Rachel & Chance | Wedding at Amber Grove in Mosely VA | Sarah Kane Photography

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Wedding at Amber Grove in Mosley VA | Sarah Kane Photography

Rachel & Chance had the most  beautiful wedding at the elegant and charming venue of Amber Grove! Amber Grove is the perfect venue for a wedding big or small! There are so many options for a ceremony and reception. Whether you choose outside in the gardens,  the rustic barn, the gorgeous manor house or the huge outdoor tent you cannot go wrong with this venue! It wouldn't be a winter wedding without a little bit of snow! If you don't remember it snowing yet this seasons that's because it didn't.  My adorable little snowman machine has been getting a lot of use lately!

Rachel & Chance chose the date of December 8 (the anniversary of when they started dating) for their very intimate wedding of 10 guests. The house was decorated to the hilt for Christmas and was more beautiful than I imagined. Every room, table and banister was covered in Christmas.  Speaking of beautiful Rachel was absolutely stunning! I first met Rachel & Chance when during a model call I was holding for couples to pose for engagement pictures. I was looking to build my portfolio and they came across my ad on facebook. We met at Sunday Park and they couldn't be more easy going, sweet and happened to both be extremely photogenic!

When Rachel later asked me to photograph their wedding I was thrilled!  I was even more excited when I found out that they would be getting married at Amber Grove. When I first saw the barn all lit up with string ball lights I think my heart skipped a beat! I couldn't wait to photograph their wedding.

I am a total DIY kind of gal and can so appreciate Rachel's thriftiness of planning her wedding. Her gorgeous wedding dress is from the Vera Wang White collection, however Rachel got it at a HUGE discount because she purchased from preownedweddingdresses.com! What a genius idea!! If you think about it brides spend sometimes thousands of dollars on a wedding dress that they will wear only once in their life. Why not save money and buy pre-owned? Think of how much money you would have to invest elsewhere like, oh I don't know, photography ;)

Since it was such a small wedding Rachel only needed a bridal bouquet. I had a crazy idea that I could help her make it using some purchased flowers and shrubbery from my sister's yard! Crazy right? Well, the part about me actually making it because I didn't know a think about making a bouquet! Thankfully the very multi-talented Tara Pattengale came to the rescue! Rachel spent $20 on 3 types of flowers, pale pink roses, baby's breath and some pretty green ball like flowers (I have no idea what they are called) and the rest did come from my sister's yard! You thought I was kidding about that didn't you? Tara did a phenomenal job on Rachel's bouquet and it cost less than $40 for flowers and supplies! Everything was perfect!

Congratulations Rachel & Chance, may you have much love and happiness always in your life!

 

Bride's Dress Vera Wang White Collection - Preowened Wedding Dresses

Groom's Tuxedo - Men's Warehouse

Hair - Jaci Chmielewski  

Makeup - Nicole Laughlin Makeup Artist 

Flowers - Fresh Market and My sister's backyard :)

Bouquet - Tara Pattengale

When Two Photographers Get Together | Sarah Kane Photography

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What happens when two photographers get together? They rock out a photo shoot of course! I'm so thankful to Allison Shumate for reaching out and suggesting that we trade services and have a little photo shoot! I am so fortunate to be part of the Shoot & Share Richmond photography group. I've met so many amazing photographers in the short time I've been a member and have had some amazing pictures taken! Thought I'd share some of my favorites from out session. Allison and I gave each other our unedited images so we could edit in our own style. It's always scary letting someone see your "naked" pictures especially another photographer! I had so much fun and cannot wait to do it again in the fall! Huge thank you to the very talented Allison Shumate of Allison Shumate Photography! I also have to give a shout out to my very good friend Ryan Stewart for accessorizing my wardrobe. She has the most amazing sense of style and jewelry collection I've ever seen! 

The following images were taken by Allison Shumate edited by Sarah Kane.

