Brandon & Sara’s love heat up the summer’s hottest day at Proximity Hotel

“Extreme Heat across the state today and tomorrow and the heat index will likely be at times over 105 here in the Triad to over 110 in the eastern part of the state…”

Yup, that’s the forecast from July 24, 2010 in Greensboro, NC. And even inside, it was hot. Proximity Hotel, which is the first LEEDS certified green hotel in the country, was pumping out all the A/C they could to keep up – but really, all that heat didn’t matter. Brandon & Sara brought about 130 of their closest friends and family to celebrate the day with them, and they did just that, in total style.

I’ve been looking forward to their wedding ever since we first talked. To start, they knew the perfect day to get married would be my birthday ;) and also, in a way, Sara and I planned our respective weddings at the same time, and at the same place. It was my first time back to Proximity since having gotten married there myself a couple of months prior. You see, some photographers go the week before to scope out a location to get ideas – but me – I step it up – I actually go all out – I get everyone together and actually have a wedding to really see what it’s really like ;)

We had a great time getting ready  – tons of people in and out of two adjoining rooms, lots of laughs, and some drinks were being poured – good times! Tiwa of Pink Diamonds did some amazing make up work and soon enough it was time for the ceremony.

To keep things cool, the shades of the Social Lobby were pulled, but it really added a great and new backdrop for the ceremony. After the ceremony, we braved the heat (yeah, it’s odd saying that lol) and took a bridal party photo out in the back, and then back inside for some one-on-one shots and the reception. On the reception table, each guest had a hand-wrapped giant Belgium chocolate bar which looked so good sitting on the perfectly folded cloth napkins. After a great dinner, several heart felt toasts and some delicious cake, Randal Calloway put his DJ skills to the test and these guys brought down the house with some serious tunes and dancing. Perhaps the highlight of it all was the African “train” style dance. Think of your more common American train dance, but set to African beats, and line formations which reminded me of the old Brazilian soccer warmup runs, and concluded into a giant spinning circle of people.

Special thanks to Amanda and crew who did their usual fantastic job of putting on the event. Let’s check out some photos and cheers to Sara and Brandon!


Pinkdiamondstl - August 25, 2010 - 7:20 pm

Hooman, great job capturing the events of the day…The images are amazing!! What a beautiful couple.

Hooman - August 25, 2010 - 8:10 am

Thanks Simon!

Simon Boamah - August 24, 2010 - 11:06 am

Man great job! …I love every single one of them.. I am a big fan of your work!..

Jason & Heather: Love & Laughs at Berry Hill Resort

Jason & Heather are just a really fun and really happy couple – it’s that simple. We did an E-Shoot and a Bridal Shoot, and we spent more time laughing than anything else. And that was the mindset I was in heading up to the fantastic Berry Hill Resort in South Boston, VA.

It was a perfect July day, which started out with a great brunch in the morning for both families. Rhonda from Berry Hill was there doing her usual awesome job of making sure everything was set and in order. Heather and the girls were upstairs getting ready while Jason and the guys were in the guest house watching World Cup highlights (props to the guys – side note – can you believe the WC is over? 4 more years?! Such a looong wait!)

The ceremony was perfect with the weather and mansion in the background. The Bridal party looked great, guests were all smiles and parents were teary – you can’t beat it :) The reception was highlighted with the great Doug Ferony Band – which came in straight from New York City to bang out the classic big band hits from the likes of Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Dean Martin, Bobby Darin and more – these guys totally set the pace and tone for the night – high class, big laughs, big music. If you need a Sinatra type band for your wedding, these guys are the best I’ve seen – the real deal for sure. *UPDATE: I can’t believe my man Doug Ferony was actually in Goodfellas! He was the waiter in the scene when Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) takes Karen to the club for the first time – Doug, you rule!

Let’s check out some photos and wish Jason & Heather a long life of love and laughs…

*Update: I can’t believe I forgot this! To Heather, Pam and all the friends and family who brought the Lone Star to Virginia:

The stars at night, are big and bright, deep in the heart of Texas!
The prairie sky is wide and high, deep in the heart of Texas!
The sage in bloom is like perfume, deep in the heart of Texas!
Reminds me of, the one I love, deep in the heart of Texas!

