Caroline & Brady’s Romantic Birmingham Wedding | Covenant Presbyterian Church + Aldridge Gardens

Caroline & Brady’s Birmingham Wedding

There are some wedding days where the prettiest parts are the flowers, the dress, or the venue.

And then there are weddings where, once you know the stories behind everything, the entire day starts to feel different.

Caroline and Brady’s June wedding was one of those.

Their wedding day took us through three Birmingham-area locations: the morning began at Valley Hotel in Homewood, their ceremony took place at Covenant Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, and the celebration continued with an outdoor reception at Aldridge Gardens in Hoover.

From the beginning, Caroline described what they wanted pretty simply: laid-back, documentary, and relaxed. She especially loved candid photographs and black-and-white images.

That gave me plenty of room to photograph the day as it actually felt while still making time for the portraits and details that deserved a little more intention.

A Relaxed Morning in Homewood

The girls started the morning at Valley Hotel in Homewood before everyone headed to the church to get dressed.

Some of my favorite images from the morning are the simplest ones: Caroline beside the hotel windows, the girls piled together laughing, quiet moments in the mirror, and everyone simply being together before the day really began.

Caroline’s color palette was chartreuse with whites, ivories, and silver accents, and seeing the bridesmaids together made me love that choice even more. It felt fresh and summery without losing that classic wedding-day feeling.

Covenant Presbyterian Church

After getting ready, everyone met at Covenant Presbyterian Church in Birmingham.

Caroline and Brady chose to do their first look before the ceremony, which gave us time to use the church’s courtyard and breezeway for portraits without rushing through them. Caroline had specifically mentioned those spaces when we were planning their photography.

The architecture gave us something completely different from the gardens later in the day—brick, stone, darker wood inside the sanctuary, and beautiful little pockets of light outside.

Their ceremony began at 11:00 a.m. and included worship, which made the church photographs feel especially important to the story of the day.

I love the contrast between the softer color portraits outside and the dramatic black-and-white ceremony images inside. This was exactly the kind of wedding where both belonged in the final gallery.

From Birmingham to Aldridge Gardens

After the ceremony, we headed to Aldridge Gardens in Hoover.

Caroline and Brady made a decision I really loved: instead of disappearing for a private meal, they wanted to spend a short window walking around the property together for photographs.

We created the polished portraits by the water and underneath the trees, but there was still room for them to walk, laugh, move around, and be themselves. The fountains, greenery, and garden paths gave us such a different atmosphere from the church that the whole gallery feels like it has chapters.

And then there was the lemonade stand.

Before the wedding, Caroline told me that she and her siblings had built it with their grandfather, who passed away a few summers ago. She specifically wanted photographs around it because of what it meant to their family.

At the reception it was tucked beneath the trees, painted yellow and pink, with framed family photographs sitting beside the lemonade.

Visually, it was adorable.

But knowing the story behind it made it something completely different.

These are the details I never want to overlook on a wedding day. A perfectly styled table is beautiful, but an object that holds years of memories is the kind of thing that makes a wedding personal.

Chartreuse, White Florals, and an Outdoor Reception

The reception design tied everything together with chartreuse details, layers of white flowers, and a relaxed garden setting.

There were so many details worth remembering: the chartreuse bar, the white floral installation, the wedding cake, the tables tucked beneath the pavilion, and Caroline’s shoes against the dark lattice.

Because Caroline and Brady wanted their day to remain relaxed, the reception coverage naturally became more documentary—people visiting, moving around the garden, and simply enjoying being together. Caroline had specifically asked for a day that felt “chill” rather than overly staged or tightly scheduled.

A Wedding That Felt Like Them

Caroline and Brady did not need their wedding to feel like a production.

They wanted the people they loved, meaningful details, a beautiful ceremony, time together, and photographs that would let them remember what all of it actually felt like.

And that is probably what I loved most about photographing it.

Their gallery has the big portraits and the beautiful details, but it also has the glances, hugs, movement, black-and-white frames, and little pieces of family history that make the wedding unmistakably theirs.

They finished the day with a ribbon exit surrounded by their people—which feels like a pretty perfect ending.

Vendor Team

Photography: Lindsey Marie Photography
Planning and Design: Sarah Sullins Weddings & Events (@sarahsullinsweddings)
Hair + Makeup: Anna Michael Bruner (@hm_byannamichael)
Floral: AnnaMarie Gardner (@annagardnerevents)
Wedding Gown: @thebridalpath
Bridesmaids: @thepartybyellejames
Menswear: @kinkadesfc
Catering and Bartending: Savoie Catering (@savoiecatering)
Band: Emerald Empire Band (@emeraldempireband)
Ice Cream: Big Spoon Creamery (@bigspooncreamery)
Cake: @publix
Drapery: OnSite Productions (@onsiteproductions)
Custom Bar and Rentals: PropHouse Rentals (@prophouse_bham)
Linens: Brendle Rentals (@brendlerentalco), Favour Linens (@favourlinens), and BBJ (@bbjlatavola)
Getting Ready: Valley Hotel Homewood Birmingham
Ceremony Venue: Covenant Presbyterian Church (@covpresbham)
Reception Venue: Aldridge Gardens (@aldridgegardens)
Rehearsal Dinner Venue: Galley and Garden (@galleyandgarden)

Planning a Birmingham or Hoover wedding? I would love to hear what you are dreaming up.

Inquire with Lindsey Marie Photography:
https://www.lindseymariephotos.com/contact