Catch up time! I have a few shoots that I wasn’t able to blog because the wedding season was so busy, so now is the perfect time to post some of them- and since they were shot when it was nicer out, we can all pretend that it’s not cold, dreary, gray and leafless outside! Bonus!

Emily and Dan are getting married in January, and we got together for a sweet shoot during peak fall colors. We met up at Mendon Ponds and had about 2 minutes before it started pouring, so we decided to meet again the next day and I’m so glad it happened that way! The next day I came across this cool field that had these weird seed pods with white cottony seed puffs floating around, so I tossed the idea out to Emily and Dan and they were game… I’m posting these first because I LOVE them so much!

We had to keep waiting for the wind to bring a cloud of the puffs over, and Emily and Dan were perfect models every time I yelled that some were coming. Well done!

Then we headed back to Mendon Ponds and got some shots with their two puppies Jake and Gracie. They’re such a funny pair, and totally adorable.

Shooting with dogs is so hilarious… looking calm and cool on a peaceful nature walk:

….aaaaand 2 seconds later, playtime! He he he, I love dogs

Then we left the pups for a few more of the romantic ones

All of my couples are pretty adventurous anyway, but it’s nice when we don’t have to worry about getting dresses dirty!

Love them in this shot! They really are cute together.

Looking forward to January you two, enjoy the holidays and see you soon!
I’ve got some other engagement and portrait shoots to blog, so stay tuned for those as well everyone

2009 wedding season comes to a close for me with a really fun wedding that I had been looking forward to all year… Gina told me that she and Dave both had big Italian families and they were expecting one heck of a party. They did not disappoint!

The ladies got ready at the Brookwood Inn

Then we headed to St. Mary’s downtown, which is really beautiful and open.

The officiant was teasing them for standing so far apart

After the ceremony, we went to Corn Hill for some portraits with the bridal party… we had awesome light! Soft late afternoon light and dark blue clouds in the background, which I LOVE.

Ooooh la la! Big thanks to one of the groomsmen for helping with the veil!

Looking lovely Mrs!

Gina and Dave wanted to stand in the road for this shot with the Rochester sign in the background… who am I to argue?

Then we headed to Midvale for the party.

There was a sweets room. It took a lot of effort for me to not accidentally fall face first into this mojito flavored gelato.

Dancing! Gina reminds me of a Disney princess with that million dollar smile.

So sweet how they’re looking at eachother.

My cousin Kristy STILL rocking the dance floor even though she was due last Wednesday! So awesome!

The Turtle! This cracks me up every time I look at it!

And saving my two favorites for last… mmmmmmm.

Also a big thanks to Andrea at SE Video for being so fun to work with, I can’t wait to see the video!

Thanks so much Gina and Dave, I hope you’re having a fabulous honeymoon!

A weekend of new experiences! My friend Rachel (who runs Essential Wellness and Nutrition) was planning her daughter’s bat mitzvah and asked me to photograph it… I thought about it a little, considering the the only thing I knew about bat/bar mitzvahs was from that one episode of the Wonder Years… but I decided to go for it, and I’m glad I did.

It was so interesting to be there for the ceremony rehearsal at Temple Beth El… I pretty much black out when I have to speak infront of people, so to watch Sophie preparing to sing lengthy passages in another language was seriously impressive. She was calm and cool and breezed right through without a hint of nerves.

The next day I met them after the ceremony while they were getting ready for the big party. The theme was Woodstock, so 60’s inspired hair and makeup was the way to go!

I took the girls to do some portraits, and I think they were kind of confused when I took a last second turn on two wheels into a post office, but I was all about the light and those fluffy reeds in the background… so nice!

Sophie’s got great style.

We did some pictures with Sophie and her sister Geffen, I love sisters

Sophie and Geffen both have serious camera skills.

Caught the last minutes of sun for this one, I love the mood.

Party time!

Again, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect, but everyone was ready to seriously party once the Hora rolled around!

Sophie’s friends were cheering her on during a candle lighting ceremony.

Again, sisters I love this picture so much.

Always one of my favorite things:

Congratulations Sophie!

Congratulations to Becky and Mike! I was really excited for this weekend, Becky is a good friend of my cousin Kristy (of Vegas Wedding fame) and we’ve been talking about her wedding for quite a while now! She’s sent me so many sweet emails out of the blue saying how excited she is about working together, which rules a lot.
I met up with Becky and Mike last week to go over the schedule and we spent half the time talking about IPA’s and brewing, uh hello kindred spirits!

The morning of the wedding, I headed out to meet the gents at “The Men’s Room” which I can say with certainty is a phrase I have never uttered before! They were there to get straight razor shaves, which is probably the coolest “guys getting ready” thing I’ve ever seen! They all loved it, and looked great… highly recommended! (Also, the Men’s Room has a Dundee Beer vending machine. I took a picture with my phone, sent it to everyone I know, and got about a hundred texts demanding to know where I was… ha ha!)

We had a lovely weekend for fall foliage, and Becky was looking stunning!

Loved the bouquet from Red Rose Florist, it was wrapped in fabric from Becky’s mom’s wedding dress, and her grandfather’s handkerchief. What a beautiful way to incorporate those heirlooms!

