Katie and Jared were married at First Presbyterian in Norfolk.
Their reception was at the gorgeous Chrysler Museum. Daevid created the lovely arrangements.

Blogging about weddings is an interesting task because so often I feel like I am overusing the 'hyperbole words'. Every wedding is fantastic, every venue is gorgeous, every bride and groom wonderful. When people find out I shoot weddings as a profession one of the first questions they ask is "How is it dealing with bridezillas?" The truth is, I have never had a bridezilla. I have never worked with a nutty Mother of the Bride or any of the other characters who seem to exist in abundance in television and film. I have been truly blessed to work with people who are unfailingly gracious, kind and appreciative of the work I do for them.

But sometimes I roll my eyes as I describe another gorgeous venue, another incandescent bride, or some spectacular flowers. I think I sound like some fluttery drama addict, a woman who makes grand pronouncements about every little thing. I have toyed with the idea of just stating the location of the wedding and the bride and groom's name in a blog entry (and have actually done just that a couple of times). I look at these entries and fluctuate between being proud of my new minimalist approach and the vague feeling I have somehow shortchanged the bride and groom by not being effusive about all the hard work that goes into every single wedding.

As a wedding photographer I have to bring a certain amount of dispassion to the table when I shoot a wedding. I have been known to cry while watching a hallmark commercial, so this is not always easy.
When a bride dances with her Father I am often holding back waterworks. I recently lost my beloved Grandparents so the elderly folks at a wedding are very important to me; my family elders are gone and I feel that loss every day.

The reason I mention all this is that Katie and Jared's wedding was full of so much love and joy that words could never adequately describe the emotion and beauty of their day. Before the wedding Katie's little sister hugged her big sister and teared up with the overwhelming emotion of what was about to happen: a new family forming, a beloved big sister about to embark on the wondrous journey of marriage.

Every wedding, every single one, is full of moments like that. Which, ultimately, is why photographs are so important. Because they tell the whole story. Because what we see is often so much more emphatic than what we hear.

So when I write about how fabulous everything was, I mean it.