[kara and jay's vineyard wedding]

In the last wonderful days of summer, I was lucky enough to be a part of Kara and Jay's vineyard wedding at Ventosa Vineyards in Geneva, NY.  We met up at the Ramada Inn, where the guys were prepping in the lobby, awaiting the arrival of the groom.  Once Jay got there, we went down to the waterfront for some candids.







So, jumping on this dock was not such a great idea, it resulted in some splashed pant legs (but a fun shot!)






I went back inside to see how the girls were progressing, and was happy to see a perfectly calm Kara with every detail though of and in place.  I think she should work as a wedding planner on the side.





 


She made the hangers herself, as well as many of the details throughout the day.













Since the reception immediately followed the ceremony, Kara and Jay decided to do a first look so we could have some time to roam around and get some images.





















A peek at the ring bearer....Riley carried a ring one other time as well, when Jay proposed to Kara, he tied the engagement ring to the leash before they went out for a walk.  Of course he had to be in the wedding!




































The sunset at Ventosa was unbelievable.  The tree in the background supposedly is one of the oldest in the country, and the grounds in general have a very Tuscan feel.
























I could keep adding pictures...everything was a photographer's dream.  Awesome families and friends, lots of crazy dancing, oh, and fireworks!







Thanks Kara and Jay for bringing me along!

[rachelle and tim in florida]

I spent the weekend of June 1 in beautiful Jupiter Florida, photographing the wedding of Rachelle and Tim.  I've known them for awhile now, through my husband's co-ed softball team, and awhile back Rachelle asked me to work with them...I never imagined it would end up being in Florida, much less a place that I had spent a lot of time during my childhood. (Not to mention, how honored I was to have the faith of Rachelle and Tim to bring me to Florida for their wedding!)

For me, it was really cool to return to Jupiter.....my family had a place there when I was a child, and my memories of it are very different then what I was able to see on this trip....the location was just south of Jupiter Inlet, and as a result of the wave and wind patterns, there is heavy erosion of the beach, leaving behind these incredible rock formations.

The resort that served as the wedding site was beautiful and secluded, and had so many amazing opportunities for images...every thing I could hope for!







I arrived in time to see the rehearsal, and I have to say, it was almost as emotional as the wedding ceremony itself!

The next day was a rollercoaster of weather.....it began rainy and moved into a perfect mix of clouds, just right for photographing people outside.  

Rachelle has so many personal touches incorporated into the wedding day, but most special of all was the image of her mother tucked into her bouquet, and her mother's ring that she wore for the day.

Rachelle had the best group of bridesmaids too....

Upon returning to the resort, the weather began to change for the worse.  Rain was predicted for 5:30 on the dot, the time that the ceremony was to take place.  There was lots of finger crossing...

And as the girls began to line up, we realized that the memorial candle for Rachele's mom was not in place.  With clouds threatening, the wedding coordinator ran back to the resort to grab the candle.  As he walked it up the aisle, I swear to you, the sun came out as brightly as it could and lasted throughout the entire ceremony.

And then it poured.















Since both families were from NY (Buffalo and Long Island), there was still a great crowd, and everyone was out dancing and the party lasted all night.