umstead weddings - brittany & harrison

April 17, 2021

umstead weddings – brittany & harrison

Last time I blogged, I mentioned I was posting before running out to shoot a wedding. Well, this is that wedding: Brittany and Harrison's beautiful, intimate wedding at The Umstead Hotel, just down the road from where I live in Cary.

Brittany and Harrison recently relocated to the Raleigh area from NYC. They contacted me back in January asking for information on good locations for wedding photography in Raleigh. They were looking for an intimate wedding venue in the woods with "great opportunity for good pics". The Umstead really fit the bill there.

After the wedding on Monday evening, Brittany and Harrison wanted to head next door into Umstead Park for a woodland vibe to their newlywed portraits. I knew time was going to be tight, but I also knew the ideal location was about a mile’s hike into the woods. Brittany & Harrison have just moved to the area so I knew they weren’t that familiar with the park. So I went out with my younger daughter Natalia on Easter Sunday for a quick hike. We took some videos to scope out the scenery and share with the bride and groom to see what they thought. Fast forward one day and I was back capturing some lovely images in the golden hour light with this lovely couple.

Kudos to Brittany & Harrison for making the 2-mile round trip hike in their wedding garb. Brittany's dress was beautiful but heavy, so she got a good arm and leg workout. Any guy who has worn a tuxedo and dress shoes will also feel for Harrison. Let's just say they were willing to suffer for their art. Thank you, guys!

Here's Brittany's take on working with me: "Trust me!! Booking Joe as our weddIng photographer was literally the hands down BEST decision of my entire wedding! Word of advice - he books up fast as he is highly sought after and recommended by many brides and wedding vendors/venues as one of the best wedding photographers, so get him if you can!

Personally, I don’t like attention, I’m a very shy person and he broke me out of my shell! He lead me every step of the way. He was so professional, never felt intrusive and made me feel beautiful in every moment.

For me, my wedding photos where everything. I am the bride that cared less about the actual event and everything about capturing my day in order to re-live the lasting memories for years to come. Joe did exactly that and more!

I told Joe I didn’t want the typical wedding photos. I wanted something unique, something different. And this is where his creative mind takes off. He is true artist! I told Joe I wanted to venture into woods in search of some scenic photos. Literally those were my ONLY directions. Joe did all the leg work from there. Prior to our wedding he ventured into woods to scout ideal spots, sent me locations and suggested times of day to make the most of sunlight. For the record I never asked him to do this. The level of effort and work he put into prepping for the event showed in the end results and made our day seamless!"

Here are just some of my fave pics from Brittany & Harrison's day. Congratulations, guys!