Graduate Portraits | Asheville Family Photographer

This is more than an excuse for a family photography session and such a momentous occasion to be captured on film. I want you to know that I am right there with you with the selfies and the quick cell phone pics everyday of my life BUT there are some moments (graduating high school being one of them) we just HAVE to do better than that.

If you’re interested in creating some amazing photographs of your graduate? Get in touch and let’s set up a portrait session with the family.

We also offer gift certificates if you want to surprise someone in Asheville graduating in 2019.

Film Photography...in 2019?

Click, wind.  It is not a sound you hear very often anymore in the world of photography.  People are surprised when the film roll comes out as it is a medium that has not been a regular part of photo shoots for some time.  It brings back memories of years ago, memories once captured in a very different way than they are today. This bygone form is a passion for me.  Film is simply beautiful. It creates nostalgia, it’s luminous and builds imagery full of soul.

Part of the magic, or challenge, with film is that there isn’t the opportunity to peek at the back of the camera or fix errors in Photoshop.  It drives the photographer to be in tune with their surroundings, to pay closer attention to the details, to anticipate the beautiful and the human, to get it all right in camera. Working with film has made me a better photographer and a better artist. There aren’t infinite frames with film, only 16 per roll, so every shot is a decision, the shutter has weight.  I need an assistant (enter Lindsay) to hand me film so my clients don’t wait and I don’t skip a beat.

The wedding industry is experiencing a resurgence of film photographers. I am so passionate about this and although I document weddings with my digital cameras as well, I shoot as much film as possible despite the cost. Why? Because it’s just better and in the right light cannot be outdone by any digital camera on the market.

I want every couple to remember their day and every single emotion that went with it. Capturing those feelings for my clients and allowing them to relive it every time they flip through their wedding album is what I’m dedicated to providing with every click and wind of the camera.

Kate + Phillip Wedding | Featured in the Asheville Wedding Guide

Kate + Philip’s wedding at Yesterday Spaces was just featured here on The Asheville Wedding Guide!!

Maternity Portraits | Asheville, NC

Making portraits in the studio these past few months has been so refreshing. We’re excited to offer our clients in Asheville a warm indoor location now and it will be great in the spring to have a rain-back-up.

We created these maternity portraits with Sonia last week and wanted to share some of our favorites.

Bridal Portrait Tips | Guest Blog Post at Chestnut Ridge

I just shared some Bridal Portrait tips over on Chestnut Ridge’s blog!

A New Years Eve Engagement at the Biltmore Estate | Asheville, NC

Jonathan had planned the most romantic and perfect weekend for Jordan at the Biltmore estate. I was honored to be a small part of it.

Ringing in 2019 in style! Congratulations you two!

Montage {up-dated 2018}

I just created this recently for a ‘Wedding Show Case’ at Chestnut Ridge and thought I would post it here also.

A little peak into my work from the last couple of years.

New Studio Manager

I'm so excited to share some news with everyone! I hired a studio manager!

I have been in business now for 8 years and, up until this point, it has been just me, myself and I. Shooting, editing, handling accounting, marketing, general admin and well, everything. It has gotten more and more overwhelming to keep up with my family and work as my business has grown. Believe me this is a great problem to have, but overwhelming non-the-less. I find myself replying to emails in the wee hours of the morning, and staying up late to keep up with deadlines. This feeling of treading water has started to really bother me. I want to focus on the creative side of my business and I want to spend more time looking for ways to grow and improve my work and offerings as well as serving my clients even better than ever before. I also want to spend more quality time with my family to be honest and doing other creative projects that I keep putting on the back-burner.

Enter Lindsay Whitner. Lindsay and her husband, Zane, hired me to take some portraits of them and their daughter...6 years ago. Years pass, and many more family photo shoots later, we became the best of friends, spending days off together with our families. Lindsay started rolling film and assisting on weddings for me about a year ago as a side hustle. She just quit her job in August to spend more time with her own family and this partnership has just sort of happened organically and at the right time. Lindsay brings with her experience in customer service, marketing, and event management.

Long story short, I can think of no other person that could fit into this role as my studio manager. I trust her completely. She totally gets me and my brand, and understands my business already better than anyone else. 

So if you email the studio now, you may hear from me or Lindsay. She’ll continue to assist on wedding days, help with admin, scheduling, product sales and social media etc. I’m beyond excited and I just know everyone’s going to love her as much as I do! We have a new email address (rachaelmcintoshphotography@gmail.com) and lots of new projects in the works.

So welcome (officially) Lindsay to the team!!

Also want to give a big Shout out to Bren Photography for our new team headshots.

