September Tennessee Micro Wedding

Shelby + JohnLuke – September 19, 2026

There are some wedding days where you spend half the evening chasing good light. And then there are wedding days where the light apparently wakes up and decides, You know what? I’m going to be AMAZING everywhere today. Shelby and JohnLuke’s September Tennessee micro wedding was definitely the second kind.

Their evening started in the forest surrounded by family and warm, earthy wedding details, then carried us through one ridiculously pretty pocket of light after another before ending in the field with the Smoky Mountains behind them.

There were grandparents in the processional, two dads with very important wedding-day jobs, some seriously unique rings, one groom who completely abandoned any attempt at emotional restraint, a surprise appearance from our local stray kitty, and newlywed photos that got progressively less wholesome as the evening went on.

Basically, we had a pretty darn good time. 😂❤️

Warm Earthy Colors for a September Wedding

Shelby and JohnLuke dressed the chapel in cream and textured rust fabric paired with our boho florals and candle package. The combination brought in those warm, earthy colors that feel perfect for September in Tennessee, when summer is still hanging around but everyone is beginning to think about fall.

The forest was still lush and green, so the rust fabric really stood out against the trees while the cream kept everything soft and romantic. The candles added another warm layer around the chapel, giving their ceremony space just enough detail without competing with the natural surroundings.

It was that perfect little transition between seasons. Not quite fall, definitely not finished with summer, and pretty much ideal for the color palette Shelby and JohnLuke chose.

Shelby’s Wedding Dress Was STUNNING

Shelby wore a sleeveless wedding gown with a long train made from the prettiest textured cream fabric. And GOOD GRIEF, she looked incredible. The color of the dress was absolutely gorgeous against her skin, and the texture gave it so much visual interest without needing tons of extra embellishment. She kept her jewelry delicate, including a necklace with just the tiniest hint of blue.

Her mom and sister helped her get ready, giving Shelby a little time with two of her favorite people before the ceremony began. Apparently, however, they were not alone. Our newest completely-unofficial employee had clocked in for his shift.

Nelson was back. 🐈

Nelson Continues His Unsolicited Wedding Career

Our friendly neighborhood stray kitty was waiting near the archway when Shelby and her sister came through. Because obviously he was.

At this point, Nelson seems to have decided that weddings are his business and we’re all simply working around him. He has greeted couples, wandered into ceremonies, supervised preparations, and generally appeared whenever he believes an event could benefit from his involvement.

Shelby and her sister received the official feline welcome on their way through the archway, and Nelson apparently confirmed that everything was proceeding according to his standards.

I’m beginning to think he’s going to start demanding a paycheck. Or at least snacks. Probably snacks.

Wedding Rings With So Much Personality

Shelby and JohnLuke also had some of the coolest wedding rings.

Shelby’s ring featured a beautiful green center stone surrounded by diamonds. She paired it with a delicate gold band dotted with tiny diamonds, and the whole combination was gorgeous.

JohnLuke’s ring was completely different but equally interesting: a gold band with a flat disc on top featuring a North Star and a single diamond in its center.

I love when couples choose wedding rings that feel like something they would actually want to wear rather than automatically choosing whatever is considered traditional. These weren’t generic rings. They were their rings.

And both had so much personality.

Honoring Their Grandparents During the Ceremony

When it was time for the ceremony to begin, Shelby and JohnLuke made sure some very important people were included. All of their grandparents took part in the processional.

That was such a sweet detail, especially because micro weddings give couples the opportunity to really think about who they want involved in those meaningful moments. Rather than having their grandparents simply seated before everything began, Shelby and JohnLuke gave them a place in the ceremony itself.

Then it was Shelby’s turn. Her dad walked her down the aisle toward JohnLuke. And JohnLuke saw her.

And Then JohnLuke UGLY CRIED

Listen.

Sometimes a groom sheds one tasteful tear.

Maybe his eyes get a little shiny.

Maybe he looks upward and pretends the sudden emotional situation is actually an issue with pollen.

JohnLuke did not choose any of these options.

😂😭❤️

The emotions arrived, and they arrived READY.

He saw Shelby walking down the aisle and absolutely ugly cried. And it was glorious.

Those reactions are one of my favorite parts of weddings because they’re completely impossible to manufacture. You can plan the ceremony, choose the flowers, coordinate everyone’s clothes, and decide exactly what song will play.

But you can’t really plan what happens inside your brain when you suddenly see the person you’re about to marry walking toward you. JohnLuke’s brain apparently said, Welp. We’re crying now. No dignity necessary.

