Intimate Sherando Lake Wedding || James & Claudia

James & Claudia planned the most perfect wedding celebration! They decided to do an elopement-style at a place that was near and dear to their hearts, Sherando Lake in Central Virginia. They had only the closest family members and friends there with them, and wait until you see the views! When we were there for their engagement session, they talked about how they just wanted a relaxing day to celebrate while feeling like they were at a back-yard BBQ and man, did they pull it off- plus they had a food truck serving dinner for everyone! YUM!! 

Our associate photographer, Michela, shot this wedding and she did SUCH a great job! So proud to have her on the team! Did you know, if I am not available for your wedding date, you can still get the Ashley Eiban Photography Wedding Experience with our Associate Photographer program! 

Congratulations to James & Claudia! We are so so thankful to have been a part of your special day! 

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Ashley Eiban is a Wedding & Portrait Photographer based in Central Virginia. Serving the Lynchburg, Charlottesville, Richmond, and surrounding areas. Available for travel world-wide.  Ashley is passionate about cultivating genuine relationships built on mutual understanding, trust and lasting friendship.  

Currently booking a limited number of wedding and portrait sessions for 2018 and 2019.  

Thanks again to Michlea for being an amazing addition to our team and being there for James & Claudia! <3 To learn more about our Associate Photographer program, click here! 

Braeloch on Glenburn Farms in Roanoke, Virginia Wedding || Josh and Caroline

 Saturday was my first wedding back from maternity leave and OH MY GOODNESS was it such a great wedding to come back to! It was so much fun jumping back into it- I really have missed the excitement of a wedding day! Plus, Josh and Caroline are the sweetest couple & just radiate how much they are in love with each other! I loved how Josh would steal a kiss from Caroline at every point that he could throughout the day and evening! 

They had their ceremony at the gorgeous Christ Lutheran Church in Roanoke, Virginia & her dress was THE perfect pick for a church ceremony, and she honestly looked like royalty! I loved all the special details that they incorporated- from the veil that has been passed down in her family and worn by over 10 other happy Brides, to the ring box that Josh's brother made from them out of the Christmas tree he proposed next to, the pearls that once belonged to her Grandmother, and so many other sentimental pieces. I just love when couples really make their wedding day their own with details like that!! 

After the ceremony, we headed out to the Braeloch at Glenburn Farms and Boxtree in Vinton, Virginia and were met with the most spectacular view of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the city of Roanoke.  The weather was so perfect- not too hot, not too cold- we could have stayed out for portrait time forever! Such a dream!! The reception was such a blast- the band, The Finns by Sam Hill Entertainment had everyone up and dancing all night! 

Congratulations Josh & Caroline!! I am SO excited for you both as you begin your new life together! Marriage is such a blessing & I know you are both going to rock at it!! Enjoy your Hawaii Honeymoon!!! 

A special thank you to the AMAZING vendors from today!! Oh my goodness was everything so perfect!! 

Wedding Ceremony Venue:  Christ Lutheran Church in Roanoke, Virginia 

Pastor: Rev. David Skole in Roanoke, Virginia 

Wedding Coordinator: Vicki Itson with Events by Simplicity in Roanoke, Virginia

Ceremony Music: Nancy Delaney in Roanoke, Virginia

Bridal Hair: Jillian Nance from Roots Salon in Roanoke, Virginia 

Bridal Makeup: Jolina Does Make-up in Roanoke, Virginia 

Bridal Gown: AmRhein's in Roanoke, Virginia 

Bridesmaids Dresses: Chantilly Lace Bridals

Florals: Belle's Blooms in Vinton, Virginia

Groom & Groomsmen: JCPenny

Recpetion Venue: The Braeloch on Glenburn Farms and Boxtree in Vinton, Virginia

Catering: Pumpernickle Pickle Catering Co. in Salem, Virginia

Cake: Kellycakes LLC in Daleville, Virginia

Band & Lighting: Sam Hill Entertainment: The Finns 

Videographer: Erika F Dawson Co

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Ashley Eiban is a Wedding & Portrait Photographer based in Central Virginia. Serving the Lynchburg, Charlottesville, Richmond, and surrounding areas. Available for travel world-wide.  Ashley is passionate about cultivating genuine relationships built on mutual understanding, trust and lasting friendship.  

Currently booking a limited number of wedding and portrait sessions for 2018 and 2019.  Contact Ashley today for additional information!

Downtown Lynchburg, Virginia Engagement Session || Gabe & Meg

OH MY GOODNESS is downtown Lynchburg showing off this Spring!! It kept us waiting for so long- now that it finally seems to be here, it wants everyone to know! Hopefully that means the warmer weather is here to stay!! 

I was so excited to meet up with Gabe and Meg downtown this week for their engagement session! These two are getting married in October at Sorella Farms in Evington & I cannot wait! We had such a great time chatting & getting to know each other during their photo session! I love engagement sessions so much for this very reason! By the time the wedding comes along, we are all great friends & past that getting to know you stage so we can really have fun and celebrate together!! 

