One thing I love about destination weddings, is that couple’s often ask me to cover the Rehearsal Dinner or Welcome Party.  Many times, destination clients like to make an entire weekend out of the wedding festivities and welcome guests with a party or rehearsal dinner to welcome them to their destination.  The atmosphere at these events are usually fun, relaxed and everyone has a bit of a “vacation mood” since they are in a fun location.

I also love covering rehearsal dinner’s because I get to know who-is-who within the family and wedding party the night before the wedding.  This really helps with knowing the key players and who should be a focus in my photos.  Friends and family will also toast the couple and I love hearing all of their stories from how they met, to what they were like growing up or in college.  It’s fun to get to know some new details about them and make those qualities shine in their photos.

But, you don’t have to have a destination wedding in order to book me for your Rehearsal Dinner.  Plenty of local clients hire me to capture the Rehearsal Dinner, often when the wedding has a huge guest list and the Rehearsal Dinner is more intimate with family & wedding party only.

Here was one of my favorite rehearsal dinner’s from last year - Georgia & Scott’s Rehearsal at Piermont Cottage in Highlands, North Carolina.  It was so sweet and intimate and had so many fun details.  Enjoy!

Rehearsal Dinner Location: Piermont Cottage

Catering: Old Edwards Inn

As promised, here’s a further look at Natalia & Levi’s Wedding day!  Part I focuses on the Getting Ready portion of the day as well as the First Look and Wedding Party!  Natalia got ready in one of the old barns.  I just loved the historic brick structure of the barns and have never seen a brick barn.  Her and her maids had their hair and makeup done by the talented Scoobie West and dressed in Paul & Joe Sister dresses.  Natalia & Levi wrote each other a letter that they each read before they saw each other. I also loved the invitation suite from Red Table Stationery.  They used a custom graphic from Wedding Chicks in their stationery as well as some details at the reception that you’ll see a bit later.

Natalia & Levi decided to take advantage of the beautiful plantation and saw each other before the ceremony.  I absolutely LOVE First Looks because it really makes the moment a couple sees each other so much more private and special.  (More on that later…)  And special it was, Natalia walked up to Levi next to the fence, and he saw his bride for the first time.  It was a touching moment and they each checked out the other’s new duds - so cute.  I love when Levi stands back and looks at Natalia!

MG Floral did a beautiful job on the flowers!  I’m a sucker for anemones and fresh baby’s breath…and of course my absolute favorite…Peonies!  One of my favorite details from the entire wedding were the bridesmaids bouquets.  I love the simple puff of Baby’s Breath with a silk, ivory ribbon.  So classic and elegant.  The groomsmen wore cotton bloom boutonnieres while Levi wore the Anemones.  Just wait until you see the reception florals that Pat from MG Floral designed…so beautiful!  Those are coming later…  For now enjoy Part I of this 4 part Real Wedding Extravaganza!

I should mention that almost the entire wedding was shot on film.  I have been shooting it for some time at weddings along with digital.  But Natalia wanted a little extra soft, film goodness to complete her vision for her wedding.  I had no problem obliging!

Here’s a full list of vendors from this gorgeous wedding:

Planner: (bride) Natalia Perkins, Epting Events www.eptingevents.com
Designer: (bride) Natalia Perkins, Epting Events www.eptingevents.com
Ceremony Venue: Tucker Plantation www.tuckerplantation.com
Reception Venue: Tucker Plantation www.tuckerplantation.com
Florist: MG Floral www.mgfloral.com
Wedding Cake Baker:  Classic City Confections www.classiccityconfections.blogspot.com
Caterer: Epting Events www.eptingevents.com
Bridesmaid Dresses: Paul & Joe Sister www.net-a-porter.com
Bride’s Dress: Casablanca from La Raine’s Bridal Boutique www.larainesboutique.com
Hair Stylist: Scoobie West www.scoobiewest.com
Makeup Artist: Scoobie West www.scoobiewest.com
Bride’s Shoes: Max Studio www.ideeli.com
Bride’s Jewelry: Kenneth Jay Lane (earrings) www.ideeli.com
Bride’s Veil or Hair Accessory: Brenda’s Bridal Veils and Dkdesignshawaii (hair flower) www.etsy.com
Bride’s Other Accessories: Belt from Daniel12 via www.etsy.com
Groom’s Fashion: Indochino www.indochino.com
Groomsmen Fashion: their own black suits
Paper Goods: Red Table Stationary www.redtablestationery.com
Rentals: Epting Events
Linens: Epting Events & Cloth Connection.  Antique lace linens and napkins heirloom. Table runners were screen printed by Satisfactory Print Shop www.satisfactoryprinting.com  using graphics from Wedding Chicks (www.weddingchicks.com)
Ceremony Décor (any noteworthy items): Mantle from Woodstock Antique Market. Rug and pitcher are heirloom.  Wreath and log from Bart Scott and Leigh Frazier at Epting Events. Program board was DIY.
Reception Décor (any noteworthy items):  Cake mugs from Anthropologie (www.anthropologie.com), heart pine table tops from Epting Events (www.eptingevents.com)
Lighting: Monogrammed gobo from Epting Events (www.eptingevents.com) and Live Event Solutions (www.liveeventsolutions.com) using graphics from Wedding Chicks (www.weddingchicks.com)

