Lance and Emily are MARRIED! They tied the knot at the gorgeous Malden Hill venue in Aylett, VA. Y’all – this place is captivating to say the least! Emily told me she set out for a rustic venue with a statement barn and fell in love with Malden Hill and their helpful staff.
Malden Hill boasts a stunning barn, rolling hills across hundreds of acres and has bridal and groom rooms that are all full of gorgeous details. It’s an all-in-one venue that offers tables, chairs and linens and can be booked for the entire weekend! Emily shared that the owner and his family helped with a lot of the set up as well and I thought that really spoke to the way the staff appreciates their customers.
The new Mr. and Mrs. Heskett are such a sweet couple and I was honored to be there to capture their wedding day. I fully recognize that choosing a wedding photographer isn’t a responsibility most brides take lightly. Through conversations with my brides I have learned that it’s one of the planning to-do’s that have the potential to create a lot of stress, but one that most brides refuse to overlook. I understand this especially because this is a HUGE day. This thought alone brings me to the most humble place emotionally. When I say I LOVE wedding photography, I could honestly never fully articulate what that means.
The excitement that comes with every single session booked is truly on a different level, but wedding photography is definitely that one thing for me that sets it all apart. I’m grateful, thankful and BLESSED, every single time I mark my calendar for a new wedding! Emily & Lance’s wedding was such a pleasure to photograph and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know them!
Wedding photography is so fun and exciting for me in and of itself but when you get to warm up and get to know each other before the wedding day I really believe that the flow of things change for the better. My wedding packages include an engagement (or bridal portrait) session prior to wedding day and I love this opportunity to get to meet and spend time with the bride and groom before their big day! We did just that during their engagement session so we were able to pick right back up where we left off for their wedding day!
Enough about ME, let’s talk about THEM! I met Lance and Emily for the first time after they booked me for their wedding day photography, which is always super fun and is always a “pinch me” moment! I feel like the session prior to wedding day helps my couples get comfortable in front of the camera before their wedding day and helps us to get to know each other more so that things can move smooth on the big day – this was exactly the case with Emily & Lance, we had SO much fun together even after just recently meeting each other!
Their love story is so sweet! They met in middle school and had been friends since, but Emily said she wrote in his yearbook “eww” which summed up how she felt about him (LOL!). She said this is still something they joke about now… funny how times can change! They went to different high schools and some time had passed before they spoke again at 19 when mutual friends between the two of them invited them to a movie. They sat next to each other that night and starting dating soon after.
I love the love stories that bring couples back to each other, ugh! My heart.
They would spend their college years going back and forth visiting each other and then adopted their dog Loki after Emily graduated from college. Loki was Lance’s wingman during the proposal, where he wore a bandana asking the big question!
I asked Emily what her favorite part of the entire day was and without a doubt she said it was their first look. This is becoming more popular but is still not something that all brides choose. I LOVE when couple’s choose to do a first look… the emotions that flow during this part of the day just can’t be put into words. Emily said it perfectly, “It was so nice having a first look with just us before the ceremony. It gave us time to just live in the moment with each other and not have all eyes on us.” They exchanged personal vows during their first look and I just have to put it on record how much I loved the “it’s our day, we can do what we want” vibe about this part of Emily and Lance’s wedding day!! Plus, it was REALLY SWEET!
You wouldn’t have ever known the challenges that they faced while planning a wedding amidst a pandemic because their wedding day was nothing short of perfection! Emily had her eye on the prize and worked tirelessly to push through the covid related challenges she faced during planning, which all came full circle after the perfect day they had. Every detail was beautifully crafted and the day couldn’t have flowed any better.
She did her own makeup and had her aunt and sister take care of the flowers (and they were stunning!). I was blown away when she told me this because everything was SO beautiful and professional!
Other vendors involved in the Heskett’s big day:
Hair: Haley Ross at Beyond Bangz (Mechanicsville, VA)
DJ: H&W Entertainment – https://www.facebook.com/handwentertainment/
Videography: Sportsman’s Culture – https://www.facebook.com/sportsmans.culture
As always, thank you for supporting me and following along! A huge thank you to Emily and Lance for allowing me to capture your big day! Congratulations!
Xoxo,
Ashley
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