Gianni's Communion and His Friends

An old friend from high school heard that I was a photographer so he and his wife asked me to photograph their son Gianni's communion portraits. I really like doing this sort of thing because when most people think of communion portraits, the images are often super posed in a studio. I wanted to freshen it up a little and photographed the family outdoors in a relaxed way.





For traditions' sake, I incorporated something slightly studio-like, but used window light to add just a touch of drama.



Little sis was a total ham....and I didn't mind at all.







"Sit still" was not what she wanted to hear....and that's fine because then I shoot something like this.



La tutta famiglia!





Like father, like son.



Proud Grandma and Grandpa.



We added a Part II to this family shoot.....two sets of family friends each also have an older boy and a younger girl. All the boys were born in the same year and all the girls were born in the same year. (I don't think you can plan that if you tried!) So pictures are a must with this group.



The sweetness of girls....





The spirited boys....





Some individual portraits...














Family portraits...





Often times after couples are married and have kids, all the photos taken are of the little ones or the entire family; never of them anymore. So I always take pics of mom and dad on their own.

Gianni's proud parents......



Something a little more casual for their friends....





Congrats, Gianni!

Sharda & Glenn's Wedding

I was looking forward to shooting Sharda & Glenn's wedding from the moment I met with them. They were such a sweet couple with a great "how we met" story. Sharda & Glenn were each vacationing - separately - in Ireland and crossed paths one evening. According to the speeches made at their wedding, it was quickly apparent that their encounter would lead to something much bigger. The thing is, Sharda lived in NYC and Glenn lived in Australia. They say love has no boundaries and clearly this is the case with Sharda & Glenn.

When I arrived at The Mandarin Oriental in NYC, I got right to work shooting Sharda's lovely gown and wardrobe details.



I LOVE the clarity of this ring shot.



Been trying to be a little more creative with the ring and shoes.



As a girl, it's hard not to want to get married all over again when I shoot a wedding. Especially when I see such a pretty piece of hair jewelry!



Glenn's neice was the flowergirl and couldn't have been more adorable. She is clearly looking forward to being the bride one day, too.





"Big girl. Little girl."



A bridal portrait taken while Sharda was getting the finishing touches on her hair....



Time to put the dress on...





A formal portrait. Really shows off Sharda's pretty facial features.



Can Sharda look any happier walking down the aisle?



This is the moment Sharda & Glenn were waiting for....



The vows......



Married!



A "scurrying off" shot.



Headed out to Columbus Circle for photos. Sharda, Glenn and I were all looking forward to getting some artistic, fun and relaxed shots to commemorate their NYC wedding.









Love this shot of Glenn with his Best Men. They are all such characters!



All smiles....tough to get a bad shot with these two.







I'm playing around a lot lately with lines leading into the subject. I think this is a great example. My runner up for favorite shot of the day.



While I was busy shooting, the staff of Shawn Rabideau Events & Design were working tirelessly getting all the room decor together. Every detail for both the ceremony and celebration was exquisite. And great planning for having the party start at sunset.....makes for great lighting!








Not only was the room spectacular, the views were breathtaking.





During our pre-wedding conversations, Glenn was particularly set on making sure he and Sharda enjoyed their party. Mission accomplished. The guys at On the Move Entertainment kept everyone dancing all night.





This blog post wouldn't be complete without paying kudos to Glenn's mom, who made the wedding cake. Isn't this unbelievable? All the flowers are edible and were made back in Australia, then transported here. When I asked her about it, she modestly said, "It's just a hobby."





Clearly there was a lot of TLC put into this cake, so in addition to making sure I got some beautiful detail shots, I wanted to capture something a little more special. Here it is....my favorite shot of the day.



Many, many congrats to you, Sharda & Glenn. I was thrilled to be a part of your big day!