Walk Through a Wedding with Justin and Mary

A few years ago Grady and I went on an RV trip through the Monticello Wine Trail with some friends. I was completely blown away by the mountains of Virginia and all of the beautiful vineyards. Since we were camping, we visited a lot of the wineries, looking less than put together. So of course, we pull up to one of these beautiful vineyards for a tasting in our 1970’s RV and are followed in by a limo full of beautiful people. Before we started the tour, the guide asked if anyone had any other reservations and what time they were so he could be mindful of the time. The beautiful, well dressed people said, “We have a 1:30 at Veritas.” Since that day, we constantly joke about our 1:30 at Veritas whenever we are bumming it and need to get it together. So when an e-mail came through my inbox from one of my favorite photography couples of all time, Justin and Mary about a workshop at Veritas Winery, Walk Through A Wedding, I slapped the table and forwarded the email to Grady with the message “Justin and Mary have a 1:30 at Veritas…it’s a sign!!!!” After several hours of debating and nail biting and mental ping pong, I called Grady with a thousand reasons not to go. “I’m not really on that level.” “They are some of the best photographers on earth.” “I would be soooo nervous.” “I’m not ready.” To which Grady replied… “You are going…they are your favorite and they are at Veritas.” To which I replied… “I am physically unable to press the button because I am too nervous.” To which Grady replied… “No worries, I just registered you.” Gasssssppp, holy cow, I’m going! So fast forward to Labor Day. We made the drive to Waynesboro on Monday and checked into our hotel. We grabbed dinner in Charlottesville and then headed back to our hotel. I had a lot of work today and a timeline to finish and so I typed away and then tried to go to sleep. I woke up super excited but really nervous the next morning. Grady dropped me off at Veritas and I felt like I was being dropped off for my first day of school. The minute I walked in and was greeted by Justin and Mary, I knew the day was going to change my life and it did. Justin and Mary are not only incredible teachers, but they are incredibly intelligent and thoughtful people. I was tearing up within the first five minute listening to Mary explain the “why” to their photography and brand. I cried when explaining my own. In between tears, I ferociously write down note after note. They taught us about shooting for your why, directional light and letting small details tell big stories. They taught us light over location and practical steps to create better photographs. They taught us about one light and how it can make all the difference and how to create authentic and iconic portraits. They quoted so many movies and made us laugh. I loved every single second of this day and I am so grateful that Grady made me go! Justin and Mary are the real deal, genuine, kind, hilarious, incredibly talented teachers and overall lovely people. Here are some of the images I was able to capture using the principles we learned during the day. I am SO happy with the way “Iconic Bridal Portrait” turned out. I will absolutely incorporate this into all of my future weddings. As Mary taught about this, she said she would need three volunteers. I have no idea why, because I never volunteer for anything, but my hand shot up. The upside was I had the opportunity to shoot the Iconic Bridal Portrait with coaching from Mary Marantz. The downside I had to do this in front of everyone including Mary Marantz…and oh boy, was I ever nervous…I am sweating just thinking about it right now. But I am SO glad I raised my hand because this was one of THE coolest experiences ever and a moment I will treasure…even if I was shaking like a leaf! And one last thing…how amazing are Lindsay and Zach our models?! Lindsay is just so beautiful, I can’t get over it. She is a photographer too in VA. Check out her website. And thooooseee details, ahhhmazing. All by Amanda Veronee at Anthomanic. Ok, ok, the images!