The Wilson wedding in December of 2020 was a sweet day I won’t soon forget! Addison and Leighton tied the know on December 10th, 2020. I admire them for being so laid back and getting married in such a crazy and unpredictable year! Addison and Leighton held their wedding at the Magnolia Grace Ranch in Leonard, Texas. This venue was perfect for them and photographed so beautifully! I love the wooded areas and incredible natural light in the reception hall. The Wilson wedding was intimate, with around 120 of their favorite people in attendance. I truly enjoy photographing intimate wedding days! Their color scheme of rust, olive green and tan was perfect for a winter wedding. They had so many unique and sweet details throughout their wedding day!
Addison and Leighton
The Wilsons met through Addison’s sister and Leighton’s friend. Leighton proposed to Addison in August of 2020 at his parents house with the whole family present. It is always fun to learn about how a couple got engaged! Addison loves to read and spend time with her family, while Leighton enjoys hunting and working out. Addison and Leighton are such a good match for each other! Their favorite thing to do is spend quality time together.
Addison chose a classic, form fitted gown for her wedding day. The silhouette and style of this dress are timeless. Paired with an elegant updo and a pearl necklace, she looked amazing! I think it is really cool when a dress fits a brides personal style so well. I also can’t get enough of the bridesmaids dresses she chose! Rust colored velvet gowns are a great contrast to her white dress. Velvet is a fabric that always photographs well, I love how it reflects light.
I can’t wait for all of my 2021 weddings! Reach out today to inquire about your wedding date for this year and next.
A Dallas bridal photography session at this stunning chapel was a dream come true! The high wooden beams throughout and the floor to ceiling windows are a huge bonus. The windows facing out to the woods really creates a surreal feeling in the chapel. Bringing the best of both worlds, nature and architecture. Soft greens behind a bride creates really pretty contrast in images. The architecture in chapels can really help bring some drama to bridal photography. I am especially fond of getting wide shots where the bride is centered in the shot.
There are so many benefits to booking a bridal session! I really enjoy when a bride wants to shoot her bridal session in the same venue that the wedding will be taking place. Booking a bridal photography session is a blessing to your photographer! They give us the chance to master our settings based on the venue before the wedding. I also really enjoy the consistent loo it brings to all of your wedding day related galleries.
Benefits of a bridal session
Having a bridal session is a great way to really cherish the moments you get to wear your wedding dress! The actual wedding day can go by so quickly, it is worth it to have an entire session dedicated to the dress of your dreams. Many little girls dream of their wedding dress and wonder what it will look like, it just isn’t fair to only wear it on one day. A bridal session can also be a great opportunity for a final hair and makeup trial before the big day. It is so helpful to be able to see the hair and makeup as it appears on camera ahead of time!
The Flores Fort Worth wedding at Four Eleven wedding Venue was one for the books! I really enjoy shooting at this venue as it is perfect for couples who want a one stop shop for their big day. Four Eleven has space for the ceremony and reception all in one. This venue has a unique vibe that couples and vendors alike fall in love with.
Christopher and Desiree
Christopher and Desiree got engaged in Rome, Italy in December of 2018. Talk about an absolute dream proposal! Desiree had been learning Italian prior to their Italy trip, so Christopher knew this would be a memorable place to ask her to be his forever. Christopher and Desiree had been out sightseeing and after getting a bit carried away wine tasting, headed to a romantic dinner. Christopher had placed coasters on the table that said “Desiree will you marry me!” in Italian! I think their proposal story is just the cutest, what a creative move on Christopher’s part!
Desiree and Christopher love soccer, true crime, Scotch, bowling, breweries and traveling together. I love that they are a couple that shares their passions with each other! This close bond is obvious to everyone around them and makes them such an easy couple to love.
For their wedding day, they chose a color scheme of black and navy with gold accents. Such a unique and stunning combination of colors for their decor! It is fun for me when I get to document a wedding day with so many special details. One of my favorite details from the Flores wedding are Desiree sparkly wedding shoes! These shoes were such a playful touch and not to mention so much more comfortable than traditional heels. I also really loved the embroidered handkerchief with their initials and wedding date.