Thought I'd share a little before and after! Obviously I removed the fence. The light was only good in that direction and the fence just killed the shot!! You always have to go where the light is! While I was in Photoshop I thought I'd add a little …

Thought I'd share a little before and after! Obviously I removed the fence. The light was only good in that direction and the fence just killed the shot!! You always have to go where the light is! While I was in Photoshop I thought I'd add a little makeup too :) I don't normally do that because it would take FOREVER, but I thought I'd have a little fun!

Images of Allison Shumate by Sarah Kane

I must remember this angle for the next shoot we do together. Gorgeous!!!

I must remember this angle for the next shoot we do together. Gorgeous!!!

Coloring Eggs | My Life | Sarah Kane Photography

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Easter Eggs | Sarah Kane Photography

I always loved Easter as a kid. I couldn't wait to find my Easter basket in the morning. I think the challenge of finding it was better than the gifts in the actual basket. I loved coloring eggs, eating the eggs and hunting for plastic eggs! 

Now that I have kids of my own I love that I get to do all of those things again with them and it's so cool that Brennan (my oldest) loves all of the things that I loved!

After living away from my family for so many years I am so thankful that we all moved to Richmond and that my kids get to spend so much time with Nanny and Poppy. This is my Easter.

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This was Grady's first time coloring Easter Eggs! 

This was Grady's first time coloring Easter Eggs! 

I think he ate more eggs than he colored!

I think he ate more eggs than he colored!

Thanks Dad for taking these pictures of me and my boys!

Thanks Dad for taking these pictures of me and my boys!

Katelyn James Workshop Experience | Sarah Kane Photography

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I'm finally able to share about the Katelyn James Workshop Experience that I attended last November! We were asked to hold off on sharing any images until Katelyn's were submitted for publication and I'm happy to report that they've been published on The Wedding Chicks blog!

I learned so much during the two days I spent with Katelyn and 11 other amazing female photographers! I was a little worried because the workshop was long (9 am - 9pm). I have the attention span of a flea, but I have to say it went by in a flash. I was inthralled in every word. I didn't want to leave when it was over, I wanted more! I had a good more 5 hours in me atleast.

Picture by Katelyn James

Picture by Katelyn James

I've attended several workshops and this by far was definitely the most informative. Katelyn shared everything!  I was on information overload when I left, but I'm not complaining. I felt a bit lost about what I needed to do to grow my business and although I still have a long way to go this workshop helped me figure out the steps I needed to get started. 

I'll admit I was hesitant to take the workshop because of the price. I went back and forth for a few days then just finally took a leap of faith and registered.  I knew I walked in the door of Katelyn's home that it was going to be worth every penny and it was!  I highly recommend this experience to other wedding photographers! There were so many things I learned, but I couldn't implement them all at once, so I'm going to share with you the top 5 that I was able to do right away and were game changers for me.

First,bBeing convinced to edit in Lightroom instead of Photoshop. I am so stubborn and spent endless hours learning Photoshop ignoring all the advice others gave me about making the switch. Katelyn spent some time showing us a few tricks in Lightroom and I decided to give it a shot. Instantly I went from spending 3-4 hours editing 50 pictures to 1 hour! What's even better is I was able to do this without having to spend 35 hours learning Lightroom! The tips Katelyn gave got me there. This has drastically improved how quickly I can get clients their images and have more time to work on the business aspect of things.

Second, changing my business name to my actual name. This was difficult for me because I was emotionally invested in Dia Marie Photography, but after taking Katelyn's advice I made the switch and couldn't be happier. It was definitely the right decision for me!

Third, posing. I really struggled in this area and the workshop has improved my posing techniques dramatically!

Fourth, Blog stomp. If you blog and post images and don't have it get it! It's around $50. You won't regret it! (Update: Blog Stomp as since introduced Album Stomp. You must have it).

Lastly, I was lucky enough to win (never happens to me by the way) an album from Leathercrafstmen! The album is worth over $400!! I didn't have a sample wedding album, so this was huge!

