I, Liz, come from a small town in Upstate NY called, Volney. Volney is rural county with rolling hills and farmland; it is pretty secluded. Without many neighbors of my own age, I mainly played with my older brother, James since I was also home schooled. Poor kid, he put up with a lot. Then one year my Aunt and Uncle moved to Volney and stayed on my grandparents farm, which was next door, while they found themselves a new home. Their children were about the same age as my siblings and I. Their youngest boy, Jesse, was only a couple months older than me. During the time that they lived there I spent almost every waking "play" hour with my cousins, especially Jesse.
I lived in Volney from when I was around 5 till I was 12. My back yard was about 240 combined acres between my grandparents and great grandparents land. I remember so many trips in the woods with my cousins. Jesse, do you remember the "Iron Wood" walking sticks? Or swimming in the beaver pond? Or finding that strangely serene meadow before continuing into the "deep woods".
Fast forward 12 years, Jesse took the plunge on May 6th and brought a new, lovely woman into our family. I had the pleasure of providing the photography of their nuptials as my gift to them. Their wedding came with a bit of a struggle. First their reserved wedding site was flooded with 5 ft of water from the rains in Kentucky. Then the chair rentals fell through. Then we lost the wedding music! But true to form, they pulled through admirably. In the end, Jesse and Leslie accomplished what they intended - they were married.
Leslie was such a beautiful bride.
And not an ounce of bridezilla in her! The first time she met me was the day before the wedding and she welcomed me with a smile and light, sarcastic, banter - my kinda girl. Even with everything that went on, she held her composure and even joked about it. Bravo, Leslie.
The ceremony was short and sweet; Jesse and Leslie stood in front of a lovely waterfall with their close friends and family. Leslie's dress was a gorgeous champagne color with a chapel train that had a lovely french bustle for the reception. After the ceremony, it was picture time! I had to have some fun with the groom and the groomsmen ( I've known most of them since I was 5). I love non-traditional poses. They always make people laugh and genuinely smile. One of my favorites for the groom and his groomsmen is the "Captain" pose.
I stole in on an intimate moment between Leslie and Jesse and captured this. I feel like their eyes are saying "finally!" They are so good together.
I think this photos says, "Finally!" for very different reasons. ;-)
Someone once told me that it appears that I find it hard to post a photo shoot without including a picture of a dog. Maybe they're right. Meet Gage, their Husky. What a cuddle bug! He was such a well behaved dog, and so sweet. Jesse and Leslie requested he be in a few of the wedding photos - this is my favorite.
I know this is a lot of "teasers" but I couldn't help myself. I was so happy to be a part of their special day and to be able to capture their love and commitment to each other. I'll leave you with one last photo. This is also the photo I used for May14th
Photo Friday challenge: Symbols. I think the image speaks for itself.
Congratulations Leslie & Jesse! Welcome to the family Leslie, I think you'll fit right in. Thank you two for letting me a part of your day and I can't wait to give you the remainder of your photos!
For those who would like an e-mail notification of when Jesse and Leslie's photos will be available online, please e-mail me at oakcityphotographync@gmail.com.
As always, thanks for reading!
-Liz DiNatale
www.oakcityphotographync.com
