Braehead Manor – Virginia Wedding Photographer

Braehead Manor – Virginia Wedding Photographer

After three weekends in a row with rain I could not have been more excited to see that there was zero chance of rain on Lara and Isaac’s wedding day!

I first spoke with Lara last August and as she talked about her wedding to Isaac at Braehead Manor there was one major theme throughout the conversation – relationships. This wedding was to not only be a celebration of their love and their new life together as husband and wife. It was also a weekend that would allow them to spend extended time with family and friends. Braehead Manor was the perfect choice for a venue, as it allowed for many of Lara and Isaac’s friends to stay on site with them for the entire wedding weekend!

Upon arriving at Braehead Manor I quickly saw why Lara and Isaac fell in love with the venue. It is an absolutely gorgeous venue complete with lush grounds, a historic home and a beautiful old tree (I am clueless when it comes to knowing the names of trees and flowers) for which the ceremony would take place under.

Lara and Isaac have one of the best love stories I have heard. In their own words, “Isaac and I met on the Internet, accidentally and before it was cool, in 2009. We were long distance for about two years (New York to Nashville, then New York to California), then broke up for about two years, and got back together in 2014 when both of us found ourselves living within an hour of each other for the first time in California. Of course, shortly after we starting dating again, Isaac got into UC Berkeley and I got a job in D.C., forcing us to be long distance yet again. We would visit each other every month or as often as we could, and he even spent a summer with me in D.C. when he did an internship. In early 2016, we got engaged in Laguna Beach, in the same place we had our “second first date.” Finally, later that year when he graduated, he moved to D.C. All of the long distance was certainly worth it! We love living in D.C., and we recently added a member to our family in the form of a sheepdog/poodle mix puppy named Albus Dumbledog (my idea that I talked Isaac into — although now Isaac is just as obsessed with him as I am)”.

I absolutely loved that Lara walked down the aisle to The Beach Boy’s “Little Surfer Girl”. I had to contain my excitement and my urge to sing out load! Throughout the ceremony I was moved by all the personal touches including when Isaac’s brother prayed over Lara and Isaac and their marriage.

It was easy to see throughout the day how much these two loved to have fun and how important their friends are to them. In seven years of photographing weddings I have seen a lot of friendships and worked with countless couples and their friends. However, I have never seen a group of friends so relaxed and just enjoying life on a wedding day as I saw at Lara and Isaac’s wedding.

Lara and Isaac danced to Andrew McMahon’s “Maps For The Getaway – Canyons Version”. I have not been able to get this song out of my head since the wedding!