From Ivy Robinson … Lauren wanted a fresh and modern look. I took the colors of grey and white and introduced the pattern to guests with the invitations and then it was seen again on the cake, soup liner, fish n chips cone, program, menu and candy bar stickers. She wanted to put a spin on the candy bar, so we created glass legs with mirror tops to create columns of candy. This concept was also used as her altar during the ceremony. The room was converted from brown and yellows to all white and at 11:30 pm the curtain pulled back where guests entered a lounge area for dancing and the countdown to the new year. A zebra patterned ice bar with an ice luge serving red bull and vodka was a hit. The DJ spun the latest hits as the guests danced well into the new year. *Read more of the finer details in putting this whole celebration together over on Ivy’s Blog!

More, more and MORE in the gallery!

Oli and I met at Augusta State University when we were there on separate golf teams. We had been together for seven years and were on a holiday in Thailand, when Oli set up a private dinner over the pool with grilled seafood and champagne. That’s when he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him! Even after 7 years I was completely shocked. He’s an incredibly sweet guy and so thoughtful. I’m very, very lucky to have him.

We both have very modern tastes so we wanted the overall look to reflect that; we wanted lots of white and lots of candles. There were two details that were must haves from the beginning… Oliver wanted an ice bar and I wanted a photo booth. These were the biggest hits of the night! Our late night lounge, which was hidden from the guests by draping until 11:30pm, was quite a big hit too. All the incredible details that Ivy Robinson Weddings & Events helped with made for an incredible night.

Photography: Kristin Vining / Ceremony location: Urban Garden, Ritz Carlton Charlotte / Reception location: Ritz Carlton Charlotte / Cake: Josh Cain, Ritz Carlton Pastry Chef / Flowers: Beth Hohensee, Studio Flora Diva / Hair: Lindsey Regan Thorne / Make-up: Lindsey Regan Thorne / Invitations & Stationery: Chic Impressions / Ceremony Musicians: 5th & York / Reception Band: Heather Hayes Band / DJ: Jarrett Gray / Cinematography: Super 8 by Richard Israel / Videographer: Timm Young / Officiant: Jason Davenport / Decor Rentals: Party Reflections / Wedding Night Hotel: Ritz Carlton / Wedding Planning: Ivy Robinson Weddings & Events / Event Design & Decor: Ivy Robinson Weddings & Events / Photo booth: Carolina Photo Booths / Ice Bar: Ice Sensations Calligraphy: Elizabeth Jones Calligraphy / Wedding Dress: Hayden Olivia Bridal

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Post tags: 5th & York, Carolina Photo Booths, Charlotte, Chic Impressions, Elizabeth Jones Calligraphy, Heather Hayes Band, Ice Sensations, Ivy Robinson Weddings & Events, Kristin Vining, Lindsey Regan Thorne, New Year's Eve, North Carolina, Party Reflections, Richard Israel, Ritz Carlton, Ritz Carlton Charlotte, Studio Flora Diva
Post categories: Contemporary, Little Black Book Blog, Wedding Cinematography, Wedding Flowers, Wedding Photography, Wedding Planners & Designers

Click here for more inspiration in the full wedding gallery!

The hardest decision by far was figuring out where to get married. I grew up primarily between California and Massachusetts, went to school in Colorado and San Francisco, spent a brief year working in Italy, followed by nine years in New York City, which is where I met my husband. He grew up essentially in New Jersey, went to boarding school in Connecticut followed by college in North Carolina, a short stint working in Atlanta, and then on to New York City like me. Our parents currently reside in South Carolina and Florida and our siblings are scattered amongst Illinois, New York, and Connecticut. Our friends are literally spread all over the country, not to mention the ones overseas including my best friend and maid of honor who was living in London at the time. Did I mention that we now live in Los Angeles? There’s not exactly a clear and simple depiction of “home” as you can see.  We threw out a million ideas – everything from returning to New York City, to staying in Southern California, to running away for a destination wedding in Mexico. Big or small, city or country or beach – you name it, we thought about it. It wasn’t until we began looking into some places on the island where my parents live in South Carolina that Charleston began to pop out in our minds. When none of the options on the island seemed fitting to us, we shifted our attention to the city and began looking at possibilities there. I stumbled onto the website for The William Aiken House through some random Google search of Charleston’s historical mansions and knew immediately that was where I wanted to be married. It had the historical presence, the southern charm, the elegant and formal setting. The property took up virtually an entire city block with its gardens and carriage house and high brick walls that provided for seclusion and privacy. Yet the moment the wrought iron gates were opened at the end of the night, our guests could spill out into the hustle and bustle of downtown Charleston’s busy nightlife and be in the center of it all – that we loved! It was perfect. We booked it site unseen.

