Photo Album || Keya + Eric's Engagement + Elopement Weekend

I have a little secret. I might enjoy creating travel and adventure albums just a tiny bit more than wedding albums. Don’t get me wrong, I adore my wedding albums! But travel albums are just that much more story driven, allowing me to combine my style of candid photography with my own musings and anecdotes from each day. So, creating Keya and Eric’s elopement weekend album was perfect, because I got to tell a love story through the lens of their photographic adventure.

My goal was to make the two separate photoshoots blend together into one cohesive story about their lovely weekend, although we only spent about 5 hours total with them. As we ended our engagement shoot (see the full post here) with the most beautiful summer sunset leaving our couple in awe, I decided to set the scene with this opening photo of our Blue Ridge Mountains bathed in color. Photos-wise, from there I moved forward chronologically, ending our first day’s images showing Keya and Eric walking into the distance, alluding to their walk towards their future as husband and wife.

We had created so, so many images that it had been hard for Keya and Eric to narrow it down, so I aimed to add as many photos as possible into their book without making it overly crowded. That’s why I love these 12x12 albums - they’re still small enough to carry around or leave on the coffee table, but they allow for even a dozen photos on a page without making the spread look busy or the photos too small.

Cake: Cakes by Gray

Dress: Justin Alexander

Florals: Wild Mountain Blossoms

Hair & Makeup: Danielle at Salon Roche

Italian Wedding Cookies: Tofino's

Officiant: Rev. Rosewood

Photographer: Adrian Etheridge Photography

Rentals: Just Bloom Together

Suit: Kenneth Cole

Stylist: Just Bloom Together

Venue: Pisgah Inn

Videographer: Erin Dalton

To insure cohesiveness, I also took all of the readings performed in their ceremony to weave throughout the album. It was important to me to bookend the start and finish of their album with text, but it was amazing how well the whole ceremony sequence flowed through the book. When given free reign to add text wherever I’d like rather than with a specific photo, I typically try to pair the text with an image that reflects the same feeling. For instance, when looking for a page to add:

“Now Love asks that you be united.

Here is a place to rest.

A place to sleep.

A place in heaven.”

Not only did the the negative space of the blue sky give me the perfect spot for text, but it also showcased the exact reasons why Keya and Eric chose to elope in our Blue Ridge Mountains.

Finally, I interspersed road signs and Parkway memorabilia throughout their engagement session in the same way I wove wedding detail shots throughout their elopement. This way, they have landmarks to remember exactly where they shared their special moments.

Without a doubt, this has been one of my favorite albums to create thus far. From getting to know Keya and Eric, to photographing both of their sessions and creating some epic images, to putting together their love story in this heirloom album - I’ve loved every step of the process.