I was so excited to be asked to be the photographer for Charlotte City Club Wedding for Ashley and Davis this past weekend. When you meet someone and you have such a great feeling about them, that is how it was when I met Ashley and her mother while they were in the planning stages.
About the Bride and Groom
Being a wedding photographer is more akin to being a storyteller than a simple button pusher. I cherish getting to know a couple, talking with them and laughing with them. I remember looking through albums with Ashley and her remarking not of the beautiful details, but she was drawn to the beautiful moments instead. She is someone that cherishes a story, either in a classic novel or life. Davis works in PR for a NASCAR race team and so his life is quite hectic during the season, so I didn’t get to meet him until their engagement session.
Their Engagement Session
Davis and Ashley had just bought a new home in NoDa so that was the perfect backdrop for their engagement session. We walked around the streets decorated with vibrant public art and tried our best to escape the unusually blustery winds that day. We finished out the evening by including their adorable pup and watching the sunset over Charlotte.
The Wedding Day
Fast forward to the wedding day. When we arrived the girls were snacking on a light lunch and casually finishing up their hair and makeup. It was such a relaxed atmosphere! The guys were recovering from a long night out the evening prior, relaxing in a second suite at the Marriott Center City. As Charlotte weather is known to be, we had a temperamental winter day, warm and balmy with strong rains. This didn’t stop Ashley and Davis from exchanging heartfelt letters and a first look outside under cover. They practiced their first dance and laughed together to settle their nerves. We then returned to The City Club to finish bridal party portraits before heading over to Covenant Presbyterian for the ceremony.
The wedding ceremony was genuine and full of beautiful readings handpicked by the bride and groom. Once they were married and returned to their reception the dance floor remained full and alive for the entire evening. The Royal Suits band was unlike any other I’ve ever seen and both Ashley and Davis took their turns singing and even rapping with them! It was the most fun I’ve ever witnessed a bride and groom have at their reception.
As the night ended with an epic snow exit under a rainy Uptown Charlotte sky that was illuminated with rain drops and snow flakes as if they were stars.
Here is what the bride had to say about working with Sunshower Photography on her wedding day:
“We LOVED Amy at Sunshower Photography! From our first meeting, I knew that I wanted Amy to do our wedding photos. Connecting with the person behind the camera was really important to me. I wanted to feel like our wedding photographer matched our taste level and understood something about our family dynamics and not just who we were as a couple. I felt like I connected with Amy instantly while sharing some stories with her about my relationship with my groom and our unusual and somewhat bittersweet engagement story. Amy immediately expressed sensitivity to what my groom’s family had recently been through and how that might affect our wedding day; she was clear about her philosophy as a photographer and a great communicator; her passion for her work was obvious. During the engagement photo session, I was even happier that we had hired Amy. She was awesome at “breaking the ice” between Davis and me and ABSOLUTELY captured who we are as a couple. We were interested in more relaxed, authentic, less “cheesy” engagement images and we absolutely got what we wanted. We had also requested that we use our neighborhood– which we love– as the backdrop, and she was so familiar with good places to shoot. We felt like we were in good hands. On our wedding day, Amy perfectly balanced the “formal” shots with the more candid, fun, unposed shots. We were happy with BOTH kinds, which I would assume is pretty unusual. Our “first look” photos are beautiful; Amy got some incredibly sweet photos of our walk back down the aisle that I totally love; and photos from the reception perfectly capture exactly how much fun my groom and I were having (and whoa, did we have fun). I was also so impressed by Amy’s creative eye. There were a couple of very particular shots she was intent on capturing– for example, my bridesmaids dropping snowflake confetti around Davis and me from the banister of a spiral staircase at our venue (we got married in the winter). While she humored all of our whims, she also brought a keen artistic eye, and some of the images she worked hard to capture are magazine-worthy for sure. Amy also dealt with weird weather on our wedding day (January, but foggy, rainy, and warm) with absolute grace AND was patient with me and my wide range of wedding-day emotions. She absolutely let me be myself. I also felt like Amy was just having fun herself, blending right into our party of guests. My bridesmaids totally enjoyed her presence. If you want beautiful, interesting wedding photos and total professionalism, from someone with a clear artistic vision of her own but who absolutely caters to the customer, you should totally hire Amy at Sunshower. Wonderful personality and very appropriate pricing to boot!”
The Amazing Charlotte City Club Wedding Vendors
Special Thanks to all of the AMAZING vendors that made Ashley and Davis’ day a success:
Wedding Photography: Sunshower Photography
Coordinator: Libby Sarver, Details Wedding Planning
Hair & Makeup: Jennifer Abercrombie Beauty
Church: Covenant Presbyterian
Reception: Charlotte City Club
Hotel: Marriott Center City
Florist: Flowers From The Cellar
Cake: Publix
Entertainment: The Royal Suits
Wedding Gown: Adriana Papell, BHLDN
Bridal Jewelry: BHLDN
Bridesmaid Attire: David’s Bridal
Uptown Charlotte City Club Wedding Photos
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