ball ground photographer

Lee & Dena

 

We had the chance to meet Lee & Dena back in May of 2023 and talk about this beautiful wedding day at the Lake Rabun Hotel in Lakemont, GA and how they wanted Spring mountains and greenery everywhere because of their love for nature and they wanted and intimate wedding day full of family. We also learned about how they met and some of Dena’s story as a single Mom and how he proposed to her in their living room keeping with the intimate theme. He likes fixing cars and they both love being outdoors and spending time with family which is all felt throughout the story and wedding day. We got the chance to meet up with them also the day we did some of our Christmas mini sessions at Padgett’s Farm and Morgan even got to hold their sweet baby Girl Delaney which then brings us to the wedding day itself.

The day started with our team showing up and meeting up with Kirsten, the planner and then making our way to the cabin to photograph details where the girls were getting ready. Once they were all dressed, we got them ready for the first look just down the hill. They shared their private vows and a sweet moment and from there we hopped straight into some of the family photos before heading to the ceremony/reception site and the Forest Lodge. Once there, they got to mingle with their guests and get everything set up for the ceremony. During the ceremony itself, they shared beautiful vows and used different colored sands in the sand ceremony to represent everyone in their family blending together and it was very cute seeing the kids take part. Afterwards, they shared a kiss and were announced as husband and wife before making their way back up the aisle. From there, everyone enjoyed cocktail hour and formals as the ceremony space was flipped into reception space and before long, it was time for the wedding party to line up and be announced in.

The reception was where Athens DJ Service got to shine and Cannon had the dance floor as full as it could be most of the time. Everyone was announced in and they went into their formal dances and then later cake cutting and toasts where a lot of the people they love gave heartfelt toasts. They shared more dances throughout the night and the dancefloor was opened and full which led to the end of the night with the sparkler exit outside of the Forest Lodge. We’re super happy to have been a part of Lee and Dena’s wedding and story and know that their family will have such a beautiful future together.

 

Vendors List

Photography - Beauty & Beard Photography @beautyandbeardphoto

Venue – Lake Rabun – Forest Lodge

Dress- Tiffinie Bleu Bridal

Rings – Windsor Jewelers

Invitations – Minted.com

Men’s Attire – Dillards

Florist & Caterer – Epting Events Su-Lin Timberman

Planner – Kristen Curles – White Fox Events

Hair & Makeup– Kaylee Rigdon

DJ/Band – Athens DJ Service

Cakes – Classic City Confections via Epting Events

Bartender – Lake Rabun Hotel and Restaurant

Chair Rentals – Lake Rabun Hotel and Restaurant

Other Décor Rentals – Epting Events

Any other vendors – Big Mountain Shuttles

Tyler & Sheri

 

Tyler and Sheri’s wedding day in Cleveland, GA at The Cottage Vineyard and Winery was such a beautiful way to start a Fall Monday morning recently. Not only did we get to see the sunrise in the North Georgia mountains, we got to celebrate their love and spend time with them making art in a beautiful location which we of course enjoy doing.

The day started off in a large cabin rental where everyone got ready with the beautiful mountain sunrise view as hair, makeup and getting dressed were all taking place. We also set up flat lay details on the deck and around the time of the bride finishing getting ready and into her dress, we left to get to the venue ahead of her and setup our extra camera on a tripod quickly and put a mic on Tyler. The mountain views backing the ceremony were gorgeous and it was such an intimate wedding on the double tiered deck of the Cottage Vineyard and Winery. Tyler had a huge smile when he saw Sheri come around the corner and everyone enjoyed the beautiful ceremony. One of their first acts together was to take communion before their first kiss as husband and wife. From there, we took everyone up the hill just a bit for the formal group photos before walking around the hills of the vineyard taking the couples romantic portraits. It was a shorter wedding day for us but, absolutely gorgeous the entire time and also ended with us being able to swing over to Helen for lunch where we ran into some of the wedding guests before doing another session later that afternoon. We are so happy for these two and know that the future holds a ton of beautiful moments for them.

 

Vendors List

Photography and Video - Beauty & Beard Photography @beautyandbeardphoto

Venue: the cottage vineyard and winery

Brandon & Mackenzie

 

We got to meet Brandon and Mackenzie back in Jan and learned about their beautiful story as well as more about this wedding day at the Wheeler House in Ball Ground, GA. They met when Mackenzie started trying her hand at bowling in a bowling league and he, as well as three of his groomsmen, were in said league and they started hanging out after practice which then eventually led to him proposing near the water wheel at the univ of North GA where they also go back to picnic at the same spot.

