Over the weekend our friend Bob Pattison who is also a photographer, out of Boston called me up to see if we were available to photograph an event in NYC on Monday. We luckily did not have anything prior on our schedule so we gladly told him that we would love to go into the city.
The event was a networking event for women layers and women in business. It was put on by the law firm, Cooley Godward Kronish. The guest of honor was Sylvia Weinstock who is an amazing wedding cake designer. She does spectacular work, each and every one of her cakes are completely custom and absolutely beautiful. She is so sought after that she has her cakes flown around the world. So naturally we were very excited to photograph this event.
The event took place at Cooley's New York office on the 46th floor of the Grace Building right across the street from Bryant Park. The room we were in had amazing views of mid-town Manhattan which acted as a stunning backdrop for this event. The very tasteful food, beautiful flowers and room design along with the catering staff were all provided by Annette of Annette Aaron Eventfulls.
Sylvia spoke to this group of about 50 women about her cakes, her business and briefly about her new book. It was wonderful to hear what she had to say and of course taste her delicious cake. Here are just a few photos from the event.
Guests of this event were welcomed with strawberries and champagne, the perfect precursor to some of Sylvia's delicious cake.
The details around the room were beautifully put together by Annette of Annette Aaron Eventfulls. There were also copies of Sylvia's new book Sensational Cakes, for guests to flip through.
The room in which the event was taking place was really beautifully setup with amazing views of mid-town Manhattan.
Here is the view taken from the room we were in on the 46th floor of the Grace Building. The clouds over the city were gorgeous!
While having a quick conversation with Sylvia before everyone arrived, the light coming through the windows was so nice. I really love this portrait and think her signature glasses are great!
After about an hour or so of networking and saying hello to everyone, Sylvia spoke a little about how she got started in her high-end cake business.
One of the most interesting parts (to me) was when she explained how she has her cakes flown all around the world with the help of Continental and Delta Airlines.
As business owners ourselves, it was great to hear what she had to say, she had some really great advice.
After Sylvia spoke, everyone got to enjoy a piece of her cake. We were lucky enough (thanks to the wonderful lawyers at Cooley) to leave with a few pieces. We enjoyed those pieces after the event at Bryant Park which is conveniently right across the street from the Grace Building.
Both Syliva's husband Ben and daughter Ellen were also at the event. Ellen is an amazing invitation designer as well as calligrapher. She has a place on 5th Avenue and does really gorgeous work. Be sure to check out her site: Ellen Weldon Design
After the event, I took a couple of photos outside, just for fun. This is the Grace Building taken with only available light.
Here is a photo of some of the buildings surrounding Bryant Park, also taken with only available light. I love the detail that the tree branches add to this photo.
Maureen and I were brought together by chance - some res life person decided we would make good roommates. And they were right. We hit it off pretty quickly, watching the same movies over and over again, rearranging our furniture, justifying taking a nap instead of doing work. We stayed roommates all four years of college. Even though we may not talk or get together as much as we'd like to, every time we get together it's like we are back in our dorm room - laughing, joking and giving advice.
In May, Maureen will be walking 40 MILES around Boston in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer to raise money and awareness to fight breast cancer. Yes, you read that correctly, 40 MILES. She's been training for months and has already raised a lot of money – she’s SO close to her goal, maybe we could all band together to help her reach her goal.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HELP HER RAIDE EVEN MORE MONEY BY DONATING , CLICK: HERE
Here is a photo of Maureen with her husband, Chris. This was taken by Rob in 2006 for their engagement session.
The drive to JFK Airport was a little stressful. There was some traffic on the NYC highways (as there almost always is) combined with a crazy summer thunderstorm that seemed to pop out of nowhere. We were actually a little concerned that our flight may be delayed because of the weather. We did however make good time to the airport thanks to Kathleen's parents who dropped us off right at the terminal. The storm did eventually lift and we took of on-time. Kathleen and I spent the overnight flight brushing up on some last minute French lessons. We listened on our iPods and and learned just enough French so we could understand the basics and be polite. We landed very early in the morning (right in time for rush hour) at Paris' Charles De Gaulle Airport.
OUR DESTINATION
We were very tired, but made our way through customs and down to baggage claim. I remember feeling disoriented, kind of like we had just pulled an all-nighter in college. We made our way down to the train station. We purchased our tickets, found the platform and boarded the train that would take us into the city. As the train left the airport we got our first glimpse of the French countryside and I felt my heart beat a little faster. I turned to Kathleen and just smiled, after all we were getting closer to Paris, a city we dreamed about for years. The train was quite full but we found our stop and got off the train. We really didn't know the city at all at this point so when I say we found our stop, what I really meant to say is that we guessed which stop was ours. With baggage in tow, we rode the escalator up out of the train station. About halfway up, we started to see the buildings of Paris come into view. It felt like a dream - it was absolutely beautiful.
