You probably know that Heather is our visionary, our creative, our master of all the things. She seriously makes us go in so many ways every single day. She has her hands in nearly every piece of this mission. As a destination wedding photographer by trade, Heather dreams big dreams. And when we say big… we mean like having a TPL chef to prep all our meals big. No dream is too large for Heather which means there’s no dream too big for Those Plant Ladies.
Here’s Heather to share her vision and how this whole thing came to life.
This wasn’t AT ALL what I expected!
2020 was a filled with SO many unexpected moments. What was supposed to be a full year of photographing destination weddings turned into only ONE wedding for the entire year. Due to Covid-19’s strict gathering restrictions, all of my couples were forced to postpone their weddings to 2021 or after. It was a crazy and trying year as we all learned to maneuver through these changes. Like so many, I was forced reevaluate my business and decide how I should pivot. While the year was also filled with opinions, debates, and anger, I made a decision to put my head down and tune out all of the noise.
The vision came to me in a dream…
I woke on a clear July Saturday, prepping to shoot my only wedding of 2020. It was there in Maryland that a clear vision came to me. This may seem crazy to some of you; I’m a visual creative, so my brain is always in dreaming mode. It was like a replay of a movie scene in my mind. I sat straight up and immediately had tears rolling down my face. I’d been patiently waiting for God’s guidance on what to do next and this felt like confirmation: go all in with Those Plant Ladies.
The scene began with Fawn and I driving an old truck filled with plants. As we’re driving down this dirt road, we began to break down. Exhausted and defeated after trying everything to get this truck rolling, we were stuck. In the distance, a group of women come running from over the hill to rescue us. They’re filled with so much motivation, encouragement and love; they push us back into motion.
This has been so symbolic for not only how 2020 has played out, but also how this brand has experienced SO MUCH growth. TPL is about a community of ladies. This is a MOVEMENT!
This brand story video was six months in the making. I heard a quote in a sermon recently that said, “Vision gives pain a purpose” and oh how that sent chills down my spine.
We pulled together our dream team of creatives who could take this vision and run with it. Joni of Arc House Collective was our videographer and creative director. Clay Moore of A Board Paddle arrived (on a onewheel) to record epic footage on his drone. When searching for the perfect backdrop for this shoot, I knew I wanted open space with a dirt road and fields. We discovered the beautiful venue of Broken Arrow Farms right near us in Claremont, NC. After confirming this creative team, I reached to our Facebook community of ladies to help find an old vintage truck (in brand colors, of course) and our childhood friend, Tiffany, sent over photos of her Grandpa’s Ford treasure with wooden sideboards. It seriously couldn’t have been any more perfect!
Our community on social media has been our biggest motivators throughout this journey. Our Facebook group is filled with ladies all over the world who share a common love for all things plants. Our local supporters came to our rescue (pun intended!) and showed up with their outfits in-hand and enthusiasm in their hearts.
It was seriously the perfect day. The weather, our creative dream team, our plant ladies, the location. Perfection.
Thank you to everyone who came out to support us and push us forward. It’s YOU who are pushing this movement into the world.
Stay tuned for the final video from Joni soon!
xoxo
-H
C R E A T I V E T E A M
Photography & Fashion Styling | Heather Payne
Creative Direction & Videography | Arc House Collective
Drone Videography | A Board Paddle
Venue | Broken Arrow Farms
Want to SHOP the looks we curated for our plant ladies for this shoot?
Scroll this gallery for our favorites.
Quick disclosure: Some of these links happen to be affiliate links which means when you click the link to purchase something on this page, it won’t cost you more but we may receive a commission for sharing this with you. Which is great, because we were going to share it with you anyway! 😉