After that, everything else fell into place pretty easily.  We found our wedding planner, Melissa Barton at A Charleston Bride, who seemed to understand my vision completely and her confidence in that vision made me trust her right off the bat. She turned me onto a photographer named Richard Israel after I spotted a beautiful, black and white image in her office from a past wedding of hers. Being a professional model for more than ten years and working with some of the best photographers from around the world, I had a very specific idea of what I wanted in a wedding photographer. I wanted the wedding to be documented as it actually was happening… No pose-y portraits, no campy setups, no typical wedding cheese! When I found out that Richard had spent some years working in fashion photography in London and also shot traditional film (in addition to digital) I was sold.  We then booked a fantastic band who specialized in Motown tunes and had the full array of brass instruments – an absolute prerequisite for my husband! We secured Jim Smeal for our wedding cake who did not disappoint with a coconut cake that’s to die for! We worked with Fish restaurant on our menu – traditional southern fare with braised short ribs as our entrée and passed hors d’oeuvres that included shrimp n’ grits, baby fried green tomatoes, cheddar cheese biscuits with ham, and oyster shooters.

It being a springtime wedding, I wanted everything to be crisp and fresh and elegant. My chosen colors were green and white, which we carried through on every last detail from the save-the-dates to the thank-you notes. With my flowers being primarily white, we mixed together all different kinds of calla lilies, tulips, roses, hydrangeas, and ranunculus, to create amazing texture in all of the arrangements. We also found green calla lilies for my maid of honor’s bouquet, which I loved. One of my absolute favorite things about The William Aiken House is the arrangement for a seated dinner. Because the old governor’s mansion is restored impeccably to it’s original state, the rooms are all fairly small – even the ballroom – therefore it requires the guests any wedding over a certain size to dine amongst different rooms. Some people might find this to be a bit of an obstacle but I thought it was magnificent. Our 180-some guests wined and dined throughout three different rooms indoors, while my husband and I joined our friends to dine alfresco on the grand, sweeping piazza. Each room was like it’s own intimate dinner party. We did most all of the speeches the night before at the rehearsal dinner, which allowed for a continuous flow and momentum throughout the evening.

All in all, it was spectacular. We even lucked out with those things you can’t control like the weather. Of course we had our minor hiccups, as all weddings do – like my father realizing that he forgot the rings in his pants pocket (back in the hotel room) moments before the ceremony and my poor brother having to run five blocks there and back in his suit to retrieve them – but that’s what makes it memorable! What is most satisfying is seeing your vision and so many months of hard work come together for one big night. When it all does, that’s when you’re able sit back and relax and enjoy what the day is really all about.

Ceremony + Reception Venue: The William Aiken House / Event Coordination, Decor and Floral Design: Melissa Barton of A Charleston Bride / Photographer: Richard Israel / Wedding Cake: Wedding Cakes by Jim Smeal / Save the Dates + Printed Materials: Studio R Design / Entertainment: Voltage Brothers, East Coast Entertainment

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Post tags: A Charleston Bride, Charleston, Richard Israel, South Carolina
Post categories: The Blog, Traditional Elegance

See more of this beautiful wedding on Richard’s blog and in our SMP galleries: here and here!

