Lavender, dusty pink, with accents of gray and greenery was the color palette for Heather and Megan’s Florida Aquarium wedding. They wanted to get down to business and start straight with first look and get all their photos done before the ceremony so they didn’t miss a minute with all their favorite people or the animal encounters! They had the penguins, touch tank, and a tiny little baby alligator during their cocktail hour.

I had the opportunity to see Hardemans Secret Garden while it was under construction several years ago and was SO excited when Liz and Jory reserved their date with me there! The grounds there are just stunning with so many beautiful locations for photos and the reception space is basically a glam green house with retractable walls that allow it to be air conditioned or open with an outside feel.

Don’t kids just grow up so fast? I always tell mine to stop growing, but they won’t ha!! Tracy told me that her Christmas gift was for her family to get dressed up and do a family portrait session since they hadn’t done one in quite a few years and that it was time since their oldest would be moving out soon. I love planning these sessions and I know how much time and effort it takes to coordinate all the school and activity schedules and choosing outfits but it is so worth it!

Katie & Hunter had the most gorgeous wedding at Sacred Heart Church followed by cocktails and the reception at the Centre Club! I LOVE the colors they chose, the light blue with the different shades of pink and orange flowers were so stunning. Katie had rosary that was the perfect shade of blue to match the girls dresses wrapped around her bouquet and after her mom helped her get totally ready her girls had the best reaction as they saw her as a beautiful bride! One of the awesome things about Centre Club is that the Westshore Grand is just across the atrium and there’s a really beautiful garden right in between where Linda did the guys photos and we did their first look and wedding party photos before heading to Sacred Heart. Their flower girl Alexa was just the absolutely cutest and SO happy to be a part of it all!

Michele and Evan live in Jacksonville and did a destination to the Florida Aquarium because they fell in love with the location.  Michele's colors were really vibrant and looked amazing at Florida Aquarium!  

Katie and Hunter are getting married this Saturday!!! I got to hang with them for their engagement session at our brand new waterfront studio on Lake Stemper. They wanted a chill, old Florida feel and I was excited they were our first of many sunset session here.

It’s always an exciting day when there’s a ribbon cutting here in Tampa Bay! I got to spend the morning at Rapid 7’s brand new Tampa office and let me tell you, it is awesome! You might remember the old movie theater that was in Channelside, well now it is the home of the Tampa Office of Rapid 7, which is a cyber security company based in Boston. The architecture and decor is so cool, very modern and industrial with hints of Tampa and their company’s personality throughout. They legit have a speak easy behind a hidden door from their break room.

I always love a chance to get to mingle with my wedding friendors and learn some new things I can take home to implement in my business! This month’s ABC meeting I got to do both and also photograph it.
Since it’s February there was a little swag table of love as well as a station to write thank yous to our fellow friendors.

We love being based in a beautiful enough location to host destination weddings regularly! Bill and Megan traveled to Clearwater, Florida from the mid-west.

Bill, the groom actually planned Megan's entire dream wedding!  She told him her vision and he literally made it all happen.  They are just the sweetest and most fun couple ever.  

Tampa Bay Food Fight 2023 hosted by Seminole Hard Rock Tampa did not disappoint!!!! Team ST. PETE dominated in the most fun and awesome culinary competition here in Tampa. This is our 5th year photographing this event and every year it’s so cool to see how many people and businesses come out to support and donating to Metropolitan Ministries Culinary Program.

Heather and Chris hosted their wedding day at the Grasslands Golf & Country Club in Lakeland, FL. Their venue choice was a really personal and special selection because Chris' parents live there and Heather's grandmother lives close by.  Heather’s grandmother is 99 years young!!!

If you’ve been following us for a while you know that we LOVE Metropolitan Ministries and all they do to bring hope to Tampa Bay. They have really expanded their reach to Pasco and this was the 2nd year I got to photograph their Pasco County leaders luncheon. It’s so cool to hear all that they are doing and building in that area now too. This was the 2nd year that Advent Health Center Ice hosted this event.

I’ve got some fun prettiness of my own to show you!! From August to December 2022 along with busy season we also were doing a full home and new studio renovation. It was the ENTIRE house and I mean entire, transforming it from 1979 to modern lake house.

Carolease and James wanted a super casual engagement session and to include their handsome little guy in some as well! We chose Curtis Hixon because it’s so Tampa, and the colors in the mosiac totally went with their ode to OSU with the red/black/white colors.

There’s nothing like tiny squish-able moments with newborns! Lakshmi and Ryan are now a family of 3 with this sweet girl! We were able to plan it when both of their moms were in town so we also got some sweet moments with her and both grandmas which was extra special.

 We love Armature Works and we loved Ariel + Melissa from our first meeting. So of course, this wedding felt like a match made in heaven! Ariel and Melissa’s day was focused on family- with their son, Lonnie and daughter, Blake, front and center of their festivities!

Anna and Tom’s intimate wedding at the Safety Harbor Resort in Safety Harbor (near Clearwater, FL) was an intimate, family affair! For this couple, they were lucky enough that love stuck twice and their wedding was the blend of two beautiful families, into one big modern family! Tom’s daughters, Elise & Elena and Erik, son, and Anna’s sons, Brandon, Hunter, Noah and John were seven of their 50 guests! Family is incredibly important to all of the members of Carrie Wildes Photography and it’s such a treat to be surrounded by our couple’s amazing families too!

Michelle and Rasheed’s wedding was a blast. Seriously, this was SUCH a fun group! The day started with the pair getting prepped for the day at the Aloft Hotel nearby (on Kennedy Blvd). Despite having an more intimate guest list (around 80), they still had a good sized wedding party - five on each side.

One of my favorite things about the holiday season is getting to see and catching up with my families for their annual portraits. I’ve been photographing this sweet family since way before Harper and Brenna were even born!