Sharon & Arnold - Crown Plaza Suffern NY

Of all the weddings I photographed this year, Sharon and Arnold's was definitely one of my favorites. This was Arnold's second marriage and Sharon's first.  From the moment I met them it was readily apparent that they truly adored and deeply loved each other.  Besides being in love, you could tell that they were each other’s best friend.  Their family and friends also radiated their joy at being able to share in the celebration of Sharon and Arnold’s special day.

The wedding ceremony and reception were both at The Crown PlazaHotel in Suffern, NJ. Most everyone was staying at the Hotel and this made it possible to pose all the formal pictures before the ceremony.  While this is always a great idea for the bridal party, in this case all of the family and friends were also present in plenty of time beforehand.  This enabled me to set up good shots of everyone who wished to be photographed.  That really takes a lot of pressure off of me and allows me to focus on candid shots throughout the evening.  A truly great candid shot captures a precise moment and more importantly the emotion of that split second.  A slight bit sooner or later and the whole power and beauty of the shot would be lost.  As you look at a truly great candid shot you can almost feel the emotions of the moment.  It is almost as if you are there.  Two good examples that you will find below of my efforts in this regard are the shot of the vows and the shot of Arnold and Sharon acknowledging their friends as they walk down the aisle.  These are two of my personal favorite shots from wedding.

When I met Arnold's daughter Emily, I bounced an idea off of her.  I asked if she thought her father would let me set up his first look at Sharon in her wedding dress.  Emily loved the idea. While this moment was sort of set up by me, Arnold’s reaction would be totally candid and from his heart. Arnold was escorted into Sharon’s room by Emily his daughter, who had her hands over his eyes so that he could not peek.  I was able to get several photos of Arnold’s first look at his bride.  The moment was truly priceless for all.  Arnold kept saying over and over that Sharon looked so beautiful.  It touched us all and tears were shed.  I've included a photo of that first look in this post.