This is what happens when clients give me way too much creative freedom. Jason and Sandra lucked out with some incredible weather for their engagement shoot today. As we walked around looking for some cool locations, we chanced upon this really modern looking merry-go-round on a strange island off of Hoboken’s Sinatra Drive. Jason jumped on it and I asked Sandra to spin it until he vomited. She happily obliged. I can’t wait to post some more photos, but this one will have to do for now. For the record, no Jasons were hurt in the making of this photo.

When Larissa and Anthony approached me to photograph their wedding I couldn’t help but be enamored with the idea of photographing my first Coptic Orthodox wedding. Having been raised in the Greek Orthodox Church, I spent many afternoons watching friends and relatives get married in traditional Greek ceremonies. The crowns, the chanting, the incense—it’s an incredibly beautiful and moving ceremony that isn’t often replicated in other religions.

Photographing Larissa and Anthony’s wedding was so surreal. Through my lens, I got to see a wedding that was so much like the Greek nuptials I was accustomed to, but with just enough differences to make it exciting and new. The service was performed in Arabic, but peppered with Greek verses and hymns. Unlike the Greek ceremony, Anthony and Larissa were adorned in the priest’s own cloak and garb and the crowns placed on the couples’ heads were the fancy ones that belonged to the church. Larissa and Anthony looked like a king and queen in the priests’ attire and the two smiled endlessly during the course of the ceremony.

The reception took place at Nanina’s in the Park, a gorgeous wedding hall located in Belleville, NJ—a stones throw from our home base in Bloomfield. Blaire Reinhard and her band of merry rockers kept the tunes flowing as friends and family celebrated Larissa and Anthony’s big day. Another first for me: I got to photograph my first belly dancer performance. Just after dinner, the floor cleared for a mesmerizing performance teeming with swords, scarves, and PG debauchery. Before the performance, Larissa and Anthony made it clear to me that they wouldn’t be partaking in the show, but five minutes in and the two were dancing and laughing it up as friends and family were caught in the excitement. Larissa’s smile never faded as Anthony swept her into his arms for the first time as man and wife. It was truly a sight to behold, and I am so happy for the two of them. This was a wedding that none of us were going to forget any time soon. Below are a few of my favorite images from the wedding.

VENDORS

Band
Blaire Reinhard Band
www.blaireband.com

Flowers
Katarina Florist & Gift
Hackettstown NJ
www.katarinaflorist.com

Hair & Makeup
Pink Comb Salon
Nutley, NJ
www.pinkcombsalon.com

Cake
A Little Cake
Park Ridge, NJ
www.alittlecake.com

Reception Hall
Nanina’s in the Park
Belleville, NJ
www.naninasinthepark.com

Ceremony
St. Mary’s Coptic Orthodox Church
East Brunswick, NJ
www.saint-mary.net

The image was photographed mid-reception and I had no idea it was going to take place. At one point, I heard one of the groomsmen yell, “Throw him in the air,” and I just thought they were going to lift Firas up and mount him in their shoulders or something. Instead a group of family and friends created a makeshift human stretcher, laid him down on it, and proceeded to throw him in the air, gaining more height as he went up and down. I really thought he was either going to hit the ceiling or they were going to drop him.

I only had a second to make the photo and I wasn’t paying attention to settings or framing. I literally stuck my eye in the viewfinder and clicked the shutter in one fell swoop. I’m so happy that it actually came out in focus and the framing of his body below the the mural and above the wall. I couldn’t have asked for a better angle. Luckily, Firas made it down in one piece and I was left with a photo worthy of Moment Junkie.

