Avenir

1. What makes Avenir a great place to get married?

It's grand.  It's exclusive.  It's memorable.  The food is amazing, the staff are the best in the business.  The owners are meticulous.  The understanding weddings and do it better than anyone.  It's a Saphire Event property.   They rule this area.  They are at a level above any other venues.  You absolutely can't go wrong here.

2. Where are the best places for wedding photos at Avenir?

Their gardens are small but offer a TON of variety from walls of greenery to shrubs, flowers, trees, hidden benches and more.  You get a ton of variety without having to walk far.  Literally turn your bodies this way and get a whole different look.

3. What's the best time of day for portraits at Avenir?

Family and wedding party pictures would typically occur either immedaitely following "First Look" or direclty after the ceremony during cocktail hour unless you built in a gap between a church ceremony and arriving on property.  

Regardless, at some point just before or near sunset I'll take just the two of you outside again for those soft-light intimate shots.  It should only take like 10 minutes but these are the shots you hire me for.  These are the jaw-dropping, tier enducing, OMG shots.  You won't get a sunset at Avenir as the sun goes behind the trees, but you can absolutely get those rays of sun peeking through the leaves and giving that whimsical wedding look.

4. Is a first look a good idea at Avenir?

Absolutely!  The first look gives you a chance to truly see each other.  Express your thoughts.  BE together for a moment - away from everyone else.  Now you get to enjoy your own cocktail hour.  Now it's not such a whirlwind.  You're not as rushed, so less anxiety.  Totally worth considering.  

For the traditional "I want to see her coming down the aisle", let me give some perspective.  First, when she gets there you need to just shut up and get married.  You can't stop and talk.  At a first look you can.  Second, that heart-fluttering HOLY CRAP feeling when all your guests stand and you realize this is real, this is happening!  That feeling doesn't go away just because you already saw each other.  It actually may be enhanced.

5. What happens if it rains on your wedding day at Avenir?

In all my years, I've only had maybe a handful of weddings that were 100% completely washed out.  It's so rare it's not worth discussing.  Yeah, maybe the ceremony gets moved indoors.  Maybe the family and wedding party pics are on the dance floor but there will almost certainly be an opportunity between drops to run outside for a few pics of the two of you.

6. How much time should we set aside for wedding photos?

I typically like an hour, but I'm SUPER efficient.  It really comes down to how large your group is.  How many in the wedding party?  How big is your family?  Are there divorces with step family?  Are there grandparents?  Do you want to include aunts, uncles, cousins?  The smaller the group the easier it is obviously.  

7. Can we stay on schedule without feeling rushed?

This is my super power.  You could be WAY behind schedule, then it comes time for the family and wedding party pics and poof, you're back on schedule.  I can be amazingly efficient to power through all those combinations so you can lower the anxiety and not lose any of your wedding.  

8. What's your favorite photo location at Avenir?

The ceremony location is perfect and just to the left of it is a cool little spot with some trees, a little bench and some colorful flowers.  It offers that woodsy vibe and it's only steps away, so super easy.  

9. Have you photographed weddings at Avenir before?

I wouldn't be talking about it otherwise - absolutely.  There's a benefit to knowing the flow of things.  Where you're allowed to go and where's off-limits.  Knowing where the shadows will fall and knowing what will be in bloom.  Even just knowing how the staff approaches the day and their personalities.  It all helps make the entire day run smoothly for you.  There's an unspoken "nod and wink" between me and the day-of coordinator keeping everything perfect so you get the most out of the day.

10. What should couples know before getting married at Avenir?

Best thing is you're in good hands.  There are some venues that are clueless, this is not one of them.  You'll be catered to and pampered the entire time.  Seriously, this is a venue where you can put the anxieties aside and just relax into a perfect day.  I've got no red flags here.  It's ALL good.

11. How many guests does Avenir work best for?

It's a big room, which is unique for our area.  It can easily hit 200 or more guests.  Obviously talk with them if it's even more, but they can absolutely accommodate larger weddings.  Smaller weddings can actually look very natural and comfortable as well.  You won't get lost in the size if you're under 100.  The curtains help soften the size and keep it intimate for any amount of guests.

12. Is Avenir good for indoor and outdoor weddings?

Surprisingly good actually.  Avenir has a dedicated indoor ceremony set up always available for split second "oh crap" cloud bursts and pictures under the front entryway will keep you dry while getting outdoor pictures regardless of the weather.

13. Where do you usually take family photos?

Just to the side of the ceremony spot.  It's quick, easy and extremely convenient for your family and wedding party to head in to the cocktail hour space after pictures.

14. Is sunset really worth stepping away from the reception?

At Avenir the sun sets behind the treees, so you're not going to see it.  Regardless, I always like to head back out around that time for the romantic soft light that makes for really awesome pictures.  You won't get a sunset, but you'll absolutely get all your favorite shots you'll fall in love with during that mini-session close to sunset time.

15. What makes photographing weddings at Avenir unique?

The domed ceiling over the dance floor is amazing but it's so high that other photographers may find it difficult to to get good light of things happening on the dance floor.  The flash just gets lost up there.  I've mastered this venue and always get perfect light no matter what.