Desiree and Christopher did a phenomenal job making their wedding day one to remember!
I have been waiting on pins and needles to share sweet Kenzie’s bridal session. I knew from her adorable personality and love for details that she would pick an amazing dress and have a few extra things to make her bridals super special. I definitely wasn’t disappointed! Her gorgeous, lace, fitted gown from Providence Place fit her like a glove. She also brought along the perfect boho hat and cathedral veil. I added the peacock chair and we were good to go.
The woodsy park complimented her session beautifully and even went perfectly with the theme of her wedding (it was yesterday and utterly gorgeous, I can’t wait to share).
I always recommend bridal sessions to my future brides! I love them! I know it’s more of a southern thing and sometime we don’t always want all the attention on just us but it’s so magical being able to get all dolled up in your gown more than once and feel like a princess.
Here are a few of my favorite photos from the session.
I shot a wedding in Cancun, Mexico. That’s a real thing I get to say now y’all and I never thought it would be possible, to be quite honest with you. It was a real life dream come true and I knew from the second I walked into my hotel room, with the cheesiest smile on my face, that it would be on my blog FOR SURE.
This summer I needed to do something creative. I needed to stretch my wings a little and just shoot for fun. I picked a super cute, super in love couple off of my Facebook newsfeed and there was Cody and Brandon. They were affectionate, romantic, slightly inappropriate but hey, who in love isn’t? We made a little magic together that evening and it’s still one of my favorite sessions.
Not very long after I got a message from Cody asking if I might be interested in shooting their wedding in Mexico. UM, YEAH! Up to this point I avoided anything with travel because of my youngest daughter but she’s a bit older now and daddy can get her to sleep better than I can most nights so I was so on board for this adventure.
Five months later my passport was acquired, bags packed, and I was on my way to Cancun all on my own. I had so many butterflies traveling to another country by myself but hey what’s a little nervousness when you’re on your way to paradise right? I managed to survive the shuttle to the resort and I put that loosely because if you’ve ever experience a shuttle or taxi driver in Mexico then you know that the speed limits are mere suggestions there.
We pulled up to the breathtaking TRS Coral resort and from the second I arrived, I was spoiled and, again, cheesing like a kid on her way to Disneyland for the first time. It was amazing! If you don’t believe me, see below.
I was lucky enough to spend the entire weekend there in a room bigger than my first apartment! The first day I spent half of my time exploring, then eating, and finally laying on the beach working on my tan as you can see here…
The second day was wedding day. I ate a delicious breakfast at one of their many fancy restaurants. Is eating alone on a resort full of couples and families a little weird? Yeah honestly, but I was pretending I was some rich lady getting away from the hubbub of regular life and I was fine. Photo of deliciousness here…
After that it was beach time because I’m dangerously low on Vitamin D, probably. Two short hours later and RAIN! Now normally, when you live in Texas, rain means oh no it’s going to be muddy, humid, and awful all day long. Not in Mexico! It actually rained like three times on wedding day. Once on our way to the ceremony. True story. Everything was fine. You’ll see soon.
After the rain, time for room service and getting myself all pretty for the wedding. I try to look my best for y’all. You’re welcome, lol. No photos of that lunch because it’s really embarrassing how much room service I ordered the entire weekend.
Finally it’s time for the wedding! Prep in the bridal suit then prep in the grooms suite. Golf cart to the ceremony, pause for rain, and here we go. Until you’ve seen a beach with bleach white sand and water so blue it rivals our bluebonnets it’s hard to imagine it. I couldn’t have chosen a better ceremony location. There were crowds of people watching from the water and all along the beach side but it didn’t seem to bother our sweet bride and groom. There was plenty of laughter, tears, and a little making out. It was perfect. Afterwards there was a lively celebration, drinks flowing, and cake smashing of course. All in all, the best day ever mixed with the best vacation ever.
Shooting a destination wedding was on my “Maybe It’ll Happen One Day” Bucket List, right along with LEARN HOW TO SHOOT MANUAL when I got my first camera. Being able to mark it off is a real life dream come true. I can’t thank the new Mr. and Mrs Davis enough for bringing me along on this trip of a lifetime. I wish you two a lifetime of happiness and make out sessions.