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Ashley Eiban is a Wedding & Portrait Photographer based in Central Virginia. Serving the Lynchburg, Charlottesville, Richmond, and surrounding areas. Available for travel world-wide.  Ashley is passionate about cultivating genuine relationships built on mutual understanding, trust and lasting friendship.  

Currently booking a limited number of wedding and portrait sessions for 2018 and 2019.  Contact Ashley today for additional information!

Beyond the Lens: Jennifer Onalee Weddings

I am SO excited to be sharing with you a new series while I'm out on maternity leave! I've asked some friends in the wedding and creative industry to write about a topic they're passionate about- whether that be tips helping brides while planning a wedding, what they've learned in their business, balancing life and owning a small business, plus so much more! Let me tell you- there's some amazing stuff coming up and I can't wait to share! 

Oh I am so excited to be sharing Jennifer's post today as she shares about starting a business, but keeping her family a priority. Me and Jennifer go back years and years before the wedding industry & I am so excited for her as she's started her own business as a wedding coordinator this year, Jennifer Onalee Weddings! She is so organized, detail-orientated, and the calm, collective presence you need on your wedding day! 

This topic is so near & dear to my heart- balancing business and family is always so difficult- and I LOVE hearing how others manage it throughout their days! I'm taking ALL the notes from Jenn as she just welcomed her 2nd, Edwin into the world just a few weeks before Sullivan was born! 

Starting a Business, Keeping a Family

Hello! I am so thrilled to be guest blogging for Ashley as she welcomes her new little one into the world! Ashley and I were due within 1 month of each other, and it was so fun to be pregnant at the same time and compare notes along the way. We welcomed baby Edwin into our family on February 28 and have SO been looking forward to meeting Ashley’s baby boy!

When Ashley asked if I would be interested in writing a guest post for her blog while she was on maternity leave, I was humbled by her request. Ashley is one of those people who makes having a family and running her own business look easy. She always has a smile on her face and is a natural with making connections and being in the wedding/photography industry. Our family has been blessed to know Ashley for many years and she has taken TONS of family photos for us from our big extended family to personal maternity and newborn sessions. She is seriously amazing, and I look up to her in many ways.

My own journey into wedding planning started in 2005 when my friend and RA on my college dorm asked if I would travel to Maine and coordinate her wedding. I was just naive enough to think I could totally do it and jumped at the chance to put my organizational and ‘bossiness’ skills to the test! It was a ton of fun and a big learning experience! Since then, I have had the opportunity to assist family and friends with planning and coordinating their weddings and in October of 2017, with my husband’s encouragement and the push I needed, I decided to take the plunge and make it official by starting Jennifer Onalee Weddings, LLC.   

It turns out starting a business is a lot of work and thankfully my husband had been through this when he started his business years ago so he was able to help me navigate all the little details of legal and tax issues that needed to be taken care of in order to become an official legal entity. I was pretty excited when that piece of paper came saying Jennifer Onalee Weddings, LLC was established! What was less clear was how I was going to do this while also balancing my first priority which is my family. I knew that my husband Clifton, two-year old son Hamilton, and now 1-month-old Edwin were going to be my first focus even as I began this journey into professional wedding coordinating and planning. I believe the Lord led me into this new adventure but also called me to use balance and wisdom as I moved into it. I tend to jump into things – thinking up a new good idea and then going full force ahead until I realize I can’t keep it up. I overload my plate, dump a few things out of stress, get bored again and do it all again! It’s a life pattern that I’m trying to get better at…I’m still a work in progress.

This idea of balance and wisdom though have been my steering guide. I knew the Lord could use the gifts and talents He gave me of leadership, organizational skills, detail oriented brain, etc. in helping brides plan and organize their wedding day while also honoring Him by being purposeful as I talk with brides and accept weddings. If you are a bride looking for a wedding coordinator/planner, remember that you want someone with the mental and physical margins to devote to you and your wedding. We tend to honor the busy in America. The busier you are, the more stressed you are, we assume the more successful you are. The truth is we need people around us who are purposeful, who have boundaries in their lives, and who cherish margin for rest and family and fun! These are the people who will bring life into our plans and can be a breath of fresh air in the midst of busy and crazy wedding planning.

It has been so much fun to help brides and their families plan and celebrate! I love that weddings get to be family reunions, friends from afar reconnecting, all while getting to watch as two people bring their lives together in a commitment that is really a giving up of self in many ways. I want every couple I work with to feel completely taken care of.  I want them to know that the details are covered, the worries have already been thought of, and most importantly that as they see me balance my work with them and the love I have for my family, it will inspire them to love their families well and to allow margins in their own lives as they enter into marriage.

Starting a business while maintaining a balanced personal life is no easy feat and there are no easy answers so I think the key is regular reflection. How are things going? Am I feeling balanced or are there areas where I can make some adjustments? What can I say yes to and so often more importantly what can I say no to? When I first started my business, I wrote down the goals for me personally in starting the business (why am I doing this), three goals for the business itself (make a million dollars haha just kidding!), and then ways that I could use my business to glorify the Lord. If you are a business owner (or really anyone embarking on a new challenge) take time to make goals for yourself and outline exactly why you are doing what you are doing. This will probably change over the years but referring back to this vision and these goals often will help steer your decisions and help you stay focused and balanced!

