Aaron Watson Photography Blog - Charlottesville, Va » General

Announcing Aaron Watson Photography’s “Love” The T-Shirt Contest Winner(s)!

Kelsey — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:15:46 +0000

It’s been a very intense battle to the finish in our “Love” the T-Shirt Contest (if you haven’t already seen it check out our Facebook Page)! All the brides who had their picture taken at the Aaron Watson Photography and Exist N’ Motion booth at the Elegance in Bridal show did an amazing job rallying likes to win the Prize. It was very exciting for us to watch the votes shoot up! Last year we were so impressed when the winner of the Contest got over 100 votes, and this year the winner has reached over 1000 votes!!! Congratulations to Kiersten for getting so many likes and being the winner of our “Love” the T-Shirt Contest!!!

But wait, we have an added surprise for two of our other brides! (I wish there was a way to insert a drumroll in a blog post.) Because there were so many brides who did such an amazing job in the contest, we are going to be giving a 2nd and 3rd place prize!!! Congratulations to Kadee for being our second place winner with 954 votes, and to Allie for being our third place winner with 393 votes!!! You can see what each girl has won by scrolling down and reading the caption under each winning picture.

Congratulations to each of our winners, and a BIG thank you to all of the brides who participated in our contest! You rock!

Kiersten has won the grand prize of an Engagement Session with Aaron, as well as a 16×24 print of her favorite photograph from the session! (Valued at $545)

Kadee has won the second prize of an Engagement Session with Aaron, and an 8×10 print of her favorite photograph from the session! (Valued at $389.95)

Allie has won the third prize of a $250 album credit for a custom designed Aaron Watson Photography Wedding Album!

Aaron Watson Photography is Loving these wedding blogs

Kelsey — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 22:27:10 +0000

We were so honored to be featured in a few wedding blogs this month, and we wanted to share the love and feature their blogs on ours! The Charlottesville Wedding Blog posted twelve of our favorite pictures from 2011, and the Bridal Bar Blog did a post on Kyle & Regan’s Fall Wedding. Both blogs are great resources for brides planning their wedding because they show off the work of local vendors, give all kinds of advice, and offer inspiration for every aspect of a wedding. We highly recommend stopping by these blogs regularly and seeing all the great things they share! (Make sure you click on the pictures to read the full posts!)

Win 2 Tickets to the Elegance in Bridal Show!

Kelsey — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:32:59 +0000

The Elegance in Bridal Show will be hosted this coming Sunday in Charlottesville at the Omni Hotel, January 22, 2012, from 12-4pm.
You will not want to miss this!! Come spend a day at the show and be inspired for your wedding planning by some of the area’s amazing wedding vendors! Aaron Watson Photography and Exist N Motion Films will be there along with many other wedding professionals showcasing their talents. The show will be a great resource for any bride or wedding planner attending.

You may remember that we gave away 2 tickets to the last Elegance in Bridal show back in August. Well, we’re doing it again! By leaving a comment below on our Wedding Blog, Facebook or Twitter you will be entered to win the FREE tickets! For each place you comment (or retweet) you will receive one entry (up to 3 entries total)! We will choose a winner on Wednesday!

We look forward to seeing you! Be sure to get there early and stop by our booth, we will be giving away more of our “Love Aaron Watson Photography” T-Shirts! Here is a sneak peak of the design!! Available to the first 100 brides.

This is our booth from last year so you’ll be sure to recognize us!

Family Portraits at Farmington – A little left over Holiday Cheer!

Kelsey — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 17:19:50 +0000

Here are a few family portraits from Ashley, Chris, Abby and Alden’s session at Farmington Country Club. Even if the holiday season is technically over, I think these gorgeous pictures are worth sharing at any season, and a little extra Holiday Cheer is always welcome! Plus how incredibly adorable are Abby and Alden? Abby’s facial expressions are priceless, she has the whole range, from being awestruck at Santa’s train to being goofy and sticking her tongue out at Aaron. She is such a great big sister, and the pictures of her and Alden together are amazing. Also, I know I have mentioned this before, but bubbles are magic! Every child loves to play with bubbles, and for some reason they always bring out the child’s personality in the cutest way.