For a photographer, few things are as cool as getting a wedding album in the mail. Without sounding egotistical, seeing my work on huge 12×12-inch pages, perfectly color corrected, and in vivid colors and contrasty black and whites makes me swoon just a tiny bit. Last Friday, I got my first metal album sent to me from Graphistudio featuring the company’s new ultra-rigged paper. This book is massive, weighing in at about 10-pounds, and it looks absolutely luxurious. We delivered the album to Brittany and Steve on Sunday afternoon over a sweet lunch at the Lighthorse Tavern in Jersey City. I seriously almost knocked over a plate of french toast trying to clear some room for Brittany to view her album. Seeing her face light up as she relived her wedding was worth every minute it took to design the album. When I got home Brittany sent us one of the most touching letters I’ve ever received from a client:

G,

It was so wonderful seeing you and Allison today. You guys are truly two people who make the world a better place; Steve and I are blessed to call you friends. Thanks again for creating one of your greatest masterpieces to date: our wedding album. We will forever cherish it. It’s absolutely, positively stunning!

Britt & Steve

It’s days like these that make me stop and realize just how amazing my job is. Thank you Britt & Steve for making my life more fun, exciting, and fulfilling. Here’s a look at the rest of their album.

On a bright note, I love surprises and while trolling on Twitter this evening, I noticed that Merci New York (NYC’s premiere wedding blog) featured one of my favorite engagement sessions from late last year. You can read the whole story here, but basically, Kimberly and Andrew called me out of the blue and hired me to photograph them as they strutted their stuff through the streets of Jersey City. We had an absolute blast and made some amazing portraits. I can’t lie, I love it when all my photos get some featured love, but this session was particularly fun.

Click here to see the article on Merci New York

Click here to see my original blog about the shoot

Any time I get a call from Erin Halley Productions, I know I’m in for an amazing assignment. This past November, I got the call to photography the International Crisis Group’s annual award ceremony, and this year the event would be featuring both former-President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The security was tight and I was going to be the only photographer allowed to roam the floor. These are the types of high-stress, over-the-top gigs I love to shoot when I’m not working weddings. Oddly enough this was also the third time I was photographing Bill Clinton in the space of three years, which is absolutely crazy and awesome. Erin Halley put on a stunning production at Chelsea Piers featuring a music performance by Sara McLaughlin and a wonderful array of speeches and awards presentations MC’d by the one and only Wolf Blitzer. A big thank you to Alexander Meseguer for second shooting and capturing some amazing candid photos.

With all that said, last Summer I worked with a video duo that blew me away both with their professionalism and creativity. Jim and Amy of Abominable Productions took a soggy wedding afternoon and turned it into a cinematic masterpiece that they were able to edit overnight and show on the big screen the following day for the reception. The two were never in my way, helped me move my gear during a flash monsoon, and truly captured the magic of the day in a way that complimented my photography rather than competed with it. A few days ago, I sat down with Amy to find out what makes a great wedding film.

Tell me a little about Abominable Productions. Why did you decide to make wedding films? What’s your background?
Jim and I started collaborating in college where we were studying video production and art respectively. Shortly thereafter we formed  and filmed mostly dance and theatrical productions. We got part-time jobs editing weddings for large cookie-cutter companies, which did not satisfy us creatively. It was then that we realized there was a need for stylish, well-produced wedding films.

What is it about videography that inspired you to do this professionally?
We just wanted to make really great stories through the medium of video/film. Filming weddings gave us that outlet while allowing us to be innovative and artistic as well.

What makes for a great wedding video?
We feel that a great wedding film is one that not only looks and sounds exceptional, but one that captures real and authentic moments. It focuses on everything from the important events to the smallest details. It’s one that captures and showcases the personality of the bride & groom without fitting them in to a formulaic video.

What differentiates a traditional wedding video from more modern cinema-style videography?
Traditional wedding videography is usually just a straight-forward documentation of your wedding day and it’s focus is typically just on the important events. The intention of cinema-style videography is to draw you in and make you feel like you were a part of the day—even if you weren’t there. Cinema-style videography uses all the tools and techniques used in a Hollywood film, just on a much smaller scale. Even though cinema-style wedding films are shorter than traditional style videos, their creativity, content and stortytelling can leave a more lasting impact.

Why should a couple consider hiring a videographer for their wedding?
Because once a moment is gone, it’s gone. You’ll never be able to hear your vows again or relive your maid of honor’s toast—unless you have it on film.

