Charleston, SC Anniversary Session

The first time I ever heard of Katelyn James was in 2010; my college roomate’s best friend had gotten married and used Katelyn as her wedding photographer. Actually, she wasn’t even “Katelyn James” yet, her business was still Inspired Designs, but it didn’t matter, I was smitten — tilted images and all. I hadn’t even picked up my first camera, but something about her online presence drew me in and compelled me to follow. I’m sure many of you who follow Katelyn have similar stories; a friend of a friend, an acquaintance on Facebook, a coworker at your day job. As I’ve transitioned into a photographer over the past couple of years, I’ve been so lucky to get to work with Katelyn as a mentor, but also get to know her as a friend.

Katelyn is so much more than just Katelyn James. When we travelled to Charleston, SC for the Creative at Heart Conference, I had the pleasure of spending one morning with Katelyn and Michael Alsop, who were celebrating 5 wonderful years of marital bliss. To say their lives have changed over the course of their marriage would simply be an understatement. Michael left his job as a youth pastor to join Katelyn in her mission of bringing lasting memories to brides all over the world — together they’ve travelled the entire east coast, California, Alaska, and even Australia to name a few — all while launching limitless education resources for creatives. That isn’t to say their personal lives are exactly quiet (seriously, when do you two sleep!?) as they are loyal friends, faithful members of their church, and proud parents of the infamous Bokeh Boy. In particular, 2015 brought a lot of change to their lives as they listed their gorgeous home on the market to prepare for a new phase in their lives. In typical selfless fashion, this move has the ultimate goal of better serving the community they inspired.

Katelyn and Michael, thank you for allowing me to capture this incredible season of your lives. You are truly some of the most generous, giving people and a constant reminder of why I love being a Washington, DC anniversary photographer!