Atlanta Wedding Photographer - August 21, 2010 - 11:33 am

Great slide show of the wedding day. I’m sure the bride and groom are delighted.

Gary Bieler - August 17, 2010 - 11:30 am

These are truly fabulous images! I’m sure the newlyweds will be thrilled as you captured some great moments.

Brandon Scott - August 12, 2010 - 3:39 pm

Beautiful slideshow! Love your work!

Hooman - August 8, 2010 - 5:39 pm

@Pam – Thank you so much! I had an awesome time with you guys at the wedding and the bridal shoot :) – You Texans definitely know how to throw a party and Git-R-Done!

Pam McPherson - August 8, 2010 - 5:17 pm

Hooman….. we are the BEST…. we had a marvelous time with you at Heather and Jason’s wedding….. these pictures are wonderful and we can’t wait to see the rest. You are so good at what you do and we’d recommend you to everyone….. As Texans would say…. You know how to GETTER DONE!

Viva la Vida with Becca & Sean

I was back in Pinehurst/Southern Pines again after Emily & Bud’s wedding, and this time with the ever lovely Becca and her new husband Sean. It wasn’t too long ago we did a great engagement shoot together and on this day, nothing could pull the beautiful smile off of Becca’s face as she married Sean.

With a little pampering at the Pinehurst Spa, followed by some getting ready at the Little River Club we were set for the big day. After the ceremony, they hopped in a true classic, a 56 Chevy (I think it’s a 56, maybe a 57) either way, a classic, as we headed back to Little River for some good times.

Funny story – well, funny because it didn’t actually happen lol – so we were on some EZ Go’s driving on the gold course, and I was thinking “Wow, that’s a great spot on the course, we should stop and I should get them to go out there in the middle and take some photos”. Since we were in 2 different carts, and they were ahead of us, I just let the idea go and figured I would get it on the way back. About 10 seconds later, bam! all the sprinklers come on – haha! I was like “whoa!” Yeah, they would have been soaked! That being said on the way back, we did get hit with the sprinklers, and lucky for us, the EZ-Go’s had tops on them :)

Oh yes, you’ll see there is a pyramid of doughnuts. Those are local, famous and delicious. Props to Becca and Sean for some delicious originality. I knew I would blog about it, so I had 3 of them to make sure I could be accurate in my description of how good they were ;)

Also there was Anthony who works at Little River- who you’ll see in the photos, was able to free jump – no boost, no trampoline, no help, just a straight up, running jump over Sean and Becca kissing. It was crazy impressive!

So for the photos, I’m adding music this time. Becca and Sean are major Coldplay fans (rock on Coldplay) and she really wanted to walk down the isle to Life in Technicolor. Since the church wouldn’t allow it, I figure the least we could do is play it here for her. Cheers!

Hooman - August 8, 2010 - 8:33 am

@Emily – Thanks Emily! Yes, those were Granny’s (thanks, I couldn’t recall the name) – like you, they LOVED them and had to have them and they were SOOO good! Can’t wait to see you guys in a couple of months!

Emily - August 7, 2010 - 9:47 pm

I love seeing your photos of other Pinehurst weddings. These are gorgeous, as always! Were the donuts from Granny’s? We were SO CLOSE to doing that also. Those donuts are to die for. I grew up on them. :)

Hooman - August 4, 2010 - 3:27 pm

Thank you so much! :)

Marian Leen - August 3, 2010 - 11:58 pm

Was anxious to see the pictures of my son Sean and his new bride Becca. Was not expecting to get sooooo emotional viewing them that I would have to pause to get up and get a box of tissues because they were that BEAUTIFUL!!!!! Hooman, all I can say is THANK YOU for doing such a great job! I have never seen them happier and you caught that in every shot, you have a great talent and we will certainly spread the word to anyone looking for an exceptional photographer, and one who is so personable too.