Congratulations to Krystin & Joe and a huge thank-you to the always-awesome Richard Israel!

Joe & Krystin ~ October 2, 2010
Church: St. Peter’s Catholic Church
Reception: The Westin

Our Vision – The vision for our wedding was romantic elegance. We wanted our guests to feel wowed when they attended the wedding and we tried to incorporate deep warm colors while keeping with an elegant feel. Our primary color palette was: Eggplant, Pewter, and Cream. From there we incorporated other complimentary colors which included dark berry colors, dusty rose, medium purples, light pinks and natural greenery.

Our Flowers – The Church flowers were mostly white with hints of eggplant and incorporated moss elements. Each of my maids bouquets were slightly different and incorporated natural plants and flowers. The bridal bouquet was 75% white and 25% dusty rose and light pinks. My great-great-grandmother’s cameo (from 1890) was pinned to the front of my bouquet for my ‘something old’. My ‘something blue’ – was the accent color from my grandmother’s handkerchief which my mother used and embroidered my parent’s wedding date, Joe’s parent’s wedding date and our wedding date – and I carried with me down the aisle. My ‘something borrowed’ was the earrings I wore during the ceremony which belonged to my matron of honor (and best friend of 11 years).

The flowers used for the reception were 80% white (so that they would stand out from the back drop of deep purple up-lights used around the reception room) and 20% eggplant and other purples. Each table at the reception had a different center piece – everything changed from the glass containers used to house the flowers, the height of the center pieces, the type of flowers displayed, even the height of the candle displays were all different from table to table. We wanted each of our 30 tables to feel unique yet still flow with the room and vibe of our wedding. Guests had fun going from table to table looking all the different arrangements! We also wanted the room to take on a romantic feel so we used 9 votive candles at each table along with floating and standing candle displays – incorporate in each floral display.

Our cake was 5 tiers and each tier was a different flavor and filling combination. The cake flowers were designed to match the flowers from the bouquets and the custom stenciling was taken from our invitations. Also on our cake table we wanted to honor our parents (they have both been married for 38 years) so on each side of the cake was a picture from their wedding day displayed in silver frames with little signs in front that I made.

Our Invitations were designed for us. We loved scroll work and elegant designs so our designer incorporated that into our invitations. They were all done on cotton paper and were letter pressed in an eggplant color. The invitation set included: invitation, reception card, response card for the wedding, response card for the rehearsal dinner and breakfast the day following the wedding. We wanted to thank our out of town guests for traveling so far so we invited all to our rehearsal dinner and our breakfast.

Welcome Bags:
60% of our guests were out of town guests (Joe and I are both from small towns in upstate NY but have lived in Charlotte for 15 years) so we created a “Wedding Guest Survival Kit” that all guests received when they checked in (see pictures submitted for kit). Included with the kit was:
Survival pack with directions and information for the weekend, Hospital-ity’ enclosure card to let guests know the hours of the Hospitality Suite, Hydration card tied to a water bottle, Food and supplement card; tied to various treats and snacks inside the bag (to remind guests to ‘keep their strength up’ throughout the weekend), Door hanger: “Do Not Disturb – I danced all weekend at Joe and Krystin’s wedding” – guest all hung them on their doors the night of the reception, Mini first aid pouch, Welcome card. *My husband and I designed all the pieces and assembled all 110 kits.

Attire:
My dress was by Pronovias and had a 4 foot train of all lace which bustled into the most amazing bustle! It included 50 ties in order to bustle it completely and consisted of 2 French bustles. It took my wonderfully patient bridesmaids 45 minutes to complete – but they did a wonderful job! Each of my maids’ dresses were all different floor length dress by Jim Hjelm in his eggplant color. I chose 10 dresses for my 8 girls to choose from and select the dress they felt most beautiful in! The men’s tuxedos were from Men’s Warehouse and all the groomsmen were in a black vest and euro tie with eggplant boutonnière and the Joe’s tux was a white vest and euro tie with a white boutonnière.

