Who:

Sheri + John

What:

Post Wedding Session

When:

November 4, 2007

Where:

New Orleans, LA

We absolutely LOVE New Orleans. Shooting this post wedding session in the French Quarter was the quintessential big city experience! We had an AMAZING time just crusing the alleys & streets, and getting to absorb the city! AMAZING!!!

This is the final post in our [100:1 series]…and in truth, we ended up with 130 total images on the blog from all of Sheri + John’s events! Thanks for letting us be a part of your wedding weekend guys!

~ Charles

SHERI: I adored our post-wedding shoot with Meg and Charles! They are the most fun to work with and totally put you at ease right from the start!

SHERI: One of my favorites!

JOHN: This is just one example of Meg and Charles’ ability to be working for one shot and then see another opportunity. They had been zoomed in closer, but then zoomed out so you could see the entrance to the courtyard we were in.

SHERI: Most days, you can usually find this lady playing her piano on the street for the tourists and on-lookers. Meg thought it would be fun for us to stand by her and dance.

JOHN: Only later did we realize how much of a New Orleans local icon we were dancing beside. We had a New Orleans Coffee Table book as our guestbook and she was in there!!!

SHERI: As we were walking away, she started yelling at me to come back. We were looking at each other like, “What do we do?” She caught up to us and threw her hat on my head and called me a “Street Bride”!! It was so spontaneous and fun! HA!

SHERI: He was telling me that he had earrings just like mine!

JOHN: The next three shots came from me telling Meg and Charles a few months before that since I was going to be in a tux, we should try to get some old school “Rat Pack”-like photos. These are a few shots of what we got.

SHERI: I love Meg and Charles!! These photos are invaluable to me and the friendships we’ve made from working with them are just as priceless! Thanks guys!

Who:

Sheri + John

What:

Wedding

When:

November 3, 2007

Where:

New Orleans, LA

To wrap up our wedding day with Sheri + John, we’ve got a handful of images from the reception. Sheri + John hosted their event at the Audubon Tea Room in New Orleans…what a fabulous venue! Check it out!

~ Charles

SHERI: I was in awe of our reception décor! I basically told our florist what colors we wanted and that we wanted curly willow (or in his words, “those are just sticks!”). Haha! This entryway table had our New Orleans coffee table book that we used for our guestbook and a variety of photos from family members’ weddings. We LOVED the way this came out!

JOHN: The Audubon Tea Room was such a great location for our reception.

SHERI: a UT Groom’s cake… I wouldn’t expect anything else!!

JOHN: The wedding cake was nice, but look at this Beautiful Cake!!! A work of art in White-Chocolate and Grand Marnier!!!

JOHN: The food looked great… I still don’t know what it tasted like, but everyone else loved it!!!

SHERI: John loves to surprise me, and one of his surprises was to pick out our key reception songs, such as our entry song, garter song, etc. I had NO idea what to expect. I am a HUGE Black Crowes fan (seen them live about a dozen times) and right as we were being announced, “Remedy” started (with that signature guitar riff) and I through my arms up, I was so excited!! It was so awesome! Another moment I will never forget!

JOHN: Sheri is a HUGE Black Crowes fan and I surprised her with our entry music being the start of Remedy. I think she liked it!!!

SHERI: Another priceless photo. My dad used to sing Elvis’s “I Can’t Help Falling in Love” to me when I was a baby. It was “our song.” Well, I knew I wanted to have a special moment with my mom (she’s my hero and the reason I am what I am today), so we decided to dance to Elvis to honor my dad and have our special moment together. It was so emotional!!

SHERI: That martini left a souvenir on my dress!!! Oops!

SHERI: New Orleans weddings have many little traditions and one of them is the cake pull. The bride has a variety of charms tied to ribbons baked into the bottom layer of the wedding cake and she has her single bridesmaids and other close friends each pull one out. There’s usually a ring (signifying the next to get engaged), wedding bells (the next to marry), a clover (for luck), and so on… These are my two good friends from Vanderbilt, Erin and Nilam, and Nilam got the ring!! I love how Meg captured their expressions!

SHERI: He bit my finger!! HA!

JOHN: I was trying to make sure not to get cake in Sheri’s face, but instead I bit her finger and we both almost lost our cake!

JOHN: Success.

SHERI: Another of my favorites!!!

JOHN: “Life in slow motion, somehow it don’t feel real…” - David Gray

SHERI: This photo captures yet another New Orleans tradition—the Second Line! It dates to way back in the day… when they used to have “Jazz funerals” for the dead. The family of the deceased would parade behind the casket from the church to the burial grounds along with a brass band playing somber, sad hymns. That was called the “First Line”. But on the way back, after the burial, the brass band would play more joyful music as a celebration of their life. On-lookers would join in on the parade, behind the family or First Line, waving handkerchiefs, decorated umbrellas, and wearing colorful clothes… and they were called the “Second Line”. Now-a-days, it’s just more of a fun parade, done on many occasions, like weddings, Mardi Gras, and even at Saints football games (Tom Benson, the owner of the team, used to “second-line” around the Superdome if they won…and still does!). This photo shows our guests waving around their white handkerchiefs and grooving to the music! I love it!!

