…soon you will have answers!

As a wedding photographer, I am keenly aware of how people look. Especially how brides and grooms look (and feel) on their wedding day. A long time ago it became apparent to me that the more put-together the couple looks (the perfect dress, the perfect shoes, the perfect hair, etc) the more confident and beautiful they will feel, and with that, they will have the perfect day! So with that in mind -

Sara Lovell, a Rochester MUA/hair stylist has agreed to an interview with me in an effort to educate and help brides prepare and look gorgeous on their wedding day. Sara has a huge list of tips already, but we are still interested in getting more questions so that the interview can be more productive and more informative for you! So, ask away – and in two weeks, your questions will be answered! Use the Facebook comments tab, or the native blog comments, and please please please also share this with your friends/girlfriends/family/coworkers – we want A LOT of questions, so we can have a GREAT interview, so it can ultimately help you have the wedding day you always dreamed of!

Heather and Michael got married on Labor Day weekend. It threatened to rain most of the day, but that did not stop them from giving each other sweet loving looks all through the ceremony at St. Mary’s in Canandaigua and having fun at their reception at the Country Club of Mendon.

As usual, I photographed the girls getting ready at the house.

.

.

.

A ceremony page from their album

We were close to Canandaigua lake so we decided to stop and get a few bridal party pictures. It got really windy and cold though, so we had to move on to the country club before the sky opened up.

.

I just love this shot inside the limo.

The shoelywed game : )

This shot by my amazing 2nd shooter Mike was probably my favorite of the evening.

With love,
Kristina
(Rochester wedding photographer)

I celebrated my birthday and also the wonderful wedding of Yelann and Kevin at Bristol Harbor on Saturday. It could not have been a more perfect day!

Due to my upcoming trip to Spain, all proof gallery uploads will have to wait until the end of the month. So check back for the rest of the Momot wedding (and Burbott, and Wilson) after October 1st.

I am shooting Wedding #14 this weekend. I’m wediting #12. I’m blogging #10. I just posted #8 on Facebook. So this should tell you how busy I have been. As the season goes on, it usually ends up like this, where I’m a few weddings behind on editing and even more behind on blogging. Unfortunately, blogging takes the back burner while I’m working really hard on getting the current weddings edited and into my online proof galleries.  In any case, here I am, blogging #10 – Sara & Jason’s wedding!

I walked into the house and saw this amazing chandelier at the top of the staircase, and immediately started thinking of ways to incorporate it into the picture.  First up, the dress.

And then, the shoes

I’ve never seen so many hands on one dress! Sara was all buttoned up in no time.

Gorgeous bride

They had a traditional Italian ceremony of cutting the ribbon, which symbolizes the bride moving out of her home and in with her husband. Thanks to rapid fire mode , I was able to capture the exact moment the scissors cut through the ribbon.

I love me some silhouettes!

I caught this precious moment as Sara was walking down the aisle – the maids of honor, the groom, and the MOMS! One of my favorite pictures of the day.

Two dads are better than one. And St. Mary’s is gorgeous.

Here is my big pet peeve…  why do pastors ever stand right in front of the couple? It blocks everyone’s view, including the photographer’s. I don’t get it. If you’re getting married in a church, make sure to ask your minister to please not block you from other people’s view. Anyway…

Much better!  First kiss.

After the ceremony and church formals, the bridal party took the limo to the Inn on the Lake, and I drove ahead of them so I could set up for pictures upon their arrival. I was going to take pictures inside the limo with just Sara and Jason, and in front of it with the whole bridal party. I waited and waited, and waited some more… no limo! Eventually I saw everyone WALKING towards me. It turns out, the limo driver missed the turn, and while trying to turn around, got stuck and busted a tire. I giggled to myself a little (mean, I know) because the driver had very forcibly told me earlier in the day that he was “done at 5″ and made sure to press the point that he needed to leave “right at 5″, and 5 o’clock came and went with him waiting for the tow truck. Hehehe.  Sorry, I’ll stop now. Anyway… we wanted to get fun pictures at the boathouses, so we walked over there. I was so proud of Sara who didn’t complain about her shoes once. What a trooper!

Fun and funky!

Love this house and its rope posts.

My associate photographer Will was shooting with me that day and he got some awesome shots such as this one.

You’re so handsome Jason!

Sara’s dress and the million little bustle strings.

Gorgeous bride!

Honestly, this was a lucky mistake. I was playing with exposure a little, to see how much of the sky I could capture, but it kept underexposing the couple. I took more shots with the sky overexposed (because face it, who cares about the sky when you have gorgeous people like these two?) I later played with this shot in Lightroom and discovered that it actually turned out really good!

Will took this amazing cake shot. It’s by Grand Finales. The cards denote the different flavors. Yum!

The tent was lit up by chinese lanterns, which created a totally different atmosphere from the previous two weddings I had there this year.

