It’s been some time since I reminded my readers about the awesomeness that is Brooklyn Betrothed! Words can’t express how honored I am to be a co-founder of such an amazing wedding collective. Don’t forget to check in with the blog every now and again, for honest tips and inside information on wedding planning from a group of talented, Brooklyn-based wedding professionals. This month we’ve been focusing on destination weddings, in hopes of warming our readers up a bit during these frigid winter days! Today on the blog, I wrote a bit about choosing a wedding photographer for your destination wedding. Check it out here: Choosing A Destination Wedding Photographer.

Oh, and keep up with us on twitter and facebook!

Come meet me at this year’s Lovesick Expo in Williamsburg, Brooklyn!

“Finally… a wedding expo that doesn’t make you want to die!” – offbeat bride

The Lovesick Expo will feature an elite array of local wedding professionals, and hand-crafted and eco-friendly goods, appealing to more independent-minded couples. This will allow those getting hitched to experience the full-spectrum of options available to them, especially those “beyond the mainstream.” Unlike more traditional expos, Lovesick is proud to be an earth-friendly, guy-friendly, same-sex-couple-friendly, and with options for every budget.

In addition to live music, thousands of dollars worth of giveaways, and other stage entertainment, The Music Hall of Williamsburg will be providing a cash bar for all participants. Don’t miss out as we exhibit the best talent in New York with a laid-back, party vibe.

Check it out! April and Michael’s wedding was featured in the fall DIY Wedding Magazine. It’s available for download and for purchase – with lots of gorgeous inspiration for you brides to be!

To revisit April and Michael’s amazing DIY wedding, click here: April and Michael!

I’m very excited to have Nancy and Doug’s NYC Fire Museum wedding featured on Lovely today! Check it out here.

Hi Blog readers!

I know I haven’t updated like I should be, but I’ve been sick with a summer cold and it hasn’t been much fun… I’ve also been making sure our first week with Brooklyn Betrothed (do you ‘like’ us on Facebook yet?) is going smoothly. In case you haven’t visited the site, I’m going to post a little snippet of it below. But I definitely encourage you to check it out – we will be updating it filled with lots and lots of wedding planning advice and inspiration.

Thanks!

It is such an exciting day to be announcing the launch of Brooklyn Betrothed.

I hope that you will take the time to check it out! For several months we ladies have been working hard, so it’s exciting to see it all come to life! I hope that you will check in with us over at Brooklyn Betrothed where we will be posting lots of expert advice on planning a wedding. You can also find us on Facebook and Twitter!

I am honored that Emmaline Bride has featured Jenessa and Dan’s lovely wedding! If you’re not familiar with the blog, it’s an amazing resource for brides focusing on the handmade – be sure to check it out! And thanks to Jenessa and Dan for allowing me to capture their amazing wedding at the Queens County Farm Museum. It was such a wonderful day!

I was really excited to find out that BBC’s Lonely Planet Magazine was featuring one of my shots (actually my favorite shot!) from the Brooklyn Farmacy & Soda Fountain vintage love shoot a few months back. Here is a shot of the image in June’s issue. If you’re in the UK, pick up a copy and if you’re in New York, definitely visit Brooklyn Farmacy – It’s delicious!

How exciting is this? I woke up this morning (to… snow?) to find that Vusala and Gurban’s Jamaica wedding was featured on the gorgeous blog, Travel To I Do! Definitely stop by and check it out. It’s a great blog filled with stunning real weddings and helpful tips for planning a destination wedding. Enjoy!

At this year’s Wedding Crashers event I was honored to be asked to speak on the experts’ panel along side some of the best vendors in the industry. My talk was based around the most important questions to ask your potential wedding photographer. What follows is a condensed version of my speech. While asking questions is important, ultimately you want to go with your gut and chose the wedding photographer who you feel that you bond best with. But here are five important questions that can help you make the right choice.


When you’re looking at a photographer’s blog or website, keep in mind that what you’re seeing is the ‘best of the best’. And it should be – that’s what a portfolio is. But often you’re seeing just 10 or 20 images from what can be a (sometimes) 12-hour day. Or you could be viewing a styled shoot – which means there was a stylist on set, time to design, adjust and readjust the lighting, and that the bride and the groom posed in the photos may even be models. Styled shoots are great fun to take part in and ideal for testing out creative portraiture, but they’re the opposite of what shooting a wedding is like.

