed I can share the pictures!

Allison was such a beautiful bride!

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We really had a blast making these images. Especially that next to last one. I was sitting on a hill trying not to roll down it while Allison’s Mom was holding the flash in front of her to light her up. The sky was a beautiful bright orange, but I still thought it looked better in war black & white!

Jason