Surrounded by family and friend, Raquel and Nicholas said their vows at a beautiful, simple ceremony at the Kingdom Hall in Otisville. Wearing a spectacular dress, picked out by her father no less, Raquel looked absolutely stunning as she walked down the aisle.

After the ceremony the couple were whisked away to their reception at The Fountains at Wallkill Golf Course for dinner and dancing.

Thank you both Raquel and Nicholas for choosing us to share your very special day!

Become a fan of Quinnco Photography on Facebook!

The gallery is here (password protected).

What a great way to wrap up the wedding season! I had the honor of photographing Julie Sanders and Jacob Hsien’s wedding up in Binghamton, NY over the weekend. The weather had been threatening but held off and they had a wonderful day for their wedding. It was like 60 degrees, who would have guessed that halfway through November?!

It was a wonderful coming together of these two families and since neither Julie or Jake currently live in Binghamton, they both live in Los Angeles now, it was a huge gathering of friends and family from around the country and around the globe! And what a celebration it was! The day began with a beautiful ceremony at the gorgeous St. Patrick’s Catholic Church which was officiated by Rev. Booth who added a much appreciated touch to things. Normally at ceremonies the couple spends most of their time with their backs to the guests, but Rev. Booth was thoughtful enough to turn Julie and Jake around so their friends and families had a chance to watch them as they took their vows and began their life together. Thanks Rev. Booth!

After the ceremony we headed to the reception which was held at Traditions at the Glen in Johnson City, NY. The resort has a long history and is a wonderful venue with awesome character and a staff to match! They did a superb job and I hope I get a chance to shoot again there soon!

Now for the quick teaser photo and then a little video from the  psudeo photo-booth we put together for these guys!
Thanks again Julie and Jake and we wish you guys all the best as you begin your life together!

Everyone loves the photo booth…

From time to time we also have the opportunity to meet and work with other vendors, which we did just a few weeks ago. I had met with Bill from The Inn at Stony Creek a while back to discuss some trends that are happening in our industry with the recent downward slide of the economy. During our meeting we decided to try something that would make good use of both of our winter down times. In this industry it is essential to have a great working relationship with the vendors in our area, so we invited a few local people to collaborate and work on a bridal shoot at the inn. It’s always great to be able to get a chance to meet and work with other vendors in the area, and in turn help our clients find wonderful businesses to meet their wedding needs. We got a lot of work done, and had a great time working together.
Bill graciously allowed us to shoot at the Inn, and Nicole, a wonderful hair and make-up artist, worked her magic on our beautiful model to complete the look.
No bride would be complete without a beautiful bouquet and two of our local area florists, Floral Cottage of Chester and Antiques and Flowers in Warwick offered their talents for the shoot. All of the floral designs were very different from one another and truly illustrated themes ranging from traditional to contemporary. Working at the Inn at Stony Creek was fantastic! Bill gave us complete run of the place, and we took full advantage of the beautiful setting. Talk about a place with character! If you are looking for a great venue for your upcoming event, please check them out! The Inn is a perfect spot for an intimate wedding or just a nice weekend get away. Tell Bill I sent you!

So here are some shots from the day, I hope you like them! Feel free to drop a note!

And also a fun little video
We also had a great portrait session with Anna over in Newburgh. We had been trying to set something up for a while but the weather kept conspiring against us. But on Friday Anna braved the 35 degree cold (previous day was like 55 degrees) and we hit the waterfront some some fun stuff. Thanks Anna!

And here is a quick little video for Anna as well!

Here are some things that YOU can do to help us create those fantastic images we both want!!

1. Plan in time for a “photo walk”. It’s that 30 minutes or so after your formals, but before your reception starts. We need this 20-30 minutes of alone time with you and your new husband to create some of those relaxed romantic portraits that everyone loves. Its from this session that 90% of our enlargements are made. Its where your thank you card shot will come from….this is the number one way to ensure great images. Give us the time to take them. So please, plan it into your schedule.

2. Plan in a realistic amount of time for your hair and makeup. This is the number one time line killer at weddings. Remember, that they will likely have more to do than expected with all the girls there, and Mom’s too. Everyone will want a little touch up done, which can easily put you behind schedule. Nothing adds stress to your day like running behind.

3. Don’t overdo the makeup. This is especially true for those of you that normally don’t wear much. You want to look like you would normally look to go out for the evening. Many brides think that they need more makeup for the “pictures”. This simply isn’t true. Some makeup is fine, but you don’t want to appear drastically different than normal. Same goes for suntanning. The day before you get married is not the time to get a tan; and the spray on kind will make you look orange.

4. Make sure all your important family members know they are supposed to go immediately following the ceremony for the formal photographs. If all the players are there, we can do the formals in less than 25 minutes for most families. However if we have to hunt down Uncle Harry…then all bets are off.

5. Its your party, ENJOY it!! We see lots of brides that are obsessed with getting to “see” every single guest that they miss their own reception. That’s a shame, especially considering the money you are spending on it!

6. Here’s a big one. During your key dances…ie your first dance, and parent dances…LOOK AT EACH OTHER!!! This is the time you have been waiting for. Go ahead, get emotional, get mushy, and forget about all the guests. Forget about me. If I need you to look into the camera I’ll ask trust me, but what I REALLY want is you two looking into each others eyes on this most special moment. Same goes for your parents dances. Remember this is a HUGE moment for them too, so acknowledge the stature of the moment by sharing it with them…look them in the eye…you wont be sorry!!

7. Be on time. This goes without saying of course, but like I said above, nothing ups the stress levels quite like running behind. Some things are gonna just seem to run late, and that’s no problem; however a little pre-planning in these problem areas can ensure that your day runs smoother and your blood pressure remains much lower. I know several of these tips have centered around time, but it truly is the one mood killer. Its hard to stop and smell the roses….when you’re running late already. The first thing that gets cut when you are behind is always the photo time, (see #1) which should be the one area that is never touched. Nevertheless, it is.

8. Delegate all the tasks for the day. That’s why you have bridesmaids!!! Their whole job for the day is not to party, its to help you!! Sure they get to party….but job number one is to make sure that you are attended to. (thus the term attendants). The less stuff you have to worry about on your big day the better. Delegate and relax.

9. Plan your exit strategy. This avoids you incurring overtime charges from your DJ and caterer, and brings the event to a nice emotional closure. (which of course makes for great pictures too). That way you can get out of dodge, and the guests will know its over, and not feel obliged to stay, and by doing #9 above, all your stuff will be attended too while you whisk off to your honeymoon!!

10. Schedule an engagement portrait session. You’re probably wondering what this has to do with wedding day images. Truth be told, an engagement session not only results in some great images that you might want to use to build a custom guest sign-in book out of, but it allows you to get comfortable in front of the camera. It also gives both you and the photographer a chance to learn how to work together. When the big day comes around you’ll be more at ease while having your photos made.

It is likely we may expand upon this list, but if you do your best on these 10, you and your photographer will be well on your way to great images!!!

A big thanks to Lorrie and Don and to Robin and Steve for letting me be a part of their special day!