Shea + Blake | A Summer Engagement Session at Biltmore

Shea and Blake are tying the knot in Telluride, CO next year but they wanted to do their engagement session in the mountains where they met. These guys spend all of their spare time hiking and being outdoors and I half expected them to show up in base ball caps and hiking gear. As soon as I saw Shea's dress I knew it would look incredible on film and I'm dying over these yellow and green tones. These guys seriously rocked their session, I'm filing these images under what to wear for an engagement session!

Asheville Anniversary Session at Craggy Gardens

Kelly + Scott hired me to take some anniversary portraits at one of their favorite locations in North Carolina before they made the move to the west coast. We ended up shooting their session a little earlier in the day than expected, due to travel plans and some anticipated afternoon thunderstorms. I typically shoot in the late afternoon, when it's a little cooler and hope for some golden hour but it was such a refreshing change to be on top of Craggy in the middle of the day. The weather was perfect, the rhododendrons were starting to bloom and I love how the images turned out, particularly the blues in the bright sunlight.

Asheville Wedding Guide

Asheville is so excited to have this beautiful wedding magazine in our area and it was such an honor to be asked to be apart of the styled shoot for the inaugural issue. Hannah Chillag (editor) and Alise Taggart created the most beautiful old-world inspired design, full of elegance and gorgeous florals in the Biltmore conservatory. The fact that we have our own wedding magazine now is very telling on how big the wedding industry has become in our little city and what a popular destination it is to tie the knot. We teamed up with some of Asheville's best industry experts (see full list below).

Want to see more? Check out the Asheville Wedding Guide's post here.

Publication: Asheville Wedding Guide | Event Planner: Alise Taggart | Model: Hannah Gantt | Photography: Rachael McIntosh Photography | Film Lab: Photovision | Venue + Cake: Biltmore  | Gowns: Wildflower Bridal | Florals: Floressence Flowers | Jewelry: Fox and Beaux | Stationery: Baggie Goose | Makeup: Blush Asheville | Hair: Salon Zhenya | Rentals: Classic Event Rental |

Kelsey + Jordan Wedding | Brevard Music Center in Brevard, NC

Kelsey + Jordan's wedding was recently featured in print in The Asheville Wedding Guide and so it seems appropriate to blog some images from their big day at The Brevard Music Center. It was my first time at the venue and I really enjoyed it. Kelsey and Jordan have the most romantic love story and their ceremony was unbelievably sweet. We took portraits by the water and under the trees and while most of the evenings activities and dancing took place under the pavilion, guests mingled outdoors and enjoyed the VW Photo Booth. Kelsey and Jordan treated their guests to brunch items in lieu of dinner as breakfast is their favorite meal! Donuts and cereal bowls were served instead of cake and guests were greeted with cocktails when they arrived. It was obvious from the-get-go they wanted everyone to feel welcome, relaxed and enjoy themselves, and that they did.

Wedding Vendors listed at the Bottom.

Wedding Venue: Brevard Music Center | Catering: Smash Events Inc. | Bridal Bouquets:  Floressence Flowers | Reception Floral Decor: Smash Events Inc | Doughnuts: Hole Doughnuts  | Photo Booth: The Bus Booth   | Hair + MUA: Studio RK Salon | DJ: Andy Stryf | Second Photographer: Olive + West | Film Lab: Photovision |

Snow in Spring | Asheville Family Photographer

Snow often means no school here in Asheville and I love these extra special lazy days together. 

A weekend in Key West + Miami Beach

Bryan whisked me away to Key West for my birthday a couple of weeks ago. I didn't take too many photographs but thought I'd share a few here. We stayed at The Southernmost Beach Resort and just had the BEST weekend. We sat around the pool, rented bikes and explored. Hit Mallory Square, drank a beer in Sloppy Joes, found the Buoy and toured the Hemingway house. We found a French cafe with to-die-for croissantst, a great spot by the harbor for Oyster's during happy hour and had a lovely dinner at Louie's Backyard. I loved that there were Roosters everywhere and learning more about Ernst Hemingway and his cats was really fascinating. The drive down to the Keys was pretty cool. I think it took about 3 and half hours to get to Miami. We spent our last night in Miami beach and ate an incredible dinner at José Andres's restaurant The Bazaar. In case you wanted some travel tips ;)

Key Biscayne Engagement Session | Miami Florida

A lovely Engagement session in Key Biscayne, Florida this past February with Danielle + Matt.

Biltmore Estate Wedding Photographer

I love photographing weddings at Biltmore Estate. I've been so fortunate to spend so much time there with some amazing clients and I wanted to share some of my favorite locations and wedding venues with you.

This magical place has such a big place in my heart. Before my photography business became full time in 2011, I was a restaurant manager at Biltmore for over a decade. I met and married my husband at Biltmore and I was pregnant with all 3 of my children while working there. My kids grew up exploring the grounds, eating amazing restaurant food and have fond memories of employee Christmas parties. I worked so many hours with some of the best in the business. I learned about food and wine, coordinating events/weddings and spent (and still do spend) my days off running and biking on the trails. I know it like the back of my hand and it never gets old.

