S. Carter Studios

So, remember that weekend when we got 20+ inches of snow? Well, right at about an inch and a half, Josh and I took off for our great winter migration to the South. We drove through snow and ice for 6 hours and stopped just short of the turn off the highway for Ryan and Kristina’s wedding. The craziest part of the whole thing was that when we got to their ceremony site, 20 minutes form our hotel, you couldn’t even tell there had been a storm! Don’t get me wrong it was FREEEEZING but their awesome bridal party hardly whimpered as we took them outside for photos. I think Ryan and Kristina would tell you that it was all worth it! Enjoy photos from the last wedding of 2009!

PS. I must take a moment and brag on my seriously handsome and talented husband: Josh Deal. A lot of these photos came from him as my second shooter. I really did hit the jackpot with this one! Just to prove it to you I’m going to post a J.D. after each image in this post that belongs to him.

Yes, I’ve mentioned it before but I’m in love with Kristina’s big, beautiful eyes and lashes. I mean really, look at them!

their flower girls were JUST adorable.

Here’s part of the J.D. love fest

J.D.

J.D.

J.D.

J.D. {It is good to note that I had gotten the “talkin to” by the church lady and was dutifully hiding behind a large column no further forward than the first row of guests and not encroaching on the stage AT ALL. So Josh got the job of getting these fun shots}

J.D.

J.D.

J.D.

A brief pause in this tribute to show an image of mine!

and back to the action

J.D.

J.D.

The chapel had beautiful natural lighting flowing through the windows.

Just trying something new.

Absolutely classic as we took picture outside, Josh turned around and got THIS.

J.D.

Gotta say this is a favorite from and old S. Carter Studios standard.

and back inside to warm up again.

I’m convinced their kids will have great eyelashes too, lol.

aaaand back out.

They had their reception in the lobby of the pharmacy school Ryan graduated from at Campbell University. They even brought in a gorgeous Christmas tree for guests to put gifts under. It was covered in ornaments which served as favors!

Reasons to get a 2nd shooter. I get this while Josh gets the one below

I love the way he sees things!

They had stations around their reception with their favorite desserts and the stories behind them. Everything was soo tasty.

Beautiful Christmas themed decorations made it a cozy holiday celebration.

As quicky as it started, their celebration was over and they headed off. But not without some mischief first.

J.D.

J.D.

I had no idea but was thankful for this shot!

A note: Many of these photos from Ryan and Kristina’s wedding were available on Facebook shortly after the event. I wait to blog them until after I’ve completed editing so the blog readers can get a full selection but if you’re itching to see the work as soon as it’s available then by all means, join 843 of my closest friends and become a Fan on facebook. New content and updates as soon as it’s loaded as well as special Facebook contests and prizes to be announced! Just for the heck of it you should follow me on twitter too!

This is Beth. We’ve been friends for six years, which if you know me, is pretty impressive because I moved a bazillion times in my life making it difficult to keep friends for longer than a few years. She was a wonderful source of inspiration for my wedding and she’s all around great friend to have. She recently moved to NY for a job opportunity and we thought it would be a great idea to try out version 1.0 of our photo booth. Our signature photo booth is a new launch for 2010 and we’re excited about bringing an opportunity to our brides to capture their guests as crazy as they actually are! The booth will also be available for parties! Contact us for more info! In the mean time, enjoy some photos from Beth’s booth.

I cannot take credit for the props, they were Josh’s idea mostly, with some help from Ashley’s musical storage! Here is a picture of me (well, my arm) and my loving husband. He’s the best.

Today I met Kaydence Grace (about 10 hours old now) and Wyatt Mitchell (about 2 weeks old now). I didn’t do much work,  my dishes didn’t get done and I wasn’t able to put away all my laundry but I got to spend time with real, wonderful people that I love. It was a very good day.

