BLOG

Wedding: Jaya & Tony – St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church & Bottling Plant Event Center Downtown – Auburn & Opelika, AL

I think it’s safe to say it’s rare to come across a bride who is half Indian and has red hair and fair, freckled skin (and before you ask: no, she’s not adopted, and yes, that is her real hair color). It’s probably even more rare to come across one who fits the description above AND who plays the violin professionally in an orchestra in Miami while ALSO pursuing her doctorate (why do I suddenly feel like a very boring underachiever?). Jaya’s day began at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church in Auburn where she put on a fully beaded YSA Makino gown, reminiscent of a traditional Indian lehenga, but with a Western twist. Another nod to Indian wedding customs appeared as the ladies of the bridal party sported henna on their hands from Blue Lotus Mendhi:

bridal party with henna tattoos on hands bride's earrings at auburn wedding bride with henna on hands for wedding groom getting ready for auburn alabama wedding

The bride isn’t the only gifted musician in this duo – Tony plays the viola in the same orchestra as the bride. Naturally, the music for the day was high on the list of priorities for these two, so this crazy talented couple put together all the arrangements for the ceremony music, which were performed by their musically inclined friends/guests.

The ceremony was Catholic, but also incorporated a symbol typically found in Hindu weddings. Around Jaya’s neck, Tony placed a mangalsutra, which is a necklace that symbolizes their love and marriage (you can see it below in the reception pictures. It’s similar to the symbolism of wearing a wedding ring, though they doubled up on traditions and exchanged rings as well (including Tony’s unique rose gold band)!

Since it rained earlier in the day and Jaya and Tony had decided not to do a first look, we headed over to the Jule Collins Smith Museum for pictures after the ceremony:

If you’ve been to the Bottling Plant Event Center (aka Opelika Event Center Downtown), then you know it’s a very industrial-looking space. Wedding planner Julie Bunkley of Invision Events completely transformed it by softening it with plenty of draping, and bringing in vibrant lighting from AG Lighting. In another nod to the newlyweds’ musical backgrounds, guests sat at candlelit tables that were not only numbered, but also named for famous composers. The classic floral palette came courtesy of Opelika Floral Company. The cake from Sonshine Cakes featured piping that was reminiscent of mendhi patterns, and in honor of the bride’s Southern roots, dessert also included classic Southern pies, such as peach and pecan.

The bride and groom opted for a full brass band from Atlanta, called On the Air. With so many musically talented guests in attendance, it was inevitable that someone would join the band – and bridesmaid Suzanne blew the crowd (and the band) away when she joined them to sing “Georgia On My Mind”. The dance floor stayed full all night, and naturally, included some Indian music and dancing (some of Jaya’s family had even made the trek all the way from India to attend). Jaya gladly demonstrated what she called the “lightbulb” dance, since the hand/wrist movements resemble the motion of screwing a lightbulb into a socket!

Guests took breaks from the dance floor and posed in a photo booth, and took home tiny jars of Ras el hanout (a Moroccan spice blend) as favors as they wished the newlyweds well with a sparkler exit.

Jaya & Tony: thank you for letting me change lightbulbs with you. Here’s to many years of falling on the dance floor and covering it up by doing pushups!

Ceremony Venue: St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church

Reception Venue: Bottling Plant Event Center

Event Planning: Invision Events

Wedding Gown: YSA Makino

Reception Lighting: AG Lighting

Cake: Sonshine Cakes

Band: On the Air (Del Baroni)

Show Hide 0 comments

It’s Chanterelle Photography’s 10th Birthday + A Contest!

The expression “time flies when you’re having fun” must be true, because it seems like I blinked and suddenly Chanterelle Photography turned 10 years old! It’s been a pretty spectacular ride so far: in 10 years I’ve shot everything from sausages to weddings, in locations as close as Auburn and Atlanta, and as far away as Jamaica and Hawaii. Running this business is often a mix of stressful hair-pulling moments and times when you feel like you’ve accomplished something so great that you’re 99% sure rainbows would shine out of your butt if you dropped your pants. It’s a slightly crazy, but strangely satisfying way to work.

So I figured what better way to celebrate 10 years worth of fantabulous clients than to give something HUGE to one of them? #ShowMeYourCP and you could win a portrait session package WORTH OVER $1000!

How to enter:

1. Take a picture of how you’ve displayed your photos from Chanterelle Photography in your home or workplace. Got a bunch of your family pictures hung on the wall? Have a special spot in the living room for your wedding album? A monster canvas over your fireplace? I want to see ’em!

2. Post the picture on your Facebook and/or Instagram account (bonus entry if you do both!). Make sure your post is set to “public” – if it can’t be seen, it can’t be counted!

3. Tag/mention Chanterelle Photography in your photo and use the hashtag #ShowMeYourCP so I can find your post. I’ll “like” it when I see it so you’ll know your entry has been counted!