Newborn Studio Photography – Baby Announcements!

Kelsey — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 21:51:28 +0000

We are so excited to introduce you to our good friend’s, Kat and Stephen’s, beautiful new baby girl Aria Lynn! We are also very proud to show you the baby announcement we designed for them to send out to their family and friends. We chose this card because we wanted it to have a little bit of a South African flair to represent Stephen’s home country, and the animals on the front were perfect! Aria’s room is also decorated with animals like these, and when we were designing the card with Kat, she told us that Aria’s name means ‘lion’. Aria is an absolutely beautiful baby, and she was a great model! Kat brought a few bright colored blankets and a few props for Aria to wear during her session, and everything looked so cute! I love the picture on the card of Aria wrapped in the pink blanket with the pink flower headband. I also can’t get over how beautiful Kat looks! The picture of her lying with Aria and looking at the camera is stunning. We hope you enjoy looking at Aria’s Newborn Portraits, and make sure you take a close look at the last photograph; you may recognize “Thing 1″ from some pictures we posted a few weeks ago of a previous newborn session with Aria’s cousin Tigerlilly! How adorable is that picture?!

Front of Announcement:

Back of Announcement:

(We would like you all to know, that despite appearances, Tigerlilly did not actually push over her cousin’s bucket:)

Wedding Photography in Washington DC – Anticipation

Kelsey — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 17:05:11 +0000

Today I am going to share some of Amanda and Dan’s wedding photographs from their wedding at the Top of the Town in Washington DC. Today’s post will tell the story of their wedding day leading up to the ceremony. They had the always wonderful Megan Daubert of Megan Daubert Events as their wedding coordinator, and everything couldn’t have been more beautiful! The flowers provided by Growing Wild Inc. were absolutely amazing. I love all the vibrant colors in the bouquets and in the arch for Amanda and Dan to stand under during the ceremony. I also love Amanda’s shoes, she bedazzled the bottoms with blue jewels spelling out “I Do”, which is a great way to incorporate her something blue! Amanda and Dan also had their adorable poodle Lucy be a part of their wedding, and she hung out with Amanda and her bridesmaid Eileen while they got ready. I think the last picture of Amanda and her dad in the limo is the perfect one to end this post; it is full of anticipation as they watch for their cue to begin the walk down the aisle. I can’t wait to show you some more pictures from their ceremony and reception tomorrow!

Wedding Photographer: Aaron Watson Photography
Wedding Coordinator: Megan Daubert Events
Venue: Top of the Town
Caterer: R&R Catering
Wedding DJ: Double-E Mobile Music
Wedding Cake: Kendall’s Cakes
Florist: Growing Wild Inc.
Transportation: Access Limo
Valet Service: Prestige Valet
Wedding Favors: B.Hall Baker
Ceremony Musicians: Bialek’s/Jerry Lynn Duo
Hair and Make-Up: Hair and Faces by Lisa

Family Portrait Photography in Charlottesville VA

Kelsey — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 20:11:59 +0000

Happy Halloween everyone! Today we are going to share some of Rebecca, Eric and Grace’s (and their dog Opie’s) Family Portraits. They had their session at their house, which has gorgeous views, and a lot of great places to take pictures. Their whole family loves being outdoors, and Rebecca says that Grace also loves to play with rocks and bugs. Needless to say, Grace was in her element as they hiked all over the place outside. In addition to all the great photographs they got outside, at the end of their session they went inside and Grace put on her Halloween costume! She is going to be the Queen of Hearts, and she is so beautiful, and has such a dazzling smile, that I know she is going to get a lot of candy tonight! So, it is only fitting to show you pictures from their session today. Trick or Treat!

Grace picked these flowers, held them up and called them her “bride flowers”. So precious!

