Mr. & Mrs. Slagle - Spring Wedding at Southern Oaks
Today, on the blog, I’m sharing Cara & Mason’s Spring wedding at Southern Oaks. Their wedding started out my 2019 year. I’d never photographed at Southern Oaks before, but it quickly became one of my favorite venues in Columbia. The “getting ready” rooms offer beautiful window light and have cream colored walls. The rooms are also grand in size, which is a nice bonus for large bridal parties.
Courtney Smith with Southern Charm Salon working her magic.
Last year, Mason lost his mom and because she couldn’t physical be at the wedding, Cara really wanted parts of Donna to be present throughout the day. Gracey’s, Cara’s daughter, dress was sewn together from Mrs. Slagle’s wedding dress. *cue the tears *
A good amount of my couples do some form of a letter reading or a first look. If you don’t know, a first look is when the bride and groom see each other before the ceremony. Cara and Mason opted out of doing a traditional first look, but Cara still wanted to see Mason before she walked down the aisle. All day, I really wanted to incorporate this staircase in a photo or two, so us placing Cara on the stairs and then blindly setting up Mason worked perfectly.
I love that they had a photo of Mason’s mom at the ceremony.
Cara was a radiant bride. Love this photo of her and her dad walking down the aisle!
Family is very important to both Cara & Mason. Their ceremony was performed by both of their uncles, and then together with Cara’s daughter, Gracey, they poured sand into a vase symbolizing their families coming together as one.
Now introducing Mr. & Mrs. Slagle!
Gracey was such a trooper all day. She kept spinning around and twirling in her dress and made others (and us) smile.
Taking portraits of Cara and Mason after the ceremony was so enjoyable. They’ve known each other for a while, so they were naturals and so comfortable! It was easy to see how happy they were to finally be married.
Watching Cara dance with her dad and Mason dance with his grandmother was emotional to say the least. These are some of the best moments of a wedding. These moments represent gratefulness and love for the parents and grandparents who have been instrumental in the couple’s lives.
Cara and Mason’s families truly held nothing back on the dance floor. It was fun to watch and even be a part of it sometimes. Hey, photographers like to dance, too! As a photographer, it’s so rewarding to capture families celebrating and dancing to good music.
Before going off to enjoy married life, Cara and Mason were sent-off by their loved ones with birdseed and cheering. A perfect and traditional way to end a perfect night.
A big thanks to Cara and Mason for allowing me to capture your wedding day, I love y’all, and your special day was beautiful!
Shoutout to my assistant, Lauren, for being a baller and carrying all of our precious equipment. And thanks to all of the other vendors who made this wedding a success - Courtney Smith with Southern Charm Salon; New York Bride & Groom, PartyTime DJs, and Southern Oaks Event Venue.