Beauty:
To make travel easier for my wedding party I had an on-location hair and makeup team come to the Westin and set up in a suite so everyone could come and go as they please and not have to rush around from hotel to house to salon. We ordered breakfast and lunch and drank mimosas and had a great time relaxing and getting ready! My bridesmaids cleverly created a white “Mrs. Ryan” jumpsuit for me to wear while I got ready! Hair Change: Between the Church and the reception I changed my hair from up to half-up, and also had my makeup updated to a more nighttime look and I changed my earrings to chandelier earrings for a more dramatic look.

Some of the other details and special touches, I designed and created myself: Cake table signs,”Eat drink and be married signs” on all the bars; “Love is in the Air” drink stirrers; Bridal lunch and day of beauty invitation (Love is in the Air with birds on it – this was a theme I used for the brides maid lunch and our rehearsal dinner); “Please take a seat” sign – was set among all our seating cards (seating cards were designed with our invitations); “A moment on my ‘sole’ forever in my heart, walk with me down the aisle” – all my maids and the moms signed the bottom of my wedding shoes in a blue ink; I also adorned my shoe heels with blue rhinestone shoe rings; Wedding programs – Joe and I heat embossed 300 programs and cut the envelopes (also embossed) for the programs to go inside of; My veil – my mother made for me; Reserved seating signs – I made one for my parents, my husband’s parents and my grandmother – all seating was assigned, but it was just a little something special for them to ensure they had prime dance floor seats; Birdecage for cards – I adorned the cage with small white birds and embossed a “cards” sign for the front along with a ribbon, I also found a small picture frame with white birds on it and placed an E.E. Cummings poem inside the frame – “I carry your heart”

Additional Details (from Etsty): The wedding gift I gave Joe – The card read “What did one penny say to the other? Together we make ‘sense’” – I gave him penny cufflinks, one from the year I was born and one from the year he was born; Picture props – “Just Married” parasol; “Mr. & Mrs.” Wedding signs, Monogrammed clutch, Bridal Suite sign, “Please leave a memory for the Bride and Groom” sign, Hair comb

Photography: Richard Israel Photography | Cake: Cake Lady Jill, Jill DelMastro | Flowers: Flowers from the Cellar, Pam Bailey | Beauty: Jeannie Fry Artistry Group, Jeannie Fry | Videographer: Studio 74 Productions | Attire (women): New York Bride and Groom |Attire (men): Men’s Warehouse | Limo: Silverfox Limo

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Post tags: Charlotte, Jim Hjelm, Men's Warehouse, North Carolina, Pronovias, Richard Israel, St. Peter's Catholic Church, The Westin
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Wedding Photography

There are SO many more details that we couldn’t fit in. Click right here to see!

From Alyse Woodward Events…

The Ceremony: With the incredible natural light, wood flooring and breathtaking views of the rolling countryside and cattle outside the doors, I wanted to emphasize the natural, organic look of the barn, so I had benches constructed by a local antique dealer, modeled after another bench I found at a local antique show. The barn windows were flung open to reveal a stunning view of the countryside and the windows were flanked on either side by kitschy arrangements of florals with no real rhyme or reason. The mercury glass votives and loose florals flanked the aisle to bring a softness to the rustic feeling offered by the barn.

To Sip: We incorporated one of the top things the English Countryside and The South have in common… a great love of tea. Sure in the south they serve it iced with a boatload of sugar… but who’s counting? I found this vintage ironing board at a fantastic antique shop in Charlotte {the sleepy poet antique mall} and immediately fell in love the height and size for a tea station. The sign on the tea station is from an Irving Caesar quote “Picture you upon my knee, just tea for two and two for tea.” To quench the thirst of both the ladies and the gentlemen, we decided on two signature drinks very telling of the English ladies and gents. For the fellas we selected the bold, classic whisky on the rocks and for the ladies raspberries and champagne.