I’m not sure if you can feel it on days like today (Noah may be floating past my house some time soon) but we’re on the verge of a beautiful spring season. Now, I know, verge might be a bit of a stretch but I’d like to start ringing in the Spring with a celebration of Love. It’s fitting that Valentine’s Day is just three weeks away. So, I’d like to make it easy for you to surprise your special someone or someones (or nudge them to surprise you) with an S. Carter Studios Love Is In The Air mini session. I’m happy to help celebrate dating love, married love, the love between parents and even sibling love. I’m just a sucker, a lover of loving love if you will.

The session fee for our special is $40 and will come with an online gallery of your images. Sessions must take place on Thursday February 11 between 2 and 4 pm or Saturday February 13th between 1pm and 4 pm, contact us to get priority scheduling! We look forward to celebrating with you!

Well, go ahead and lean back, because this post is going to be a long one. You’ve seen Gavin & Kelsey before, the infamous paint couple! We took their engagement photos on a warm, beautiful summer day and they were married on 12-12-09 a very VERY cold winter day. They didn’t let the chilly weather keep them from having a perfect celebration! There was joy and excitement and awesome facial expressions from Kelsey without pause from the first few minutes I was with them until they left for their honeymoon. I’ll interject a few happy thoughts throughout the post but for the most part I think they speak for themselves!

Kelsey was the only bride I was able to give her ornament to in person. She had such a fun reaction!

She was an absolutely stunning bride!

Gavin and Kelsey chose to do a first look. This gave us lots of time to take photos of them and their wedding party. This was Gavin’s face as he saw his bride for the first time.

and Kelsey’s as she walked toward her groom. PS. First glimpse as those perfect little blue shoes!

You may remember, it was really, really cold this day in Lynchburg so we let Kelsey defrost a little and took pictures of the guys first. They were great!

West Manor was a great location for the photos and their reception!These ladies were amazing, not complaining one bit and looking good while sticking it out!

I could have taken pictures of  just these two all day long. Really.

My very favorite from the whole day!

Kelsey, wow, just WOW.

BLING, bling.

I may, have had a crush on her shoes, maybe.

Oh, yeah, there was a ceremony too!

I just can’t get enough of brides on the arms of their fathers! So much significance in this one little moment.

Two noteworthy things about this image: these candles are the same ones that Gavin used the night he proposed to Kelsey, there were over a hundred of them that night! The second is explained by the photo below it.

This is how I know i have the best brides. Kelsey was so chill about this! Oops, oh well.

A brief pause to share some of their great details!

It never gets old

seeing my work at receptions!

Alex, Angi and I with the bride, me reaching toward Solomon who had rapid fired a few shots by this point. Thought it would be a funny addition to the post

This mother son dance had the whole room misty-eyed. Gavin and his mother took turns letting tears slip between laughs and hugs. It was absolutely precious.

Love this photo of Gavin’s mom showing Kelsey’s dad the little birthday cake they gave her after the first dance. So sweet of her to share her birthday with the newlyweds.

there was dancing, lots of really, fun, dancing.

The newlyweds left in a flash of sparklers to their honeymoon in the mountains of TN.

Just wanted to post a quick project that I did for my grandpa. I am increasingly aware of the importance of printed photographs as I have been given what are truly invaluable gifts: photos of my father as a child, photos of me as an infant in the arms of my grandparents and others. My grandpa came to visit me in October and he took a picture out of his wallet. It’s a picture of my beautiful grandmother, who past away in June. He’d been carrying it in his wallet for over 54 years. He asked if I could do a little work on it for him. I thought I’d share it with you and encourage everyone to print a few more pictures!

Before

After. It’s not perfect but perhaps it will be treasured still for decades to come as I share it with my children and grandchildren one day too.

I’ve been feeling inspired to share some more recently. So this is another by definition post: the Marie Antoinette treatment. I’ve actually had more than two mothers say to me, including my own, that they don’t understand why I like photos were people’s heads are cut off. Am I not fast enough to get the whole shot? Is it how I hide my less attractive clients? Am I obsessed with chests? No. No to all of the above.

