Carly and Chris were a diy couple with a eco-friendly theme, a black lab named Oscar, and pumpkin pie instead of cake.  I’m not completely sure, but I think I was hired because I like diy, and I love dogs .  Locust Grove in Poughkeepsie is a favorite wedding location of mine and a perfect October day (meaning warm and not raining) with an outdoor wedding ceremony did nothing to change that!  Carly and Chris are crazy in love with each other and I think that really shows in the photos I took as we walked around the grounds in the hour before the wedding ceremony.  Oscar joined us for a few minutes after the ceremony for a quick photo op,  and then everyone (minus Oscar) headed inside to a fall themed wedding complete with carmel apples and pumpkin pie.

Ceremony and Reception at Locust Grove, Poughkeepsie, NY;  Dress by Vera Wang;  Music by DJ Bri Swatek

Lighthearted, fun, classical and romantic.  Rebecca and Kevin’s wedding was a perfect reflection of their personalities and taste.  A traditional ceremony at St John’s Lutheran Church in Poughkeepsie was followed by a double photo session near Vassar College and on the docks on the Hudson River by The Grandview.  White roses and pearls, a steel drum band during the cocktail hour, and a cigar bar at the end of the evening.  Every detail was perfect!

Dress by Essence of Australia; Flowers by Morgan’s Florist; Music by Jimmy Dee Productions; Video by the amazing Jesse & Mike of Joyful Video; ceremony at St John’s Lutheran Church, Poughkeepsie, Reception at The Grandview, Poughkeepsie

All the details and soft romantic colors that Lauren worked so hard on transformed the ballroom at The Grandview from everyday already beautiful to stunningly spectacular.  The soft dusky rose colors perfectly complimented pale champagne accents and white peonies.  The uplighting in the ballroom highlighted all the details and brought oohh’s and ahh’s from the guests as they entered the reception.  I LOVE uplighting!  Lauren and Bill perfectly compliment each other – they are just plain old crazy in love with each other.  A very touching ceremony on the outdoor patio at The Grandview brought tears to Bill as he choked up several times during his vows.  Oh and did I mention the steel drum band that played during the cocktail hour?  I am now firm believer that every wedding should have a steel drum band – they were fantastic!

Ceremony and Reception at The Grandview;  Flowers by Ranita Productions; Dress by Watters & Watters; Shoes by Liz Rene Couture;  Music by Next Generation

Steel Drum band

Margaret and Nick’s wedding was one I have been eagerly waiting for all year.  As the banquet manager at The Grandview, Margaret has seen hundreds, maybe even thousands of weddings.  So when you’ve seen it all, how do you top everything for your own wedding?  And as Nick is an executive chef, I was definitely looking forward to the food!  I knew they had been up til 3am Friday making homemade raviolis – I couldn’t wait.  The Grandview looks amazing on any day, but the stunning decor at this wedding just blew the roof off.  Black and white flock patterned napkins and tablecloths, black magic roses, red charger plates – the touches and color scheme was amazing.  The staff at The Grandview is always wonderful, but everyone really outdid themselves on this special day.

During the photo shoot, we almost had a snafu as my ladder wasn’t tall enough to get Margaret up on the old piano loading dock where I wanted her to be.  Nick stepped in and just swooped Margaret up 6 feet.  Then he just seemed to bounce up himself.  Thank you so much Nick!

Dress by Maggie Sottero

Flowers by David Anthony

Ceremony at Our Lady of the Rosary Chapel, Poughkeepsie

Video by Best of Times

Music by MC Fish

Reception at The Grandview

1 of 5 Ringbearers!

The Ringbearers ate the rice instead of throwing it

Dress by Mori Lee

Flowers by Marianne’s Floral Garden

Ceremony and Reception at The Grandview

Music by Third Stone Blues Band

Meghan and Ryan wrote me a little note just after booking me telling me how they had met and how excited they were about their upcoming wedding.  It was so sweet and I loved how I had a little more info about who they were, you just can’t totally get to know someone in your initial meeting.  Meghan and Ryan’s wedding day was a hot August summer day – one of the few warm sunny days we’ve had this year!  We took a very cool mini-party bus ride thru the City of Poughkeepsie, stopping for photos at the historic Poughkeepsie Journal building and the Soldier’s Fountain.  The Third Stone Blues Band, who were friends of Meghan and Ryan, got everyone up and out on the dance floor for the entire afternoon.  And as for the sneaker photos, well those are the father’s of both the bride and groom – decked out in Chuck’s!