Engagement Photography in Richmond Va

Kelsey — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 16:15:35 +0000

I am so excited about these engagement pictures from Jing and Jeff’s Engagement Session! To start, Jing and Jeff are hysterical. They have so much fun, and are constantly making each other laugh, and some of the faces they made in the pictures are priceless! They are also very stylish, and each outfit they wore perfectly matched their surroundings. Two thumbs up for styling. I also love these pictures because they did the first part of their session in a little cupcake shop in Richmond. The shop is called Two Sweet Cupcake Boutique, and it is so cute. (Not to mention the cupcakes Aaron brought back were delicious!) The J & J coffee cups and J & J pillow are awesome (both were gifts from friends), and I love the “too sweet” apron and the stuffed cupcake! For the next part of their session they went to Maymont Park, which is absolutely beautiful. Every place they went was more gorgeous than the last and when they took pictures next to the waterfall it looked like they were transported to a different country! Congratulations to Jing and Jeff on their engagement, and we can’t wait for their wedding next year!

Newborn Photography in Charlottesville VA

Kelsey — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 19:57:18 +0000

I hope you’re ready for some incredibly cute pictures today! Tigerlilly was born a few weeks ago, and she was only 11 days old when her parents Kris and Shawn brought her into the studio for her newborn portraits. For Kris’s baby shower, Kat (her sister) gave her one of our Watch Me Grow sessions, so this was the first of our three sessions with Tigerlilly. Kris, Kat, and their mom Val are incredibly creative, and they had thought of so many amazing sets for the pictures. Val even cut off the top of a hallowed out pumpkin so we could sit Tigerlilly in it for a perfect fall scene. Tigerlilly is already so tiny, and the big flowers and the huge tootsie pop make her look itty bitty! She is also absolutely beautiful, and she looks so adorable in all the different settings. I love all the bright colors from this session, but I also love the simple black and white photographs of Tigerlilly with her mom and dad.

Holiday Deadlines for Wedding Albums + Parent Album sale!

Aaron Watson — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 14:40:23 +0000

Holiday Deadline for Wedding Albums is October 21st!
Make sure to send us your picture selection or album order this week if you want your album back in time for the holidays! You may elect to pick your favoirte pictures for your album or have us pick the pictures for you. Give us a call at the office, 434.202.8031 if you have questions.

Picture from Anne & Campbell’s wedding at King Family Vineyards by Aaron Watson

Parent Album Sale!!!
If you are starting to wonder about a great gift to give your parents (or grandparents) this Holiday Season, get them a beautiful custom designed album! We are very excited to announce that we have new options for Parent Albums starting at $395!

To celebrate these beautiful new albums we are giving 20% off the purchase of your first parent album! If you purchase two or more parent albums, we will give you an even sweeter deal of 30% off your parent albums!

In order to take advantage of this you must order your main album by October 21st, and submit the order for your parent albums by November 11th (in order to receive it in time for the holidays). Contact us for more information on our new album collections and make sure to do it soon before the sale ends on November 11th!

Picture from Sarah & Matt’s Wedding at Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards

Aaron Watson Photography and Mount Ida Featured on the Washingtonian Magazine Blog

Aaron Watson — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 18:09:53 +0000

Shortly after we posted yesterday about being featured on the Charlottesville Wedding Blog, we were also featured on the Washingtonian Magazine’s blog: Bridal Party for our shoot at Mount Ida Farm! Thanks to Kim and Kathleen for their great compliments and special thanks to Milicent for asking us to do such an inspired shoot at Mount Ida Farm! If you haven’t seen their new website you should definitely check it out: www.mountidafarm.com!

We are looking forward to photographing many beautiful weddings at Mount Ida!

Charitable Donations double as Wedding Gifts

Aaron Watson — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 16:42:56 +0000

Recently Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds did a charity concert in Charlottesville, Va where each of the attendees had a chance to donate the cost of their ticket to the charity of their choice through justgive.org. We were really inspired by this and after having a chance to check out the website we found out about the I Do foundation.