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Ashley Eiban is a Wedding & Portrait Photographer based in Central Virginia. Serving the Lynchburg, Charlottesville, Richmond, and surrounding areas. Available for travel world-wide.  Ashley is passionate about cultivating genuine relationships built on mutual understanding, trust and lasting friendship.  

Currently booking a limited number of wedding and portrait sessions for 2018 and 2019.  Contact Ashley today for additional information!

Beyond the Lens: Danielle Wallace with The Crimson Magpie Rentals & Design

I am SO excited to be sharing with you a new series while I'm out on maternity leave! I've asked some friends in the wedding and creative industry to write about a topic they're passionate about- whether that be tips helping brides while planning a wedding, what they've learned in their business, balancing life and owning a small business, plus so much more! Let me tell you- there's some amazing stuff coming up and I can't wait to share! 

Photo by Crystal George

Today, Danielle Wallace with The Crimson Magpie Rentals & Design is going personal today, and talking to us about how she survives as an Introvert, in an extremely extroverted field- the wedding industry! As an extrovert, when she told me what she was thinking about talking about, I was super excited! I love hearing and learning how I can love on others well- and knowing not to take things personally when my introverted friends just need to have a night off, or some alone time! 

Surviving being an Introvert in an Extrovert Centered Career

Reading an entire book in a day. Gardening in warm morning sunshine. Journaling in the stillness of night. Those moments are my idea of a good time. More often than not, though my reality is quite different. Imagine the hubbub of Grand Central Station combined with the blistering pace of the Indie 500 and the drama of “My Big Fat Greek Wedding.” Picture that and you have an idea of what it’s like to build a business in the wedding industry.

The wedding industry is bright and full of joy, creativity, passion and collaboration. It’s full of opportunities to solve problems both big and small. But as an introvert the continual need to be “on” socially exhausts me to the deepest part of my being. Add a very busy one-year old to the mix and some days I want to crawl into a closet with the aforementioned book and stay there forever. For the introverts reading this, you know what I mean. If you’re an introvert, well hopefully this helps you understand why your introverted friend canceled plans to go out Friday night. Here are a few of the things that help balance my introvert neurosis with my love for this crazy awesome wedding gig.

Photo by Adam Mullins

Behind the scenes. The song is coming to a close. The DJ is about to direct guests’ attention towards four tiers of buttercream perfection. Aunt June leans over and whispers she forgot to bring the heirloom cake knife. I make a dash to my kit and grab my spare cake server, and dash back to lay it calmly (don’t let me kid you, my heart is pounding out of my chest) on the table seconds before the bride and groom arrive to cut the cake. Okay, maybe not a super hero move in the same category as Clark Kent or Bruce Wayne, but I love filling in the numerous gapes so the wedding dreams of very special people go off without a hitch.

Organizational routines. The fuel of a successful event is organization, and lucky for me I love spreadsheets, timelines, calendars, bullet points, anything that smacks of a plan or a to do list. Que the entrance of my daughter (pride goes before a fall, anyone?)  last year making it almost impossible to be as organized as I would like to be. My latest comprise: I let her unwind an entire roll of toilet paper so that I can update my spreadsheet while doing calf raises because that counts as a workout, right? All you mamas who run a business while raising kids, you are my heroes.

Photo by Mixed Creative Company 

Intentional recharging. For me that means being completely alone. Alone isn’t really a thing when you have a child, so I’ve had to get creative. To be perfectly honest I have a way to go with this part of my life. There are days when I feel like I’m scrapping the bottom of the barrel. Sometimes my car is my sanctuary for half an hour while I write or read, which is not as depressing as it sounds! A big one is turning off my phone. A reprieve from digital human is a must, so instead (if I’m not working at night) I journal, or bake a treat to share with my husband while we binge on Stranger Things or The Office after our baby girl is in bed.

Really cool people. This one seems to contradict everything I’ve said previously, but I’ve met some amazing people in this industry. Many of my brides and grooms, their family members, and fellow vendors have impacted my life the past three years. My bride that hand-painted wall hangings for the nursery when my baby was born.  My bride that checks up on me regularly to see how I’m doing and ask about my life. Fellow stay-at-home vendor moms who reached out to me the first difficult months after my daughter was born. The former bride and groom turned friends who used their trailer to help me pick up rental stock and then wouldn’t let me pay them. My coworkers who have become best friends and yell at me when I’m not taking care of myself…I could go on.

Photo by Sherry Congrad

And I do go on! Let me have my quiet place to recharge, and I’m ready to hit the road again. The joy, the romance, the beauty, and the opportunities of the wedding world adds a depth and breadth to my world that I didn’t know was possible. I can’t wait to see what new adventures the 2018 season has in store.

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Ashley Eiban is a Wedding & Portrait Photographer based in Central Virginia. Serving the Lynchburg, Charlottesville, Richmond, and surrounding areas. Available for travel world-wide.  Ashley is passionate about cultivating genuine relationships built on mutual understanding, trust and lasting friendship.  

Currently booking a limited number of wedding and portrait sessions for 2018 and 2019.  Contact Ashley today for additional information!