happy summer solstice and happy anniversary to darla and brad today!
and ayden. and to charlize, who was just about ready to join the party.
#authenticlovemag
a few stills from Anna and Pat’s wedding video, now available on youtube at the link in my bio this week.
can you tell which images were shot with a lens over 100 years old? have you seen Poor Things yet?
i love this glow, this bokah, and this entire day.
Video: @nathanrivers
Photo: @Elizabethaustinphoto
Planner: @ashevilleeventco
Florals: @floressenceflowers
HMUA: @jennifercnieman
Dresses: @sarahseven
#weddingvideography #ashevilleweddingvideographer #weddingfilm #editorialwedding #editorialweddingvideographer
#petzval
💛 bamboo and alyssa and brody:
“Nathan was an absolute dream to work with. He took our engagement photos, and then our wedding photos, and everything was absolutely stunning!! Words can’t even begin to describe how I feel when I look at our photos. Nathan captured the best day of our lives in the most beautiful way. We are in love with his artistic eye and talent!! And we also love his personality :) We couldn’t have asked for a better wedding photographer and we highly, highly recommend him to anyone looking for a photographer!“
📍 @camelotmeadows
🌼 specific thanks to the amazing planning: @theyellowrose.weddings
#charlottewedding #charlotteweddingphotographer #wedding #ashevilleweddingphotographer #mywed #lookslikefilmweddings
kaitlyn & adam’s wedding at The Omni Grove Park Inn.
photos from the perfect spring wedding day at this historic hotel and venue in the mountains of Western North Carolina just above downtown Asheville.
📍: @omnigrovepark
📸: @nathanrivers
✍️: @fireflyeventco
💐 : @flourishflowerfarm
🎥: @beautifullifefilms
💄: @powdermepretty
🎤: @tapeent
#ashevilleweddingphotographer #omnigroveparkinnweddings #omnigroveparkinn #groveparkinnwedding
asheville wedding venue highlight: Nathan Rivers Chesky Photography & Film at Durrant Farms
we had the pleasure of spending some slow days ahead a busy and full wedding season with a staycation. slow days playing in the open expanse of the fields at Durrant Farms Estate, utilizing our ever expanding collection of gear. sweated it out in the beautiful waterfront private sauna and picnicked among the wildflowers on the private hiking trails. plus, of course, plenty of time making some new quirky and lovable alpaca friends who greeted us at sunrise and ignored us with a sidewards glance at sunset. which only made us bring them more treats the following sunrise and like them even more for some reason.
set in the heart of the blue ridge mountains just outside of Asheville, the property feels wide open but still intentional. wildflower meadows, tucked away corners, and space that lets you slow down a bit and actually take it in.
Durrant Farms have already been hosting weddings and are leaning into it more, and it fits naturally. whether it is something small and intimate or a full weekend where everyone stays close and the whole thing unfolds over time, Durrant Farms feels like the kind of place where you can create something personal without forcing it.
featured gear:
- - Mamiya medium format
- - Daniela’s 4x5 large format
- - DJI’s latest drone: Mavic 4pro featuring 100mp Hasselblad camera system
- - Canon R6 Miii
- - Over century old petzval lens
Durrant Farms: a mountain-view venue for weddings, events, and weekend escapes. rooted in nature, joy, and a touch of wild magic.
#durrantfarms #durrantfarmswedding
#ashevillewedding
Asheville wedding venue and Photographer
C&C
.camelot meadows.
i love being a photographers photographer. this happens often. or an actors photographer. a film makers photographer. after so many years and so many amazing weddings for incredible fellow creatives, the tagline for my business wrote itself:
wedding photogrpahy for artists & adventurers in love.
also this day was shot in hybrid digital and film. can you tell which are film?
it’s silly because i spend SO much time editing digital files to feel like this. dialing it in, pulling it back, carefully adjusting the hue of a green or a skin tone to get to this. something that feels timeless.
then the film scans come back and it’s just… already there. i go oh! hi! done.
i love that feeling because i know that’s what everyone else experiences when they find their full wedding album delivered. maybe i should just shoot more film…
but that’s kind of the point. i love having both. this wedding was captured at Camelot Meadows just outside charlotte, nc on digital, film, drone, and a 2 minute highlight video.