More and more we are seeing couples donating to charities in lieu of favors for guests. Just Give and the I Do Foundation joined forces last year to make it even easier for couples to give through their wedding. They have a ton of different ways to give, from having a charity gift registry to giving donations as wedding favors. Couples can even make wedding purchases from the I Do Foundation’s partner stores and a percentage of their purchase goes to different charities. Even if a couple hasn’t signed up with the I Do Foundation, guests can personalize an I Do charity gift card and give it to the couple as their wedding gift.

One of the coolest things about this is that there are so many different charities registered on their website. Everyone has a charity or a type of charity that is near and dear to their heart, and through this website each guest or couple can give to a charity of their choice.

We’d love to hear if anyone has used this organization or something like it and what they thought, let us know!

Win 2 Tickets to the Elegance in Bridal Show on our Wedding Blog

JP — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 21:51:41 +0000

The Elegance in Bridal Show will be hosted this coming Sunday in Charlottesville at the Omni Hotel, August 28, 2011, from 1-4pm.
You will not want to miss this!! Come spend a day at the show and take in all that the area has to offer when it comes to planning your wedding! Aaron Watson Photography and Exist N Motion Films will be there along with many other wedding professionals showcasing their talents. The show will be a great resource for any bride or wedding planner attending. Amanda’s Touch Bridal will also host a fashion show with some of their amazing dresses!

We have 2 tickets to give away to the bridal show! Leave a comment below on our Wedding Blog, Facebook or Twitter and we will pick a winner for the FREE tickets! For each place you comment (or retweet) you will receive one entry (up to 3 entries total)! We will choose a winner on Friday!

We look forward to seeing you! Be sure to get there early and stop by our booth, we will have many giveaways, one of those being a new custom designed T-Shirt! Here is a sneak peak of the design!! Available to the first 100 brides.

This is our booth from last year!

Hank and Olga’s Beloved Session – Staunton Wedding Photographer

JP — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 20:39:20 +0000

Olga and Hank were married in March of this year at the beautiful Keswick Hall. We were very excited to reconnect with them and photograph their beloved session, which is similar to an engagement session but occurs after the couple is already married. We sometimes refer to them as “just because” sessions, because there isn’t any particular occasion, we are just celebrating a husband’s and wife’s love through pictures.
Hank and Olga live near Staunton so Aaron drove there to meet them for their session. Hank and Olga are really into photography and they love the look that Staunton has to offer, and Aaron was very excited to explore a place he doesn’t photograph in often. Staunton had many unique locations for pictures; the historic downtown Staunton turned out to be a goldmine! Especially when paired with the amazing props Olga and Hank brought along, the shiny red balloon being a big favorite of ours. Olga is a gifted dancer as you will see in the photos and her style, grace and natural beauty make these pictures really special. Enjoy the first Beloved Session we have shared on the Blog!

Baby Announcements – Charlottesville Newborn Photographer

JP — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 14:44:02 +0000

We think it’s so terrific for parents to have professional photos taken of their newborns, especially around the two week mark. Within the first month of a baby’s life, they grow and change so fast that you want to make sure you have memories of those first weeks. We love to see the pride and joy on parents’ faces when they bring the newest member of the family in to have their first photos taken. It feels like such a privilege to take these newborn portraits!
Because we love taking pictures of brand new babies so much, we are very excited to introduce a new product line of baby announcements that will help parents introduce their child to the rest of the world! These birth announcements are custom designed in our studio and we have many different options; the ones below are a few samples of our 5×7 flat and folded cards. More sizes and designs coming soon!
(Birth information is just for the samples and is not the actual birth information of these new babies)

5×7 Flat Card Front:

5×7 Flat Card Back:

5×7 Flat Card Front:

5×7 Flat Card Back:

5×7 Folded Card Front/Back:

5×7 Folded Card Inside:

5×7 Flat Card Front:

5×7 Flat Card Back:

Newborn Photography by Aaron Watson