Ellie and Zach got married in October of 2017. Their wedding was the first official wedding at the newly renovated Oak Ridge Studio near Arnoldsville, GA. Even though it was new wedding venue, I was very familiar with the space there since I used to work at the studio while I was a student at UGA. While I was in school, I worked there as the studio manager for Wingate Downs Photography. Wingate is well known in the Athens community due to his wedding and journalism photography. While working there, I had my first real taste of wedding photography and what it took to run a successful photography business. I had Wingate as my wedding photographer. Ellie (the bride) is Wingate's youngest daughter and when she got engaged he called to see if I was available to photograph her wedding. I was certainly glad that I could help. We started the weekend with rehearsal coverage at the studio. While they were going over the details for the ceremony, contractors were still in the back putting the finishing touches together for the venue. I was even able to get a fun double exposure of Ellie and Zach at the rehearsal dinner... I had seen this technique years ago and I've been wanting to try to use it during a session, however I haven't had the right conditions with the right couple (until now). Everyone enjoyed dinner and we got ready for the actual wedding day.
The wedding day started with a cricket hut with the flower girls. After we caught enough crickets, we worked on detail shots around the property. Ellie got ready with the bridal party upstairs in the bridal suite. Once they were ready, we went outside for the first look. After they saw each other, we worked with the full wedding party to finish all of the photos that we could prior to the ceremony. Ellie's aunt officiated the wedding while friends and family gathered in the studio space. After the wedding, we finished the last few family photos and photos of the bride and groom before transitioning to the reception. The reception started with first dances and toasts. Everyone cheered as the DJ gave updates to the Georgia-Florida game during the reception and the dance floor was soon packed. The rain that had been threatening all day finally started, however the tent kept everyone dry (except for the ones that kept crossing over to the bar setup). The couple crossed over to cut the cake and the party continued on. Later, everyone cheered on for the garter and bouquet toss. I loved that one of the groomsmen actually tried to catch the garter with his mouth during the toss (he missed). Before you knew it, the night was coming to an end and everyone lined up to send the happy couple off in style. They shared one last kiss before driving off in Wingate's old truck...
8 Hours Coverage at Oak Ridge Studio
© Chase Lanier Photography