I hope this brings so many more wonderful adventurous couples who would love for me to tag along. I’m game if you are!
Here are some of my favorite moments of my first destination wedding in Cancun, Mexico.
I’m so thrilled to finally share this engagement session for more than one reason. One, I met Desiree back in middle school and it’s the most fun getting to witness people you’ve known since your awkward teenage years, majorly glow up and get engaged. I mean yeah, it makes me feel hella old but it’s still pretty awesome. Especially when they hire you to shoot their wedding (insert celebration emoji here)!! Two, it’s in a bowling alley y’all. Need I say more?
Desiree and Chris’ love story began with a Facebook poke about a decade ago. Friends first and then with a graduation from the friend zone in 2015, they were official. They love to travel, hence the romantic proposal in Rome, breweries, and true crime (YES). I would be lying if I said I hadn’t been following their sweet, adorable relationship all over social media.
For their engagement session, I knew it wouldn’t be your regular outdoorsy shoot. Not for these two. So we headed down to Dallas for an early morning session at Bowlounge. The super eclectic bowling alley a hop, skip, and a jump away from downtown. The venue was super accommodating and even let us come in an hour before they opened just so we could have a little fun. Shout out to Kelsey the events manager!
We had a blast that morning and avoided some chilly weather. Here are a few of my favorite shots from Desiree and Chris’ engagement session.
I have been dying to share Hayley’s stunning bridal session at the The Springs Rockwall Manor since I drove away from the venue. Of course, I had to be patient and now that Mr. and Mrs. Grisham are finally officially married (the wedding was gorgeous by the way, I will 100% be sharing once it’s done) I can finally show off these bridals!
Here are some of my favorite shots of the new Mrs. Grisham’s session…
Here in the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex we have had almost nonstop rain lately. Good for the greenery, bad for photographers who like to shoot in the yummy outdoor sunlight. Funny thing is, it was consistently on the weekend. Like the weather knew that’s when all photographers are the busiest. Thanks Mother Nature!
So when the rain cleared up, it was finally time to shoot John and Carolyn’s engagement session. The session went perfectly and I think I will require everyone to wear sequins because OMG SO GORGEOUS!
I cannot wait for their wedding at the Marty Leonard Chapel later this month! That venue is on my photographers bucket list and I’m over the moon about the opportunity to shoot there.
Here are some of my favorite shots from John and Carolyn’s beautiful sunset engagement session in Flower Mound, Texas.
Some weddings aren’t big at all and that’s just fine. You only really need a handful of things. An officiant, a witness or two, and a couple that’s ready to spend their lives together. This wedding had all of those plus a little bit more.
It seems only fitting that since I’ve been with them from the very beginning, from the maternity to the bridals, that I would be there for Stephen and Samantha’s beginning as man and wife.
They say that rain on your wedding day is a sign of good luck, well if that’s true, then these two are set forever.
My second wedding of my 2018 super, crazy, busy wedding season was for Kristen and Jack. The most adorable couple you’ll ever meet.
These two love birds met at Christ Churches youth group when they were in high school, fell in love, spent every moment together, until finally Jack proposed to Kristen under the Century Tree on the Texas A&M campus in September of 2017.
The ceremony was held at Christ Church Plano on July 28, 2018. It was a beautiful sunny day and the church was full of light. Like the whole world was smiling just for these two. They both agreed that saying our vows was the most memorable moment of the entire day and at that venue, it was definitely breathtaking.
After the ceremony the entire party met at the gorgeous Cross Creek Ranch in Parker, Texas for some food, fun, and lots of dancing. I’ve never seen a group so excited to dance to the song Africa. I loved it! Jack and Kristen never left each others side for a moment. You couldn’t help but smile at how in love they are.
Thank you and congratulations to the new Mr. and Mrs. Lucas! I was so honored to be a part of your big day.
Photographer: Amanda Raylee Photography
Ceremony Venue: Christ Church Plano
Reception Venue/Flowers/Food/Decor: Cross Creek Ranch
Cake: Market Street
DJ: Ken Adams
Amanda Raylee Photography | Dallas Fort Worth Wedding + Portrait Photographer 