Seeing Becky for the first time, and just beaming.

During the rehearsal, the officiant joked that they should “gaze longingly into eachothers’ eyes” during the ceremony… nailed it!

Have I discussed my love of officiants who stand off to the side during the ceremony?!

Yay!

Guests were invited to sign these cool vintage skis that will be hung in Becky and Mike’s home. LOVE it.

Sweet first dance…

The toasts were really funny, and included “what not to do” advice from their married friends, and a top 5 list of weird places Mike has fallen asleep, which I can totally relate to… must be an Irish thing. Anytime, anywhere. Try me!

The night was a bit of a Vegas reunion, here are Kristy and Tony trying to figure out how to slow dance around her pregnant belly! Baby Megan (HINT) should be making her debut in the next couple of weeks, but that didn’t stop Kristy from rocking the dance floor and asking if anyone wanted to bet on whether or not she could do the dolphin! HA ha ha ha.

Amy was the subject of one of my favorite dancing pictures from Kristy and Tony’s wedding, and did not disappoint this time around!

A little MJ

And some portraits… Colgate has some fabulous trees!
Yes, I’m that funny. Kidding, this was all Mike.

Thank you Becky and Mike! I had a great time with you… have a fabulous time in Seattle and hug a Redwood for me. I’m super jealous!

Short story: Sunday was awesome

Less short story: Elena and John were referred to me by someone my brother works with, and I was really excited for this wedding after we exchanged emails and met to go over the schedule details. Elena and John are just FUN, so I knew the day was going to be pretty rad. Another reason to be excited, the whole event was coordinated by my friend Cyd of The Sweetest Occasion who knocked it out of the park!

To top it off, we had a beautiful crisp fall day, I think the leaves were right around peak as I headed down to Watkins Glen for the preparations. I’ll start with the guys, who were at the Seneca Springs Resort… John only had one request, to get a Sopranos type shot with him and his groomsmen. I have a few favorites, but this one is my uh, extra favorite!

Then we headed over to meet the ladies at the Harbor Hotel (which I love… this hotel is beautiful) and do the first sight. Elena was looking gorgeous, of course.

We did some bridal party shots at the hotel, and the guys and girls were awesome, no pier was too windy, no dock too wobbly…

Then we headed to Logan Ridge on Seneca Lake…

After portraits, Elena had a special surprise for John. John’s “alter ego” is John Beer (like the tractor, but with barley) and they even made a logo for him a while back. John thought his little gift for the day was custom cuff links with the logo, but no… Elena had something up her sleeve. Something cakey. And charming. From Baltimore. Yes, Elena had a custom John Beer cake delivered by the famous and fabulous Charm City Cakes! John was surprised and very pleased.

Yes, the John Beer logo is a keg with an antler on it… hysterical!

I love colorful shoes on a bride!

Elena was walked down the aisle by her grandfather, which was so sweet- the entrance…

As they said their vows, instead of promising to “share with” Elena, John accidentally promised to share her, which caused a good 4 minutes of wheeze-laughing from everyone!

It was a sweet, happy ceremony.

Great party crowd, the dance floor was packed the whole night…

There was a sort of “hot potato” game with the bouquet and garter, and everyone kept trying to stick this poor kid with the bouquet… notice how neither of the guys next to him is reaching for it, ha ha.

I had to include this picture of one of the videographers busting a move… I swear I barely heard him speak all night, and then Footloose came on and this happened. It blew our minds! Maybe someday I will be that awesome. I do have a few choreographed dances up my sleeve…

All right, John is totally leading the pack as far as my favorite groom dance moves… work it out!

At some point it was announced that the Yankees won something (I’m more of a football girl go Bills) and someone brought out a broom and everyone danced and celebrated with a little Frank Sinatra.

And, portraits.

Epic!

Thank you so much Elena and John, it was a blast spending the day with you guys… have fun in Disneyland! Let me know if they’re still playing Captain EO!

I was excited to meet Autumn and Aaron since we’d been chatting on the phone and emailing for months! It is always fun to meet my clients in advance, but sometimes it’s just not possible when they live all over the place… it’s so cool that the Finger Lakes draw people from so many places.

I’m just going to jump right in to the finished look, doesn’t she look fabulous?

And of course the view at Esperanza Mansion is just perfect, and the whole staff is just fantastic. Katy, the coordinator, had everything running smoothly!

I may have this backwards (and someone please chime in if I do), but I believe that Autumn’s dad made this huppa using trees from their home and fabric from Aaron’s family. It’s probably one of the prettiest I’ve ever seen, I love it.

Kachow.

Another super sweet first sight!

Bridal party actin’ casual.

I love the chair dance, it always results in utter terror, but also hilarity (notice the girl in the lower left that pretty much schooled all the guys on chair-carrying? it was awesome)

Sweet.

On to the party… it was a great dancing crowd all night!

Man In The Mirror singalong time! Megan Dailor Approved. Seriously the best song ever.

More tie singing! It’s sweeping the nation.

And some portraits…

Mmmm.

Thank you so much for having me, it was so fun to spend the day with you and your families! Have an amazing time on the honeymoon!