In 10 days, I’ll put all the entries in a hat and pull one random winner, who will get a brand spanking new portrait session, a 16×20 gallery wrapped canvas, and a session album filled with 20 favorite images from the session!*

*The fine print: Deadline for entries is February 7, 2016 at 11:59pm CST. Winner will be drawn on February 8, 2016. Portrait session includes up to 4 subjects in one location within a 100 mile radius of Montgomery, AL, and is limited to weekday availability on or before July 1, 2016. Additional subjects and/or locations outside the included area may be added for a fee. No portion of the prize package may be exchanged or returned for cash or credit toward other products or services. Prize package is forfeited if the portrait session does not take place on or before July 1, 2016. Contest entries may be shared on Chanterelle Photography’s website, blog, and/or social media accounts.

Show Hide 1 comment

Engagement: Liza & Shayne – Private Residence – Lake Martin, Alabama

It’s been more than six years since I first met Liza and her family, but it only took two minutes for me to fall in love with them. The meeting happened way back when I shot her sister Melissa’s engagement session in Auburn, and not long after that, I shot their family portraits near their home at Lake Martin. Melissa’s wedding followed, and that’s when I met Shayne, who was an usher. It was one of those situations where you just kind of knew the pair would end up walking down the aisle too, but I also knew there would be a bit of a wait. When the time was right many years later, the guy affectionately known as “Superman” sprang into action, and popped the question with a ring he helped design (of course). And finally, I got the call to shoot the wedding they were planning just outside Atlanta – but first, it was off to Lake Martin for their engagement session:

Winston (nickname: “Chicken”) had to make an appearance, as he’s been a fixture in their lives since his Aunt Melissa’s wedding. He eats dog food that looks like Kellogg’s Corn Pops, and he’s Facetimed with my Watson (are you really surprised at this?). I can’t with the head tilt though, it makes me want to eat his face. He is too much. 😀

Show Hide 1 comment

Bridal Portrait: Jessica – Private Residence – Evergreen, Alabama

After a harrowing gown ordering ordeal that required a new dress to be ordered due to mysterious spots appearing on the one that first arrived, we thought we were in the clear. Then it came time for bridal portrait day and the sky was very angry on my way down to Evergreen. The weather looked like it would clear by the time we needed to start, but I was still a bit concerned since she had wanted to take an ornate wooden chair carved by her grandfather outside at some point. Luckily the rain came and went, then stayed away for the duration of our session.

Jessica also wanted to incorporate her fiance’s dog tags somehow, and I wanted to do something fabulous with her gorgeous naturally red hair – seemed like a good time to combine the two. 🙂

Show Hide 0 comments

Happy Holidays from Chanterelle Photography: There’s A New Kid In Town

It had become tradition around these parts to produce a holiday card of a somewhat epic nature, starring my dog Missy and myself. When she passed away last year, I was asked many times what I was going to do about that year’s card (there was a plan, you can see the result and read about it HERE). So naturally, when I adopted Watson this summer, people started asking if I would do a card with him this year. The honest answer was, “I don’t know.” It would require a lot of patience on his part, and since he would only be about 8 months old when it came time to shoot, I didn’t know if he’d be out of his goofy puppy stage enough to tolerate wearing clothes, holding props, or the biggest challenge of all: staying still.

I didn’t decide to make an attempt until about a week before we did the shoot. If it turned out he wasn’t ready, we could try again next year. But if we were going to do it, the choice for the theme was obvious. 🙂

The front:

The back:

A few fun tidbits:

*Watson was named after the Dr. Watson from Sherlock Holmes. I wanted him to have a sidekick’s name, but I also wanted it to sound slightly “older” or more distinguished since he looks like a little scruffy old man. I considered Alfred (Batman’s homeboy), but that sounded a little TOO old!

*I found Watson’s vest and shirt at Goodwill (size 3T). Good thing I’ve learned some sewing skills recently, because I had to take them apart and modify the backs so they would fit him. The shirt is actually pastel green and I changed it in Photoshop (what, like I was going to let it clash???).

*The book at the bottom of the pile is a copy of The Hunger Games, which was the theme for the last card I did with Missy.

*I already had a black wool trenchcoat, but to give it a more Sherlock-y look, I added a capelet that I pieced together from a pair of plaid women’s dress pants (yes, PANTS) that I found at Goodwill for 99 cents.

*This year’s card went to people in 19 different states, and 4 cards went outside the U.S.

Happy New Year to all of you, from me and the little dude. We’ve got several big things happening this year including a couple of milestone birthdays, plus Chanterelle Photography celebrates TEN years of fantastic clients and general awesomeness. You don’t want to miss what is coming up VERY SOON to kick off our anniversary year!

Want to create your own Sherlock Holmes themed photo shoot? Here are links to some of the exact items we used (click the photos below to go to the corresponding item’s page on Amazon)! Please note: this post contains some referral and/or affiliate links. What this means is, if you click on one of the links and purchase the item shown, I may receive a small commission from the company selling that item (as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases). This happens at no additional cost to you – the price of the item is the same whether you order through one of my links or not.

Show Hide 2 comments