Alright, stay tuned for more from this beautiful wedding!  And, be sure to pick up a copy of the new Southern Weddings Magazine now on newsstands to see this wedding!

Erin & Michael wanted an engagement session that reflected both their personalities and gave the guests a little taste of their wedding location.  They will be married this summer at a lake that is very near and dear to their hearts.  They wanted to tell a story to their guests and use the images in their save-the-date to show what a fun & relaxed time the wedding will be - complete with gorgeous scenery, margaritas, grilling & maybe even some midnight swimming.  Can’t wait for their wedding!

Really, that pretty much sums it up: “Planes, Trains & Automobiles”.  go, Go, GO!!!  2011 was a stellar year and really I can’t even believe that it’s over.  I think my mind is still somewhere back in September.  With all the travel and new happenings here at MSP, I feel like this past year has been on fast-forward, being thrust from one city to the next all the time shooting and doing what I absolutely love to do most.  It really makes me not want this year to be over, can it stay 2011 for a little while longer?

This year, I felt like I lived on planes, trains & automobiles.  I can’t even count how many miles I’ve traveled.  Being a destination wedding photographer, it is part of the job - and don’t get my wrong, I absolutely LOVE traveling for weddings.  I think it is a must for me and my business because I get to see new things, new places, new people and be inspired at every beautiful wedding.  It was definitely the theme of the year, and with opening a new office on the west coast as well as maintaining an office in Atlanta - the frequent flier miles have piled up!  But, I feel like the train is moving just a little too fast and I’m not ready for 2011 to be over.

You see,  most years - and definitely for the last 5 years - I am always excited for the new year.  Out with the old, new beginnings, new opportunities, new friends, new places.  Amazing how such a simple thing, the change from one day to the next can bring so much hope and optimism.  I know last year at this time, that was definitely the case - I was SO ready to begin anew and wash away the last year and get to start over.  Hurry, hurry new year and get here fast!  But this year, it is different.  2011 has been SO great that I just don’t want it to be over yet.  I couldn’t have imagined how great this year has been on so many levels.  So much has happened, but it just seemed to have flashed by so quickly.

So, my wish for 2012 is that it is even better than 2011 - if that can even be possible - and that time slows down just a bit for me and I get to enjoy it more. Wishing all of my lovely, wonderful clients, vendors, colleagues and friends and very, very Happy New Year! Let’s make it amazing!

***REVISION/ADDITION:  After completing this post, and finally having a few moments to breathe after all the craziness of this year…I was thinking about my New Year’s resolution and goals for 2012.  And well……….I had a hard time coming up with resolutions, but the list of business goals was long.  There was a definite theme to the goals I listed…and yes, you guessed it…they all had to do with “Planes, Trains & Automobiles”.  Go figure.  I’ve already booked weddings in some great locations for 2012, but thought I’d list some of the places I’d like to go on my wishlist.  It will be fun to see how many of these get crossed off the list at the end of next year:

Santa Barbara, New York City, Maine, Prince Edward Island, San Juan Islands off of Washington State, Santa Fe, Charleston, Chicago, Rhode Island, San Francisco, Italy - Amalfi Coast, Capri & Bari, Greece, Spain, Ireland, London.