📍: @camelotmeadows
planning: @sweetcarolinaevents
charlotte wedding photographer
#charlotteweddingphotographer
#charlottewedding @canonusa
link in bio 🔗
as some of you may know, i spent a few weeks of my winter off season traveling through asia. reconnecting with old friends, finding space after wedding season, & looking for something real to document
through some mutual friends, i was connected with something tangible. where the distance between seeing and helping felt close
not long after, i found myself among families living in a cemetery. chbar ampov, a slum on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, where some of the city’s trash gets deposited
if you connect with the resulting video, you can support it through the link in my bio
i’ve included scenes spanning the emotional range of cambodia. a horrific past yet the warmest people. from the smiles to the harshness of children playing among above ground tombs. homes built between them. life happening in a place that feels hard to understand, until it doesn’t
i was invited into homes, conversations, daily routines. as a photographer, that kind of access is rare. i kept my camera up, focused on the work
as the sun would set, i was told it wasn’t safe to stay much longer. i’d find myself in the back of a tuk tuk, replaying everything i had just seen. its interesting that only then, camera away, dos the emotion hit. even months later i am still processing
anyways, just down the road is a completely different path. schools. structure. opportunity. but staying there, keeping up, having support to continue..
that’s where Helping Hand Cambodia comes in. supporting students with the consistency and resources needed to succeed
i spent time in their classrooms and you can feel the difference. students learning english, reading, writing, building confidence, building something that feels possible
right now they’re working to keep their english teacher, chhan panha, funded. consistency, structure, support
this isn’t abstract. it’s a classroom, a teacher, a group of students. and a situation where a relatively small amount of support can make a real difference
for april, i’ll be matching donations made through the link in my bio. if you donate, mention my name so i can match it
even $10 will help immensely
💛
nathan
leslie & baxter 🤍
so yeah im a bit behind on posting but anyways…yeah! so i love working at The Venue. marta, kendall, sara and the team at the venue in downtown asheville were incredible. the way that ceremony space flipped into that reception during cocktail hour while we were out doing portraits on the brick streets was astounding.
leslie has unreal taste and it shows up in everything. the florals, the tables, the dress, the way the whole room felt once the candles came on. it’s also why i was happy she was the one to help me choose my home. 🏠
we kept it pretty loose for portraits around downtown asheville with the jackson building in the background. shot a mix of digital and 35mm film. ended the night on market street in a vintage car of baxters!
no, sadly, they didn’t play any bright eyes at this wedding but conor oberst did come up in a best man speech and since i’ve known these folks since that era i’m sneaking this song into this post and 🤷♂️
plus that shot of the moon mirrors the send off bouquet toss in a way i had to sit side by side. 🌙 💐
📍: @thevenueavl
📸: @nathanrivers@eastwestvintagerentals@sara__kendall@oldeuropeasheville@hairby_elmsalon@brushesandbraids@daphnescateringco@spicergreene@djtonydemaria@sugarcanestudios
asheville wedding photographer the venue downtown asheville wedding
#ashevilleweddingphotographer #thevenueasheville
aksana + arjan’s nepalese wedding celebration in a bamboo forest. 🌳
i spent this winter traveling through asia, and coming here to photograph this colorful, chaotically beautiful ceremony felt like the right kind of transition back into wedding season.
first let me say, welp nepal is at the top of the places to travel list.
forever grateful for the invitation into every room and space. sometimes with my camera in the floor, just listening and learning informs my work in ways impossible to quantify or put into an instagram caption.
every culture has its own rhythm around weddings. nepalese weddings are no different. yet unique in myriad ways. the rituals. the pacing of the day. the way families gather around the couple. here there were layers of ceremonies. elders offering blessings. feet washing and drinking of the water. deep reds and gold fabrics everywhere. the small fire on the ceremony stage filling the bamboo forest with the glow of sunlight beaming through the drifting smoke. 🔥
my curiosity about the world shapes how i understand and photograph weddings in my corner of it. from asheville and charlotte to destination weddings worldwide.
the more places i seep into, the more my ability to notice the small things. a lifetime of emotion on a father’s face as he tells the story of his child’s life. the pause between rituals when the couple finally has a moment to take it all in. the importance of the smallest of gestures.
these are the moments that will stay with me. here are a few captured. many through a century old lens.
📸: @nathanrivers
#NepaleseWedding
#NepaliWedding
#SouthAsianWedding
#DestinationWeddingPhotographer
#AshevilleWeddingPhotographer
shot on @canonusa
📍: @camelotmeadows
asheville wedding photographer nathan rivers chesky captures weddings of all kinds. a creative and candid documentary approach blending elevated editorial elements with movement and character. specializing in wedding photography and video packages.
see you at the next one or at the airport anxiously waiting to board. ✈️
love takes miles :)
photographing quite a few Charlotte, North Carolina weddings early this year. this was a lovely day in a beautiful cathedral and downtown art musuem.
ive been traveling non-stop in 2026 so ill leave the rest of the caption to the couple:
“I have no words! The photos you captured are absolutely beautiful! You perfectly captured every emotion, little moment, and all the joy of the day. Looking through all of these felt like reliving the day all over again! :)
We are so incredibly grateful for you, your talent, and the care you put into your work. It means more to us than we can say! Thank you for being a part of our day and for preserving it so beautifully.
We can’t wait to start sharing these!!
Best,
Hanna & Zach”
downtown charlotte wedding photographer. wedding at Foundations for the Carolinas art musuem and Cathedral of Saint Patrick.
#charlotteweddings #charlotteweddingphotographer
