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!

Jennifer and Michael and Susan and Tyler

We shot the weddings of Jennifer and Michael and Susan and Tyler down in Allegany State Park. It was the first time we'd been to the park -- a gorgeous, enormous park, and the first time we'd shot a double wedding. Michael and Susan are siblings who married Jennifer and Tyler at a double wedding ceremony in the woods. It was beautiful, but being the woods, it did require some nontraditional wedding preparations.

Jennifer and Susan got ready in some cabins at the park (this one is Jennifer).

And then hid behind tented areas at the wedding site while the guests and grooms arrived (this one is Susan).

The ceremony was a double wedding, but it was still broken up to allow each couple to experience the elements of the wedding independently. The way they planned it was really neat to watch. You know the brides are good friends to be willing to share their day!

We took some quick outdoor portraits of the couples before heading over to the luau-themed reception.

The couples did their first dances in an area drapped with lights. As the first dances were coming to a close, a light rain started to fall, and the girls danced in the rain. It was a beautiful day, and while it ended being a very wet day, I've never seen two brides less bothered by a little water.