Thanks guys for having me at your wedding! I had so much fun photographing your day. I’m glad we were able to walk over to the boathouses and that it wasn’t raining when your limo broke down. I’m sure it made for a lot of memories (that, and the unfortunate chapstick incident…), which you will be able to laugh about and cherish in the future. Oh, and sorry to hear your rental car blew a tire while you were in Hawaii! Make sure to always have a spare! I wish you all the best in your marriage (and your cars, teehee!)

I photographed another wedding for another Jamie at the Inn on the Lake this weekend. It truly made me realize how unique each wedding is, even when it happens in the same location only a week apart.

The rest of the pictures will most likely be uploaded by July 8th – so don’t forget to check back!

It was a dreary, rainy day last weekend when I shot the Tatar wedding at Inn on the Lake in Canandaigua.  It poured buckets literally the whole day! Not a single break in the clouds. While the weather was unfortunate, luckily Jamie didn’t care, because she knew she was going to have a fabulous wedding no matter what. And it was a great celebration!

Jamie and her family created the bouquets themselves.  Someone should be in the florist business, no?

Getting ready

Looking out into the downpour from her parents’ house in Canandaigua.

And so it begins.

The gorgeous bridal party

First dance as husband and wife

Dove ceremony (another great capture like in the teaser below, but this time from my assistant Ben’s point of view) I love the surprised look on Jeff’s face.

Cutting the cake (lovingly baked by the Sweet Chicks Pastry Shoppe)

We braved the rain and got a few night time shots on the pier

Once again congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Tatar! I wish you all the best in your life as a married couple. Hope you have a fun honeymoon! When you’re ready, feel free to view the online proof gallery and tell your family and friends about it.

Jamie & Jeff’s wedding was a dark, rainy affair. Fortunately their spirits were bright the whole day, and we had a fabulous time. The teaser image I chose is from the dove release. It was supposed to happen during the ceremony as a surprise to Jeffrey, but it was moved to reception.  I’ve never had doves at a wedding so I was really happy to get this amazing shot! The instant that door opened, the two doves booked it!  They circled around us once and then flew away (back to their owner I hope)

Meghan and Michael had a small and intimate wedding on a perfect-weather Saturday in early May. The ceremony was held at Granger Homestead, a history and carriage museum in the heart of Canandaigua NY.  Meghan wanted a “vintage glamour” look for her wedding, and it all came together perfectly in this historic house.

The wedding dress on a dresser full of antique garments

Wedding shoes. Have I mentioned how much I love photographing details while the bride is getting ready? You’ll always get a dress shot, a shoe shot, and a bouquet shot from me! (and program shots and ring shots and cake shots and…)

I put the bridal bouquet in a vase I found in one of the rooms. I think it goes perfectly! Thanks to the amazing Bonnie of bouquets by Bonnie for making this and the other beautiful flowers for this wedding! I love her creativity and I’m always amazed at what she can do with different colors.

Michael and guests relaxing before the ceremony

Meanwhile, Meghan got her vintage veil pinned on

All dolled up!

The intimate ceremony in one of the rooms

They had a wine ceremony, during which they poured white and red wine into one glass, and then drank it. Michael later said “it was… interesting”

Newlyweds!

First dance

Signing the marriage license

Love the bird cage!  I think I did a good job of creating some vintage glamor for Meghan here : )  She was a great model!

We played around the house some. This picture was taken in a bathroom.

A different take on the teaser image I posted a few days ago…

The dinner reception was held at Richardson’s Canal House in Pittsford. The food was absolutely phenomenal. I definitely recommend! Oh, and the yummy cake was made by Grand Finales.

After dinner we went outside for a few more pictures, and found this gorgeous blooming tree.  Thanks to my fabulous assistant Ben for pointing a slave flash at the blossoms!

Congratulations once again Mr. and Mrs. Shaw! Your wedding was truly a beautiful affair, I was so honored to be a part of it.

(If you were a guest at this event, you can log into Events (at the top of the page) and view the images after registering and entering the access code. )

Beautiful wedding on a gorgeous day in Canandaigua. More pictures to come next week. Have fun in the Dominican Republic guys!

Rebecca and Tony approached me after another wedding where Tony was a groomsman. They had just gotten engaged, and were planning on getting married.  Or, should I say, they had JUST gotten engaged, and were planning a wedding for NEXT MONTH. Needless to say, I was extremely impressed with Becca’s planning skills!  She was able to put together a gorgeous wedding at Steamboat Landing in Canandaigua, using her own flowers and lots of yellow accents that completed the theme.

Here’s her gorgeous mermaid dress

Going for the first look

First time seeing each other

Gorgeous!

The wedding party

Waiting for the ceremony to start

First dances

We went out to the pier right at sunset to get some more shots of the two lovebirds.

This image is now a 20×30 poster hanging on the wall in my consultation room. Love it!

Thanks guys for having me as your wedding photographer! It was a perfect day, and oh so romantic! I wish you all the best in your marriage for years to come.