Ashley and Jason's Vinyard Wedding in Livermore, California
Ashley and Jason's Vinyard Wedding at Murrieta's Well in Livermore, California
Ashley and Jason are two of the kindest, most amazing souls we have ever encountered! After meeting them in San Francisco for their engagement photos, I knew instantly that their wedding was going to be amazing and that we were gaining two lifelong friends! (Guys they brought their dogs! Insert crying emoji here!)
We weren't wrong about either!
In September, Ashley and Jason said "I do!" in front of over 100 of their friends and family. They were surrounded by love and some incredible details. (Elise of Brannan Events is a genius.) Hanging table seating charts and hand written names on sea glass, a romantic and soft color palette, and a ceremony bathed in golden sunset.
Can't wait to see these two again, and again, and again! <3
Rosalie
xo
Education: Choosing A Wedding Venue
Hey brides
You're scrolling through Pinterest, Instagram, or looking through a wedding magazine and you see these couples getting married in exotic or unconventional locations! How the heck does one even begin to plan finding the perfect wedding venue when there are SO many to choose from? We've decided to bring in the experts! Collin and Jenna Buchanan of He&She are here to give you some insight into this overwhelming part of wedding planning.
If there's ONE thing we recommend for planning your wedding day, it's to find a good wedding planner to ensure it's as stress free as possible! Venue planning is one of the many, many things they can provide that will make your dream wedding a reality!
meet he&she
"We are Collin and Jenna Buchanan, the husband-and-wife design team behind our wedding curator brand, He & She. We believe in curating intimate gatherings, through unconventional means, by incorporating authentic details. We are all about nontraditional weddings and stepping outside the lines of conformity, but here are some hard and fast rules that we think should always apply when picking out your wedding venue:
1.Tell your story first and foremost.
The biggest mistake most couples make is picking their venue right off the bat, and then forming the rest of their wedding to fit the vision of the space. Your wedding day should tell the story of your love and the journey you’ve been on together. Choose a venue that fits your vision, not the other way around.
2. Choose a venue with good bones.
Pick a space that is already aesthetically pleasing, even before the decorations. Don’t waste time and large portions of your budget trying to change or cover up something you think is ugly.
3. Be creative!
It doesn’t have to be stamped with the words “wedding venue” to be the place you vow to belong to one another. Heck, it doesn’t even have to have a roof. (Parking garage wedding, anyone?) Chances are that your favorite bookstore, coffee shop, or restaurant would consider it an honor to serve as hosts for your wedding day. Plus, you’ll get major brownie points for having such a unique venue!
4. Read the fine print.
Does the venue have an exclusive caterer, or are you free to serve your favorite local food truck? Will you have enough time to set-up and decorate the venue, or will you need to hire additional staff to do it for you? Does the rental rate include chairs and tables, or does that cost extra? Hidden fees can sometimes double the expense of the venue, if couples aren’t careful to ask exactly what their contract includes.
5. Serve hot dogs.
Okay, the important note here is not actually the hot dogs, but rather owning the freedom to serve whatever you want to eat! Have a potluck, do a smore’s-only bonfire reception, or serve thirty different varieties of soup. Whatever you choose, be okay with somebody not loving it.
6. Stay true to yourselves.
Your venue should match your personality. Just like how your home says a lot about who you are, so should your wedding venue. Don’t shy away from including those intimate, little details that make up your relationship.
7. Be Realistic.
Unless you’ve been blessed with a budget fa dayz, you’ll probably have to make some compromises with your Pinterest board along the way. If your venue is costing you more than half of your total budget, you probably ought to think twice and look for a better fit.
8. Relax.
We want to release couples from feeling burdened to throw a fantastic, impressive party for your guests. If you’re being creative, honest, and genuine, it will be a truly beautiful celebration. Just choose a space that is special to you and simply marry each other there. If it means something to the two of you, it’s good enough for the people who love you.
9. Pictures, pictures, pictures.
Okay, we know this isn’t technically a tip for picking the right venue, but it’s definitely related and important! Make sure to hire a photographer who values capturing authentic and honest moments of your wedding day. There is nothing you’ll cherish more than those raw, intimate, and unmanufactured memories caught on film (with a sweet venue as the background!)
