Delara & Nikhil’s Engagement Portraits: Battery Park & a Ferrry Ride

Delara and Nikhil are getting married this summer at Belle Haven Club in Greenwich, CT, and both of them have spent a lot of time in the financial district for work, so it made perfect sense to me when they mentioned meeting up in Battery Park area for their engagement session. The area has lots to offer– water views and landmarks, plus your usual city textures. For the 2nd half of their shoot we took a ferry ride across the river to Jersey City to get some shots with the NYC skyline. Then we headed back via the PATH train for a little variety, and finished with some sunset-time shots looking out from North Cove Yacht Harbor in Manhattan. Check out my favorites photographs from their shoot!

Erin & Scott’s Hudson Valley Wedding at The Roundhouse

Erin & Scott planned their wonderful wedding at The Roundhouse at Beacon Falls, one of my favorite venues, what with it’s amazing waterfall, lovely windows and unique rustic industrial charm.  I shot Erin’s getting ready in the beautiful bridal suites upstairs over the Roundhouse’s restuarant overlooking the falls.  They have an adorable baby daughter, Abigail, whom I got to shoot with them at their engagement session, so I couldn’t wait to see them all together in their wedding finery.  The floral dress she wore was simply perfect with the bouquets, which featured some of the most beautiful blooms I’ve seen. We planned the first look with Scott to be downstairs in the lovely bar/lounge area, complete with a fireplace.  The nice thing about knowing it’s going to rain for sure is that we can prepare for it, so in that way we were quite lucky– none of the “will it or wont’ it?” and “should we try the ceremony outside and risk it” type worries that can create anxiety for a couple on their wedding day… and of course knowing the situation was indoors-only enables me to focus on making the best portraits I can in the spaces available.  After a quick round of sweet couple-only portraits there in the bar we all headed up to the main space for wedding party and family pictures.  Luckily for us, the Roundhouse is stunning and you can still get the beauty of the nature outside in the background of some indoor photographs there, thanks to the amazing floor to ceiling windows overlooking the water and trees just outside. Lighting a backlit wide group shot with windows in the background does pose it’s own challenge, reflection-wise, surely, but I think we nailed it with 2 gridded flashes on stands from 45 degrees on either side, and the wedding party and family groups were patient as we tweaked people’s positions to avoid unwanted shadows as much as possible, and I was happy with the resulting images.  I took Erin and Scott out down by the waterfall for a few quick pictures under my big clear umbrella, it then it was on to the ceremony!  Once again, the rain plan at The Roundhouse does not disappoint– the ceremony indoors is just as beautiful as it is when it’s outdoors there, and we all enjoyed Erin and Scott’s wonderful officiant’s account of their love story.  Guests were treated to a cocktail hour upstairs while the staff transformed the main space for the reception party, and the evening was off to a great start.  Over the next few hours we captured some very sweet and funny toasts, some spirited dancing (especially the “ring security” team– note their metal-detector wands, walkie talkies, sunglasses, and secret-service-like earpieces!  SO CUTE!), and at the end of the night I was able to take the happy couple outside for a shot under the umbrella with the rain.  Congratulations to Erin & Scott!  It was such an absolute pleasure being your photographer!

Vendor Credits:
Venue & Catering: The Roundhouse
Wedding Day-of Coordinator: Carrie Conklin
Wedding gown: Tara Keely
Hair & Makeup: Elise Cole
Bridesmaid dresses: Jenny Yoo
Officiant: Ngozi Amobi
Floral Design: Dark & Diamond
Music: 74 Events

