We had an amazing time at Wedding Crashers this year. We made some new friends, saw some old friends, and shared our work with hundreds of engaged couples. This event was especially special for us since it was held at The Green Building in Brooklyn where we were married two years ago and which happens to be just 2 blocks from our apartment which made leaving our 6 week old for the first time that much easier. We also set up our photo booth in the same spot that we had unveiled our first ever photo booth at our own wedding, although I am happy that we now forgo the hot pink wigs from our wedding for the more classy fedoras and mardi gras masks.

We had such a blast and thoroughly enjoyed tasting some of the amazing treats by Naturally Delicious, Chef Rossi, and of course our friend Betty Brooklyn. The djs were spinning everything from Stevie Wonder to Stevie Nicks, and the drinks were being generously poured, creating a festive and energetic energy, kind of like how it was at our own wedding! We can not wait to come back next year!

Here are a few photos including some of our colleagues enjoying our photo booth..

The ladies of Tinsel and Twine

Brooklyn Betrothed looking gooood

Kerry Quade of Kerry Quade Designs and Loren Michelle of Naturally Delicious

This week, we headed on over to the Green Building,a whopping two blocks from our apt and where we happened to get married in April 2011, in order to shoot some inspirational setups with our friends Kerry Quade, Betty Brooklyn, and the White Gown. It was the perfect shoot for us post baby, nice and quiet and Silan enjoyed being tagged along and even slept in the baby carrier while mommy took her turn shooting. It was also great to get out of the house for once and do something creative with supportive industry pals. Betty Brooklyn cooked up some incredible bites that we were able to enjoy at the end of the shoot, what a treat!

Take a look at this vintage inspired photo shoot:

Mommy shoots with baby in tow

She may not be ready yet to hold a camera, but she sure is ready to strike a pose! On January 23rd, 2013, we welcomed Silan Rayne Strauss into our lives. She is beyond adorable and we feel blessed beyond belief (and exhausted!). Jess always said she wanted a winter baby when it’s our slow season, and it really is perfect timing since we can both be at home during this precious time to share in all the many chores and delights. Here is one of our favorite photographs which made us realize that yes, leaving the Canon 5D out at all times so that we don’t always take a photo with our phone is very well worth it!

We just discovered PicMonkey (I know, a little late) and we have been loving creating collages to send out to various venues where we have worked. Here are few:

Prospect Park Boathouse

Glen Island Harbour Club

Giando On The Water

Eventi Hotel

This is hours of creative fun, and although we have more control creating such collages in Photoshop, the ease of PicMonkey is well worth letting go of being a control freak!

Does anyone else use PicMonkey on a regular basis? Curious what you use it for…

There is no better way for us to celebrate the legalization of same sex marriage in NYC than photographing the union ourselves! Desiree and Emily decided to have their big bash on a boat around Manhattan. Aside from the fact that it was a rainy day and evening and that the officiant forgot to get off the boat before it set sail (ceremony was while the boat was docked) causing a bit of stress early on, the wedding was quite an awesome party. We started the day in Brooklyn and in Staten Island for the getting ready shots and then ended up at their home in Fort Greene for their first look and more formal portraits. We then headed to The Royal Princess for the ceremony and reception. It was our first boat wedding, and hopefully not to be our last!

I had the good fortune of creating two wedding films for two Hampton Weddings this month. Actually, that’s not entirely true since Jill and Mike’s wedding was actually in the North Fork, which as some of you may know is quite different than the bustling Hamptons, but the beach shore beauty is the same, and the light is extraordinary.

Jill and Mike’s wedding was at Bedell Cellars, a gorgeous vineyard in which it is almost impossible to not create breathtaking imagery especially since the weather could not have been any better. Jill wore a Vera Wang dress which complimented the wedding’s elegance. Mike went for a more casual look and even added the comfort of converse on his feet which suited his laid back personality. I loved working with this couple, and their video was extremely enjoyable to create:

Kellie and Todd were married at a small church in Amagansett which I must have passed three times before finally finding it (good thing I left enough time for GPS error!). Their reception was at The Montauk Lake Club, an amazing setting even with the unfortunate rainy weather. Another beautiful wedding to inspire a fun and romantic wedding film:

We had the great pleasure of shooting both stills and video at Shanda And Aaron’s wedding at 3 West Club last week. The location is perfect for some great walking around NYC shots, especially since it is right next to Rock Center. We took the Rock Center shots at night during their reception since before the ceremony they requested to take their portraits at City Hall where they both work as lawyers (they even work together at the same firm). There is nothing quite like having enough time before a ceremony to walk around the city streets and find inspiration without being rushed, and to really spend time with our couples to create some beautiful images. Aaron and Shanda are amazing: laid back and fun, and they are super duper Star Wars fans which was revealed to us as we photographed their Bubba Fat wedding cake! Also, at this wedding we were introduced to Gangnam Style as all the guests broke out in that silly dance when the DJ played the crazy popular song, it’s a good thing we shoot weddings, otherwise I think we would be in the dark when it comes to these youtube crazes!.

Here is a link to Aaron and Shanda’s wedding film followed by some of our favorite pics:

What a pleasure to photograph a wedding in one of our favorite local venues- The Prospect Park Boathouse! When we were planning our own wedding a couple of years ago, The Boathouse was on the top of our list of favorite venues, plus it was fitting since I (Jess) was born and bred in Park Slope. We ended up getting married at The Green Building which could accommodate our large guest list, and it’s a good thing since the day of our wedding was a complete monsoon for 9 hours straight.

That said, rainy wedding days don’t usually bother us, we learned to embrace the rain on our wedding day and we do the same when our clients are struck with the same sun-less day, it is a blessing after all (so says our Jewish ancestors). But when we saw the rain begin on the morning of Chris and Adrienne’s wedding day, we were a bit concerned for them since they had been planning an outdoor ceremony for months ahead of time. But, wouldn’t you know? The clouds passed literally right when we left the house and headed towards the Boathouse to take some breathtaking portraits of this amazing couple. The ceremony was gorgeous, right on the pond amongst the dense trees of Prospect Park, and that after rain smell just added to the mesmerizing nature in the city landscape.

We are now preferred vendors at the Boathouse, and look forward to working there more often in the future.

Here are some of our favorite images from this magical day:

We absolutely loved having the honor of photographing Chris and Adrienne’s wedding, especially since it took place in our favorite New England state- Vermont. The setting was breathtaking, right beside Lake Champlain outside Burlington, VT, and the weather could not have been more perfect (although being newly pregnant, I would always appreciate it 10 degrees cooler). Burlington, is beyond fun and we stayed in a converted above garage apartment that we found on airbnb.com that was beyond comfortable and convenient to all that Burlington has to offer. The wedding was gorgeous, laid back but elegant and the guests Loved our Photo booth offering them a fun rest from all that gettin’ down on the dance floor.

Here are some pics:

There’s few things we love more than an excuse for a road trip, even if the time on the road is over 15 hours round trip. We are especially thrilled when at the end of our journey we have the great honor of capturing the union of a fun and fabulous bride and groom. Pete and Rose live near us in Brooklyn, but decided to have their wedding in Virginia where Rose was born and bred. Neither of us had been to Charlottesville before, and aside from the heat wave they were experiencing, we definitely fell for this great town (hard to call it a city when you are from NYC) and understood why Virginia is in fact for lovers. We were seduced by the Southern Hospitality and most of all the sweet smell of the blooming Magnolia Trees. UVA made for an inspiring backdrop for Rose and Pete’s portraits as well as the ceremony, despite the sweltering heat. At this wedding, we also unveiled our re-styled vintage aesthetic photo booth which was quite a hit.