Cocktail Menu Selections: Goat Cheese Black Pepper Biscuits with Smoked Salmon and Dill, Radish-Chive Tea Sandwiches with Sesame and Ginger, 1960’s Succulent Shrimp Cocktail, Meyer Lemon-Garlic Infused Mussels with fresh garden herbs and grilled brioche, Caviar Dip with Garden Vegetable Flatbreads

Dinner Menu: Heirloom Tomato Fennel Salad with a Purple Basil Vinaigrette / Wellington Surf n’ Turf Fillet of Beef with a Puff Pastry top; Side by side Maine Lobster Tail with Herbed Garlic Butter atop a lacy bed of pea shoots / Vanilla Butter Cake with Lemon Curd and Raspberry Jam filling and Vanilla Buttercream Frosting, paired with a Raspberry Sorbet

On the table: On the table-top, we paired vintage $200 a stem glassware and vintage silver from a personal collection, with china and stemware available though a local party rental company. A bride can easily recreate the look for her own wedding by mixing and blending stemware from a party rental company and forgo the hunt for vintage pieces. The natural wood table and mismatched chairs added to the estate-style of an English countryside home, but if bringing in wooden tables for all the guests is not an option, a bride could achieve a similar look with a simple linen in white, ivory or tan for the majority of the guests tables and a wooden table for the bridal party/head table OR cake table.

Paper: We carried the “Shut Up and Kiss Me” phrase throughout the paper designs as the envelop liner and belly band on the invitation suite, as well as in the sign carried by the bride. The light, airy colors displayed in the washroom on the inspiration board, inspired the color palate for the paper goods. The menu and invitation suite also feature a duogram of the couple’s initials designed by the talented team at Salutations. In keeping with the quaint, yet refined English countryside style, we utilized a magnifying glass and seating list for guests to magnify their name and table number.

Design: Alyse Woodward Events / Photography: Richard Israel Photography / Super 8 Film: Richard Israel /  Paper: Salutations / Bridal Attire: Hayden Olivia / Floral: Flowers From The Cellar / Cake: Cake Lady Jill / Catering: La Tea Das / Location: Flying King Ranch, York SC contact Alyse Woodward Events or Flowers From the Cellar for more information on rentals / Gown: Cabotine by Christos from Hayden Olivia Bridal / Jewelry: Kristin Morris {also found at Hayden Olivia Bridal} / Bridal Shoes: Grace with Kristin Morris shoe buckes / Maids Dress: Coren Moore / Men’s Suit: Penguins Tux / Men’s Tie: Maddison, available at Belk / Custom Benches/Furniture/Antiques: Alyse Woodward Events / China: Party Reflections / Linens: First Impressions Linen / Magnifying glass, frames: Homegoods / Hair and Make-up: Elizabeth Tolley

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Post tags: Alyse Woodward Events, Cake Lady Jill, Coren Moore, First Impressions Linen, Flowers From The Celar, Flying King Ranch, From Inspiration to Reality, Hayden Olivia, Hayden Olivia Bridal, Homegoods, Kristen Morris, La Tea Das, Party Reflections, Penguins Tux, Richard Israel, Richard Israel Photography, Salutations
Post categories: From Inspiration to Reality

Remember Lindsey’s drop-dead gorgeous vintagy engagement shoot, bridal shoot, and wedding from SMP’s super-talented Kristin Vining (and Weddings & The City)? The wedding was just a dream-come-true from an amazing couple and an even more amazing group of vendors.

Here’s what Richard had to say on his blog post about Lindsey & John’s film …

For those who are unfamiliar with the concept of Super 8 movies, think about the old home movies that your grandparents had stashed away in the attic. Full of scratches and dust, grit and grain. The complete antithesis to the modern-day special effect HD videos. Lindsey and John’s retro-chic Super 8 movie appears as if it was filmed in Paris circa 1936 …

And so, it is with great pleasure that we bring to you … Lindsey & John’s wedding film ala the genius of Richard Israel!

from Richard … “Many, many thanks to my buddy Matt Francis of Dreamlight Films for the amazing editing.”