Mandi & Lee’s Wedding at Liberty Warehouse

Mandi & Lee were married on a warm spring Saturday at one of Brooklyn’s most popular venues with a view, The Liberty Warehouse.  I arrived early to capture Mandi’s getting ready process with her 11 bridesmaids and my assistant, Ryan, went off to shoot with the groom and his 11 groomsen in a separate area of the venue.  After putting on a beautiful sparkling lace wedding gown by Sareh Nouri, Mandi was all set for the first look with Lee!  We set up their reveal moment to take place just outside the entrance but still under the overhang for nice even light on their faces and to prevent squinting– I just LOVE the beautiful sillouetted shots I was able to make here with the backlighting once I stepped to the side of them as they interacted upon seeing one another!  We took a handful of couple-only portraits and then had their wedding party join us outside with the water views in the background.  As it got windier we realized the family group pictures would be very difficult to do out there, so we moved indoors and set up some nice soft lighting to capture the family portraits on the dance floor with the reception florals in the background.  We finished with time for them to have a quick ceremony rehearsal before gathering the family around them as they signed a beautiful artistic Ketubah, which had been made by a friend of the couple!  Mandi put on a beautiful veil for the ceremony, which was indoors upstairs, and then the party got started!  I loved the edison bulbs hung over the dance floor for this wedding– it was a unique touch that suited the style of the venue perfectly and fit seamlessly with the sophistication of the bridesmaids’ individually chosen black gowns and the men in black tie.  After a grand entrance and sweet first dance, everyone gathered on the dance floor for a traditional Hora complete with the couple and their parents lifted up on chairs!  The rest of the evening unfolded beautifully with toasts from parents and siblings and a fabulous performance by Elan Artists’ Rythm Collective– they kept the dance floor popping all night!  Even after the music ended, Mandi and Lee weren’t done– they had a grilled cheese food truck pulled up outside to serve guests a final delicious snack as the after party kicked off.  All in all it was a simply fabulous occasion and I couldn’t have been more pleased to be there capturing it all for Mandi and Lee and their families– Congratulations to Mandi and Lee!

Vendor Credits
Wedding gown: Sareh Nouri
Bride’s shoes: Jimmy Choo
Groom’s suit/tux: Hugo Boss
Invitation Design: Alpine Creative Group
Catering: Gorilla Cheese NYC (for the after party)
Wedding Cake Designer / Bakery: Momofuku Milk Bar
 
 
 
 

Katie & Robin’s Wedding: Buttermilk Falls Inn

Katie & Robin are both theatre directors, so I knew their wedding would be gloriously well-planned, but I had no idea how fantastic it would be!  From the amazing bagpipes, Kilts and military uniforms to the DIY details, this was a beautiful wedding in every way.  The outer layer of Katie’s gown was made from a grandmother’s wedding dress, which she had fitted into a jacket-like layer that looked fabulous and vintage and was meaningful to boot.  She also got ready in front of an antique mirror that the same grandmother had gotten ready with for her own wedding– it was super special to see the care put into these hand-me-downs, and I was tickled to see one of the flower girls say that she wanted to wear the same dress when she got married!  The tartan plaid associated with Robin’s family lineage was incorporated beautifully into shawls that the bridesmaids wore, fastened with a corsage instead of having them carry bouquets.  During the middle of their ceremony we were treated to a performance from Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew, not to mention several beautiful readings.  Guests were entertained with musical performances by the very talented friends and family of Katie and Robin during cocktail hour.  During the reception we were given not just a few toasts but a series of amazing speeches from the couple, their parents, and others!  Katie and Robin had a delightful first dance, after which Katie surprised him with a “flash mob” like performance of a syncrhonized dance she had prepared with friends in advance– even her father joined in the fun!  Robin was suitably impressed and the hug they shared afterwards was so sweet.  Check out some of my favorite shots below. Congratulations to Katie and Robin!  I couldn’t have been more honored to capture this g0rgeous wedding!

VENDOR CREDITS:

Wedding Day-of Coordinator: Jessi Cotter

Wedding gown: Anne Barge

Hair: Tanya Rullan

Makeup: Tanya Rullan
Bridesmaid dresses: Calvin Klein
Groom’s suit/tux: Kilts made by Bonnie Greene
Officiant: Valerie Paterson
Invitation Design: Bride and Groom designed their own.
Music: Iwan Edwards (Conductor and arrangements of music)
Vocalist: Elisa Cordova
Jewelry: Made by bride
Wedding Cake: The Pastry Garden