Ten out of ten groom reaction.

Married by JohnLuke’s Dad

Family continued to be an important part of Shelby and JohnLuke’s ceremony because JohnLuke’s dad, John, was the person officiating their wedding.

I love how both dads had completely different but equally meaningful roles that day. Shelby’s dad got to walk his daughter down the aisle. JohnLuke’s dad got to stand in front of them, perform their ceremony, and officially pronounce his son and Shelby husband and wife.

Between the grandparents participating in the processional and both fathers playing such important parts, their September Tennessee micro wedding felt wonderfully centered around the generations of family surrounding them.

Then, once John officially pronounced them married, Shelby and JohnLuke did something I really loved. They didn’t immediately walk back down the aisle.

They danced.

Straight From “I Do” Into Their First Dance

Instead of ending the ceremony and moving somewhere else for their first dance, Shelby and JohnLuke went directly from being pronounced husband and wife into dancing together. It made the transition feel so natural.

One moment, they’re standing there getting married. The next, they’re wrapped up together having their first dance as newlyweds with everyone they love watching. There wasn’t a big pause or a complete change of setting. They simply let one moment flow into the next. Afterward, we moved into family photos, and Shelby and JohnLuke made another decision that I am always happy to support: they kept the family photo list relatively short.

That meant we could document the important people who were there without spending the entire remainder of their wedding lining up different combinations of relatives. And it left us plenty of time for the two of them.

Which turned out to be an EXCELLENT decision.

Because…

THE LIGHT.

September Evening Light Showing Off

Oh. My. Goodness.

Sometimes we have a beautiful photo location in mind and go looking for the best light within it.

On this particular September evening, it felt like pretty light just kept appearing everywhere we went.

We started Shelby and JohnLuke’s newlywed photos around the chapel, giving them a chance to relax after the ceremony and finally spend a little time together without everyone else needing their attention.

From there, we headed toward the mossy tree for another set of portraits.

Then, as we passed the bridal suite, we saw the softest, prettiest diffused backlighting.

Obviously we stopped. There was absolutely no way we were walking past that. Sometimes photography plans need to be flexible because Mother Nature does not care what locations you put on your checklist. If she hands you gorgeous light, you say thank you and PUT THE COUPLE IN IT. 😂

So we did.

Wait. There’s More Good Light.

Eventually, we needed to continue toward the car so we could head to the field. Except on our way down the gravel road… There it was again.

Another little pocket of beautiful September light.

At this point, the evening was just being ridiculous. So naturally, we stopped again.

One of the things I love about a September Tennessee micro wedding is how much the feeling of the day can change as the sun gets lower. Earlier in the day, September can still feel very much like summer. But as evening approaches, the light gets warmer and softer, and you start getting little hints that the season is beginning to shift.

Shelby and JohnLuke happened to hit an evening where every turn seemed to give us something different.

I’m not complaining.

Finishing With Smoky Mountain Views

Finally, we made it to the field.

The forest opened up behind us, the Smoky Mountains stretched across the distance, and Shelby and JohnLuke got one final change of scenery for their wedding photos.

By this point, they had been married for a while. The ceremony nerves were long gone. Family photos were finished. Nobody else needed anything from them. And they were VERY comfortable in front of the camera.

Perhaps a little too comfortable.

😂🔥

We’ll just say things got slightly steamy in the field.

There was canoodling. There was kissing. The lens may or may not have fogged up. We will respect their privacy at this time. 😂

But honestly, that’s exactly what I love about the later portion of wedding portraits. Once couples stop thinking about how they’re “supposed” to pose and start playing with each other, the photos get so much more fun.

Shelby and JohnLuke definitely reached that point.

A September Tennessee Micro Wedding Filled With Family

As gorgeous as the light was—and seriously, it was showing OFF—what made Shelby and JohnLuke’s wedding special wasn’t simply the scenery. It was all of the personal moments layered throughout their day.

Shelby’s mom and sister helping her get ready. Nelson making his completely unsolicited appearance. Their unique wedding rings. Their grandparents being included in the processional. Shelby’s dad walking her down the aisle. JohnLuke seeing her and completely losing it. JohnLuke’s dad standing in front of them and making their marriage official. Their first dance beginning immediately after they became husband and wife.

Then, finally, getting time to wander around together and enjoy being newlyweds while September gave us some of the prettiest evening light we could have asked for.

That’s a pretty fantastic way to get married.

