Jessica and Jon

Jessica had two goals for her wedding day: marrying the man of her dreams, Jon, and not wiping out walking down the aisle. She probably should have added: avoiding evacuations of her hotel, but we'll get to that in a minute. First, some getting ready shots of the breathtaking Jessica.

And a quick detail shot of her shoes:

One thing you notice immediately about Jessica is how happy she is. If she isn't laughing, give her about ten minutes, and something will make her crack up. As a photographer, that's the best quality someone can have -- a big, genuine smile.

And a quick portrait of Jessica after she got into her dress.

So toward the end of her getting ready, the fire alarm went off in the hotel. Normally, it's a bit of a pain to have to evacuate a building, but when you have to climb down seven flights of stairs in heels and a wedding gown, through cobwebs and dirt from the room you were preparing for your wedding in, it could ruin your entire day. Luckily, Jessica is very much not the bride who let it bother her. She laughed and made her grand exit from the hotel down it's back stairwell,

with about one hundred strangers,

and the Buffalo Fire Department.

Meanwhile, Rich was over with Jon and the gentlemen at the 1-1-3.

Jon rocked the sweet monogramed cufflinks.

And I really dug this portrait Rich shot at the church of Jon and his best man.

Jessica and Jon were married at the Christ the King Chapel at Canisius College. Here are a couple shots from the ceremony.

And Jon breaking the glass.

Then we headed to the reception at the Buffalo Yacht Club.

We took Jessica and Jon for an intimate portrait shoot on the docks of the club. Taking fifteen minutes to walk around alone and shoot a couple is one of our favorite things to do. We get to take photos without 100 people watching, and that allows our couples to be a little more intimate on a day when they really often spend a bulk of their time talking to other people. We always find these shoots give us our favorite shots of the couples such as these of Jessica and Jon.

I'm going to dork out a little for a minute. We really fell in love with Jessica and Jon taking these photos. They are a couple who clearly are very much in love, and they were even adorable when we weren't around.

Another thing we loved about them is that they are really into surprising each other. Jon is taking Jessica on a surprise honeymoon. They leave Wednesday, and she will have no idea where they are headed until they get to the airport. I don't know how many brides would really love that, but I think it's amazing. Rich and I weren't going to honeymoon, but he surprised me with one, as well. Though, I found out about mine the week before, and I got to know the destination. But if she has any reservations about where they may end up, you can't tell. I'd even wager she loves the idea. But back to the photos! Jessica surprised Jon, an avid hockey fan, with an amazing groom's cake. That's right, a replica HSBC Arena cake.

And we'll leave you with some dancing photos from the reception. I just want to thank Jessica and Jon, again, for having us with them on their wedding day. It was amazing.

Kristy's Bridals

Kristy is marrying Tom next month, and she stopped by the dangerously-close-to-finished studio for some bridal portraits this week.

Rich can't be without a camera, so he hopped in to take some shots as well.

Kristy has these absolutely stunning green eyes, and after I shot a couple frames, I realized we really needed to bring them out, so we played with some other green stuff we had that just happened to be the same shade.

Some quick detail shots of the ring and her necklace:

Then we played with some yellow roses, her flower of choice for her wedding day.

Rich took this shot very quickly as the heat seeping in through the window was really intense.

And since the window was too hot, we faked some window light with our handy, dandy soft box for a nice backlit portrait. She looked absolutely stunning, and we can't wait until August for the big day!

Erin and Jon

I'll start off this post with one of those cool, "in-between" moments that we like. Meet Erin, gathering herself before making "the walk":

Erin and Jon got married last weekend at Niagara University's Alumni Chapel. Jon had gone to school there and since he played sports there, well - let's just say there were a couple of different reasons this couple chose their venue that will be revealed in a few photos...

Erin and Jon had their little one, Alex, along - which is really tough. We know, because Alex is just a few months older than Murphy. Luckily, bubbles are the solution to most two-year-old problems!

So, we knew things were going to be a little different when Erin told us about her sparkly wedding Converse slip-ons, but we weren't sure if she was joking or not when she asked us if we could skate. Well, we got the message when it was goodbye Chucks, hello Bauers!

