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Soulaf and Harris’ wedding, more than any other we’ve shot this year, is a testament to the style, the elegance, and the details that are possible when you enlist the services of a talented event planner… (insert drumroll here) Candice Dowling Coppola of Jubilee Events transformed a backyard into an outdoor cathedral… a restaurant into an elegant, richly detailed reception. Since I am ever the multi-tasker, check out two awesomely talented people in one link: Candice makes the magic, and Carla Ten Eyck’s photographic brilliance captures it.

Their reception at the upscale French restaurant L’escale, overlooking Greenwich Harbor was the perfect venue for their wedding. Having the opportunity to work there more than once in the last several months has made for great footage, and a wonderful staff.

Congratulations to Soulaf and Harris on their beautiful wedding!

So I’ve developed this awesome little ‘referral tree’ in Greenwich that has blossomed into a lot of weddings… correction, a lot of awesome weddings with some of the nicest, most considerate people I’ve ever worked with. Kristi and Drew definitely fall into my unofficial ‘couples I wish I could work with all the time’ category!

After a gorgeous ceremony at St. Roch’s, it was off to the VIP Country Club in New Rochelle, a beautiful upscale reception venue where they always are great to work with. A really cool touch during the latter part of the night was having a cigar roller on the back patio, and a top shelf scotch station for those who cared to indulge. Very classy and fun!

Congratulations to Kristi and Drew, on such a great day, and thanks for being the kind of bride and groom all wedding vendors dream of!

If you’re having trouble watching the Flash version above, you can click here for the Quicktime version.

I usually get a feeling right away whether I’ll be working for a couple, or with a couple. From our first meeting, I knew I’d love working with Kate and Dave. They were both easy going and really excited for their big day! And a big day it was… everything came together for one of my favorite weddings of the year. Great weather, a beautiful church, a gorgeous reception venue, and two great, fun families. The Saybrook Point Inn & Spa is one of my favorite places to shoot, and for good reason. They are always super nice to work with and the oceanfront marina makes for endless great footage opportunities.

Speaking of great imagery… working with Eric and Amber from Raw Photo Design continues to make my work better. Eric has such a great feel for finding great, different locations, and making the most of them. He can turn a traditional landscape into something really amazing. Working as a team with your photographer is always an important part of the day for us, so the fact that we work well together helps too! Check out some photos from Kate and Dave’s wedding here. No, really, you need to stop reading and click it!

Kreg from Primetime Entertainment kicked out the tunes, and delivered as usual—not like he had a tough crowd… this group came to dance, and dance they did.

Congratulations Kate and Dave, and thanks again for being such a great couple to work with!

If you’re having trouble watching the Flash version above, you can click here for the Quicktime version.

Every once in a while I shoot a wedding that comes together in a way that truly reflects the couple style and personality. Bevin + Jeff’s big day definitely fell into that category. It was a great combination of elegance and style (Bevin’s influence), and over-the-top fun (Jeff’s influence)!

After a ceremony at beautiful St. Peter’s in Danbury, it was off to the Ridgewood Country Club. A brief downpour during the cocktail hour quickly cleared, and made for some awesome light out on the golf course, and photographer Chris Ware took full advantage. The shots he showed me of some of the formals were awesome! I’ve shot with Chris several times before, and he’s always great to work with.

Ok, so as I recap weddings, I always try to abstain from using phrases like ‘the best…’ or ‘the most fun ever…’ because I’ll undoubtedly come across something the next weekend that’s even better, and then I look dumb! With that in mind, I’ll break my own rules and say that The Zoo was the best wedding band I’ve ever shot!! The dance floor was full all night, and they just kept bringing it until Ridgewood neighbors called to complain… always a good sign!! If you’re looking for a band for your wedding, I would highly recommend checking them out.

Congratulations again to Bevin, Jeff, and families! Enjoy the highlight film.

[If your computer isn't so Flash friendly, click here for the Quicktime version.]

YES! Raw Photo Design (Eric + Amber Langlois) have started doing workshops… so for those out there who want to learn from someone who falls into our ‘vendors who bring it’ category, now you can! Click here for their shots from the day. I tagged along to document some learnin’, hang with some cool photographers, and hoped to score some grade A footage at a cool place.

