If there ever was a wedding day that I felt like was meant for me to be a part of, it was this one.
It was a Saturday in October, and it was the one magical day of the whole month where the weather was PERFECT. Lesley Anne had researched Louisiana’s weather patterns for the month October, and that’s how she chose their date. Smart girl! It couldn’t have worked out any better!
I knew that the whole wedding celebration was taking place in the backyard of Lesley Anne’s parents, but I went in with no expectations. As I was driving up to the address, I got deeper and deeper into the woods of Saint Francisville. I almost thought I was going to get lost because I was getting so deep into what felt like the middle of nowhere! When I arrived and got to scope out the location, I was floored. It was amazing. There was a lake separating the house / reception area and the spot where the ceremony would take place. The ceremony would take place in a clearing under a couple of big beautiful trees. When talking to me about the property, Lesley Anne’s mom reminisced on times when they had picnics under those trees when she was a little girl. How special is that?
We did a first look in the woods. Basically, this couple was my dream come true. After the first look, we spent a good hour and a half taking photos of just the two of them before the wedding. It was unbelievably exciting for me to have time on a wedding day to actually think and be creative with my couple! IT WAS A DREAM.
Lesley Anne and Jeff are cat people, like myself, and even wanted to get some photos with their fur babies who were inside. (dressed up for the wedding BY THE WAY!) Well, it turns out that cats don’t handle the noisy hustle of wedding preparation well, so that didn’t last very long. It was still awesome to see cats involved in a wedding day though!
Every detail of this wedding was personal to the couple. I can’t put into words how much I love personal touches. Lesley Anne designed her own dress. She wore her hair in a fashion that was true to her everyday style. They wrote their own vows and read them aloud to each other at the ceremony. Lesley Anne’s vows included a quote from the Velveteen Rabbit, just to give you an idea of how lovely this was.
A few more details that I loved — For the table decor, they actually went into the woods and picked twigs / leaves / flowers to use. They left out coloring sheets for the children, and on these coloring sheets were adorable drawings of their two cats. Jeff drew these himself!
Also, they opted for fresh coffee and beignets for dessert instead of wedding cake.
Unreal.
That night, I drove home in awe of how grateful I felt. I felt so honored and lucky that somehow in a sea of photographers, Lesley Anne found me and chose me. Intimate, personal weddings give me life. This one will forever be one of my favorites.
