Welch Photography & Video – Page 2 – New Orleans Wedding Photography & Video

Leighann and Justin | Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church, Benedicts Plantation | Mandeville, LA | Wedding Photography

Leighann and Justin – June 20, 2015
Pre-Ceremony – Marvilla Guest House, Mandeville, La
Wedding – Our Lady of the Lake Roman Catholic Church, Mandeville, LA
Reception – Benedict’s Plantation, Mandeville, LA
Photography by – Robert Welch

Bride flowergirl's head piece — Bride flowergirl’s head piece

Bride's veil with mother — Bride’s veil with mother

Bride and groom at Benedict's — Bride and groom at Benedict’s

After doing Leighann’s beautiful bridal portraits, I was really looking forward to her wedding with Justin. It didn’t disappoint on any level, equally beautiful to her portrait session and loads of fun. She got ready at the Marvilla Guest House which is near the church, Our Lady of the Lake in Mandeville. This proved to be a lovely place to take photos. Then on to the church, which is one of the more stellar Catholic Churches, which compares to some of the nicer New Orleans churches in grandeur. After a few photos at the church, we headed on to Benedict’s Plantation, which offers a fabulous reception room along with excellent food.

There was a nice touch with the cakes as they had a second one which was a replica of Leighann’s grandmother’s wedding cake. Her grandmother was able to attend and it was quite lovely to see her there to celebrate with her grandaughter. It’s a reminder how weddings are really about family and honoring those who made the union possible for the bride and groom to continue their own part of the family. Leighann and Justin made a lovely couple, and I found many of the photos I took just seemed to look best in black & white. They had an elegant feel to them, and the B&W versions just seemed to bring that out more.

Leighann Bridal Portrait | Fairview State Park, Benedicts Plantation | Mandeville, LA | Wedding Photography

Leighann Bridal Portraits – Fairview-Riverside State Park, Benedict’s Plantation, Mandeville, LA
Photography by – Robert Welch

Bridal Portrait Benedict's Plantation — Bridal Portrait Benedict’s Plantation

We had a fantastic time taking Leighann’s bridal portrait photos. The weather was wonderful and the light fabulous, especially when we got to Benedict’s Plantation to finish up with a few photos there. She looked stunning in her dress, a perfect model bride. We’ll have some photos of her wedding to Justin in a new post soon!

Shyanne & Bernie | Balcony Ballroom | Metairie, LA | Wedding Photography

Shyanne & Bernie – June 6, 2015
Wedding & Reception – the Balcony Ballroom, Metairie, LA
Photography by – Robert Welch & Lisa Welch

Bride and groom celebrate wedding ceremony

One of the larger wedding and reception venues in Metairie, the Balcony Ballroom is a wonderful place to have a reception or ceremony and reception for most any size group. The facility is frequently updated with the revolving cake table being a recent addition, and has a layout that makes the logistics of the wedding day easy to get through. We’ve photographed there for well over a decade, and it’s always been a fabulous location.

Shyanne and Bernie took full advantage of what the Balcony has to offer, and their wedding was fun and easy. They have a large family on both sides, so there were plenty of people to celebrate with. Shyanne got dressed upstairs in the bride’s prep room, and Bernie was downstairs for his pre-ceremony photos with his groomsmen. After the ceremony, the upstairs area makes for easy photos. They decided to dance downstairs rather than up on the balcony, which is nice as they are able to be closer to their guests and family for this special dance, followed by the parent dances of course. That was just the beginning of the fun they had, which carried on in the afternoon until a 2nd line band arrived to finish off the day. The wedding followed the typical traditions of a nice New Orleans wedding, which means the focus was on having lot’s of fun, fun and more fun!

