Wedding Photography Greensboro: Carisa Chee Photography » Trash the Dress

Michele at Winmock {Winston Salem Bridal Photography}

Carisa Chee — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 00:10:38 +0000

Whenever I have the chance, I love to get together with a few fabulous wedding vendors in the area and photograph a styled portrait session. Last fall, we had an amazing time at Winmock at Kinderton, which is a gorgeous new wedding venue in Winston Salem. It’s a beautiful location, inside and out, but my favorite part of the site is, of course, the amazing ceiling over their main reception room. I also couldn’t get over the romantic table settings that Brooke Csuka of Nouvelle Soiree created, or the ethereal wedding gown that Hayden Olivia allowed us to use. Everyone worked incredibly hard to make this day a success, and I am honored to have been a part of it.

Location: Winmock at Kinderton
Set styling and accessories: Brook Csuka, of Nouvelle Soiree Modern Event Design
Model: Michele Lahaie
Hair and makeup: Amy Gooch, of Exquisite Style by Amy
Flower arrangements: Wayne Hurst, of Floral Visions Design
Gown: Hayden Olivia, of Charlotte

Bridal Portraits at Starlight Meadows

Carisa Chee — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 18:13:55 +0000

This week I’ve been posting images from a portrait session at Starlight Meadows in Burlington, NC. Several other artists and myself met on a gorgeous, but windy, day last autumn to see what we would create together. Carla White, our fabulous hair and make-up artist, was the genius behind both soft, vintage looks. Our model, Leah Pack, was amazingly willing to do whatever we had in mind that day, which included placing her on a semi-tame horse. And I’m incredibly grateful for her patience with the cold and a large, jumpy animal, because I’m in love with the photos from that day.

Kathryn {Trash the Dress}

Carisa Chee — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 20:55:14 +0000

It’s no secret among my brides that I love to trash that wedding gown. (We don’t really trash them – we just get them slightly dirtier than they were before.) These sessions are just a relaxed and fabulous way to spend an afternoon. Kathryn had a gorgeous wedding dress, and she wanted to wear it one more time before having it cleaned and preserved. She’s so much fun to photograph, and such a wonderful model, that I always look forward to seeing her. Plus, I love the North Carolina mountains in the autumn, and I jumped at the chance to head out to Hanging Rock State Park near Danbury.

As always, I absolutely loved seeing you again, Kathryn!

Leigh at the Goat Lady Dairy {Vintage Bridal Photography}

Carisa Chee — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 19:23:08 +0000

Before last spring, I had never been to the Goat Lady Dairy in Climax, NC. But after this portrait session there, it’s one of my absolute favorite places to photograph. Mills, who showed us around the dairy, was beyond welcoming to us, as was her entire family. And the land itself is breath-taking. We were lucky enough to be there right after the baby goats were birthed, and Mills very generously allowed us to use them in our images.

Since this portrait session, my husband and I have had the opportunity to enjoy a Dinner at the Dairy, and I have to say it was one of the best meals we’ve ever eaten. The food is fresh from the farm, and their cheese course is amazing. I cannot recommend their dinners highly enough. You just have to go and experience one for yourself. But until then, let me give you a little peek of this piece of heaven on earth.

The gorgeous bouquets were designed and made by Wayne, at Floral Visions, who is one of our Peeps We Love.

The fabulous top hat fascinator and birdcage veil were created by Hey Sailor! Hats. And Leigh’s flawless make-up and hair design were styled by Amy Gooch, from Exquisite Style by Amy.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to this amazing day!

Dress Irreverence: Radar

Carisa Chee — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 03:39:57 +0000

There’s a popular trend in wedding photography today called “trashing the dress.” The idea is that a bride has spent hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars on her dream dress and she looked gorgeous in it. But now the wedding is over, and she may not ever get the chance to wear it again. Even if she had a bridal session, chances were she was worried about getting the dress dirty the entire time and she therefore looks less than relaxed in the photos. And now that the wedding day is past, she has a few options for her perfect dress. She can have it cleaned and preserved in a cardboard box, where she’ll never really get to enjoy it again and it will eventually yellow, no matter what the dry-cleaner tells her. She can donate it or sell it so that another bride can have a beautiful dress on her wedding day, too. Some brides even have a christening gown made for their first child out of the material, which is a lovely idea in my opinion.

However, many women want to wear that beautiful gown at least one more time. And they want to have amazing photos taken in that dress that look like they came straight out of a magazine. Now personally, I think “trash the dress” is too strong of a term to use. The dress isn’t destroyed. It’s already dirty from the wedding day, and it’s in need of cleaning. So to take it to a field, to a junkyard, or to the mountains will get it a little dirtier and possibly wet, but in most cases it won’t ruin the gown. That’s why I love the name that Jessica Claire, a well-known photographer out of California, came up for these sessions: dress irreverence. The dress is no longer treated with kid gloves, and the bride can relax and have fun knowing that she doesn’t have to keep it pristine any longer. It’s an enjoyable day, and the images captured will probably be among her very favorite in her gown.

When Radar told me she wanted to trash her Winnie Couture gown, I was in heaven. I’ve had the honor of photographing her several times now, and she is the perfect model – gorgeous, fun, and easy to pose. And the idea of taking that hand-made gown and creating a truly unique and fabulous session for her was more than I could ask for. Her husband, Mark, came along to carry the gown and act as dog-handler to their weimaraner, Minnie; and I felt I was out for the day with a couple of old friends. We spent four hours (yes – FOUR) hiking up and down stone stairs, changing into the dress, changing out of the dress, changing back into the dress, and creating what has become one of my favorite portrait sessions ever. I was beyond impressed with Radar’s energy and ability to still look perfect and gorgeous after hiking all afternoon, and I had a fabulous time with all three of them.

Thank you for another amazing portrait session, Radar. I hope you love these images as much as I do.