There are so many more things I took away from this experience and have been working hard to implement into my own business, but that would be a really long blog post.

Check out a few of the pictures I took during the stylized shoot. I was more concerned with listening to what Katelyn was teaching then taking actual photos, but I did get a few!

Read More

 A year and a half after the Katelyn James Workshop Experience. Where I am now.

Vendor List

Flowers & Styling: Anthomanic, www.anthomanic.com
Calligraphy, Custom Cake Topper, Invitation Suite, Straws: The Weekend Type www.theweekendtype.com 
Furniture: Paisley & Jade www.paisleyandjade.com 
Cake: Fat Girl Cakes, www.fatgirlcakes.com
MUA/Hair: Emily Hudspeth www.emilyhudspeth.com 
Gown: Tiffany Bridal tiffanysbridal.com
Treats: Wegmans
Stemware, Plates, Napkins: Crate & Barrell 
Faux Fur Wrap: Express
Faux Snow: Target

Workshop Sponsors:
Kelly Moore: http://kellymoorebag.com/
Leather Craftsmen : http://leathercraftsmen.net/joomla1/
Align Album : http://alignalbumdesign.com/
Album Exposure : https://albumexposure.com/
Anthomanic Florist : http://www.anthomanic.com/
Emily Hudspeth : http://emilyhudspeth.com/
Two Bright Lights : http://www.twobrightlights.com/home.php
The Organic Bloom : http://theorganicbloom.com/
Templates for Photographers : http://templatesforphotographers.com/

Behind the New Look

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Can you believe it has been over 3 years since Dia Marie Photography was born?  It has been such a thrilling and fulling journey for me.  It hasn't exactly been a smooth ride though juggling a full-time teaching career and playing  single mom every other week made the road pretty bumpy at times. Many days I questioned if I could handle all that I was taking on and was it all worth it.  Whenever I started to feel discouraged my husband,  a man of few words, always said just enough to raise my spirits and help remind me of how far I've come. 

One thing was certain though there was no way I could continue to grow Dia Marie Photography, teach full-time, and raise my boys. Something had to give, so in June of 2013 I retired from teaching, invested in educating myself further in the photography and business world, and began rebranding Dia Marie to align with my vision.

The first step I took in rebranding was hiring the very talented Tim Harper to design my logo and set up my new website.  The inspiration behind my logo came from my love of nature and from a hair pin that belonged to my great grandmother. I've had this hair pin for as long as I can remember. Although I never met my great grandmother I've always felt as though I knew her through the heartwarming stories my mom and grandma would tell. She seemed like such  a kind lady and I always admired her fashionable style.

 The second step I took in the rebranding process was changing my business name from Dia Marie Photography to Sarah Kane Photography. This was one of the most difficult decisions for me to make. Dia is very special to me. Catie, my first niece, is very important in my life. I watched her everyday  from 9-5 the first summer she was born. As a single women still living a bachelorette life this was quite an experience. I loved having her and she even had her very own bedroom in my house. I would be lying if I denied the fact that I also loved the sound of my brother-in-law's car pulling into my driveway every day as well. As hard as it was at times on her very last day with me I cried like a baby when I handed her over to her dad and watched them drive away. My brother-in-law later said he felt like he was children services taking my baby away from me. Well, when Catie began to speak her S made the D sound and Sarah came out as Dia. She is now 9 years old and I've been Dia ever since. My family and newest nephew also call me Dia.  Not only does the name have special meaning Dia Marie Photography has gotten me this far and it's been hard to let it go.  So why did I change my name you may be wondering?  Not many people know who Dia is and at times were confused as to what to call me. As a service focused photographer I feel it's important that my clients are able to really connect with me and what better way than to use my actual name.  

A huge thanks to all of my fans who have followed Dia Marie Photography from the very beginning and for continuing this journey with Sarah Kane Photography!

Logo design by Tim Harper Designs 

Click here to view his website!