Finally, what advice do you have for couples looking for a videographer?
Don’t choose a videographer without seeing samples first.  Sure the samples should look great, but make sure to pay strong attention to the audio because that’s what is going to drive the film. Are the vows and toasts clear? Are they used in a way that helps tell the story? You want to hear ambient audio as well. For example, when you see people laughing, you should hear it too. These are some of the components that make a great wedding film. Here’s what she had to say.

Click here to find out more about Abominable Productions

Krista + Chris (Instant Edit) from Abominable Productions on Vimeo.

GLK Creative does not receive kickbacks or incentives from preferred vendors. We plug these guys because we love their work and think they are awesome.

It’s crazy to think that Joe Strummer has been gone for almost a decade. The man was such a force of nature. He created primal, earthy music that never sounded gimmicky or lame. When people ask me who I look up to? Who I am inspired by? Who is my hero? Joe Strummer is one of the first names I usually reply with. I probably name my dad first, but he is slightly less cool (fine, a lot less cool) than the man who ignited the fire of punk rock and rebellion under a nation of desperate and helpless young teens. I was barely born in 1977 when The Clash released their eponymous first record, but their message of unity spread far into my generation and “London Calling” was the soundtrack of my youth.

I was lucky enough to photograph Joe Strummer three or four times in the late ’90s and early ’00s while he was on tour with The Mescaleros, promoting to amazing records, “Rock Art & X-Ray Style” and “Global-a-Go-Go.” Every concert was photographed with my trusty old Nikon point and shoot. A few frames came out well, but most produced throwaway shots that were lost during multiple moves. These two photos aren’t the greatest images of Joe, but I’m so glad I got to create them when I had the chance. I shared a few words with him at the Virgin Megastore in Herald Square, and thanked him for filling so much of my life with joy. He thanked me and talked to me for a little while about why he still prefers vinyl to CDs. Joe is definitely one of those legends that inspires me to do what I do, and do it well. Thank you, Joe.

I think it might be my roots as a magazine editor, but I love the wedding album design process. There’s just something awesome about taking an assortment of digital files and organizing them in a way that creates a true story of the wedding day. I’m also a firm believer in the printed image. To me, a photograph is just binary code until it’s physically printed on paper. The wedding album is a culmination of the entire wedding process, and a final testament and heirloom for the bride and groom to pass on to future generations.

The key to a stress-free design process is workflow. Within two months of a wedding, I post all the proofs on a website that allows the couple to “favorite” the images they want for the album. They can always see thumbnails of all the selections and add or subtract photos accordingly. I can access a list of the images from the backend and then pull the photos from Lightroom.

Every image earmarked for a wedding album is touched up, color corrected, and sharpened for print. I begin designing the album using Fundy’s fantastic Album Builder program in Photoshop CS5. I know some photographers prefer to pre-visualize an album and sort photos by spread beforehand. But I’m just not hardwired that way. I organize the files by the timeline of the wedding and then put them together like a jigsaw puzzle. I think my style is more like a tattoo artist free handing a design rather than stenciling it on the body first.

I also believe in a clean, minimalist approach to layout. My pages focus primarily on the photos and I avoid any cheesy backgrounds, borders, or gimmicky Photoshop designs (remember the portraits in the wine glass photos from the ’70s?)

Once the album is designed, I upload it to Fundy’s Album Proofer or AlbumExposure (depending on the album company I’m using), and e-mail the client a link to their proofs. Clients can then suggest changes, approve the album, or share it with friends. Once approved, I send the files to my album company to print and bind the final product.

In this case, Don and his groomsmen called me to come to the hotel after they were already dressed. We headed down to the bar and I just told them to hang out. None of them took their eyes off of me. So I told them to all to start making fun of Don and see how he reacts. They happily obliged, and I got to photograph this magic moment in which everyone has a truly natural expression. Some might say I posed them, but I like to think of myself more as the director of a movie in which I don’t know the outcome. Either way, I love this photo.