Aug 15 2012

Stephen & Jessica’s Wedding at The Palm House at Brooklyn Botanic Garden

Stephen & Jessica had their beautiful wedding at The Palm House, one of the Brooklyn’s finest venues, which is situated in the midst of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, a lovely place to visit this time of year. Being romantic, they wanted to wait and have Stephen see her in her gown for the first time as she walked down the aisle, so Zack and I covered their getting ready separately and then I shot as much of the bridal party and family picture list as I could without them being together. After some concern about the weather the staff expertly prepped the room so they could have the ceremony indoors and then make a quick transition into reception time while the guests enjoyed a cocktail hour on the lovely terrace. This interfaith ceremony was performed by Cantor Neil A. Berris and Reverend Anthony Gambuzza, and was finished with the traditional breaking of the glass. I especially love the kiss shot my great 2nd shooter, Zack Delaune, was able to get from the side angle while I was centered to capture their triumphant walk down the aisle as husband and wife. Just another example of why it’s so great to have 2 photographers shooting… During the cocktail hour I quickly grabbed a round of “just married” portraits with Stephen & Jess and then we rounded up their wedding party and family members to take care of the list of group shots they wanted to get. This is always a stressful challenge, as of course during cocktail hour it can be much harder to gather the various people needed for listed groups– but with help from the maid of honor and Stephen’s best man we were able to get the list done just in time. I managed to get inside and quickly shoot the tablescapes and room shot before the guests were brought in– something I always like to include. After an adorable set of “mom” dances, the great DJ’s from PopShop got the crowd out on the floor and this party was a blast. I loved how excited the junior bridesmaids were– they had whole choreographed sets of moves they were doing in unison, it was great. When it came time to throw the bouquet one of them caught the flowers, too… all in all it was a really sweet affair, and I couldn’t have been more honored to be a part of this special couple’s big day. Congratulations, Stephen & Jessica!