Richard’s team is going to be offering wedding films as part of their wedding coverage beginning in 2010, so be on the lookout on his website and blog for the announcements!

Thank you SO much, Richard, for sharing!!

* * *

(p.s. … and it’s SO fun to see that Lindsey, the dazzling bride whom SMP readers swore had to be a model … has now gone on to join the WATC team! You can follow her Design Ideas over on the new Wedding And The City blog. A huge congrats to Lindsey from all of us here at SMP !!)

* * *

Oh! and one more quick note. We are featuring “The Year In Review” in wedding cinematography over on our Little Black Book Blog. An entire week highlighting weddings from across the country in a wide variety of film styles. We REALLY hope you’ll join us!

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Post tags: Charlotte, Dreamlight Films, Kristin Vining, North Carolina, Retro Chic, Richard Israel, Super 8 Film, Vintage, Weddings And The City
Post categories: The Blog, Vintage Chic, Wedding Cinematography, Whimsical

I can’t tell you how much we love these sweet moments that Richard captured …

And … I can’t tell you how much we love this place!

Christy and  Rodney were married at the historic William Aiken house.

(We featured Alice & Jeff’s wedding here a few weeks ago and each time we see it, we fall in love with the venue all over again!)

When asked why they chose to marry at this particular spot, Christy said,“Charleston is only 3 hours from Charlotte and offers great restaurants, shopping and the beach—our perfect getaway spot. We wanted to share this city with our friends and family and make a weekend of our special day! We evaluated many places but agreed that the William Aiken House was exactly what we wanted.”

more from Christy …

Modern Vintage/Glam sort of evolved—I never had a planned vision leading up to the process—I was actually very unprepared for once in my life! I’ve always loved mixing modern and vintage—I fell in love with damask early in the process and wanted to incorporate my favorite color yellow (which, to me, is very modern). When talking about it with the wedding planner, she suggested an invitation that really set the stage. It was perfect—yellow damask border with a pewter modern font and letterpressed! I also really wanted to incorporate vintage/glam elements such as mercury glass and brooches. The vintage brooches were an important theme of the wedding —on the bouquet wrap, chair ties, bridesmaid’s necklaces, and **mother’s corsages.

**note from the editor (Abby’s mom) … I’ve seen 3 daughters walk down the aisle and I have to say that I personally don’t love corsages. BUT ~ this corsage ~ I DO LOVE!

Aren’t the pewter gowns and pearl necklaces gorgeous?

Jewelry for the ladies?  Gray pearl necklaces with vintage brooches—necklaces designed with each girl in mind by Designs by Krissy (brooches selected by Christy). LOVE ‘em!

The fantastic team of wedding designers and coordinators at A Charleston Bride outdid themselves for Christy & Rodney’s wedding! You can read more about Melissa, Carrie, Leigh and Jonie on their website. A Charleston Bride does all floral design in-house (sooooo beautiful, Jonie!).

Christy told us, “My bouquet was all white  blooms—white tulips, calla lilies and sweet peas. The tulips and callas tied into the wedding décor—sweet peas were added since that was my dad’s pet name for me when I was growing up!”

Not to leave Rodney out of the story, here is a bit from him about the proposal …

I was nervous because I wanted it to be perfect. I knew she was the one for me, so I was also excited to move into the next phase of our lives. I told Christy that we really needed a getaway weekend, but it was not the weekend I would propose, and she took me at 100% face value. We went to a great resort in Georgia with a great spa. After her spa treatment, she was so relaxed that she suggested not even going to dinner and just having room service and champagne out on our balcony. I had arranged for a private dinner out by the lake – some of the tables were less intimate but I arranged for the most private—we were literally surrounded by woods on the lake. In the end, the evening turned out perfectly.