Pretty rad, huh? Jon had gotten a hold of one of his buddies from his days at Niagara - and we got access to the rink!
I'm not sure, but I might have seen Jon putting on the foil. Nevertheless, Alyssa caught the couple "between the pipes," being cute during our group portrait session.

Jon did give me a little assist in keeping the girls' session loose...

Nice wrister! Seriously, getting to hang out on a rink with Erin and Jon and their bridal party was pretty rad, especially on such a hot day. We can even forgive the fact that Jon was definitely wearing a Red Wings t-shirt under his tux :).

Erin and Jon had their reception in Amherst, and we got to hang out with some really fun people all night! We'll leave this off with one last shot...we were loving Alex and his fascination with the giant cake :).

Dear Murphy - Strong Museum of Play

Hey little buddy, since this is our first "Dear Murphy" post over on this blog, we'll have to catch some people up to date. Basically, we've been keeping a running blog of your life since you were born almost two years ago and now we want to consolidate it with our "work blog."

Without further adieu, here's your latest exploits from when we rounded up the crew and headed to Rochester last week to hang out at the Strong Museum of Play

You are so into "GOOOOOOing" that we pull out your car seat - and well, you get impatient:

First things first, we couldn't start the journey with your Cousin Mackenzie and Aunt Kyle without the requisite Super Mighty Combo.

You had about two bites of your "Buffito" and then it was pass-out time. I wish I could be 22 months old and just go to sleep in random places - and wake up in randomly awesome new places.

The sky was gorgeous on the way over - since it's been raining like crazy here in Buffalo the past few days I thought I'd hook this photo up:

Your cousin Mackenzie was enjoying the ride over with her mom:

We have to give some love to the old Kodak building - driving over to Rochester is like a little pilgrimage each time. I still use Tri-x obsessively when I feel like shooting film.

The first thing we saw when we went into the Strong Museum was a Berenstain Bear.

We also saw Clifford the Big Red Dog, but your cousin wasn't so sure about him (see foreground). Mackenzie is awesome - she basically accused Clifford of fraud, saying, "You're look like you're stuffed and not real." Good call, kiddo.

The next photos are from the Butterfly Garden exhibit at the museum - it was really cool and had hundreds and hundreds of butterflies.

And, for some reason, a turtle that Mackenzie was really into:

So, we learned a lot at the Strong Museum - but I'm not entirely sure the knowledge of how to use a chop saw is something your mom and dad need for you right now...

Then we played some giant chess...well, relative to you the pieces were pretty big:

Sand pit time:

Okay, so I'm slacking on the narrative - I get that. They have a pretty sweet Clifford exhibit that we really enjoyed - and by "we", I mean you drove the boat to Birdwell Island for about 20 minutes while I made "toot toot" noises.

Before we took off for the day we all did some posing at the Sesame Street exhibit - first with Mackenzie:

Then with your aunt Kyle, Mackenzie, Mommy and you!

That's all for this post - so wave to all your fans from the carousel.

Well done, buddy.

Either later tonight or tomorrow first thing we'll have photos from this week's wedding up. Thanks for stopping by the blog :)

Kate and Josh

Kate and Josh got married this past weekend at the historic St. Louis Church in downtown Buffalo. If you're looking around Buffalo for an absolutely stunning, traditional tableau for your wedding - St. Louis should be on your short list. They held their reception at the Statler Towers, which was the second time in as many weeks we got to see the awesome receptions our friends at Park Lane Catering put on at the Towers.

Here's some shots from our day with Kate and Josh - Alyssa and I hope you enjoy them!

I was hanging out with the guys, of course - and we got there a few minutes early, which allowed us some time to chill out on the steps.

Then we headed to the sacristy to make sure Kate and her party could arrive unseen before the wedding.

When choosing a more traditional Roman Catholic ceremony, a lot of couples don't necessarily get a chance to add personal touches. Josh's dad playing guitar and singing, both solo and with a bridesmaid, was awesome.

Here's Alyssa and I doubling up for the big exit - can you play, "spot the photographer?" This is an easy one...

