Although I’ve photographed a few events at The Cardinal Club in downtown Raleigh, this was my first wedding reception. The club is located in the Wachovia building on Fayetteville Street and even though there are a lot of wedding venues in North Carolina, very few put your guests twenty-nine floors high above the city! Their wedding ceremony was held at St Francis of Assisi Church in Raleigh which I was just at a few weeks earlier! My favorite part about that church is the large amounts of natural light that pour through the skylights.
Before we get to the photos let’s learn a little bit about how Jackie and BJ arrived at their wedding day. It all began when they met at a party in Boone, NC back in 2007. BJ told me that their first date was at a football tailgate, but Jackie interjected that a tailgate “does not count as a date.” Sorry BJ but unless you were the only one’s there and shared a “Crock-Pot of chili made just for two” I have to tend to agree with Jackie. :)
At the time Jackie was in her first year of graduate school at Appalachian for Speech-Language Pathology and BJ was finishing up his last year of undergraduate. Shortly after they started officially dating, BJ moved to Memphis and worked on his cousin’s campaign. I have to applaud them for sustaining their long distance relationship for over half a year as it’s always a bit tough. It all worked out though and when the campaign was over and Jackie was finished with grad school, they both moved back to Raleigh to be together. They adopted a Husky rescue dog named Charlie whom they love dearly. BJ even joked a bit that he thinks that Jackie loves “the dog” a little more than him.
So what about the engagement? Well, in September last year they both took a trip to D.C. since they had been talking about for a while. They had hoped to to go before BJ started law school so they decided to take a train from Raleigh because it would be a new experience. They told me that they had it all happened on September 3rd right in front of the Jefferson Memorial. After an awesome dinner the first night they went for a walk around the national mall and made their way down to the water near the Memorial. It was on that spot that BJ got down on one knee and popped the question. Jackie said that she kept saying “Are you serious? Are you serious?” because she couldn’t believe it was happening! Ever since then, their life was been consumed with wedding planning and BJ’s first year of law school.
I can personally say that all of their hard work payed off though. The ceremony was wonderful and their party was rockin’! After I had posted some “teaser photos” on Facebook for the couple to enjoy on their honeymoon they commented on how beautiful (and hysterical) the variety of photos were. I love being surrounded by clients that treat their wedding like the best day of their lives! Congratulations to both of you and please know that your wedding holds a special place for me!
Reception: Cardinal Club – Shelly Rhem
DJ: Touch of Class DJs – Lenny Fritts
Cake: Sweet Memories Bakery – Donna Ford
Photobooth: Palmetto City Photobooth – Chris Gentry
Flowers: English Gardens
Event Stylist: Lisa Tatum
A portrait of Jackie and her beautiful sisters…
Jackie had only a few photo requests. She really wanted to see BJ’s reaction as she walked down the aisle. I positioned myself as best I could and really liked how this one came out.
A funny moment as BJ realizes that he’s supposed to actually put the ring on Jackie’s finger as he recites the “With this ring…” portion of the officiant’s speech.
The bride and groom were surrounded by some truly close friends.
This is a great candid moment captured between the groom and best man
Wonderful wedding colors! The men’s suits were grey and the bridesmaids dresses were light blue (or maybe it’s considered teal?)
These photographs were taken in at the revolving door near the base of The Cardinal Club.
I love when people make unique wedding entrances instead of just walking in looking like a deer in headlights. The photos turn out great!
I think Jackie was pleasantly surprised when these wedding bubbles floated out during her first dance.
Once the flower girls saw the bubbles they ran across the dance floor to play…
… and then one of the girls walks right into the main stream. I love her expression! This photo is also great because it has Jackie “showing off he ring” in the background on the right. One of my favs of the day!
The bride and her father exchange smiles as the dance together during the father daughter dance.
During the mother son dance BJ and his mom tore up the dance floor to James Taylor’s ” How Sweet It Is.”
This wonderful wedding cake by Donna Ford at Sweet Memories Bakery perfectly matched the look and feel of the bride’s wedding gown.
It was SO wonderful that someone couldn’t resist the urge to sample it early with their finger!
A HA! I found the guilty culprit… caught her “frosting handed!”
The father of the bride prepares for an amazing wedding toast filled with heartfelt moments and hilarious stories!
On two separate occasions he actually called Jackie (the bride) by her sister’s (Carly) name… I love the following photos of Jackie’s reaction of disbelief and laughter!
The best man gives his speech as he hold’s his daughter’s hand… very sweet…
Jackie’s sisters gave a great toast/roast combo! It included several references to boy bands as well as Jackie’s secret wish to someday see what BJ looks like with a mullet.
A macro photos of the engagement ring and wedding bands.
The wedding photobooth was a hit with all of the guests!
We took a moment to take some wedding portraits on the stairs at The Cardinal Club. I added off camera lighting to this shot which complimented the light shining through the windows from downtown Raleigh.
BJ’s mom jumps in the photobooth too.
Even grandpa got in on the photobooth fun as everyone put fun props on him!
Lenny Fritts from A Touch of Class DJ’s was perfect! He’s such a friendly guy and had a genuine smile on his face the whole night. I love working with wedding vendors that truly care abut and enjoy what they do…
… yet besides I knew he was going to ROCK DA HOUSE when I saw this at his DJ station!
Do the worm!
Yes… that’s the groom in the background watching his beautiful new bride getting grinded on by one of their best friends… :)
I think they used these guys to create the silhouette for the Karate Kid poster from the new movie.
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