Greta & John - Cathedral Wedding with a Reception at the Standard at the Smith House

John and Greta were married Saturday, September 13, 2008 at the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Nashville. The weather was perfect and after the ceremony, the wedding party hopped on a trolley and headed to the park for an outdoor photo shoot. The reception was my first opportunity to photograph at the Standard. It was a photographer's dream. Amazing window light, white ceilings in the dance hall for bouncing light, plenty of room, and a balcony where I could sit down and shoot great dance floor candids without being noticed. Plus, they had a great live band that kept the party on the dancefloor 'til we were ushered out to see the happy couple off.

Best Wishes to Greta and John - I hope you love your photos!
-Matt

Opening Night for the Listening Room Cafe - Downtown Nashville

The Listening Room Cafe in Franklin, Tennessee's 5 Points has become a staple for Nashville singer/songwriters, and now it is branching out! My friend Chris Blair has opened a new Listening Room in downtown Nashville. It is located in Cummins Station behind the Frist Center for the Visual Arts. Complete with a full bar, gigantic balcony, and a steady booking of hit singer/songwriters, Chris' place is sure to be around for a long time and become a Nashville staple as legendary as the Bluebird Cafe. Friday night, Chris performed songs along with 7 other hit Nashville songwriters including Brady Seals and Brian White and Stephanie Smith joined the group on stage for a few songs as well.

One of these nights, you may even find me up on that stage!

Nashville Symphony Orchestra with Sir James Galway

This was the first of three nights of Sir James Galway with the Nashville Symphony. There was a very long autograph line at the end of the show. He has sold nearly 20 million albums world-wide. During the intermission, I photographed some of the guests in the private hall upstairs for Symphony donors and among them was Martha Ingram who is one of Nashville's most notable philanthropists and who we all have to thank for her generosity in making the Schermerhorne Symphony Center a reality.

Tarrah & Austin - Portraits

Tarrah Wilkerson and Austin Pinkstaff will be married on October 4th. They decided that rather than wait to see each other at the ceremony they would knock out their formal bride and groom portraits a month before the wedding. We were able to capture 375 amazing photos. This will enable us to focus on the families and the wedding party on the day of the wedding so that they won't have to miss a minute of their reception.
I enjoyed trekking around Nashville with them and home they love their photos!
-Matt

Jesse & John - August 30th at Cedarvine Manor

Jesse and John were married at Cedarvine Manor on August 30th at 6:30 in the evening. We started shooting photos around 2:00 while the girls started to get ready in the antebellum bed and breakfast. It was a very photogenic wedding with a fun-loving wedding party, beautiful bridesmaids dresses, an outdoor ceremony, a handsome bride and groom, and sparklers at the end of the evening. I had a great time photographing and getting to know the wedding party. It was very obvious to me that everyone in attendance at this wedding thought the world of the bride and groom and the way that everyone celebrated the occasion was what made the photos great.
Cheers to John and Jesse!
-Matt