Elegant Styled Shoot at Laurel Court

This late-fall styled shoot at Laurel Court was full of elegance and whimsy. Two couples and one bride set the scene for this styled wedding.

What is Laurel Court?

Laurel court is a historical building that is just simply gorgeous. Its building was completed in 1907 and is considered one of America’s top examples of the homes built during the “gilded age.” So, yes this home was someone’s home! It is absolutely stunning, and to think you can host an event or wedding here is quite amazing. The home is nestled on 7.5 acres and also has a few beautiful gardens (including a French garden and a Japanese garden). This photography shoot took place in late November, and as you’ll see in the photos, much of the gardens were still green and vibrant.

From Laurel Court‘s website, it states that most events can accommodate roughly 60 people, but with advanced preparation and planning, they can accommodate a few hundred!

What is a Styled Shoot?

Simply put, it is an event designers and planners (or sometimes photographers!) host that gather all of the great wedding vendors together to ‘style’ a wedding scene. We photographers show up, take all the pretty pictures, and then supply them back to the vendors for their portfolios. It is a great way to network with other wedding vendors in the industry and a fun way to participate in wedding-styled photography.

See a couple of my other blogs that reference these types of events!
https://katelegtersphotography.com/romantic-styled-event-at-cliffside-acres/
https://katelegtersphotography.com/mojave-east-cincinnati-weddings/

Here is Laurel Court’s venue information.

All makeup in this styled shoot was done by Dani Marshall Beauty.

Hair was done by Hair and Beauty by Hailey.

First Couple – Styled in Pink & Brown and All Black

Dorese and Jelani were so great in front of the camera. We started off with a pair of outfits that were all black, and Dorese’s dress just gave off Oscar vibes! There is a courtyard at Laurel Court where we started with their photos. The neutral tones just gave the best light. Then we moved into the billiard room (sounds like we’re playing Clue, huh??) and the scene was just so regal, classy, and elegant. I told them “act like you own the place!” or Dorese, “you’re Beyonce and you just won a Grammy!” and they took it and ran with it!

These two are absolutely great – a real married couple with two kids who model on the side. Check out their Instagram pages here and here.

Dress is by Dalliance Be Spoke

Second Couple – White & Olive Green and All Black (with a bit of pop thrown in)

Our second couple was Victoria and Doug. Victoria’s first dress – the white bridal gown just had goddess written all over it! From her jewelry, crown, and gown, just total Aphrodite vibes all the way. We stayed out front of Laurel Court and snapped their photos in front of the gorgeous building and also took a few in the courtyard as well.

For their second outfit, Doug was in all black and Victoria in a black skirt, and neutral, shimmery top. We went back to the one of the gardens and all of the bushes were still in bright red blooms! It definitely added quite a bit of pop to the photos, which I love vibrant color.

Dress is also by Dalliance be Spoke (see link above).

Victoria’s page can be found here (she’s also a photographer!)

The Bride – All White

Janie was fabulous to work with (her page can be found here). She’s a Bengal’s cheerleader which I thought was so neat (since I’m such a fan, haha!) and is a local model here in Cincinnati. She’s absolutely stunning and this dress that was found for this shoot was gorgeous! I mean, it came with a cape!!

We spent time out in the courtyard gardens at Laurel Court – there is this beautiful area that just gives great photos because of the light coming in and reflecting off the ground. We also spent time in the front room that has this beautiful window with great light coming in. Janie just looked beautiful!

Janie then put on the same dress Dorese wore above. We had fun in the parlor room area and really just focused on creating some elegant work!

White dress is by Styled Shoot Dress Rentals.