Tory & Adam | the Chickory | New Orleans, LA | Wedding Photography

Tory & Adam – May 30, 2015
Pre-ceremony – Roosevelt Hotel, Westin Hotel, New Orleans, LA
Wedding & Reception – The Chicory, New Orleans, LA
Photography by – Robert & Lisa Welch

New Orleans is one of the great destination wedding cities. Where else are there so many options to have your wedding conveniently located and with so many attractions to enjoy? Unlike Las Vegas, one of the other major destination locations for weddings, New Orleans has a style and history that is more than just the flashing lights and big hotels. There are many small, and unique venues that weren’t just built to house conventions and parties. The Chickory is one of those old buildings, built well over a century ago, and has a character that won’t be found in most other cities. With it’s interior brick walls and old Cypress wooden floors, gas lamp styled lighting, you know you aren’t is a modern hotel or casino. As a photographer, one of the things I love about the Chickory is the lighting. The windows are huge and the light comes in them with softness to sculpt the fine interior details.

Tory and Adam didn’t have a lot of detailed plans for their wedding photos, other than when and where the pre-ceremony and wedding was. They did have some lovely touches to the decorations, but when it came time to plan their day, it was more about enjoying themselves rather than fussing over photos or getting any particular things done. This made for a very casual and relaxed time, and some fun photos of them just having a great time. Toward the end of the reception, I did ask them if they would like to go out on the balcony to get a few final photos with the city lights as a background. These nicely topped off the evening, making for a complete wedding day they will not soon forget I’m sure.

Allesanda & Chris | Money Hill | Abita Springs, LA | Wedding Photography

Allesanda & Chris – May 24, 2015
Wedding & Reception – Money Hill Country Club, Abita Springs, LA
Photography by – Robert Welch
Officiant – Lisa King, Justice of the Peace
DJ & lighting – Phil Parrino, Countdown Sound

Money Hill is a bit of an under recognized location in Abita Springs for weddings. They have a lovely outdoor area for ceremonies with beautiful trees and a little lake in the background. The light always seems to be just right when I’ve photographed there, as it was for Allesanda & Chris’ wedding. We started off with some photos of them getting ready there, then did a first look on the stairway. It was raining on and off, so instead of trying to do the first look outside, we just did it inside before taking family photos. The rain let up just in time for the ceremony to start, and it was quite beautiful. Afterward, we took some nice portraits under the trees before heading back inside for the reception. They had a wonderful time with their friends and family, dancing and playing around.

Amanda & Bennan | Michabelle Inn | Hammond, LA | Wedding Photography

Amanda & Bennan – March 7, 2015
Wedding & Reception – Historic Michabelle Inn, Hammond, LA
Photography by – Robert Welch

Michabelle Inn is a hidden gem in Hammond, Louisiana. We’ve done many weddings there over the years and they have always been quite fun. I did the engagement portraits for Amanda & Bennan at Fontainbleau State Park a few months previous. These photos along with other family memorabilia decorated a display table in the reception room, which also had some lovely table top decor of weave covered bottles with multi-colored flowers in a pastel palette. Before the ceremony, I got some nice photos each of the bride and groom, followed by the ceremony itself just before sunset. The building makes for a fabulous background for formal portraits, plus we got a few extra photos by the swing in back. The grounds there have many nice options for portrait settings. Afterward, the reception was held in a building in the back of the property, which is a nice room with windows surrounding it giving a large, open feeling. After all the festivities of the reception, a fun bubble exit for the bride and groom ended the evening.

Leah & Danny | United Methodist Church, La Maison Creole | Gretna, LA | Wedding Photography

Leah & Danny – February 28, 2015
Pre-ceremony – Hampton Inn, Harvey, LA
Wedding – Gretna United Methodist Church
Reception – Calcasieu – La Maison Creole, Harvey, LA
Photography by – Robert Welch

Bridal Portrait at Race & Religious, New Orleans, LA

Bride and groom with second line umbrellas

We did Leah’s bridal portrait at Race & Religious (which you can see here), and had a great time. I knew her wedding was going to be a lot of fun. It was at the Gretna United Methodist Church, were we had the bride and groom take a special photo without seeing each other standing on either side of a door. This has become a popular photo, when it’s possible to arrange for it. After the ceremony we headed to La Maison Creole, where they started off the reception with the bridal party dancing in as a Second Line. This really kicked off the party, which didn’t stop until the night was over.