SHERI: In a second line at a wedding, the bride and groom lead all their guests and parade them around, all while dancing and laughing and having a good ol’ time! Here I am with my decorated umbrella!! I love the look on my face!! HA!

JOHN: This photo is in Webster’s Dictionary under the word “Attitude”!

SHERI: John’s got the hang of this New Orleans stuff!

JOHN: Not bad for my first Second Line!

SHERI: We did the second line as our exit and all of our guests followed us right out the doors of the Tea Room! It was so spontaneous and not planned this way at all! It was so awesome!

JOHN: We surprised Meg and Charles by exiting via the Second Line train, so they had to chase us outside - but it allowed a neat shot of the group gathering.

SHERI: I just love this shot! Everybody still has their handkerchiefs in their hands as they are waving goodbye to us. Priceless.

JOHN: Looking back at everyone before we pulled away in the car. Talk about leaving on a high note!!!

Who:

Sheri + John

What:

Wedding

When:

November 3, 2007

Where:

New Orleans, LA

Continuing with our [100:1 series]…immediately after we completed the girls formals, it was time to rush over to the church. The next set of images is from the ceremony.

~ Charles

SHERI: I rode from the hotel to the church with my Mom and Stepdad. It was such a calm ride, not much traffic, and not many people on the streets. It was very peaceful and very surreal. I couldn’t believe that my wedding day had finally arrived!

SHERI: Our gorgeous church in Uptown New Orleans, The Most Holy Name of Jesus. My Great Grandmother and Grandmother used to attend church here years ago. We felt very blessed to be married here.

SHERI: These are our memorial candles honoring my Dad, Grandpa, John’s brother and two grandmothers. It was very important to us to remember our loved ones who couldn’t be with us in person.

JOHN: It is great seeing your parents so truly happy.

JOHN: I wasn’t quite tearing up yet, but a moment later I made eye contact with Sheri’s mother and we both started tearing up. Sheri had not even come through the doors yet.

SHERI: My flower girl who almost made it down the aisle!

JOHN: This was about as far down the aisle as she made it. The night before she did ok, but the crowd at the wedding I think overwhelmed her. She is still adorable though.

JOHN: She is so beautiful… years of wanting to be together were finally about to come true. We had not seen each other until this moment so we had the first sight and the walk all in one moment.

SHERI: I was SO excited!!! I almost couldn’t breathe!

SHERI: *LOVE* this shot!!! John and I waited to see each other until the ceremony and I thought I would be the one to cry, but he started tearing up when it was time for my Stepdad to give me away! So sweet!!

JOHN: I am thinking “keep it together, keep it together. If Sheri sees me crying its over for the both of us!!!”

SHERI: This church is breathtaking!

JOHN: I still do not know how they were able to get so much of this amazingly beautiful church into the photo, but this shot is awe-inspiring.

SHERI: I love this shot of John’s mom with my parents in the background, all looking toward the altar.

SHERI: My mom’s nose is red! She’s so cute!!

JOHN: Together at last!!!

SHERI: We kept telling each other “I love you!” We were so excited! The emotion was overwhelming!

JOHN: We could not stop smiling at each other once together on the alter. I think we had just noted to each other that we were getting married!!!

SHERI: We felt so blessed to have Father Michael marry us. We were only the second wedding he’d performed since he’d just been ordained a priest in May of ’07. Michael is a family friend and when I found out he was studying to be a priest, the first thing I said was, “I want you to marry me!”

JOHN: Father Michael was awesome. He was “The Priest” for us.

SHERI: Father Michael’s Homily was awesome! Not only did he deliver a very touching message, but he added little personal touches that made everybody laugh!

JOHN: Father Michael had just cracked a joke at my expense. I still have not seen the humor. Something about people not finding my sarcasm as funny as I do.

JOHN: I, John, take you, Sheri…

SHERI: Bringing flowers to the Virgin Mary. I’m whispering to John, “My garter’s falling down!” It fell all the way down around my ankle! Oops!

JOHN: Giving flowers to our mothers.

JOHN: Embracing my mom with the greatest joy I have ever been able to share with her.

JOHN: Father Michael saying “You know you guys are married now, right?”

SHERI: I love how Father Michael is looking down, to give us our moment. Love this shot!

JOHN: I think we embarrassed Father Michael!!!

SHERI: I know I keep saying I love every shot, but I can’t help it!! This is another favorite of mine! It’s framed beautifully!

JOHN: Everything about this shot is perfect.

SHERI: We’re married!!

JOHN: I had forgotten so many other people were there with us. I could not take my eyes off of her.

SHERI: Sneaking our second married kiss.

JOHN: Our second kiss as a married couple. We did not wait too long – once we got to the back of the church.

Who:

Sheri + John

What:

Wedding

When:

November 3, 2007

Where:

New Orleans, LA

Continuing with our [100:1 series], we’ve complete the guys getting ready shots. I’ve got a few shots of John & his guys to share that I shot while Meg was working with the girls on their getting ready.

SHERI: What a handsome groom!!

JOHN: Me and my guys. Even though they are just background in this shot, their harassing comments could still be heard!

