HUNTER RYAN
THE JOURNAL
A beautiful and joy-filled journal of the weddings, moments, and destinations we shoot.
Carrie Darling Events did an incredible job with this wedding at the JW Marriott Marco Island Beach Resort. We love when we have the chance to meet up with our couples prior to their wedding day – and we were lucky enough to photograph Ellen and Brandon in their hometown of Atlanta for their engagement […]
Heather and Jon married in paradise and what a beautiful day it was. The two exchanged vows on the beach and thought of all the important details to make their wedding one to remember. To see more of this beautiful wedding as featured in Carats and Cake, please check it out here. Planning & Design: […]
To say Shea & Donovan’s day was joy-filled would be an understatement. Their whole wedding and every moment they were together just radiated happiness. On top of the beauty of their love, Carrie Darling Events created a gorgeous, tropical palette perfect for this beachy ceremony and penthouse reception. This colorful event and all the pretty […]
We love creating beautiful flatlays for you of everything that represents your day. You’ll want to set aside your invitation suite and any specialty paper products—and don’t forget to include any stamps, wax seals, calligraphy items, too. Don’t forget a beautiful hanger and your dress, veil, shoes, all wedding rings, and any other details that are unique to what you’ll both be wearing.
We love all the pretty details—and love taking the time to make magic with our signature flatlays. One of the best ways to add natural beauty and interest to those photos is with some "floral extras" from your floral designer. If they’re able to bring some additional sprigs (the smaller, more delicate blooms work best) along with your bouquets, they add a really nice extra touch of your wedding day style to the detail photos.
prepare your details
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From many of your very first conversations, you’ll find most of your wedding vendors want to discuss the sunset on your wedding day. We are natural light photographers—so the sun dictates when and how long we shoot outdoors for portraits. The natural glowy look we love is all based around the sun.
We work backwards and forwards from the time the sun sets to determine how to lay out the timeline of your photography—you’ll want to be sure to take into consideration the time of sunset before setting the time of your ceremony. (As a general rule of thumb, we recommend timing it so that your ceremony ends at least 45 minutes to an hour and a half before the actual sunset to get that golden hour glow in your photos after the ceremony.) We’ll work with you and your planning team to create a detailed timeline for your day that maximizes the best light for your portraits and details—all while maintaining a relaxed and genuine feel so you have the very best day.
plan for sunset
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This is one of those questions we could talk about for a good long while, and still see all the different sides—in fact, we did on the “This vs. That Wedding Decisions” podcast.
If you’re still deciding whether or not you want to have a first look for the special moment just between the two of you, or if you want to stay more traditional and get that first look when you’re walking down the aisle, we invite you to listen to this episode and check out this blog post where we talk about the benefits of both approaches.
First look or see you at the aisle?
04
You’ll want to get ready somewhere you can feel comfortable and celebratory—but you’ll also want to keep in mind the overall look of your day when you choose your location. Every individual location of your wedding day comes together to make your gallery feel totally cohesive—and your “getting ready” location is where we begin to tell the story of your day. If you’re having a soft and neutral toned outdoor beach wedding—getting ready in a high contrast modern hotel room may not be the best fit for the overall look of your photos.
Also, in addition to style—consider the amount of space and available light. A lovely hotel room meant for 2 guests can feel very small and dark once you add in 8 bridesmaids, a hair and makeup team—especially if it has just one sliding glass door of window light. Mix in 2 photographers and your video team, and you’ve got a recipe for a very tight dimly lit space for everyone to function & enjoy their time together … not to mention it will drastically affect the look of your photos (and video).
Consider your “getting ready” location
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Lara + Bob love the Florida Gulf sunset- so the JW Marriott Marco Island Wedding was the perfect wedding venue for their big day. This couple was all about enjoying the coastal surroundings and soaking up all the happy and fun a wedding should be! We spent lots of time on the beach taking portraits because […]
reader faves
“Wow, wow, wow!! I don’t know how you do it, but you all capture a magic with every photo. It’s exactly how I remember it, which the iPhone photos that we have access to don’t grasp in the same way.
On top of it all, you all have been so easy to work with. We’ve been to lots of weddings in our time, and the photographer sets the tone. Cody was so fun to have around - we got lots of compliments - and made it so easy for us to open up in front of too. It’s unreal that you lasted the whole weekend with us! Tiff, your phone calls and care to making sure we had everything planned ahead of time was pretty special too. Your wedding is a life milestone that goes by so fast, and the memories are all captured thanks to you all. “
Courtney & Stephen
“There are no possible words for the love and admiration we have for Tiff and Cody at Hunter Ryan! Not only do they manage to somehow capture the moments of pure joy in a way you didn't even think possible but also are all around the best people and exactly who you would want with you on your wedding day. Cody makes you feel so comfortable and both his and Tiff's positive energy is infectious.
There is no greater gift than the ability to relive our wedding (and engagement!) through the beautiful pictures they took and I would wholeheartedly recommend them to any couple!! We can't wait for the day when we get to do a legacy session with them! We consider them not only a top vendor but also great friends!”
Christina & Ryan
“Oh my gosh, I have no words. The photos are so incredible. The raw talent you guys have is unparalleled. Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Completely blown away. Such happy, beautiful captured moments.
Beyond your obvious talent, your creativity, fun, loving personalities made the weekend that much more incredible. We are so appreciative that you came out to Thursday, Friday and Saturday's events.”
Rachael & Micah
“We are pretty much speechless...we can't even begin to thank you enough for completely capturing EVERY SINGLE emotion, moment, detail and memory of our wedding day. Nate and I were able to see the moments that we missed, we cried and cried from so much happiness because we got to truly relive the day for everything that it was... absolute perfection!!!
We are just so thankful for you both, and so beyond grateful we were able to have you both apart of our special day! Your work is truly remarkable and flawless. Every angle, every candid moment, every single thing is just breathtaking because of your creativity, talent and eye for capturing photos. We will tell everyone we can possibly tell they need to have Hunter Ryan Photo at their wedding!! NO MATTER WHAT! Hands down best investment we could've made and I will say that over and over again.“
Laura & Nate
We're
HUNTER RYAN...
We’re a husband and wife photography team committed to helping make your wedding
everything you’ve always dreamed about and capturing every detail so that it’s preserved forever.
Tiffany is by your side in every step of the planning process so that on your wedding day,
you’re able to enjoy every interaction & special moment.
As lead photographer, Cody effortlessly builds a genuine bond with you from behind the lens,
balancing his role of documenting every detail with being a familiar & unobtrusive presence on your day.