The gardens were designed to always have something going on, something in bloom and so no matter the season, there is unlimited opportunities for photography backdrops. I challenge myself now to find new locations that are different and to take photographs for my clients that are special to them. However, there are a few spots that I show to all of my couples. They are too epic not to and I have to remember that they will always be unique to them. For most of my clients, getting married at Biltmore is a destination wedding and this might be their once in a lifetime to visit. Some of those spots are the Rompe Deuce, the famous South Terrace with gorgeous mountain views and the Tennis Lawn. The Walled Garden is an absolute favorite and, of course, the Statue of Diana where I often start a session with clients.

The best thing about Biltmore (besides the house of course!) is that they have several venue options and ceremony sites, their own catering teams AND a winery. It's so convenient and there's lots of activities for everyone to do so you don't need to leave the grounds. Biltmore used to have a massive advertisement on 1-40 that simply stated 'Rest Stop' with a beautiful image of the house behind it. It's that simple. Your guests arrive, check-in and the rest takes care of itself. Anyway, I could rave for hours! Hop over to their website to learn more and here's a handful of images showcasing the different venues.

It always amazes me how the staff can quickly flip those spaces from ceremony sites to stunning receptions during cocktail hour and they always have a weather back-up plan. Their hotels provide beautifully lit locations for bridal parties to get ready in and I can always find a secluded and gorgeous spot for the "first-look" and portraits no matter how busy the estate is. I do always recommend organizing some form of transportation for everyone to travel together and especially for photographs around the grounds. It's easier to navigate that way, less stressful and way more fun.

No matter the size of the wedding, it seems like Biltmore Estate can cater to it all! It has been a true gift to document so many gorgeous weddings here.

I am just going to list some of my favorite wedding vendors that I've worked with and whose work is showcased here at the bottom of this post if you're interested.

Thanks for reading along!

Rachael xoxo

WEDDING PLANNERS
Mary Bell Events | Two Sweet Sparrows | Asheville Event Co. | Honey Darling Events | Belle Soiree Events

FLORAL DESIGNERS
Floressence Flowers | The Bloom Room | Blossoms Creative | Flower Gallery of Asheville | Two Buds and a Blossom | Flora of Asheville | Biltmore Estate Floral Team

HAIR + MUA
Lola Salon | Blush Asheville | Powder Me Pretty | Pop of Color Asheville | Anarie

VIDEOGRAPHY
Magic Hour Creative | Almond Leaf Studios

DJ'S + BANDS
Spintastic Sounds | DJ Dillion, 

WEDDING GOWNS
Wildflower Bridal Boutique

TRANSPORTATION
Elite Limousine | Mingle Events

EVENT RENTALS
Classic Event Rental

I know I'm forgetting someone here! If you're looking at these for your wedding, be sure to look at your venue's preferred lists as they will be the most professional, tried and tested!

Fall Wedding at Biltmore Forest Country Club | Asheville, North Carolina

Biltmore Forest Country Club is so charming and quickly becoming one of my favorite places to shoot especially in the fall. I was so excited to work with Sara and her team at Wedding Connections and Flora's beautiful floral designs are always SO captivating!

I started the day as I always do, arriving a little early to scope out the lay of the land and document some details. It's a good way to ease into the hustle bustle of everything and get acquainted with the families. After a little run in with the local turkeys, I found the bride doing her bridesmaids’ hair and makeup, pumped and ready to jump into that dress. We did a little first look which allowed us to get some of the formal portraits out of the way and meant that Jonsie and John could enjoy more of their wedding day and actually attend cocktail hour. I just immediately fell in love with this couple and I had an amazing time documenting their day. They really knew how to have fun and threw an exceptional party! Here's some highlights and vendors below ...

Venue + Catering: Biltmore Forest Country Club | Planner: Wedding Connections | Floral: Flora Asheville | Wedding Cake: Sugar Cloud Bakery| Tent + Rentals: Classic Event Rental | Ceremony Music: The Grit Lickers  | Entertainment: Complete Desire on Fire   | Second Photographer: Bren Dendy | Film Lab: Photovision |

The Carolinas Magazine

So excited to see Carrie and Clement's Biltmore wedding featured in The Carolinas Magazine inaugural issue. 

Lauren + Patrick's Christmas Elopement Wedding at Biltmore Estate

Lauren + Patrick looked like they just stepped off of a movie set! Can't wait to share more from this gorgeous elopement on Biltmore.

Venue, Floral and Catering: Biltmore Estate | Hair + Make-up: Blush Asheville |