Katie & Shelby | Holy Name of Jesus, Rose Garden | New Orleans, LA | Wedding Photography

Katie & Shelby – January 3, 2015
Wedding – Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church, New Orleans, LA
Reception – Calcasieu – The Rose Garden, New Orleans, LA
Photography by – Robert Welch

We did some wonderful bridal portraits for Katie in New Orleans City Park prior to their wedding, as well as some engagement portraits with both Katie & Shelby at Fontainbleu St. Park in Mandeville.

Their wedding was at the fabulous Holy Name of Jesus church on St. Charles by the Loyola campus. This church is certainly one of the truly majestic churches in the city, and always fun to photograph. Since it was right after Christmas time, they still had the holiday decorations which made for an even more fabulous setting. After the ceremony, we had a police escort to the Rose Garden, on Citris Blvd. near Elmwood. They also still had the Christmas decorations up, so everything had the same feel for decorations. After a really sweet first dance, we went outside the front of the building to get a few quick photos in the outside garden area, before going back to finish the reception. All told, it was a lovely wedding for a very sweet and handsome couple.

Leah – Bridal Portraits | Race & Religious | New Orleans, LA | Wedding Photography

Leah – Bridal Portraits at Race & Religious, New Orleans, LA
Photography by – Robert Welch

A few months before Leah’s wedding, we did her bridal portraits at Race & Religious, a very interesting location with some wonderful old architecture. It’s a very artistic setting to take photos in, and I was looking forward to the opportunity to go there for the first time. We got some lovely photos for her, which she picked her favorite to print large and display at her wedding reception.

Liesbeth & Alexander | Westin Hotel | New Orleans, LA | Wedding Photography

Liesbeth & Alexander – December 13, 2014
Wedding & Reception – The Westin New Orleans Canal Place, New Orleans, LA
Photography by – Robert Welch

Weddings at the Westin benefit from the fabulous staircase to take photos on. There are so many great hotels in New Orleans, but the Westin is right among the top in so many ways. Leisbeth and Alexander had a fabulous time with their wedding there. The rooms for getting ready in are very large, which always makes it easier for everyone. she had some lovely flowers, and the shoe collection was amazing. I loved the photos of the bridesmaids with the shoes. The ceremony was in one of the meeting rooms, dressed up with drapes and a stage. Afterward, they retired to the Plimsoll club for the reception. The view from there of the city is fantastic, from the Crescent City bridge to the French Quarter. They finished off the evening with a second line band. These are the weddings where I feel so glad to be a photographer in New Orleans.

Jamie & Casey | St. Joseph, Chesterton Square | Ponchatoula, LA | Wedding Photography

Jamie & Casey – December 5, 2014
Wedding – St Joseph Catholic Church, Ponchatoula, LA
Reception – Chesterton Square: Wedding & Special Event Facility, Ponchatoula, LA
Photography by – Robert Welch

Jamie & Casey were married at St. Joseph’s church in Ponchatoula, followed by a fabulous reception at the Chesterton Square. The couple are very lighthearted, and both the ceremony and reception reflected their fun loving nature. Even the bride’s father gave the church a funny moment by kissing the groom on the mouth when presenting the bride to him for marriage. It was one of those moments for a wedding photographer that you never forget. The reception was filled with joy and craziness, which didn’t stop until late in the evening.

Kristen & Eric | Benedict’s Plantation | Mandeville, LA | Wedding Photography

Kristen & Eric – November 21, 2014
Wedding & Reception – Benedict’s Plantation, Mandeville, LA
Photography by – Robert Welch

When you first meet Kristen, you get the immediate sense of someone who is genuinely sweet. For her wedding at Benedict’s plantation, she had a vintage feel to the decor, and that perfectly worked with her personality. And let’s not forget the groom, he is an equally nice fellow, and they had a perfectly lovely wedding. It was a wonderful night for an outside ceremony under the trees at Benedict’s, and their reception was a lot of fun to match. They had a fabulous Rolls Royce limo to leave in, and they wanted a nice portrait by the car before they changed to leave in it. We got a series of memorable photos with the car, as well as the rest of the wedding.