Katie and AJ headed to the Jersey Shore for their amazing wedding at The Chelsea in Atlantic City, NJ. The ceremony took place at The Margate Community Church. Although the weather didn’t want to cooperate with us, Katie and AJ left plenty of time for formals which gave us the freedom to utilize different areas around the hotel, even using some creative lighting in the parking and valet garage to stay dry but still get amazing photos.  A little rain didn’t stop them from having a great time and enjoying the photo session. Thanks for being brave enough to head out into the tropical storm conditions!! Katie and AJ even braved it out to the roof of the Chelsea  for what may be one of my favorite images of the year. After cocktail hour the guests headed into the reception area for a non stop night of dancing with Masquerade, the band was amazing, nothing like a full band with an awesome horn section, talented singers, professional lighting and great sound. Here are just a few images from Katie and AJ’s day.

Finished up a busy month of weddings for October with another great wedding at Friedman Farms in Pennsylvania. Mary and Jake had a very unique wedding with details galour which I love. Their limo of choice was Jake’s 56 Chevy. Although it rained on and off all day long, Mary and Jake were not about to let that stop them from going outside for photos. Mary put on her boots and stomped through the mud, you have to love a bride who will do anything for great photos. It was a pleasure working with Creative Video Editing who covered the cinematography, although this is the first time we worked together it was like we had shot together for years always knowing and respecting where each other was at every moment. I always advice clients to ask their photographer or videographer to recommend someone who they have worked with as it allows for great coverage of the day without one or the other interfering with the coverage of the day. Here is a link of a short trailer they put together for the day. Thanks for going the extra mile Mary and Jake for great photos, your wedding was truly unique in every way.

“holy sh*#@ scott!!!  the pictures are incredible!  you absolutely exceeded all of our expectations!  thank you soooo much!  we can’t wait to see the rest! “

Mary & Jake ( Bride & Groom )

This week we had the pleasure of shooting at one of my favorite venues in Princeton. Kelly and  Eric chose Jasna Polana for their day and the wedding could not have been more beautiful. It was great working with Kristin from Details of I do, she did an amazing job on the flowers and details for the day, it is always great to have professional details and lighting to really add to the atmosphere and mood of the event. Kelly and Eric chose Mr. Greengenes The Band for the event and they were amazing, probably one of the best bands I have ever heard at a wedding, they had the dance floor packed all night long. Here are just a few images from the day.

It is always nice to shoot at locations I have shot at before, and the Liberty House is a great venue for a reception. Helene and Richard’s ceremony took place at The Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Westfield and then we headed to The Liberty House for the reception. The room looked beautiful and the band The Sensational Soul Cruisers kept the dance floor packed all night playing a mix of Soul, Disco and Motown Hits.

Carlo’s Bakery designed the cake and a co-worker of Helene even made Richard a NY Mets cake. Helene’s Dad surprised her right after the kiss in the church with a ventriloquist doll that scared her as a child, I have to admit it scared me a little also. Thank you for a great day guys.

What I love most about each wedding his how unique one is from another. Eileen and Bill chose to have a casual sit down dinner wedding, no dancing or traditional events rather a casual wedding concentrating on good food, friends and most importantly great photos.

Allow your photographer time to do what you hired them for, creating amazing photos.

Great photos require time and great light and we had both for the photos. It rained on and off throughout the day, but we had plenty of time to concentrate on photos as Eileen and Bill chose to have a first look prior to the ceremony. Traditions have changed and I find that the best first looks don’t have to be in the church or at the ceremony as sometimes the best emotion is captured in a more relaxed environment. Eileen and Bill met at the hotel prior to the ceremony allowing me plenty of time for great portraits and best of all they enjoyed their cocktail hour and allowed time for formals.

As I mention in all my meetings I need at least an hour for photos, although I work very fast, great lighting and great photos do take some time.  Even if you are going a more traditional route and waiting to see the groom or bride until after the ceremony, please allow enough time for photos, if you are having a receiving line after the ceremony, take into consideration this time as well. We generally find that after the ceremony, guests want to say hi to the Bride and Groom and the  bridal party and family want to enjoy cocktail hour and we rarely have the time we would like for pictures or we spend that time trying to gather people for formals. If you want great pictures allow us the time needed for photos, after the portraits are taken we will document the rest of the day in a totally photojournalistic manner.  Group or family formals can be done fairly fast as long as lists are kept to a minimum. The more time we have with just the Bride and Groom  the more amazing your photos will be.  As Fall is here, keep in mind lighting and sunset times, we need light and time both of which we had for Eileen and Bill’s amazing wedding.

Eileen and Bill’s ceremony was held at the Union Church in Pocantico Hills, NY. The reception dinner took place at Blue Hill at Stone Barns, amazing food and amazing service equals a great dinner reception. Ai Love Hair did a great job with Eileen’s hair and makeup as she looked stunning all day.

Too many great images too choose from so here are just some of my favorites from the day.