The wedding day started with saying hey as well as doing the details photos while I was getting a good feel for the space and doing venue photos/videos. We got to see fun dance moves from the bridesmaids, dress twirling flower girls and the guys getting ready then taking shots together with their custom shot glasses. We also helped in the exchange of gifts and letters which was fun and is always an emotional moment to read something like that from your almost husband or wife. We then got the last few photos of Mackenzie getting dressed just before doing a first look with her Dad which was super emotional and she even shared a letter and gift with him as well as a first touch with Brandon just before the ceremony. That led straight into getting in place for the ceremony as more and more guests arrived. Once everyone made their way down the aisle, Mackenzie and her Dad were at the top of the aisle and Brandon held back tears a good bit and you could tell they were both so happy and ready for that moment. They shared beautiful vows, their families lit a unity candle and they closed out the ceremony with a kiss as they were pronounced Mr and Mrs Dye. That kicked off Cocktail hour and family formal photos as well as the rest of the wedding party photos and of course romantic photos of the newly weds that ended with having her dress bustled and ready for their first dance.

Once the huge barn doors were slid open and they entered the reception, everyone let out a huge cheer and they went straight into their first dance to Chris Stapleton’s “Starting Over” followed by the Father-Daughter and Mother-Son dances. Both of their Dads then gave a toast for the newlyweds that led into some delicious dinner by Events by Dezine. After dinner was done, we went to cut both cakes which was followed by some amazing toasts by the best man and matron of honor which ended by opening the dance floor which filled up pretty quickly. After a good bit of dancing, we snuck away with the couple to grab a few photos with the Rolls-Royce as well as a few by the ceremony area with the romantic streamed lights then they went back in for some more dancing. When it came time to leave, everyone lined up for a sparkler exit as Brandon and Mackenzie shared one last private dance inside then we all exited together for the sparkler exit leading to the exit car. The night ended with everyone chanting as they are all big fans of UGA and then they got into the Rolls-Royce and drove off into the night. We have already loved seeing some of the beautiful things happening in their lives as Mr. and Mrs. Dye like her teaching awards and fun honeymoon photos so, we can only expect more and are so excited for their future together and the Dye family!

 

Vendors List

Photography - Beauty & Beard Photography @beautyandbeardphoto

Venue: The Wheeler House

Catering: Events By Dezine

Wedding Cake: Confection Perfection

Grooms Cake: It's a Sweet Life

Florals: MH Decorating & Designs

HMU: Kayla Walters

Dress: Bravura Fashions / Allure Bridal

Suits: Savvi Formalwear

DJ: DJ Donn

Limo - Ris Limo

Austin & Emily

 

Well this one is close to our hearts as we’ve been friends with Austin and Emily for years. We’ve seen them go through a ton of loss and hardship and yet come out on the other side super strong and smiling together, seen a ton of wins in their life and more than anything, their lives together are marked by their amazing sense of humor and ability to laugh and have fun all the time. That being said, the fact that this has been a dream wedding for Emily since she was a little girl having passed by the Tate House wedding venue for years and seeing how it all came together was absolutely gorgeous and we are so honored to have been able to be a part of telling their story and capturing this amazing wedding day.

The day started off with us meeting with the DJ briefly and wedding coordinator Sandra from the Tate House to tour the space a little bit which led right into us saying hey to Emily and her girls as they were getting ready and bringing everything in. We then photographed the details and just knew we wanted to take the dress into the mansion to do something with the stairs there as well as doing some flat lay details. Once we finished that, we prepared for a few first looks with the Bride’s Father and all of the Groomsmen as well. You can see in the photos some great reactions and just how much everyone loves each other in this tight knit group. We then did a few bridal portraits inside before splitting up for me to get photos with the guys praying over Austin while Morgan did photos with the Bridesmaids. What came next was such a beautiful moment where they privately shared vows at the first touch and Morgan and I had to hold back some tears ourselves. That moment led straight into getting ready for the ceremony which the beautiful all white and bright ceremony space with the pops of color from flowers was absolutely gorgeous. During the ceremony, everyone came out to epic music that then switched to beauty when the Bride came down the aisle with her father. They exchanged vows guided by their friend who was their officiant as well as one of their groomsmen. Surrounded by their friends and family, they were announced as Mr. and Mrs. Dockery and shared a kiss.

Post ceremony, we completed all of the family photos then made our way out to the front of the mansion to do full wedding party photos. Once we had finished those, we got to walk around with the newlyweds for a bit on the grounds of the Tate House where we could have walked around for hours and had a blast. Before long, it was time to get them into the reception where they were announced and greeted by a room full of cheering loved ones. The reception started with their beautiful first dance followed by the Father and Daughter dance then Mother and Son with one last one being the Mother and Daughter dance. The dance floor then opened up for a while then we came to the cake cutting followed by an absolutely beautiful toast by Emily’s Mom. The rest of the night was characterized by a bunch of their friends dancing and having a great time but then the night ended with the sparkler send off to their stylish getaway vehicle. We already know that this is just the beginning for their amazing story to continue and we cannot wait to see what the future holds for the Dockerys!

 
Tate House Wedding

Vendors List

Photography - Beauty & Beard Photography @beautyandbeardphoto

Venue/Catering/Coordinating: The Tate House

Dress - David’s Bridal

Florals - Tate House Design Group

HMU - Timberlee Draper

DJ - DJ HD