Sierra Vista Mountain View Wedding || Central Virginia Wedding Photographer

Ben & Brooke's wedding day was so beautiful & perfect. They started out the day with mimosa's in Sierra Vista's brand new bridal suite- which is SO gorgeous! Everything about this new room is perfect! Brooke had such a gorgeous dress picked out- the layers of tulle and the amazing back on this thing!! 

These two were so cute- they had the sweetest no peek moment, where they shared letters, gifts, tears, and some hugs. They were so excited, but didn't even want to say goodbye to go back in hiding until the ceremony. All day long Ben would sneak a kiss from Brooke, without knowing anyone was looking. For portrait time, I didn't even have to direct them- they would just snuggle up and were seriously so cute! 

All week, they were calling for rain and thunderstorms on Saturday and somehow their day was PERFECT. The sun was shining, there was a little bit of a breeze, and a beautiful blue/purple sky for when we went out for sunset portraits! I am so excited to share Ben & Brooke's wedding day with you today!! 

I cannot say enough about the vendors that stepped up and made this day so perfect for this sweet couple! 

Venue: Sierra Vista in Bedford, Virginia

Coordination: A Little Party Events in Lynchburg, Virginia 

Officiant: Pastor Kevin Cummings

Flowers: Creative Occasions in Vinton, Virginia 

Photobooth & Rentals: Happily Ever After in Lynchburg, Virginia 

Catering: Innovative Catering in Lynchburg, Virginia 

Cake: Fresh Baked Bakery in Roanoke, Virginia

Reception Dessert: Bayou Snowball in Roanoke, Virginia 

DJ: Official Entertainment in Lynchburg, Virginia 

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Ashley Eiban is a wedding and portrait photographer based in Central Virginia. Serving Lynchburg, Charlottesville, Farmville, Richmond, Roanoke, and surrounding areas. Currently booking a limited number of weddings and portrait sessions for 2017.  Available for travel world-wide.  

Ashley is passionate about capturing moments as they authentically happen to ensure a successful session that gives you time to enjoy each other and savor the wedding day moments.  Contact me today for additional information! 

Family Portrait's don't have to be miserable! || Lynchburg, Virginia Wedding Photographer

Since it's a Monday morning (yuck)... I figured now would be the best time to talk about (almost) everyone's least favorite part of the wedding day... formal family photos.  We have all been in those weddings where the family photos drag on and on, and we all know that we just want to get to the food! Early on in my photography career, I would mostly play it by ear and photos would seem to last forever... and there would always be something that was missed.  It was always so stressful for me, but worse, for the bride, groom and their families.  

I quickly learned that this was not what I wanted weddings to look like- I strive to help my brides and grooms be completely stress-free on their wedding days and this was throwing everything off! So, I changed my approach completely and now have the bride and groom provide a full & detailed list before the wedding day.  I have them chat with their parents together to set expectations.  If we only have 15-20 minutes for all of the family photos, we cannot have a list of 30+ variations.  

Some tips I've learned along the way: 

* Talk with your Mom & your future Mother-in-law to make sure everyone's expectations are set.  Discussing how you have 15-20 minutes of family portrait time that you're splitting between your family and your fiance's family.  

*If there are people you want in family photos, make sure you're communicating that with those family members! Having to search someone down in the middle of portrait time is no fun! 

*We can start family photos right away, even if there are some guests still around! Once they see us starting photos, they will automatically start walking over to the cocktail hour! 

*The best light is not always the ceremony site.  I will scope out the lighting situation before photos and have a plan for where would be best for those! 

*I always start with the officiant, and then the family with the oldest members so they can get into the reception and sit down!

Here is the list that most of my couples start with, and then adjust it based on their specific family members attending their wedding!

Bride & Groom with Officiant 

Bride & Groom with Brides Full Extended Family (parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, etc.) 

Bride & Groom with Brides Grandparents

Bride & Groom with Brides Immediate Family (parents, siblings, spouses & children) 

Bride & Groom with Brides Immediate Family no spouses (parents, siblings) 

Bride & Groom with Brides Parents

Bride with Brides Mom

Bride with Brides Dad

Bride with Brides siblings

Bride & Groom with Brides Siblings

Bride & Groom with Grooms Full Extended Family (parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, etc.) 

