You will probably remember Robbie and Lily from their engagement session that I did recently. They are too gorgeous to forget ... and so is their love story.

It was a complete honor to be a part of this wedding.

Let me start with a few of the most beautiful details you've ever seen.

These images were taken at The Park Vista in Gatlinburg (my home town!) - which is where Lily got ready and where the reception was held later that day.

These are some of my most favorite getting ready shots ever. I just love every little thing about this - especially the light!

Those mountains were stunning. Just another mention here for The Park Vista - what a breath taking location.

This is my favorite shot of Lily ...

Then we were off to the Gatlinburg Presbyterian Church.

Where I found Robbie ... who was a little nervous ... but he looks so handsome and relaxed!

The first glimpse of Lily coming down the isle ...

Lily's family watched the whole ceremony live in China from the little video camera on Lily's laptop. I love this shot of Lily and Robbie saying hello to them just after the ceremony.

Very near the Park Vista is one of my favorite photo locations. You may recognize it from recent previous sessions. I asked Robbie and Lily if they would mind to join me there for a few minutes before the reception. They were so obliging to me ... and I just LOVE the results!

These are by far my favorite shots from the day:

My #1 favorite:

My other #1 favorite :)

I know I've said it before ... but Sampson's Hollow is one of my favorite wedding venues.
This event only made that more true.
All of the details - flowers, decor, food, etc - it was all done by Janice and the lovely staff at Sampson's Hollow. Those people are amazing!

This is Shelly and her sweet bridesmaids.

Shelly is one of my favorite brides from this year! She and Brandon live in Pittsburgh. She booked me after a telephone conversation which made me feel amazing! No one ever books me without at least meeting me first! Shelly loves taking pictures herself, so she knew what she was looking for. She completely trusted me ... and that's what makes me love her so!

On top of that ... she is beautiful!

What are your thoughts on this new processing:

Love the veil play:

Shelly and Brandon opted to do a first look before the ceremony. We picked the Sara's Glen area on the property because they light there is seriously magic.

Love the emotion of a first look.

Fantastic shot by Lauren of Brandon getting a glance of Shelly. What a sweet one.

In the smoke house ... HOT!

Okay because Shelly has an interest in photography ... I took a little liberty and went a little more artsy with some of the images. I seriously love playing with super bright sunlight and I love how this image turned out.

Brandon was such a handsome groom.

The image on the left by me and the image on the right by Lauren.
Do you love those red boots or what?

My favorite shot of the day - grabbed right after the ceremony:

If you can guess the song that was playing here you will win a prize:

Jessica and Clayton were married on a Tuesday in November
at The Tivoli Theatre
in Chattanooga, TN

Jessica and Clayton are both performers at Dollywood.
So the whole theatrical atmosphere suited them perfectly.

This wedding was SO unique and SO much fun to photograph!
As most of you know, I have a background in theatre. And this was my first time photographing a wedding inside a real theatre. It was SO perfect for me! I love all the "dramatic" details ... from the stage lights to those red velvet seats. Ahh! It was so exciting!

Before the wedding Jessica had written a "chorus" that include the words "My life, my love, my only". She used that on the invitations and had it engraved in the rings. It became a kind of theme for the wedding day. Little did Clayton there would be more to it ... keep reading ...

Jessica's dress was unlike anything I've ever seen before! She basically sketched an idea of what she wanted and gave the ideas to her friend who is a seamstress at Dollywood. So this is a one-of-a-kind dress completely customized just for Jessica and it was amazing.

Being the showman that he is ... this was Clayton's hilarious entrance into the ceremony:

Ahh ... The extravagant proscenium:

So back to the "theme" I mentioned earlier. Clayton and Jessica had agreed to write their own vows - which I always appreciate and love to hear. Little did Clayton know that Jessica had quite a surprise up her sleeve. She had taken the chorus "my life, my love, my only" and turned it into a full song with several verses and a bridge. And so ... bringing a tear to almost every eye in the room ... Jessica promised her life to Clayton through song. And it was beautiful.

Some dramatic portraits before the reception:

These girls were gorgeous and so much fun to pose!

handsome, handsome, handsome!

And so the reception began ... in the lobby of the theatre ...

Jessica and her dad danced to an old child hood recording of the two of them talking and singing. It was the most intimate and nostalgic father daughter moment I've ever witnessed.

Then we got a few super fun shots outside in front of the big Tivoli sign. So cute!

Then the fun began!

The reception was complete with a karaoke portion of the show. This wasn't just any kind of karaoke though! Jessica and all her friends are professional performers so I felt like I got to watch a real show.

And Jessica, girl ... GET OUT! You are SO SO SO TALENTED!!!!
Seriously, blog readers, you have never seen a show until you've watched Jessica sing "Lady Marmalade". This girl can wail!!!!

I am so excited about doing this couple's wedding! Dawn and Brent will be getting married next July but they wanted to have a quick engagement session this fall before it got too cold.

We met at Hidden Mountain Resort ... which was special because that's where Brent proposed!