Of course we didn't yet know where exactly we were but it didn't matter because we were in awe by our surroundings. We asked a local delivery person if he knew where our hotel was. Not only did he know where it was, he drove there and would not take any money for the trip. Best of all we got to enjoy a nice conversation with him despite his broken English and our broken French. This was one of our first experiences with a French person and we were pleasantly surprised. I have to admit we were a little worried about being an American in Paris as we heard all of the things that people say about the French people. In our experience, the French people throughout our entire trip were warm and inviting and some of the nicest people we have encountered.
I know it may sound kind of corny but we absolutely love it there. It is such an amazing and magical place. Kathleen and I have been very lucky to have traveled to many wonderful places in the world but there is truly no place like Paris. The old world style mixed with a new and modern time, the people, the food is all spectacular. It is like every corner and every building is a piece of art waiting to be explored. I never knew that a place could have such a profound influence over our emotions. It hasn't even been a year since we have been there and our hearts constantly yearn to go back.
I decided to put together a post of some of the photos that we took on our trip to Paris last year. Some of the photos we have posted in earlier posts (on our old blog) and some our brand new. Either way, these are photos that really inspire us. When I look at them I remember how we felt, the sounds we were hearing, the smells, the people... it really brings back the experience of Paris and makes it real again as if we were still there.
YOUR DESTINATION
We also wanted to share these photos with you all to officially announce that we are now scheduling for our 2010 destinations - weddings, engagements, post wedding sessions.... you name it!. So as you look through these photos, just imagine the amazing photography you could have with Paris (or the destination of your choosing) as the background! Your wedding is a once in a lifetime event and you deserve once in a lifetime photography. We can't wait to talk to you about your destination wedding day!
When we arrived at our hotel room, we put our luggage down, pulled back the drapes and unlatched the huge windows. As the warm summer air rushed into our Parisian hotel room, we looked out to this view. I immediately grabbed for my camera and just had to take a picture. During our entire trip I was obsessed with the Parisian architecture. Everywhere we walked, everywhere we looked was amazing.
I had no real reason to take this photo, I just really liked this car.
During dinner on our first night it began to lightly rain. The warm summer rain actually made the city even more magical (if that is possible). It was so cozy eating dinner as the rain came down outside what became our favorite place, a small cafe by our hotel. During our walk back to the hotel I took this photo of the one of the street corners. We really loved how everyone eats outside and really takes the time to enjoy their meals.
The next morning, we visited the Eiffel Tower. As we took the city bus through the city we almost lost our minds as the tower came into site. We have had photos of the Eiffel Tower in our house for many years and to see it in person was something truly amazing. We could have stayed there all day.
We spent one afternoon by the Notre Dame Cathedral and just taking in some of the sites of this incredible city. I love how the detail and texture of this cathedral is brought out by the amazing clouds acting as a backdrop.
I love taking photos of people on the street. This Parisian musician was kind enough to let me take a photo of him. I love it because it gives a true representation of the felling of Paris.
I am not even sure where this is but as I said earlier, I was really obsessed with the architecture throughout the city.
Later one evening we went back to the Eiffel Tower at sunset. Sunset in Paris is much later during the summer than it is here. The golden light that was cast onto the Eiffel Tower during sunset was simply spectacular. It allowed me to get this really cool detail shot.
During the same time, I took this photo from underneath the Eiffel Tower. Even though I have probably looked at these photos a million times, the detail of the Eiffel Tower amazes me every time. I think it is so beautiful.
Those of you know me know that I have a fascination with transportation. I love airplanes (I would love to get my pilot's license one day), boats, trains and cars. The metro trains underneath Paris were simply wonderful. This was one of the metro lines that had older metro cars, but these were the trains I liked the most. They felt so vintage. I could have spent an entire day riding the these trains.
The metro stations were equally as wonderful as the trains themselves. They were so clean and bright and filled with one of my favorite things... subway tile. Many of the stations were also filled with amazing pieces of art.
This was just a random church that I wanted to take a photo of. Again I loved the golden light that the sun cast over the city during sunset combined with the gorgeous blue sky. Can you imagine getting married in a place like this?!
We loved browsing all of the street vendors. Kathleen really loves collecting vintage travel stickers and pretty much anything related to vintage travel.