So their workshop was held at The Winvian, this resort getaway kind of place on 100 acres up in the Litchfield Hills. I had never shot there, but it’s a very cool venue for a wedding!

Also contributing their amazing talents to the successful day were: Makeup: Stacey Palancia of Blush Couture, Flowers: Tony and Kat from Datura. Bridal Gown: Beth from White Dress by the Shore.

OK, so usually an Italian wedding is a very ’spirited’ affair. That’s cool, I’m all for spirited. But… throw in a Scottish groom in a kilt leading in the Greenwich Pipe Band, and you’re talking off-the-hook madness! Tarantella’s twirled, bagpipes blew, and Christopher’s mother even belted out a chorus of “You’re a Grand Old Flag!” (no, really) accompanied by the band for the evening, The Guss Hayes Band. All in the beautiful VIP Country Club in New Rochelle. Truly something to see!

Having filmed Caren’s brother’s wedding in July of 2008, it was great already having a trust level established with their wonderful family. It always makes the day more relaxed for them knowing their vendors are gonna take good care of them. On a cool vendor note, I got to work with Megan Dey Photography again, which was great. You can tell she builds great relationships with her clients.

Congratulations to Caren and Christopher on such a great wedding, and best of luck to you both!

Usually rain and tornado warnings put a little bit of a damper on things, but for Krista and José, I almost got the feeling they kinda embraced the adversity with a little “nothing can stop our day from being perfect” vibe. Awesome to see!

Krista and José were referred to me by photographer Carla Ten Eyck, which is cool cause knowing that a couple is working with Carla says something about them… they’re fun, and they have an appreciation for great photography. You can check out their C10 blog post here.

This was my first visit to the Bond Ballroom, and it did not disappoint. I feel like I’ve seen so much great photography of that room over the last few years, I was excited to get in there and do some work.

When I pick a song for a couple’s highlight film, I usually try to do something a little different. For Krista and José though, I knew this song was really important to them. A friend of theirs sang it at the ceremony, and it was also their first dance song… so if the shoe fits! It’s actually a really beautiful song, and posed a challenge fashioning a highlight film around it.

Enjoy, and congratulations to Krista and José!

Erica and Craig’s big day at Ethan Allen was a huge success, and EA Event Manager Andrea McCurry is really great to work with! From Day 1, I knew they were going to be great clients (Lee, Erica’s mom, grabbed my cheek and told me I was a good kid at the first meeting!) Louie David of David Photos is always really easy to work with, and the Band, Clark Eno Orchestra, was off the hook! Their vocals were spectacular! I would totally recommend looking into them if you’re going the band route! Enjoy the short film, and congratulations again to Erica and Craig!

So Carla says, “You need some headshots.”

And I reply, “OK.”

We communicate very well. Or maybe I was just keeping my pokerface, when in reality I was super-psyched to let THE Carla Ten Eyck try her bestest to make me look pretty.

So flash forward, we’re wandering the back streets of Hartford, taking advantage of Carla’s super secret shooting spots and a setting sun. We laughed. We cried. I posed. Carla told me I had no career in modeling. We had a few beers, and called it a night. Fun aside, Carla’s an awesome combination of talent, personality, and sass! I would say most of her brides start out as clients, but by the end are more like fans of her work. I am, and you should be too… she rocks!

Anyway, here are a few shots from the day… if you want to see the whole post on her site, click here.

[ * blog footnote: 'Sassafrass' is Carla's word, not mine. I think it's important to make that clear. ]

Jessica and Eric… wow. They’re fun. They’re a great looking couple. And they know how to have fun while throwing a great party.

Candice from Jubilee Events put together a beautiful event as usual… but the highlight, um, ok, my highlight, was the huge candy display awaiting guests as they left, stocked with everything from chocolates to rock candy. And all color coordinated too! Awesome! Right now Candice is reading this, and saying to herself… “5000 details I kept straight and all he remembers is the candy!”

After hearing her name as one of the area’s top photographers, I finally got a chance to work with Carla Ten Eyck — and she did not disappoint. She was fun, she was easy-going, and above all else, does some amazing work. Check out her blog post of Jessica & Eric’s wedding. Halfway through the reception, she busted out a slideshow of some shots from the day, and people just stood there with their jaws on the floor.

Enjoy the highlights, and congratulations to an awesome couple!