Bride & Groom with Grooms Grandparents

Bride & Groom with Grooms Immediate Family (parents, siblings, spouses & children) 

Bride & Groom with Grooms Immediate Family no spouses (parents, siblings) 

Bride & Groom with Grooms Parents

Groom with Groom's Mom

Groom with Groom's Dad

Groom with Groom's siblings

Bride & Groom with Groom's Siblings

Remember, the more detailed you can be for your family list the better!! It is always so helpful for me when I'm calling out names to be specific! Calling out "Brides Aunt" can be a lot more productive if there's a name included in that! 

See, formal portraits don't have to be THAT difficult! I can knock them out in about 15-20 minutes and get you enjoying your wedding reception sooner than later!! 

Ashley Eiban is a Wedding & Portrait Photographer based in Lynchburg, Virginia- available for travel world-wide.  Currently booking a limited number of weddings for 2016 and 2017.  Contact us today for additional information! 

Lynchburg, Virginia Wedding Photographer: Sierra Vista Styled Shoot

Busy season is SO much fun... but also so exhausting- and all the extra 'fun' shoots and things get pushed aside to crank out the Fall Wedding Season Photos (and the awesome family sessions too!)  I just delivered my last wedding of 2015, and excited to catch up on some projects and finally get around to editing some of those other sessions! 

At the beginning of November, I had the amazing opportunity to go to a workshop hosted by Megan Vaughan at the beautiful Sierra Vista! It's always so much fun to get together with some other photographers and be able to shoot beautiful people in a more relaxed environment! I got some stunning images and am so excited to share a blog post (ahem, or two! there's a lot of photos!!) 

More from this awesome shoot coming soon- and yes of course some of those amazing mountain views that we all love about Sierra Vista too!! <3 

Photography: Ashley Eiban Photography | www.ashleyeiban.com   | @ashleyeibanphotography                                    Hosted by: Megan Vaughan | Megan Vaughan Photography | @meganvaughan
Dress: Watters | Watters | @watterswoo
Venue: Sierra Vista | Sierra Vista VA | @sierravistava
Florals: Petal Flower Company | Petal Flower Company | @petalflowerco
Cake: Angela Hudson | Angela Hudson Cakes | @angelahudsoncakes
Decor & Styling: I Do Events | I Do Events
Hair: Emily Garbee | Body Works Day Spa & Salon
Make-up: Laci Fore | Laci Fore Makeup Artistry | @laciforemakeupartistry
Bride & Groom: Sarah & Justin Fredrich 

Ashley Eiban is a Wedding & Portrait Photographer based in Lynchburg, Virginia- serving Central Virginia and surrounding areas. Available for travel world-wide.  Contract us today for additional information! 

Sierra Vista Styled Shoot: Lynchburg, Virginia Wedding Photographer

I am SO EXCITED to finally share these images! A few months ago, I attended a workshop that Megan Vaughan Photography held at the stunning Sierra Vista.  Our models were perfect! They are seriously THE cutest!! And I swear, Amy is a Taylor Swift look-alike! 

There are so many photos from this amazing workshop, that I'm going to be splitting my blog posts into 2! The first one will be from the awesome setup we had in the middle of the woods. There was the most amazing details set up with moss, tree stumps, a beeeeauuutiful cake, candles, antlers, succulents, etc. The second shoot, to come, features the stunning mountains that Sierra Vista is famous for! 

A HUGE thank you to the wonderful vendors that helped put this workshop together!! 

Hosted by: Megan Vaughan Photography 

Venue: Sierra Vista VA 

Dress: Watters 

Veil, Belt & Earrings: Celebration Bridal

Florals & Cake: Love is in the Air 

Decor & Styling: Vintage

Makeup: Makeup by Ashley

Hair: Brittany @ Body Works Day Spa & Salon

Signs & Invites: Laura Hooper Calligraphy 

Bride: Amy Loizou 

Groom: Greg Loizou

Part 2 to come SOON! And you do not want to miss those beautiful mountains and the AMAZING sunset at Sierra Vista!