10. Forget all this and ELOPE!
If you’ve gotten this far and everything we've just shared with you sounds like a nightmare that you don’t want to live through, then have peace in knowing you don't have to! Elopements are beautifully intimate and we think you should bring Zach & Rosalie (and us!) along with you!
Much love,
Collin + Jenna
Thank you SO much to Collin and Jenna for taking the time to provide this content!
CLICK HERE TO FOLLOW HE&SHE WEDDINGS ON INSTAGRAM
An Intimate Home Session in Springfield, Missouri
Beth + Miguel
An intimate home session in Springfield, Missouri
Last weekend we traveled to Springfield, Missouri to photograph Beth and Miguel in their new home. We've been following both of them on Instagram for a while now, (Beth is an incredibly talented photographer and all around adorable person) so we reached out and asked if they would be willing to share their home and morning routine with us, we were excited to hear a yes!We tagged along on one of their favorite things to do, walk to Cherry Pickers, (Which is super cute. 100 % recommend! ) and then headed back to their little home.
Guys. Look at Arnold.
He's the most adorable little dog in Springfield.
Interested in having you and ya boo photographed in your cute home?
Send us a message here!
A Snowy Engagement Session in Max Patch, NC and the Smoky Mountains
Jess + Ryan
Max Patch, NC | Smoky Mountains | Wears Valley, TN
"I want there to be snow for my engagement session!" paraphrased words that would set the tone for our weekend with Jessica and Ryan. We've had one great snow of winter so far and it happens to be the weekend that we had set for all four of us to meet six /seven hours away in the Smoky Mountains.
I'm so glad it snowed.
When we finally made through the snow and ice to Gatlinburg, we were faced the challenge of all the park roads being closed. It was super sad, but luckily Tennessee and North Carolina have plenty of amazing mountain views, so we headed over to Max patch for some beautiful panoramic scenes. What we found at Max Patch wasn't mountains, oh no. lol We found a complete white out and negative degree wind chill. It was still breath taking. You can't tell at all how incredibly cold we were because of how freaking perfect Jess and Ryan are. LOOK AT THEM. THEY ARE PERFECT. The next day we headed to Wears Valley and took some of the best and most fun engagement pictures ever including one v. solid chest bump. Be prepared to be impressed.
Next time we'll go to the baked beans plant, I promise guys.
We'll buy the first round.
We also made too many inside jokes, (see beans example above) listed to good tunes, and ordered identical plates at our favorite Mexican restaurant. It was good, guys. It was good.
xo
Rosalie
“I;m thinkin bout thos beans”
Nicole and Brett's Classy Wedding on Groom's Family Farm in Missouri
NICOLE + BRETT
September 28|29, 2017
The Lodge at Loma Linda, Grandin Missouri
When Nicole contacted us about their classy wedding on the groom's family farm, we knew it was going to be perfect. They traveled from their home in New Mexico to get married on Brett's family farm at the Lodge at Loma Linda surrounded by their closest family members on Friday afternoon and had a reception with friends and family on Saturday.
Their ceremony was held in front of a backdrop of beautiful oak trees and a simple arbor with white, flowing fabric that complimented their soft and femme details in a rustic location. We LOVED Nicole's choice in flowers and greenery. (Don't even get us started on her dress. How beautiful is it??) Her soft pink and white florals we're the perfect contrast to the lush greens still clinging to the early autumn earth. After they said "I do!", Brett and Nicole drove us around the property so we could take some portraits and soak up all those just married feels. Favorite location? Oh. That's a hard one. It's definitely a toss us between the incredible sunset light peeking over the hill and the bridge we reached right as the sun was setting. (One photo reminds us of The Princess Bride!)
Saturday we drove back to photograph their reception! (and eat a couple slices of cake! ;) ) There were yard games like Corn Hole and Giant Jenga, (You can actually see the exact moment that mans heart broke as they fell to the ground. lol) southern BBQ, beautiful speeches, great dancing, and so much love and laughter. It was truly a joy to experience.
Thanks so much for reading along!
xo
Zach&Rosalie
St. Louis Wedding Photographer