When Ginna Hoben, actress with the American Shakespeare Center, needed to find a wedding dress, she talked to her good friend and costume designer Jenny McNee. Ginna is not just an ordinary person, which was why she wouldn’t have just an ordinary dress. Jenny, one of two costume designers at ASC, could do more than just sew. She had created costumes for each play put on by ASC and could design, tailor, fit and re-purpose as needed to give the cast and crew the looks they needed. What she liked to do most was make dresses, and Ginna’s dress was the perfect opportunity to create something truly one of a kind. Together they dreamt up a dress that Ginna continually described as “frosting” when she wore it and Jenny went to work. It was a fitted and layered gown made from a gorgeous pink sandstone color of silk. The fitted and tucked bodice had a delicate off the shoulder strap and the waist was accented with a sequin belt taken from a historic gown. The dress also held a secret – it was actually two pieces, a short dress with a long skirt underneath – which allowed it to covert easily between the two. As a surprise during the reception, Ginna had her girls surround her while the bottom skirt was taken off and emerged with her short dress, ready to get the dancing started.

I met up with Ginna and Jenny for a bridal session a few weeks before the wedding to document the amazing work of art Ginna would be wearing. From the time I met Ginna to talk about being her photographer we had talked about this session and I was so excited for it to finally become reality. We started in the dressing room of the Blackfriar’s Playhouse (home to the American Shakespeare Center) so Ginna could get ready and then used the stage that Ginna has known so well for the first part of the session. Next we moved outside to the streets of Staunton, Virginia and overall we captured a lot of variety so I hope you enjoy!

Inside the playhouse, the view from the stage to the audience. Ginna has called this place home for several years and knows this view well.

The dress had a ton of detail and fit Ginna perfectly. Jenny did an amazing job and created the dress of Ginna’s dreams.

There’s a moment during each bridal session where you feel like you’re dreaming. You can’t believe this is what you will be wearing when you get married – and yes, you’re getting married!

Fierce! Ginna knew how to work it. Being an actress made it easy to be in front of the camera, and I loved it. Ginna and Sheffield’s wedding was anything but ordinary and I’m excited to share it with you tomorrow so stay tuned!

You’ve seen their engagement photos – and now, since the wedding day on Saturday, the bridal photos I took of Lisa can come out of hiding and be shown to the world. Lisa kept her dress a big secret, as most brides do until their wedding day, and she looked gorgeous the day of. I don’t think there’s any argument that she looks fabulous in the pre-wedding bridal session we did previously this summer. We met up for a day to do both and honestly I couldn’t be happier with how it went. Sometimes a photo-session can be stressful because of time, weather, etc… and so afterwards I might wonder if I captured everything I wanted. Okay, I kind of felt like that after the bridal session. That is until I sat down and edited them, and realized I had nothing to worry about. I was really happy with the bw/ slightly sepia tone I gave some of the photos and think it fits them perfectly. Kind of the vintage black and white photo look that is also so timeless – and for any type of wedding photo, it’s perfect.

We started in a more urban looking spot but quickly moved to the fields which gave us the romantic country background and set the stage for the rest of the photos. I guess it’s also a recurring theme in my photos, probably because that’s what I’m close to.

The umbrella really was needed but of course was also the perfect prop. Thankfully it didn’t rain that much and the dress survived unharmed. So, if you’re thinking about doing a session like this for yourself, we can either work it into your wedding package or do it on it’s own. Yes, your wedding might have already happened but maybe you didn’t get the pictures you wanted in your dress… I know it’s true because I’ve had several people tell me about experiences like that. So,you’ll just have to contact me if you want something like this of your own.

Lisa is completely gorgeous! Let me know what you think and does anyone have a favorite? It’s hard to choose – which is why I put so many in the post. enjoy!