Kenny & Katy Oates | My First Wedding Session!
Wow, it's almost been a month since Kenny and Katy had their beautiful wedding down in Georgia—almost a month since I had my first ever wedding photography session!
Since I started photography, weddings were never in my radar. I thought, "Only professionals do that, but that would be cool to do." Well, God's cool and He works in mighty ways! During my freshman and sophomore year, I was a photographer for an organization at my school, and that's where I met Katy! She was always so joyful with her contagious smile! I saw that she had gotten engaged, so I offered to do her engagement session for her—authentic joy is a must for photography and she was abundant in that! She had already talked with someone else, but she offered me to photograph her wedding! I was surprised and ecstatic about the opportunity! I have to say though, I was super nervous when I was planning for it. Weddings are a BIG deal, so I was beyond thankful for Katy's sincere kindness and patience about everything. She even gave me a detailed photoshoot schedule—um, best bride award?!
On the day of Kenny and Katy's wedding, September 22nd, I woke up bright and early around 5 am and left for Augusta with a friend who was kind enough to drive me (shoutout to you, Arthur!). I couldn't sleep in the car because I was so full of adrenaline! I was nervous upon entering the site, but God was so good for providing me a friendly face, Daelan Brown, the videographer. All the portraits went smoothly. Everyone looked clean-cut and beautiful (Kenny and Katy were so photogenic and stunning), and even the crying little kiddos were cute! One of my favorite parts of the wedding was the actual ceremony. I just love shooting candids and capturing stories without the need of directing. It was also such a blessing to hear the couple's sweet and Christ-centered testimony.
After the reception which included catered Chipotle (yes) and the send off, I sat back in the car and breathed a sigh of relief and success. I had SO MUCH FUN! I didn't know how much I would like the hustle and bustle of wedding photography, but I honestly loved it. There were times I could relax, in contrast to a straight up hour portrait session. There were times where I was actively directing and trying to make kids smile. There were times I was cringing a bit and thanking God for making me short so I could sneak back stage and in between pews. And there were many times I smiled as I reflected on the fact that I was being part of someone's history. Overall, it was all an experience I'd love to repeat. With all the fun, I definitely learned a lot from my first shoot as well, all the way from how to anticipate actions to what kind of shoes to wear for an all-day shoot (let me tell ya, Chacos are where it's at). I'll probably be making a post of what I learned so stay tuned!
As I get ready for a shoot tomorrow with a returning family, I look back at these images from Kenny and Katy Oates' wedding and praise the Lord for His many opportunities and grace!!
I hope you enjoy the photos: click here!
(Oh, look it’s me! I was sad I didn’t get a photo with my first wedding couple, but a man was nice enough to take my picture when he saw me trying to take a selfie, haha!)
lways Made with Joy, Abby Joy
