I didn’t find out that I was shooting this Oatlands garden wedding until the week before the wedding.

Walking into a wedding when I haven’t had a chance to meet the couple is always stressful, but Kelsie and Ryan were so sweet and easy to work with that the whole day went very smoothly.

Kelsie and Ryan kept their wedding simple, but it was full of personal touches that were meaninful to the couple.

The small photo attached to her bouquet was a way for her grandfather to be a part of their wedding day.

He had done readings at all of her sister’s weddings and they wanted to be sure that he would be a part of their wedding as well.

The color scheme for this Oatlands garden wedding was also kept simple – purple and white.

The gardens at Oatlands provided more pops of color and were the perfect compliment.

I absolutely adore when brides schedule their wedding day so that we have time during golden hour for their wedding portraits!

Not only does golden hour give us this amazing honey light like you see below, but the low angle of the sun and the diffused nature of the light allow us to shoot in a wider variety of locations around a venue.  That flexibility allows you to have more portraits from your wedding day to treasure for years to come.

The reflecting pool in the garden is one of my favorite shooting locations for an Oatlands garden wedding.

Doesn’t the green of the gardens really set off Kelsie’s auburn hair?

The greenhouse is another of my favorite locations to shoot on a wedding day, especially for the groom’s portraits.