click here to watch the video from christelle & mike’s beautiful new york wedding!
about 14 months ago when christelle first asked me to shoot her wedding, i was speechless. word had just gotten out that i’ve decided to pursue wedding photography and she was already a fan of my work. we were actually chatting on msn one day about how they should find the right new york photographer. (christelle is my niece kayli’s mom, you may remember) she suddenly says well, we want you! I sat there and did a double take. me?? oh my gosh. me? like.. really!? eeeeeee!!
i’ve been preparing for this wedding for most of 2010. fo’ real. despite the fact that they booked me as their wedding photographer so long ago, i have not pursued booking more weddings just yet. for a few reasons. first, i’m a preparer. i spent a lot of time prepping myself with mass amounts of education and business savvy. i had to find the perfect album first. i wanted as much second shooting experience as possible first. i wanted to be all stealth-like in the background first so i could scope out the scene and see how it tends to go. (not that any wedding is the same!) i needed to do some serious soul searching. i needed to shed my old mind, body, & beliefs to reveal my true spirit & self. most importantly, i had to shoot just one wedding on my own first to make sure that this is something i want to do on a regular basis. i kept myself busy with these things throughout 2010, and i’ve had this wedding to look forward to all year long! this has been a milestone in my own life, let alone the bride and groom! while i am a risk taker, i wanted to tread carefully with this adventure as i take the responsibility of wedding photography very seriously. they have asked me to take part and photograph the most important day of their lives together. and i intend to deliver my absolute best.
with every fibre of my being i knew i was meant to be there, during each moment that passed. the trip to new york in general was the height of my enlightenment for all of 2010. i made new friends, and learned so much. about myself, about love, about life. i feel though that the experience of new york deserve an entirely separate, more personal blog post. we all know i could talk forever. i will save it for another day! so stay tuned for that. =)
enter stage left
mike’s mom is picking us up at the hotel. she is beaming with happiness! mama jean, we all call her. she drops us off at the hotel where christelle and kayli have spent the night and are getting ready. it’s the same hotel we were at last night, for the ahh-maay-zing rehearsal dinner. christelle looks positively radiant! ryan only stays here for a brief moment until he is picked up and heads over to mike’s place where all the men are getting ready. now i’m officially shooting alone. and so is ryan. it’s a big moment for everyone. the girls get ready all over the hotel room and there’s a crisis with a bridesmaids dress. the zipper is.not.working. the crisis is fixed with minutes to spare before the limo arrives. hurray!
the dress
the
shoes!
the ring!
kayli lets me take about 6 photos of her before she says “
okay, i think that’s enough now.” and she walks away. =P
christelle looks stunning, even in crisis trying to fix steph’s broken zipper.
this is one of the most emotional moments of the day. we have 5 minutes to spare before the limo arrives to run into the hotel hallway for a few shots of christelle before the big moment. i realize we don’t even have her bouquet opened yet, so i run back to get it. when christelle holds them for the first time, she is overcome with emotion.
i’m getting married…. she says, in the softest, sweetest tone. we are all moved to tears, and it is beautiful. it is my fondest moment of the day. i personally know christelle has been waiting for this day for her whole life. her energy is glowing.
i love this shot! kayli looks so cute. she is soooo excited! complete with singing, and dancing.
it’s wehhdding daaaay! she sings.
mike with his sweet parents, mama jean and mr. b
i love this shot of ryan in action. i pretty much threw ryan into this mix and decided he was my second shooter. whether he liked it or not. this was the first time i get to see him since we split up in the morning while he went to shoot with the boys. at this moment i have no idea how his morning went with the guys and if he has a clue what he was doing with the camera. (of course, he later knocks my socks off with his images. he does a superb job, and i’m so proud of him!) no pressure ryan, no pressure… he practically explodes out of the limo in a hurry to get to work.
the man of the hour.
it’s no easy feat standing at the front of a church with everyone watching you while you wait to see your beautiful bride for the first time! mike and the groomsmen are wearing beautiful espresso brown suits. everyone looks fantastic.
check out this lovely shot of the ladies ryan sets up while he’s outside waiting for christelle
this image below is one of my favorites from the day. i asked ryan to catch christelle getting out of the limo and then run back inside to catch everyone in the entrance before they walked down the aisle. poor guy, he was running all over the place for me at that church. i just adore the moments he’s captured of christelle with her father, dan.
my view (below)
ryan’s view (above)
i love the stories that are being told in this shot below.
i catch this happening while i’m outside photographing the guests mingling. kayli is totally captivated by christelle’s radiance and is gazing into her eyes, stroking her hands… it is another heartfelt, truly beautiful moment!
the limo brings us all to this little park, where we literally only have 35 minutes for portraits for the entire day!! i’ll admit this is totally nerve wracking for me because not only are we short on time but the sun is literally setting as we arrive… and we still have to do family shots yet. somehow. i’m not worried for a moment, but i’m definitely shakin’ in my boots!
hellooooo adrenaline! i am so excited that if we are only going to have 35 minutes to shoot, at least it is during the sunset… which provided
the.
most.amazing.light.ever!!!
another favourite image from the day, ryan shot the next 3 images!! (below)
sooo in love…
work it, girl!
below is another shot by ryan, that i
luuuuurve
beautiful models much???
mike had only one duty regarding the reception.
pick out the flowers. he totally passed the test. they are gorgeous!
uhm? wow! check this place out! i lost count of the chandeliers! sadly, we are sooo pressed for time and still have to do family portraits, and dinner is starting soon. i didn’t capture nearly as many detail shots as i would have loved to, especially of the entire building… this is only one room of many beautiful parts of this place! the reception is held at the
excelsior grand, and the food and service are to
die for. without a doubt. this place is
the best. they also not only have a dj for music but also an mc to get us moving and keep the pace going… it’s truly something else, this
new yawk place!
cocktail hour. a whole ‘nother room. ryan and i are photographing details in the ballroom without having a clue anyone is in here. we just assume none of the guests are there yet. they were all in here, drinking champagne and eating the most delicious appetizers. it was absolutely stunning!
i looooove this shot! (below)
this is a moment that had the entire room in tears. the father daughter dance. enough said.
proud mama jean and her boy, michael. what a day it’s been.
christelle & mike, i once again thank you from the bottom of my heart for choosing us to photograph your amazing wedding day. we are so honoured to have come to new york with you and to be a part of it all. i easily could write an essay about your wedding. meeting mike’s family was wonderful and i’m a better person after experiencing all of this. i hope you enjoy this little preview of your images!
oh… and merry christmas =)
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