Every year I have the honor of providing photographs for the Spivey Hall Children’s Choir, a fantastic group of treble singers ranging from age 10 all the way through high school. I was lucky enough to be a part of this group myself as a student, and going back to the hall each year to photograph their kickoff is an incredible experience for me.

My primary role is to provide formal portraits for use on posters and in brochures. But my FAVORITE part of the process is documenting a rehearsal day for all three of the SHCC choirs. Through the years, these images have become a stirring record of the singers’ experience, and a testament to the number of young people who have benefitted from the program during the last 13 years.

I thought I’d share a few of my favorite images from the recent rehearsal. To learn more about the choir, their concert schedule, or how your child can become involved, visit their page on Spivey Hall’s website.

This is Bonnie. She’s the unofficial SHCC mascot. Before Bonnie, there was Patrick, who passed away this past summer. It wouldn’t be choir rehearsal without a Westie.

This piece was written specifically for SHCC director Dr. Martha Shaw by Georgia’s own Harris M. Wheeler.

The infamous “brown book”… I sang from this very book 13 years ago.

This little singer is a girl I’ve known since she was born — before she was born, actually! It’s wonderful to me to see these kids benefitting from such an astounding music education.

Classic… elegant… casual… these were our thoughts in designing Sara and Jacob’s one-image-per-page Coffee Table Book. We wanted to present them with something timeless and lovely, with a modern flair provided by the book’s pliant glossy pages. We’re excited to send this book to print!

We won’t be with Sara and Mark at their private family wedding ceremony in Costa Rica in February, so we were thrilled to have the chance to create their engagement portraits! Sara was a bridesmaid in Emmeline + Bobby’s wedding in June, and it was a lot of fun to see her again and have the opportunity to meet her husband-to-be.

You guys are a GREAT couple, and we wish you all the best!

We had SUCH a blast spending the day with Whitney and Kevin! These two are FUN, and so incredibly in love with life, it just spills over onto everyone around them!

The celebration at The Four Seasons Hotel here in Atlanta was exactly what Whitney’s mom said it would be: a princess wedding!

A HUGE thanks to the Allsopp and Jackson families for sharing this day with us, and for being SO wonderful to work with! We hope you love the photographs!

Click here to enjoy Whitney and Kevin’s entire slideshow, or see a handful of our favorite images below!

We always focus on the bride’s rings, and we wanted to showcase Kevin’s awesome ring for once! (More photos of all the rings in the slideshow!)

A dontation to Susan G. Komen for the Cure was made by Whitney and Kevin on behalf of their guests in loving memory of Kevin’s mother. The guests were all presented with pink pins which they wore in honor of Mrs. Jackson throughout the evening.

Whitney dances with her father…

…and her new father-in-law!

I loved this shot from Jessica and Ed’s wedding when I created it in April. It was especially cool because I knew the history, which was that Jess and Ed’s garden ceremony got rained out, so all their guests were crammed onto the small tented patio, which is how I wound up standing only a couple of feet from them during their ceremony. To top it off, Ed’s jacket is dotted with rain, completing the story (to me, anyway).

So I’m pretty excited to see that the judges squeezed this photo into placement in the recent WPJA Q2 international competition’s “Weather” category.

17th place, with a bang:

Photographing Jana and John was one of our great pleasures this week! We had the opportunity to meet John last fall, but had never met Jana until they came over for their E-Shoot — and she’s every bit as fun and fantastic as we knew she’d be! She and John are a terrific match, and we’re thrilled to be sharing their wedding day in October!

Yoshika and Mikey could introduce themselves this way: “Hello, we’re the nicest, most beautiful couple you’ve ever met,” and they would be absolutely right. They really ARE two of the nicest people we’ve ever had the pleasure to photograph, and (big bonus) a drop-dead gorgeous couple!

Yoshika and Mikey actually got married last year in a small destination ceremony in Hawaii, and they’re now the proud parents of a GORGEOUS 8-month-old little boy! Their recent reception at Callanwolde Fine Arts Center was their opportunity to finally celebrate with their family and friends from across the globe!

Check out their slideshow or enjoy a few of our favorite images below:

We began the afternoon with portraits of the two of them in their original wedding clothes…

…then they changed into traditional Japanese kimono…

…and were presented for the first time to their guests as husband and wife!

One more clothing change back into gown and tux brought them to their second introduction, first dances, toasts, cake-cutting, and all the fabulous, fun reception stuff we love!

Thank you for allowing us to celebrate with you!

Cayla and Ryan’s wedding was celebrated at the STUNNING Meadowlark Gardens off the beaten path in Griffin, GA. In all honesty, we’ve rarely seen such gorgeous grounds, and the ceremony site itself was particularly gorgeous!

It was so much fun working with a couple who have such obvious determination to conquer life together. Their love — and the love of their family and friends — was evident throughout the entire day; from Cayla’s last sangria as a single woman (compliments of the oh-so-gorgeous maid of honor Beth Ann), to Ryan breaking into tears the moment Cayla walked down the aisle with her father.

(Just before the ceremony, Cayla’s mom told Anne, “We have waited for this day for so very long…!” There’s nothing more beautiful that when the family is as full of emotion as the bride and groom!”)

THANK YOU, guys for making us part of this extraordinary day! We adore you both!

Click HERE to see Cayla and Ryan’s slideshow!

…or enjoy a few of our favorite images below…

This little ring-bearer didn’t want to wear his hat. He wanted everyone ELSE to wear his hat! And clearly, the little girl in the pink dress knew it was fabulous with her outfit.

Don’t be mad. We had to post this.

What better way to end the party than the bridesmaids leaping into the pool? Okay, so the first one was pushed. But it all broke loose from there…