Something old: vintage brooch from grandmother
Something new: attire
Something borrowed: diamond necklace
Something blue: Christian Louboutin heels in sapphire
Sixpence in shoe: doublesided tape concealed the six-pence in the bow of the shoe!
Attire: Hayden Olivia Bridal, Priscilla of Boston
Accessories: Custom clutch by Up Style (*on etsy), Russian tulle cage veil by Kristina Eaton

SO LOVELY! Congratulations Christy and Rodney!

Thanks to Richard Israel for sharing your awesome images and to A Charleston Bride for another great wedding!!

Christy’s dress is from one of our newest Little Black Book members, Hayden Olivia Bridal in Charlotte NC. They have all sorts of great “gown guidance” and wedding trend tips on their blog (girl talk) … and a schedule of their fall trunk shows lined up for Modern Trousseau, Kenneth Pool, and Christos to name just a few.

You can also browse through these wedding dress designers’ newest collections on Style Me Pretty’s Look Book (links above).

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2009. | Permalink | 27 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: A Charleston Bride, Birdcage Veil, Brooches, Charleston, Christian Louboutin, Designs by Krissy, Hayden Olivia Bridal, Look Book, Priscilla of Boston, Richard Israel, South Carolina, Upstyle, William Aiken House
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Little Black Book Blog, Real Weddings, Vintage Chic, Wedding Photography, Wedding Planners & Designers

Lorraine & Sanders were married in April at the Legare-Waring House in Charleston.  What an amazingly beautiful place!!  The day was captured on film by the super-talented Richard Israel …

This beautiful day was choreographed by another Little Black Book member, Melissa Barton and her terrific team at A Charleston Bride! They pretty much do it all … event decor and design, coordination, AND floral design. Wow. What a gorgeous event this was!

We asked Melissa to share a little of Lorraine & Sanders’ story …

Lorraine is a very successful (and busy) woman so she gave me a lot of free reign with the design. She knew she wanted bright pink and black as her color palette, but was open to any suggestions from there. As a matter of fact, she was pleasantly surprised at her bouquet as she really wasn’t sure what it would look like! She loved the southern charm of the Legare-Waring House with the oak trees dripping with moss and alligators relaxing on the bank of the pond so we kept it simple and elegant. Everything was clean, not fussy which fit Lorraine and Sanders’ personalities perfectly. It truly reflected their style and the guests were in awe!

REALLY PRETTY !!!

If you missed the post earlier today about Richard’s “return to film”, you really need to check it out.  A very insightful interview concerning the unique aspects of film photography. Film vs. digital vs. a combination is one of the key decisions you need to make as a couple when choosing your wedding photographer! There are pros and cons to both, and lots of passion for both. Be sure you examine all sides of the question!

And to see more of Richard’s sensational images from weddings to fashion to family … visit his blogs {here} and {here} and his website. Truly awesome work.

So, to wrap it up, here are a few more of Richard’s captivating images from Lorraine & Sanders’ wonderful celebration of love and family …

Thank you SO much, Richard (and Liz) and Melissa for sharing this fantastic day!

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2009. | Permalink | 24 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: A Charleston Bride, Charleston, Color Palette Pink Black, Legare-Waring House, Richard Israel, South Carolina, Tented Reception, Wedding Colors
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Real Weddings, Traditional Elegance, Wedding Photography, Wedding Planners & Designers

Until then, we want to share some very interesting information with you. Tanja Lippert,  the fabulous LBB photographer of last Wednesday’s popular post {Ashley & Christian’s Texas Wedding} has started a new website dedicated to photographers (and everyone else!) who loves film photography!!

