A Destination Wedding at Terrell House in New Orleans

I met Brandie and Dennis for the first time via a skype chat in the Spring. Sometimes chatting with a prospective client feels tentative- like a first date you are unsure of. But we connected immediately and talked for 90 straight minutes. A nerdy couple from Ohio, I was immediately taken in by Dennis’ huge smile and Brandie’s bright purple hair. It was pretty obvious from the start that I was the right photographer for their New Orleans Destination Wedding.

Which is an interesting thing to say as a New Orleans Wedding Photographer. There are a lot of photographers in town because there are a lot of weddings! I firmly believe that there is a perfect photographer for every couple and I know that is not only me. While it’s necessary I keep working, I never feel bad letting a couple keep looking when it isn’t a perfect fit. I want all couples to have the day of their dreams- even if that means someone else photographs it!

Anyway, I digress!

Brandie and Dennis opted for the full wedding day package so they wouldn’t have to pick and choose which elements of their day would get documented. The package comes with an engagement or bridal session, neither of which they’d have time for while they were in town. So they opted to use that for a few hours of second-line coverage the day before instead. The day of the second-line rolled around and it was POURING all day. I was supposed to capture their second line from the hotel to their rehearsal dinner but there was no way I could in the pouring rain without risking serious damage to my gear. The couple was so understanding and didn’t mind when I offered to capture the rehearsal dinner instead. Dennis did request that I caught their second-line as they approached the restaurant. No sweat!

Brandie and Dennis are the kind of couple who takes care of the people they love. They went out and bought everyone umbrellas and shoe covers for the second line! The band, the St. Roch Syncopators, were troupers, doing the whole parade in the rain! Even though everyone was pretty soggy, they all rolled up to BB King’s with giant smiles on their faces. It was actually the first time I got to meet Brandie and Dennis in person and it was a wonderful night.

The next day brought beautiful weather! After some prep photos at their hotel/venue, Terrel House, uptown, we decided to do their first look outside of the Studio Be mural on Dauphine street in the Bywater. Dennis hopped in the car with me while Brandie was taken over by their kickass Wedding Planner, Andrea Heming of Revelry Events. My second shooter, Jason Albus, met us there. The best part about Jason getting to second shoot for me was Jason had been one of their choices for Wedding photographer but he was booked when they were looking. He wasn’t available to work with me when I asked the first time and I hired someone else. But then both his other booking and my second shooter fell through last minute and Brandie and Dennis got both of their photographer picks together!

Their First Look was incredible in front of that big, beautiful mural. The girl in it reminded them of their daughter and Brandie’s mermaid hair looked perfect against the blue. Plus their parasols matched so well! We knocked out their portraits then zoomed back over to Terrell House with time to spare.

It was a small courtyard ceremony that was half Jewish and half Christian to accommodate both Dennis and Brandie’s religions. Their brothers each performed the respective parts of the ceremony and I really loved how personal that made it. Their friends cheered as they walked down the aisle and started dancing immediately as the ceremony ended. It was wonderful to be surrounded by such a loving group of friends.

The St. Roch Syncopators returned to provide the soundtrack for the reception and keep the guests dancing. Terrell House catered an amazing dinner and the guests capped off the night with celebratory cigars. It was a very dimly lit reception and in those situations I try to shoot without flash as much as possible. I hate destroying natural moments in an intimate setting with bright flashes of light. So I opened up my apwerture and shot tons of really sweet images that captured genuine emotion and the mood of the evening.

Before I left for the night I had an idea. I asked the couple to gather all of their family and guests and I climbed up onto a balcony. Dangling a wireless flash in one hand and my camera in the other, I took a fantastic group photo of all of them together. It was perfect for the back cover of their wedding book.

I don’t always leave weddings feeling like I’ve made new friends but I definitely did after working with Brandie and Dennis. Their images were a pleasure to edit and designing their book was a lot of fun. It was a hard one to give away, honestly! I might have to have one printed for myself one of these days.

Planning your own New Orleans Destination Wedding? I got you!