By the way - good job on the bubbles, guests! Let me pause here for a moment and explain the "bubble exit" thing...It's awesome in theory, but you really have to get your family and friends on board to pull it off. Of course, you could get something like this - but that might be considered overkill...

As I mentioned, we were back at the Statler this weekend - but this time we were in the Golden Ballroom. Kate and Josh had great-looking table cards made with old postcards from traditional Buffalo sites...

Best feature for us in the ballroom? The second tier, which lets us get a higher angle on things like the couple's first dance...

...or the Maid of Honor's toast.

So that's all for now, but well be back with more posts later in the week. I'll leave off this wedding with one of the more typical sights from the reception...let's just say everyone had a really good time.

Juli and Willie

I wanted to subtitle this post, "The Best Wedding Present Ever," because I truely could have done an entire blog post about Juli's amazing present to Willie. However, this post is not about her wedding present, it's about her fantastic wedding. I don't think I've ever seen the level of family participation in the wedding preparation as I did at Juli's. She got ready at her parents home, while her family ran around putting the final touches on the reception site -- their backyard.

When the van arrived with the flowers, I was a bit floored by the never-ending supply of flora that was carried into the house and yard. They were, in a word, stunning arrangements. The bouquets were some of the most beautiful I've seen. Juli told me she told the florist she wanted each of the bouquets to be different and unique, but similar and ended the direction at that. They each had a unique flower, but all the same color palette. I don't think florists often get brides who give them so much artistic freedom, and in the end, Juli was thrilled with result. This is one of the bouquets with the rings.

Meanwhile, Rich was with Willie and the groomsmen getting ready. I loved this portrait of the group. It's difficult to get a shot like this -- to get the reflection well-lit and sharp, you often have to blow out the skin, but Rich nailed it and was able to keep all the detail.

At Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church, Juli walked down the aisle with her father and a piece of her mother -- that's her mom's veil. She changed into a shorter one after the ceremony, but I thought it was a really amazing gesture. Plus, the veil worked perfectly with her absolutely stunning (though, I'm told, quite heavy) lace and beaded gown.

We only shot a couple of quick portraits on the steps of the church. Again, this is why I totally love having the both of us shooting -- Rich took this informal portrait (that also set the stage for a Fourth of July weekend wedding) while I was setting up the second shot of the bridal party.

Then we headed back over to her family's land for some more intimate portraits of the two of them. When I went out to Juli's parent's house a few months ago, we chatted around their table and Juli mentioned she wasn't sure where to do the portraits. Then we walked out back and I saw the small lake (they call it a pond, but it must be 50 feet across), perfectly landscaped gardens and the grape fields. And I thought, "Huh, I think this might do." These first two, again, are a simultaneous moment -- I'm able to set up a posed shot, and Rich can get a little creative with the angle, without taking extra time to set up different poses.

This is one of my favorite shots of the day, because I love a daytime silhouette, and you don't often get the right lighting and the right landscape at the same time. But they had a beautiful hill, some grape fields, and the sun in the right direction to make it work.

Okay, so I've already raved about the flowers, but I have to give a shout out to the cake, as well. It was straight out of a Martha Stewart magazine. She had each tier separated by a different color of fresh flowers, and I think it's just gorgeous.

As I mentioned before, Juli had a surprise present for Willie that made the rest of us recent brides look terrible. Seriously, how do you compete with a Mister Softee truck arriving at the reception?

As you can tell by his affection for the truck, Willie loves Mister Softee. Apparently, he's known to chase the truck down, and, rumor has it, that the Mister Softee in his neighborhood knows him by name. Clearly, Willie was thrilled by the present, and he made sure everyone knew, he married the best woman, ever. And seriously, with a surprise like that, I think he just might have.

After everyone got their ice cream, it was time for some dancing under the tent. Juli's parents worked so hard, personally, on getting all the details to work perfectly for the wedding. I'm told, shy of setting up the tent, her dad did almost everything else. I think it was a family effort, though. One of Juli's bridesmaids told me when she'd talked to Juli earlier in the week, she was busy toasting walnuts for the salads.