The truth is that there are two main reasons I like photos like this. The first reason is that so much of what goes into the wedding day is barely noticed by those around them but they were the things the bride spent hours pouring over, the small touches that make this her special day: the necklace her father gave her,  the gown that fits just right, the boutonniere she picked just for him. It’s the rings they’ll wear for the rest of their lives and the cake they didn’t actually get to eat a piece of. Giving these little details their own photograph is to me like paying a small honor, a tilt of my hat if you will to the way the couple has  doted on their guests and on each other.

The second reason I love beheading my clients, if you will, is that the captured moment becomes about so much more than a picture. During the wedding day, there are so many intimate situations I get to be a part of, things that nobody else in the room is aware of and I am able to offer this perspective while still respecting the sweetness of the moment.

So, brides to be, here’s the post you can send your mother to when she comments on the fact that people’s heads are cut off. It’s not unintentional or bad foresight, it’s not that I’m a masochist or that I have a blind spot. It’s about paying tribute to what things are really about: the moment and the relationship. Plus you can click on over here and see whole albums of weddings where plenty of people manage to have their whole heads in tact.

When Tim and Samantha contacted me about their session which we scheduled for the beginning of December I knew the perfect place to take them. They mentioned loving the outdoors and animals and really wanted greenery incorporated in their photos. If you’re familiar with my blog you know this isn’t generally a problem, however, at the beginning of December it was a no brainer. The only place with greenery that I could think of was Green Needles Christmas Tree Farm. It’s owned by some very wonderful friends of ours who were more than happy to host us as we tromped around in the freezing cold weather. Tim and Samantha were flexible and excited, it helps that they are very much in love and comfortable around each other. Enjoy some shots from their engagement session as they look forward to their wedding tihs May!

I couldn’t get over how natural and simply beautiful Samantha was. She wasn’t aware of it but I think Tim is!

Evidence that Tim was…

It’s very clear that she’s fond of him too.

Oh I do love, love. It’s the most wonderful, exciting, inspiring and beautiful thing. There are two things that I’ve really hoped to be a part of : a live proposal and a wedding: as a bridesmaid. God has given me two in one as Angi and Solomon got engaged in December! I posted about them earlier but here is a slideshow I made to a Dave Barnes diddy that shows a lot more of the process and event!

Solomon & Angi – Perfect Proposal – S. Carter Studios from sabrena deal on Vimeo.

I’d like to introduce you to Kyle and Kristin. Well, you probably already know Kyle, he’s oh so famous. Yes, his face and sweet drum moves graced the jumbo screens at Liberty for several years. Really, I like to give him a hard time. We went to Brasil together, I know, there were 18 of us, you’re bound to read about many more of our teammates, just like you have about Julie, Naomi, Collin, and Travis. Kyle, Collin and I shared a few special memories when Kyle severly sprained both ankles and Collin and I carried/dragged him half a mile in the Brasil heat. As you’ll be able to tell from this post, he’s recovered well and God’s given him a beautiful wife-to-be in Kristin. She’s wonderful and a great match for him. I hope you enjoy these photos as much as we did taking them!

I wracked my brain over and over trying to think of something special to do with these guys. I was thrilled to find exactly what I needed just an hour before the shoot was scheduled to begin: two 1970’s Samsonite suitcases, his and hers, delivered to the DAV just one day before. Perfect! We got some crazy looks as we hauled them around but I’ve got to say that they were worth it! Also, please note their matching shoes!

I love when a shot you have in your mind comes out exactly as you hoped it would!

We did not haul them everywhere, I promise.

A short cameo for Kristin’s ring which a friend aptly described as a bracelet for her finger. It’s big, beautiful and sparkly, aka every girls dream! She said it was a perfect combination of all three ring types she’d looked for. I’d say, “well done Kyle.”

Another fun fact about Kyle and Kristin is that they are getting married on mine and Josh’s 1st anniversary. March 13 is a lovely day to tie the knot!

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