This sun drenched vow exchange in the Blue Ridge Mountains was such a joy to shoot and a very unique session. Ashley reached out to me wanting to do a session the day after their elopement which we promptly dubbed Marriage Day. And it really is such a great idea. There was zero stress, zero nerves, they were completely relaxed because, they were already married! And the coolest thing was, they spent the whole session reflecting on their wedding day, they kept saying things like “I can’t believe we’re married!” and calling each other husband and wife and soaking in the reality that they were now finally, married. While it was very untraditional in that they basically relived their day, they still wore their wedding clothes, went back to the same trail and re read their vows, they commented many times how happy they were that they chose to celebrate this way.

By nature, wedding days tend to be a bit busy, but with no real plans, Ashley and Kevin got to enjoy their time completely relaxed There love was so evident as they spent so much time complimenting each other, working together to navigate the trail, and soak in each others presence. While the wedding day has a lot of tradition and celebration surrounding the momentous occasion, it is interesting that we don’t take much into consideration when it comes to the actual first day of marriage. Shouldn’t this be a celebration in its own right?! So wether you plan a Marriage Day photo session like this one, or a cozy in home session like Adrian and Joey did a few winters ago, or something totally different, this is your sign to take time to consider how you want to spend your first day as a married couple!

It’s also your reminder, that you don’t have to wear white on your wedding day!

Here’s what Ashley + Kevin had to say:

“Erika was such a dream to work with for our photo session! We ended up working with Erika the day after we eloped, and she coined it our "Marriage Day"! To say that we had such a blast would be an understatement. From our first phone call where we were talking through more about what our plans were, to the photo shoot itself, to working with her after to create our Marriage Day album, the process was easy, fun and felt like we were working with a longtime friend.

And the icing on the cake were the absolutely spectacular photos that she captured for us! Erika captured some of the most beautiful photos we could have dreamed of. The pictures showcased our real personalities and she captured the beautiful scenery. You can really feel the excitement and love from our first day as a married couple. Our family and friends have commented on the quality and how incredible the photos are.

If you are eloping or considering Erika for your photos, we could not recommend her enough! We also highly recommend working with her on an album after your session - the quality is unreal!”