The evening wrapped up with a spectacular fireworks display. From across the "pond," her uncle set off a phenomenal 30-minute show. It was a perfect way to end an amazing day, and Rich and I were so thrilled to be a part of it. Congratulations, you two.

Jeff and Cherae

We got to shoot two amazing couples this past weekend and we are really, really excited after going through the photos for our initial edits. The first couple was Jeff and Cherae, who got married at the Statler Towers in the Terrace Room.

I want to digress for a moment before I get into the photos. Alyssa always goes with the Bride while I hang out with the groom and his party for our "getting ready" shots. This means I don't get to really see the cool, bridal behind-the-scenes stuff until I see the photos Alyssa is pulling for our final edit. Since I'm not around before the dress goes on, I get to experience that part of the wedding vicariously and only through her work. What I love about her photos is how she very purposely unveils the bride's day, moment-by-moment, little-by-little through her images...

She always catches the little things...like Bride and Dad checking out the dress...

And, of course, getting dolled up for the walk down the aisle...

I really liked this one that I grabbed from behind one of the Terrace Room's pillars as Cherae was making "the walk" with her parents. All three faces tell the story: Dad is thinking about his little girl and her future with the new man in her life - so he's focused on Jeff. Cherae is positively beaming at how all of her friends and family have come to celebrate her love. On the right, Mom is barely holding back tears of joy.

Speaking of beaming, I hate to be super cheesy - but Cherae's smile was easily brighter than the Statler's huge windows, streaming in the afternoon light.

Soon, the marriage was complete!

After the vows and the formal portraits, the four of us headed down to Niagara Square to get some more posed shots with Buffalo as our canvas backdrop.

Then it was time to celebrate!

This wedding rocked - Jeff and Cherae were an awesome couple to work with (Thanks guys!!!). Check back with us tomorrow and we'll have some photos from the other wedding we shot this weekend up - Juli and Willie!

Stephen and Judy

When Stephen and Judy told us they were going to be having their wedding at Buffalo's Botanical Gardens with a reception to follow at the Roycroft Inn in East Aurora, I started daydreaming about their wedding. Honestly, if we were getting married in Buffalo and had to do it all over again - that's exactly how I would want to do it. Both locations are amazing, and the Botanical Gardens are a photographer's best friend with all that wonderful available light and brilliant flora. The Roycroft speaks for itself - they put on a great spread from cocktail hour through dinner and it is easily one of the most elegant reception facilities in New York State.

I was also excited because we could already tell how much fun this couple was going to be to work with, even if we had to photograph them in a cave. And speaking of the photographs, here they are :)

Judy looked GORGEOUS all day long. Alyssa, of course, headed down to the Roycroft to get some shots of her and her bridesmaids getting ready.

And here is just one of the many reasons we like the Gardens:

Judy and Stephen both had little suprises for each other on their wedding day, which was really sweet to see. Judy decided to wear a veil even though it really wasn't her thing - but she knew Stephen wanted that "lifting the veil" moment after she walked down the aisle....and so he got it (and got a beautiful smile from underneath)!

Stephen's suprise was singing, "Grow Old With You," from Wedding Singer, which was hilarious and really set the mood for the whole day. Stephen - you sounded great!

Now that I've buttered Stephen up, I have to let him down a little - We had to include at least one of the "Stephen sweats" series - it wasn't his fault, the downside I didn't mention when I was glowing about the Gardens earlier is that there isn't much of a breeze in there on a hot day:

No worries, though - Judy was all over it.

Alyssa wanted to include this celebratory shot because she thought it so Stephen and Judy. They have a great time together and aren't afraid to dork out a little bit and just have fun...which is huge as a couple.

Then it was on to the Roycroft Inn, and Stephen's brother gave the couple this amazing water color of the two of them together! He immediately showed it off to everyone - and Alyssa managed to shoot the front and the back of the painting at the same time...my gal is a special lady with the lens...

The favors were a nod to both of their heritages - a traditional wedding coin and some sweet, engraved chop sticks!

So, the wedding turned out to be everything we hoped for and more: Gorgeoues settings and a bride and groom absolutely, completely in love.

Our congratulations to Stephen and Judy!