One Gorgeous September Evening in Tennessee

September sits in such a beautiful little in-between place in East Tennessee. Summer hasn’t completely left. Fall hasn’t completely arrived.

The forest is still green, but warm earthy colors suddenly feel right. The evenings begin to change. And every now and then, you get light that makes you stop what you’re doing and say, “NOPE. We’re taking a photo right here.”

Approximately four times.

😂

Shelby and JohnLuke’s September Tennessee micro wedding gave us all of that, but it also gave us something much better than pretty scenery: two people who were ridiculously happy to be marrying each other. And JohnLuke made VERY sure we had photographic evidence of that fact.

Beautiful details, generations of family, two dads with special roles, one gloriously emotional groom, a photobombing stray kitty, mountain views, some mildly scandalous newlywed behavior, and gorgeous September light everywhere we turned.

What a beautiful Tennessee evening to get married. ❤️ Congratulations, Shelby and JohnLuke!!

May married life bring you plenty more beautiful adventures, ridiculous laughter, excellent light, and reasons to happy-ugly-cry together.

 

From the Bride: 

In 2011, we were 11 years old, and our older sisters were close friends. One night, when his sister was over at my house to stay the night, she said, “Shelby, I have a younger brother your age named JohnLuke, he is really cute and I think you all should date.” And my sister attested, also saying he was really funny. It takes a lot for an 11 year old boy to make a 14 year old girl laugh so I knew it had to be true. We looked at his photos on Facebook, and sure enough I began to have a crush on him. So we were in fifth grade when we became aware of each other, but we didn’t meet until sixth grade at a football game. We went to middle school together and I had a crush on him the whole time. Fast forward to 2014, and we started dating. After a couple of months, he had to break it off because he was scared his mom would find out that we were dating, and I was devastated!!! Lol. However, we remained friends throughout high school, occasionally hanging out and going thrifting. We drifted apart while I was in college, until I graduated and came back home to Tennessee.

In June 2024, I was living at my parents’ house in Hendersonville, and he was living in Nashville. He messaged me on Instagram saying we should get hangout sometime and catch up! I said “how about tomorrow?” I’ve never been that eager before, but I had free time and I was excited to see him. He had grown up to be the kind of man I knew I wanted. Funny, loves thrifting, Christian, has good style, has curly hair, plays guitar and makes music, and is always a good hang. In his mind, we met up as friends to catch up, and he did not think it was a date, but I thought differently because we’ve always had good conversations, matched each other’s energy, and he makes me laugh harder than anyone I’ve ever met, and that’s the key to my heart. We met at a bar in East Nashville called Coral Club and then went over to Greenhouse Bar, which is a beautiful greenhouse with a ton of plants and good food and drinks. We obviously hit it off and we went from there. On our first official date, he picked me up in his 1989 Ford Econoline van and came to my doorstep to talk to my parents. He had met them in the past in middle school and high school, so it made me feel good that he was comfortable going to talk to them and give them hugs and catch up. I knew they would find him respectable, and that was important to me. We went to a sushi place called Sushi Kingdom and he let me order whatever I wanted and we laughed and talked all night!

JohnLuke proposed while we were in Louisville visiting my sister and her husband. We had been dating less than a year at this point, so I had no idea this was going to happen AT ALL. We had talked about wanting to get married multiple times but I had no idea he was actually working to make that happen! My sister took me on a date to a cat cafe and shopping (and I coincidentally bought JohnLuke a turquoise ring I knew he would like) to distract me, and we went to a botanical garden called Yew Dell. We were walking on a tree-lined path, and JohnLuke came out from behind the trees and stood before me on a rug. He professed his love for me and got down on one knee and I immediately screamed YES YES YES YES YES!!!!!!

I wanted a beautiful, green, forest backdrop for our wedding that was in our budget and I knew the Smoky Mountains would be a beautiful setting for it! I’m most looking forward to getting married to the love of my life! 

We love to go thrifting, watch movies, go to the gym, and eat at nice restaurants.

September Tennessee Micro Wedding Vendors

Event Management: Aubrey with Custom Love Gifts & Events
Venue: Chapel in the Hollow
Venue Representative: Erin
Photography: Star Noir Studio
Videography: Yugen Productions
Officiant: John Racioppa
Chapel Florals: Chapel in the Hollow
Wedding Dress: Azazie
Menswear: Men’s Wearhouse
Invitations: Shelby
Hair & Makeup: Organic Infusion Hair & Nail Salon