Weddings are so fast-paced, unpredictable and emotional, it’s more difficult to sustain a high level of images throughout an entire day. A true professional can deliver that consistency. So make sure the photographer’s full body of work makes you feel at ease. The easiest way to do this is to ask to see a proofing gallery for a wedding they’ve shot recently.

When you’re looking at a proofing gallery, pay attention to how the images make you feel. Are you moved? Do you feel excited? Inspired? Do they put you in the day or the moment? Does the gallery tell the full story of the wedding, from getting your hair and makeup done with your bridesmaids to the last happy stragglers on the dancefloor at the end of the night, and, of course, everything in between?

Some photographers excel at bride and groom portraits, others are amazing at capturing the fun and rapture of the reception. Your photographer should excel at capturing the moments you want to remember most.

As you plan your wedding day, you’ll want to choose every detail of your day to be as ‘you’ as it can be, from the dress to the shoes to the cake-toppers and your first dance choreography. Your photography package should be the same way.

Asking a photographer to customize a package to meet your needs is different to asking for a discount on their rates. As long as you’re asking for a reasonable substitution, it’s not going to disrespect the value of their work. An example of this would be asking to substitute an engagement album for a parent album or thank you notes.

Last year I shot a wedding in Jamaica for Dana and Anthony. The couple had already done an engagement shoot, but the package they selected for their wedding day included one. When they told me they did not need the engagement session, I suggested we swap the shoot out for a trash-the-dress session. It was more useful to them, a blast for both of us, and it fit their wedding vibe. (A photo from that session was also selected as a Top Knots winner!). Most importantly, it made no difference to me, but it made all the difference to them.

Viewing a photographer’s website or proofing gallery will let you see the style of photos they take, but it may not give you an idea about how they take them. All photographers work differently. Some are the quiet observers, who stand back and watch your day unfold, giving little to no direction to you and your guest. Other photographers are more vocal and directive when they work – they might encourage your guests to pose or gather for shots while on the dance floor. Some might be a balance of the two styles I just mentioned. So listen to the words they use to describe their approach to photographing a wedding and ask yourself if you can see them fitting into the vibe of your day.

While it’s definitely the least glamorous part of the whole wedding planning process, reading through all your vendor contracts can prevent heartache down the line.
 
When it comes to photography, the contract could be bulky and it should include details like how long it will be before you see your photos, what format you’ll receive your images in, what reproduction rights you’re getting, and even what happens if your photographer gets sick and cannot shoot the wedding.

These details should all be clear to you in the contract. Knowing them can avoid disappointment. And if it’s something that you’ve discussed in person or in email but doesn’t seem to be in the contract, ask for it to be written in. Couples ask me to add certain clauses all the time – it’s in both yours and the photographer’s interest to do so.

Also speaking of paperwork, ask your photographer if you can submit a wish-list of photos that you’d like from your wedding day. It’s important for your photographer to know what is important to you.

My sister, who’s a graphic designer, was married last October. She designed every teeny tiny detail of her wedding: the menus were spinning wheels where you chose your entre; programs and birdseed packets were hand sewn; everything was custom-designed. She worked hours pulling it all together and it meant so much to her to see how these things came together on her day. You better believe she made sure to ask that these elements be paid extra attention to by giving the photographer a heads-up; he was then able to set aside time to ensure that her vision and the important little details weren’t overlooked.

When it comes to wish-lists, we photograph a lot of weddings in a year and what is important to you is not the same thing that is important to our last bride or our next.  So don’t hesitate to let your photographer know these things in advance!

Okay, maybe don’t phrase is quite like that, but it’s important that you are clear on what you’re paying for, what you’ll receive, and if there will be any hidden fees along the way. Some photographers will do an engagement shoot, but the images taken aren’t included with your final images. A disc of engagement pictures might cost you $500 on top of what you’re paying, even though the shoot itself was part of the package. That’s a hidden fee.
 
There might be extra costs for cropping, editing, and black-and-white conversions. Some photographers will only edit a certain number of images – say 20 or 30 – before charging extra for any edits or even converting to black-and-white. With the huge expense of planning your wedding, these things can add up!

But like I said at the start…