I LOVE this sweet little shoe detail ...

glowy morning sunlight + some weedy grass = my favorite

Dawn is so gorgeous:

I think this one is my favorite:

Cassandra Nelson and Marshal Grace were married on November 7th, 2009
in Peoria, Arizona
And I was so honored to photograph the wedding!

This being my first visit to Arizona, I was pretty fascinated by all the details I found. In complete tourist style, I toted my camera everywhere I went. Here are just a few of those details:

So how in the world did I land a gig so far away you ask ... well ...
The following photo explains it all. This is Valerie, Cassandra and Heather. They were roomies and best friends in college. Heather and I went to high school together. I photographed her Gatlinburg wedding in 2007. Val and Cass were two of Heather's bridesmaids and they were such fun girls. We got along so well that when Val was planning her wedding in St. Augustine earlier this year, I was honored when she ask me to come all the way down for her event. I love to travel so that was awesome of course! I got to know the group a little more in St. Augustine ... and voila ... Cass got engaged and I had a ticket to Arizona. I just LOVE these girls!

The morning of the wedding ... the girls got ready at The Cibola Vista Resort
This is also where I stayed ... and this resort was wonderful! I had so much fun playing with all of Cass's details on the property.

This is Cass's dress hanging from a Palo Verde ... its Arizona's state tree.

Cassandra's hair was done by Bri Butler Price. She did a wonderful job!

Cass ... seriously beautiful.

Cassandra made time for some bridal portraits at the Cibola Vista Resort before we headed to the wedding site. This kind of time with my brides makes me so happy! And the results make my brides so happy ... right Cass?!!

I want to say this next one is my favorite portrait of Cass ... but I really could say that about every one of them. How in the world do I choose a favorite? Please let me know which one you love most.

Cassandra has LOADS of personality and photographing her was so fun ... she gave me so many different looks ...

She's playful ...

She is smokin ...

She's happy and lovely ...

Pensive ...

Thoughtful ...

Elegant ...

On to the man of the day ... Marshall ... the groom.

This ring inscription made me so happy! One of my favorite moments of the day was when Cass put the ring on Marshall during the ceremony she actually showed him the inscription before she put the ring on his finger. It was a surprise for him and she wanted to make sure he read it. You can see that photo if you stick around for the slide show at the bottom of this post.

Oh gosh! Don't let me forget Christina!!!!
So ... how in the world was I going to take Lauren (my second shooter) with me to Arizona? It just wasn't going to work. So I put out a craigslist ad and crossed my fingers. After weeding out a lot of weirdos ... I found Christina Briner and I knew she would be perfect!

I was right!!! Christina and I worked so well together. She was so patient and a total life saver several times when I had noodles for brains. On top of that she took beautiful photos! Thank you Christina!!!!

Here are a couple of Christina's images of Cassandra and her dad just before the ceremony ...

The ceremony and reception were held at the Trilogy at Vistancia Resort. This place was gorgeous.

That laugh ... love it!

I love this clever shot of the guys by Christina:

Cass and Marshall's families and friends have a wonderful sense of humor. Case and point:

I'm a huge fan of suspenders and I was so excited that the guys didn't wear coats to cover them up. Here is a cute little shot to show them off!

Am I weird? This one is one of my top five favorites from the whole wedding.

I don't really love posting the posed family portraits on my blog because I don't think it really showcases what I do best. I mean, anyone can stand people in a line and take a picture right?

Well, I'm showing the next two images because they are each a perfect example of the traditional family portrait paired with a something real. These two are my idea of a perfect family photo! Frame them!

Christina did a great job because she captured everything that was going on around me but not necessarily exactly the same thing I was shooting. This was her shot of Marshall's mom watching while I did the portraits of the bride and groom.

This next one is also one of my top favorites ...
Complete love ...

Thanks again to Christina! I love this shot of me!

Cassandra and Marshall surprised all their guests with a choreographed first dance. Cassandra was so nervous beforehand ... but they both did a lovely job!

I've never seen anyone smash a cake like this. Watch the slide show to see those crazy shots!

On her first throw ... Cassandra's bouquet landed in the light fixture. I am NOT kidding. It was hilarious and I still bust out laughing when I think about it. On her second throw there were girls crawling in the floor. Again, see the slide show - we're almost there.

This is one of the longest blog posts I have ever done! You are welcome for the eye candy and now, my friends, I expect comments and lots of them!!

p.s. read below if you need info on Christmas cards and/or ordering deadlines.

Thanks!

Just in case you didn't know ... I can design your Christmas Cards.

Here are some samples:

THIS WEEK ONLY:

The design is free ... I'll send you a preview and then you can make changes if you want.

A set of 25 cards is $65.

The cards are 5x5 folded on watercolor paper.
They come with envelopes with your return address printed on the back.

They are BEAUTIFUL!!! But if you want them you need to email me ASAP!
julie@julierobertsphoto.com

Also - be sure to read below to get the skinny on the holiday ordering deadlines.