SHERI: John actually came up with this idea! He got each of his groomsmen argyle socks in their favorite football team’s colors. Guess which one is John?? Hint: He’s a HUGE University of Tennessee Vols fan!

JOHN: One of my favorite shots. I got all of the guys argyle socks in their favorite colors. Being a huge University of Tennessee fan, I am in the orange socks.

SHERI: These were some random drunk guys that wanted to join the party!! Gotta love New Orleans!! HA!

JOHN: These guys were walking by as we were taking photos and wanted to be in the photos with us. What can I say, New Orleans is called the Big Easy and these guys had been enjoying themselves for a few hours already.

CHARLES: It was an awesome morning…and can you think of a more exciting place to shoot than New Orleans?! The Saints were playing at home that weekend, so there was quite a crowd in town.

CHARLES: We finished up the guys formals, and I booked it over the Loews New Orleans Hotel to meet up with Meg & the girls! The next group of images were shot by Meg during the getting ready.

SHERI: Glenn from Perfect Presentations did a phenomenal job with our flowers! I was beyond happy!

SHERI: Awh!! I loved my shoes!! It took me so long to pick them out because #1, I wanted something with a low heel—I’m so tall and I didn’t want to be towering over John and #2, it’s hard to find bridal shoes with a low heel that are cute! Meg actually helped me make the decision between this pair and another pair. She’s more than a wedding photographer, folks… she’s a fashion consultant, social worker/therapist, dress cleaner, the list goes on and on!! (Love ya Meg!)

SHERI: This is one of my favorite special details of our wedding. I knew I wanted a locket to wear on my bouquet with my Dad and Grandpa’s photos in it, to have them with me as I walked down the aisle, and when I found this fleur de lis locket, I was ecstatic!! The fleur de lis is a well-known symbol of New Orleans (due to its French roots) and it’s also one of my favorite things! We subtly used the fleur de lis on our save-the-dates and invitations, and so when I found this locket, I felt like it was made for me!

SHERI: I love this close-up shot of the detail on my shoes.

SHERI: Another special detail, my garter embroidered with our married initials and our wedding date.

SHERI: John called me right after he opened my gift to him. I was so excited to hear his voice! …and Meg made sure she cropped out all those hair clips I had in my hair at the time!!

SHERI: I LOVE this shot! I had no idea Meg got this! I was sitting in a chair waiting for my turn at hair and make-up and she snapped this photo.

SHERI: Who knows what I was laughing at! I think we were talking about Britney Spears!! Hahaha!

JOHN: This is one of my favorite photos of Sheri of all time. It captures her simple and elegant beauty with the emotion of joy on her face. I love it!

SHERI: Seeing my hair for the first time. I was so excited! I was starting to feel like a real bride!

SHERI: One of my favorite shots! My sister, my Maid of Honor, is in the background helping me while I put on my earrings. Awh!!

SHERI: Reading the card from John… I started off laughing, but then he got me!

SHERI: I love this shot of my girls and me!

SHERI: This was taken right outside of the hotel! Isn’t that cool? I was very thankful to have these shots since I wasn’t able to do a formal bridal session.

SHERI: Outside of the hotel AGAIN! Meg and Charles are awesome!!

Who:

Sheri + John

What:

Wedding

When:

November 3, 2007

Where:

New Orleans, LA

OK…here goes! This is the second of seven posts featuring Sheri + John’s wedding in New Orleans, and the first post of their actual wedding day! We’ll take a look at the getting ready images first.

As a reminder, we are featuring Sheri + John’s wedding as part of our [100:1 series] where we showcase 100 images from 1 wedding day. On top of that, we’ve expanded our [100:1 series] to include comments from Sheri + John about the images, and what some of the moments mean to them.

~ Charles

SHERI: These are John’s cufflinks that belonged to his grandfather, his “Pa.” John and his dad stumbled across these soon after his grandmother died. He was so excited to find them and honored to be able to wear these on our wedding day.

JOHN: These were my grandfather’s cufflinks he wore for every formal occasion in his life. We found them when my grandmother passed away a few months before my wedding and I just had to have something from them in my wedding. Charles captured this shot as I was getting ready not knowing the meaning behind them until after he took the photo.

SHERI: The following images are priceless to me! I was so happy to have Charles capture John getting ready. So often the groom is put on the back-burner because a lot of focus and attention are directed towards the bride. The fact that Meg spends time with the bride and her girls getting ready and Charles hangs out with the guys, was a HUGE plus!!

JOHN: So I did not get into the room I was using to get ready until about 30 minutes before group pictures for the guys. Charles walked in about 2 minutes before I got into the shower and was able to capture several great shots of me in my fury of preparation.

JOHN: Like father, like son.

JOHN: I was giving Charles a serious face right before this shot, but when I laughed at my attempt to look serious and hot, he caught the real me.

SHERI: I *LOVE* this shot of John’s dad helping him with his dad’s cufflinks. So sweet!

JOHN: I have no idea how weddings worked before cell phones.

JOHN: I swear real bowties are easier than trying to hook these together without help – especially when you are running late!

JOHN: My wedding gift from Sheri. She is one of the few people that can made me cry.