lavonia united methodist church — Beauty & Beard PhotographyBlog

We have had the honor of capturing all three of these wonderful sister’s weddings now and feel as if we can call their whole family friends at this point. We originally didn’t have their date available until they moved it and the photographer they had hired wasn’t available for the new date so they checked in to see if we happened to be and it worked out perfectly! Each wedding day was so different and this one was full of meaningful heirlooms and locations which felt fitting.

The day started off in their family home in Lavonia, GA with getting to say hey to them all again and the girls all getting ready while we started details downstairs. Once C’Lee was ready and hopped in her dress, we had her sisters help her down the stairs for their mom Martha to button up the dress in a spot that had a little more space and light available which turned out beautifully. Just after that, we got their dad to come out also and do their first look just before heading through the woods to their grandparents house so we could use their gorgeous driveway for a few photos. Once we finished that up, the girls hopped back on the golf cart and we headed off to the church to meet up with the guys just down the road and get a feel for the ceremony space. All we can say is that we probably have 50 or so images of the guys just laughing together and doing funny poses and it was a great time with them just before getting ready for the ceremony. We were also doing a highlight film and were limited on space so I setup a third camera upstairs on the balcony to pick up audio and another angle for the video before they started heading down the aisle. Once they said their hand written (and might we add adorable) vows and the officiant declared them husband and wife, they gave each other a big high five and then kissed before making their way back up the aisle as husband and wife with the bride’s sister Haley-Sue playing acoustic guitar behind them.

We then got to hop into family formals just outside of this church that the bride’s family has been apart of for many years (her grandparents got married here as well and we recreated a photo for them, it’s the black and white one in front of the stained glass window). It was very long before it started to get dark and they also needed to lock up the church so we quickly went inside to get some photos with the full bridal party and the recreation photos by the window. We then headed out front to quickly get a few couples photos and then head off to the reception site which it was dark once we arrived and they very quickly got ready to be announced in by the dj (who also dj’d Haley-Sue’s wedding reception). Everyone cheered as they made their way in the front doors and they headed straight to their sweetheart table to get food and everyone enjoyed dinner before the cake cutting. Once they fed each other some cake, they sat down again to have her twin sister and his best man give the toasts and recall some of their favorite moments together. They then had a fun twist where the first dance is near the end and then mingled for a little before it was time to do the sparkler exit. The sparklers sadly died quickly but everyone was still shouting and the happy couple was laughing and smiling the entire way to the their car surrounded by people that they absolutely adore. Once they hopped in, they waved out of the window and drove off into the night as newlyweds! It was amazing getting to be a part of so many beautiful days and moments in this families lives and this last one was just full of all of the warm hearted people and moments that we have grown very fond of over these past few years. We say this a lot but we sincerely cannot wait to see what the future holds for the newlyweds and the rest of their family!