Oh yeah, did I mention that Shannon is my darling sister? She and Nick live in Boston, but are looking to move to Brooklyn in the very near future. Which I am over-the-moon excited about, because I could always use more rock climbing / biking buddies. That, and I also wouldn’t mind benefiting from Shan’s stellar cooking/baking skills.

Happy anniversary, kiddos!

But as much as I abhor winter weather, it does provide a few nice things. Case in point, this image: the blowing veil and colorful sky made possible by said abhorrent weather. Ashleigh and Shawn were such troopers for sticking out the cold in their wedding attire, and I dare say it was worth it :)

Here’s a sneak peek of their wedding day; more to come next month!

Darlene and Eric got married in a beautiful chapel at SUNY Maritime College. The campus is surrounded by water (not surprising), and the grounds provide a rather fetching view of the Throgs Neck Bridge which I was more than a little excited about (also not surprising, given my fascination with bridges). Couple that with some serious salsa dancing at the reception and you’ve got a prettttttty excellent day. Check out some of my favorite shots from it:

You might recall some portraits I posted from this wedding awhile back that were taken during a freak October snow/sleet/rainstorm. Thinking on the fly and wanting to keep everyone dry, I pitched the idea of popping into a local gallery to take a few quick photos, not knowing a). if it would work for photo ops, or b). if we’d even be allowed to shoot there. The wedding party was 100% down to try it out, and we ended up with a few cool shots before being kicked out. See? So much awesome.

And if that wasn’t enough proof of awesomeness, Cora & Matt’s wedding will go down in history as the first wedding where I was literally pulled onto the dancefloor to dance with everyone at the end of the night :)

I remember at one point, Ashleigh said to me “Lindsay, you’re so expressive – I love it!”. And it’s true – I have an extensive repertoire of facial expressions. I also have a ton of energy. So, if I’m taking pictures of you, be warned: you can expect me to laugh a lot, joke around, and have a big goofy smile plastered on my face the entire time. And if I get a particularly amazing shot, my face will light up, and I’ll say something along the lines of “OHMYGOSH I LOVE IT!”. I can’t help it – I get excited about things very easily, especially things I care a lot about (e.g. photography). And I’m pretty ok with that.

Speaking of excitement, I’m pretty psyched for Ashleigh and Shawn’s winter wedding next month! I’m normally not a fan of snow, but I’m secretly hoping we have some for photography’s sake. I figure I can handle a little January snow, since shortly after I’ll be shipping off to Hawaii for my 27th birthday! :D

We started the day with photos by the Brooklyn Bridge on a clear blue sky day, then used the most fetching rooftop view as a backdrop for more portraits. The ceremony and reception took place at ReBar, a ridiculously cool venue in Dumbo that I’d describe as *visually stunning* – which, of course, excites us wedding photographers beyond words!

Yeah, I’d say it was a pretty great day :)

Speaking of these two, they are pretty much the cutest. They came to the shoot with lots of creative ideas of their own, which made for one fun collaboration session. I always encourage this sort of input because a). It’s a surefire way of putting more of yourselves into the images we’re creating, and b). It keeps you engaged (in more ways than one!) in the session.

Here are a few of my favorite shots from our collaborative engagement shoot!:

One of the most frequently asked questions I get is “What happens if it rains on our wedding day?” – and the answer depends entirely on the couple. If they’re not keen to get wet, then, well, we may end up with a few less photos in the end. But if they’re anything like Cora and Matt, then we get a little adventurous and I’m forced to think on the fly and push my creativity. Here’s what we came up with:

LOCATION 1: Manhattan Bridge underpass
This is one of my favorite spots because it’s so sheltered and has this magical light that’ll make anyone look like a rockstar. Throw in some cobblestone and an archway and you’ve got a stellar scene.

LOCATION 2: A gallery
Dumbo is stacked with cafes and galleries, but I wanted to utilize a space that actually had room for a big group, and preferably nice lighting. I did some googling beforehand and found a gallery that looked like it’d do the trick. I wasn’t sure if we’d be allowed to take photos, but when we walked inside there seemed to be no one around. Only after we got our shots did someone show up and tell us to leave (lest we be charged the $4000 rental fee). At this point, I think we were all just jazzed to have gotten away with it that we were ok with being kicked out of the gallery.

LOCATION 3: Sidewalk under scaffolding
Any blog reader and/or friend of mine knows I am fond of the grit and graffiti of NYC. I knew of a graffitied block in the neighborhood that’s been covered with scaffolding for years, and I had the wedding party stand on the sidewalk beneath it so they stayed dry. I, on the other hand, stood on the street in the sleet, umbrella in one hand and camera in the other, stuck between the poles that held up the scaffolding. Easy? Definitely not. Fun? Extremely.

I’d also like to add that I did this entire shoot wearing snow boots. Between that and the whole getting-kicked-out-of-a-gallery thing, I’m considering adopting “badass wedding photographer” as a tagline :D

But see? Rain on your wedding day aint so bad. If anything, it makes it more exciting!

Lauren and Dave eloped to NYC from Detroit this summer, and I got to be the lucky one who photographed their New York adventures! Peter of Film Cars drove us around the city in a checker cab (yep, the same one I had the pleasure of jetting around in this spring at Alison & Stephen’s wedding!), from Central Park to the Brooklyn Bridge. Looking back on it three months later, the thing I remember the most is how jazzed we were – all 4 of us. There was so much good energy between us all that made the day that much more enjoyable :)

Last weekend, I did the Down & Dirty mud run at Orchard Beach. We all know how I feel about racing (does the accidental half-marathon ring a bell?), so when I signed up I was imagining it being more of a carefree, la-de-da, “hey look Ma, I’m playing in mud!” sort of event. I mean, yes, I knew it was an actual race; however, I intended on having fun with it rather than racing, per say.

And so I willingly paid money to run through all sorts of mud for 5 grueling kilometers, throwing myself over muddy walls and crawling through muddy pools, all while making sure I maneuvered my limbs oh-so-gingerly so as to avoid further injuring my previously-injured knee/ankle/hipbone (man, when’d I get so old?). It was by no means a walk in the park, but it was an absolute blast. I totally surprised myself and ended up in the 21st percentile, which kind of makes me wish I had cared a little more about my time. But that only gives me more motivation for next year’s 10k (which includes … wait for it … a wall of hay bales!).

See that lovely orange bandana/hat/do-rag they provided us with? I’m now intent on turning it into some sort of halloween costume for my kitty. A pumpkin? The M Train? The MCAT? I don’t know, but it’s too cute not to use!