From Tanja’s first post on Keep Film Alive …

Welcome to Keep Film Alive! My name is Tanja Lippert. I am 100% film shooter dedicated. I love film. I love it so much, it almost hurts. I believe film is the #1 reason that my business as a photographer has thrived. I wanted to create this blog as a resource to photographers all over the world who love film like me. I wanted to create a place where photographers who love film and would like to see it STAY ALIVE forever could come and gain useful information relating to film and all the lovely things it offers. I also wanted to create an online resource that would INSPIRE and encourage photographers who have forgotten about film or only use it sparingly … might be inspired to run out and buy a few rolls. Who knows, maybe one day put down their shiny new digital cameras, dust off their Rollei and get back to work!!! :0)

Richard Israel is one of Tanja’s many, many, many fellow-film-lovers. He shoots fashion, beauty and weddings throughout Europe, Asia and the U.S. Richard’s goal? “To capture the mood, the moments and the beauty of his subjects in a sensitive, artful way.”

Here is an excerpt from an interview with Richard discussing his and Tanja’s mutual obsession with film …

KEEPING FILM ALIVE ~ RICHARD ISRAEL RETURNED TO FILM AND WILL NOT LOOK BACK!

Q. Richard, Where are you from and where is your studio based, what do you shoot?

A. I’m from London, England and have been living in Charlotte, NC for 20 years, working mainly in the southeast and lots in Charleston, SC. I have a studio in my home. I shoot wedding, portraits and some commercial work. I’ve also started an Etsy.com store for my art photography. I shot fashion and beauty for a good part of my career. I love movement, mood and texture.

Q. What is your main equipment set up? What are your favorite films?

A. I shoot Nikon F100’s with the 85 1.4 and 35 2.0 lenses, for medium format I use a Mamiya 645 AFD, with 80mm 1.9, and 150mm lens and a Rolleiflex. I love to experiment with lots of different films but my mainstays are, Fujicolor 400H, Fujicolor 800Z. For black and white, Kodak 400CNBW, Tri-X, and Ilford Delta 3200.

Q. Tell us what made you decide to switch back to film from digital; what motivated you to make the switch back?

A. I was browsing through some of my old darkroom fiber based prints and saw the light. The depth, tonality, texture and the pure organic rawness of film is what initially turned me on in my photography and in my opinion can never be replicated by digital imaging ever. I have always been totally passionate about my work, but now it’s off the chart.

Q. How did making the choice to switch back to film change your workflow? How did it change your lifestyle?

A. My workflow has been reduced to approximately 1 ½ hours for weddings and 30 minutes for portraits. I’ve got my life back. I spend more time with my family and spend time growing my business instead of spending 80% of my life in front of the computer.

Q. What advice would you give to digital photographers who are thinking of trying or switching to film?

A. Take it slow, test shoot, get comfortable with shooting without chimping, take time to discover the different characteristics of the many different films available. At each wedding shoot a couple of rolls and build up to shooting more as your comfort level grows. Check out keh.com for amazing deals on Canon and Nikon 35mm cameras as well as killer medium format gear.

Q. What have the advantages been that have resulted from your switch back?

A. A renewed passion for my work, I feel like I’ve come out of the (digital) wilderness. I’m now an anomaly in my market and separated from the pack, I am a niche.

Q. What have the disadvantages been for you?

A. The only challenge has been the extra expense of film and processing. As of now I’ve raised my prices to cover the extra cost involved so next year all will be good! I would suggest using the best lab possible, I’ve used local labs and would highly recommend a true pro lab such as Richard Labs in LA. unless you want to trade all the saved post processing time for hours of dust spotting in Photoshop. Yikes!!!

Q. Where can we see more of your beautiful work and find out more about you?

A. Website, Blog, I Love Film blog

Wow!!!! Just beautiful, Richard!!!

Thanks SO much to Tanja Lippert for allowing us to re-post the interview first published on her Keep Film Alive Blog. She has teamed up with some pretty amazing photographers to share the obsession and the wealth of information that film-shooters are so passionate about. You can see more of her fabulous photography on her website & blog.

this photo courtesy of Tanja Lippert

Stay tuned for that gorgeous wedding we have for you from Richard and Melissa in a bit!

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Post tags: A Charleston Bride, Film Photography, Keep Film Alive, Richard Israel, Tanja Lippert Photography
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Wedding Photography