Holley has been my assistant,  second shooter, my second brain for the past 4 years.  And then she decided to get married and move to Alabama – I’m not sure I will ever forgive her for this.  But, one of the highlights of my year was having the privilege of shooting her and Matt’s trash the dress session a few weeks after their wedding.  Holley wore her vintage wedding dress, which had also been her great aunt’s wedding dress 58 years ago!  And Love Love Love the birdcage veil.  Matt wore his West Point uniform first and then did a quick change into the suit and flip flops he had worn for their actual wedding day.  We did everything on one block in the City of Poughkeepsie – I love the mix of waterfalls and urban street scenes.  The waterfall spot is only about 20 feet off the road, but it took about 30 minutes to get Holley down onto the rocks – moss, mud and cliffs don’t work on the actual wedding day – but this is what a trash the dress is all about!

Matt's West Point ring

The Old Piano Factory

Lower Main Street, Poughkeepsie

Sherida told me she almost flew off a four-wheeler the night before her wedding.  So how perfect was it that the path thru the woods at Vassar was muddy and torn up with atv tracks.   Some brides would have said, nope, I’m not going down there.  But Sherida was fine with going on and Luke was cool with getting her there dry and mud free – one of my favorite photos this year!

I really do think that Vassar Chapel is one of the most fabulous churches for wedding ceremonies.  It’s enormous size and the beautiful light that just streams in from the windows makes for stunning ceremony photos.  There’s just a beautiful peacefulness and aura that surrounds everything there.

Dress by Sottero & Midgeley

Flowers by Heaven Scent of Newburgh

Ceremony at Vassar College Chapel, Poughkeepsie, NY

Photos at the Shakespeare Gardens, Vassar College

Music by Brett Lobdell

Reception at The Grandview, Poughkeepsie

Vassar College Chapel

The Shakespeare Gardens at Vassar College

Finally, some sunshine!  Or at least for a little while.  I felt the pressure to get as many photos taken as possible at the gorgeous Locust Grove Estate in Poughkeepsie early during the day, as thunderstorms were predicted for 1pm.  Sure enough, just a few minutes after Val and Roger walked back down the aisle together, married at last, the rain arrived!  Luckily, the hard stuff was the done, everyone was safely inside, and I’m not even sure the guests noticed the rain during the wonderful party that followed.

Photos taken at Locust Grove, The Samuel Morse Estate, Rt 9 Poughkeepsie

Dress by Alvina Valenta

Ceremony by Rev Jeda at The Villa Borghese, Wappingers Falls, NY

Music by JTD Productions

Video by Jesse and Mike of Joyful Moments Video

Flowers by Silk and Satin

Messages for the newly married couple - how cute!

Wedding Ceremony at Our Lady of the Rosary Chapel, Poughkeepsie, New York

Dress by Tara Keely

Flowers by Weddings by David Anthony

Music by DJ Teddy Rauert

Photobooth by That’s Entertainment

Reception at The Grandview in Poughkeepsie, New York

Lauren’s emerald cut half eternity diamond wedding band still has me captivated.  I can still see it sparkling across the room!   Our Lady of the Rosary Chapel is one of my favorite churches in the area – we actually stayed after the mass and did all of the photos on the church grounds.  It is surrounded by serene woods on all sides and is the perfect backdrop for wedding photos.  Rain clouds threatened every minute, but held back until everyone was safely back on the bus and at The Grandview.  Lauren surprised Gene with a photobooth – just one of the big hits of the evening! The line for pictures wrapped around the booth all night long (and yes, Holley and I took a couple pops inside too!).  I think I could go on for hours about this beautiful wedding, but I want to get these pictures posted, so here we go….

Makeup by the fabulous Jenny Magliano