Nick Everitt - July 31, 2010 - 9:33 am

Fantastic set of photos and wowzers at that first dance capture!! Super set all the way through, love your couple photos in particular.

Nancy Lehman - July 30, 2010 - 10:44 am

Wow – these pictures are gorgeous!!! Sean and Becca – you are truly a beautiful couple. Hooman – you are an artist! You captured the essence of Sean and Becca perfectly…am I right everyone?! This was such a great wedding!!

Sean Leen - July 28, 2010 - 7:54 am

This rocks! You are the best! The ’57 Chevy pictures are awesome! Thanks again.

Hooman - July 27, 2010 - 6:23 pm

Thank you so much Becca! I was honored to be there at such an amazing wedding! Of course, I happily listen only to coldplay while developing your photos :)

Rebecca Leen - July 27, 2010 - 6:03 pm

You have done such a beautiful job preserving one of the biggest moments in my life. You have a true gift, Hooman. We are SO fortunate to have found Vesic. Thank you :)
ps. …and the additional touch of ‘Life in Technicolor’ on the blog was perfect! ;)

Pinehurst, NC calls for Bud & Emily’s wedding

Until last year, I had never been to Pinehurst. I was definitely missing out. I’m not a golf kinda guy – except for my exceptional skills at beach pirate mini golf – but, even if you’re not a golf person, Pinehurst is just really nice – and even nicer when you’re there for a wedding like with Emily and Bud. I started off the day with my fellow Wake Forest alumni by taking a few shots of the church from the outside. One of the shots I was laying on the ground (shocker, right? lol) taking the shot from low going high and I hear this lady behind me “Hey! Are you alright?!” in her most posh southern NC accent – looking back, she had pulled up in this car onto the grass, calling out from the passenger window “Are you ok over there?!” – turns out she thought I was a groundskeeper who had fallen and was hurt lol. 2 things came to mind to start my day : The people at Pinehurst are super nice and caring and groundskeepers there must dress very stylishly for work ;)

Moving on into the day we had a great ceremony at Our Savior Lutheran Church and the very nice Pinehurst Members Club. Surprise of the day: Emily had asked to make sure I get some nice photos of her and her dad that didn’t include a Wake Forest sporting event -well, that was no problem, but the surprise was their father/daughter dance ended with the WFU fight song – ha! Gotta love it :)

I gotta give a shout out to my friends Emily S. and Katie R. who couldn’t make it, but it was great to see Katie’s parents again. Let’s put the chit chat aside and check out some photos…

Nice images. Nice compositions and textures.

Josh & Lia bring faith and love to Kitty Hawk, NC

Last year’s engagement shoot with Josh & Lia was just a taste of the fun we ended up having for their wedding in Kitty Hawk, NC a few weekends ago. From the start of the morning with the girls, it was obvious how close  Lia was with everyone at the house – and how close Josh was to the guys in his house. As always, covering the getting ready portion of the day is such an awesome way to start. It was topped off nicely by riding in the bus which took turns taking the two groups to the church.

After the ceremony, we spent much longer than usual doing fun group shots and one on one shots with Josh and Lia – and it was both really fun and really worth it. You’ve gotta love a bride who says  “you know, its hot, we’re at the beach, I want ice cream”. Rock on Lia! And you’ve gotta love a groomsman who gets back behind the counter to scoop it for the bridal party – HA! We hit the dunes at Jockey’s Ridge, we hit the ice cream stand, we hit the beach, we did it all – and we still rocked out big time to some Journey and Def Leppard at the end of the night.

Raleigh NC wedding photographers - August 20, 2010 - 1:37 pm

Amazing photos of their wedding! Love your work with the couple under the pier!

Lisa Bowen - July 22, 2010 - 12:35 am

Was great to see all of the photos…they are awesome. You 2 are such a handsome couple!!

Tonee Lawrence - July 16, 2010 - 12:31 am

FANTASTIC!!! what a beautiful day!

UA-2492232-2