We visited the Louvre one day. Sure I can show you a photo of the Mona Lisa (which was cool to see) but I thought this was more of an interesting photo. The Louvre was overwhelmingly incredible. You can literally spend weeks there and not see it all. The art throughout was spectacular.
A view of one of the old buildings of the Louvre through the modern pyramid. The old mixed with the new makes the Louvre a truly interesting place to visit.
Here is another street portrait that I took during the early morning.
Another photo of some poster remakes that a street vendor was selling.
For no other reason than I liked these doors, the color the texture... beautiful.
This was one of my favorite metro signs, although I had many. For those of you who don't know, the entry ways to the Metro stations are like art installations. This particular metro station was in Montmartre, which if I got to choose would be the place in Paris that we would live.
While in Montmartre, we took a walk through the winding streets up to The Sacré Coeur Basilica. Kathleen and I made the trek to the top of the Basilica where we got to capture photos like this. I really loved the rooftops.
Have I mentioned yet that the sunsets in Paris are spectacular? We went back to the Louvre many times and this is the outside around 9 at night.
There was this big ferris wheel setup only steps from the Louvre, I just liked the yellow light and the blue sky.
Ok, so the Louvre at night is pretty amazing. This is one of my favorite photos but I am having difficulty deciding if I like it better in color or in black and white so I have decided to include both in the post. This is obviously the color one, I really like the colors of the sky and the buildings and the pyramids.
In this version I like how the black and white really pulls your eye even more to the pyramid (instead of the sky) and emphasizes the reflections in the water. Which one do you like better?
We took the train over to Versailles one day and let me tell you, this place is huge! This is just the second floor of the incredibly ornate chapel at Versailles.
The famous Hall of Mirrors also at Versailles.
We spend a lot of time by the Seine. It was so much fun watching the boats travel up and down the river. One night we even got a couple bottles of Champange (which by the way is cheaper in Paris than soda) and just sat by the river, so magical.
The Hotel Lutetia, our home away from home while in Paris. The hotel was great, and reasonably prices (as far as Paris standards go) and in a great neighborhood close to just about everything.
I thought this shot would be a great way to finish this post. For those of you who do not know, I photographed a bridal session with Kathleen while we were in Paris. This is a night shot at the Louvre. Kathleen was the perfect model, and I feel very lucky to have photographed my own wife's bridal session!
Last week, we headed down to West Palm Beach, Florida for a little role reversal – to be on the other side of the camera.
As you can tell from our new blog, we LOVE traveling. Rob loves airplanes – a lot. He loves getting to the airport really early, just to watch planes take off. You can even quiz him if you want to – tell him the a commercial airplane model and he could probably tell you the standard seat configuration (747, for example = 3 seats, aisle, 4 seats, aisle, 3 seats). Weird, I know, but it’s all due to his fascination with planes. In fact, Rob hopes to get his pilot’s license one day. For me, I love the fun part of travel – packing a suitcase, wearing a hat and giant sunglasses, and arriving at some fun new place, ready to explore. That’s part of the reason I collect vintage luggage, it reminds me of the time when travel was glamorous.
So why West Palm Beach? Well, that’s where our good friends Vicki and Erik of Victoria Souza Photography were going to be, and where we could have access to an airfield AND a vintage airplane, a Piper Cup named Daisy Mae. So, clearly we had to pack up a set of vintage luggage, hop on a JetBlue A320 (set configuration 3 seats, aisle, 3 seats), and take our place on the other side of the camera. We loved it, and it really gave us quick reminder of how all of you feel on the other side of the camera – a great exercise before wedding season begins!
Take a hop over to Vicki & Erik’s blog and check out the rest of the pictures, and give them some love. They did an amazing job, and we couldn't be happier! Some of you might know Vicki, we have had the honor of having her working with us the last couple of years. Thanks so much Vicki and Erik – you guys are great friends and captured US wonderfully! :) You guys are next ;)!!
It was a long day at work. All she wanted to do was go home and relax, then she gets a phone call. He says to go home and change, he wants to take her out to dinner. She’s excited but stressed. Now she has to rush home and get ready when all she really wanted to do was put her feet up. She gets home and starts to change, trying to rush since she knows he’ll be home soon, outside honking the horn. She’s nearly ready when the horn honks. She looks out the window, expecting to see his SUV in the driveway. But it’s not there – he’s out there, but the SUV is not. He standing next to a limo. She’s confused, and excited. She throws herself together and runs outside where he greets her with his big smile.
Of course she’s confused as to why they need a limo to go to dinner at a restaurant nearby. They’re not going anywhere local, he tells her. This limo is taking them to a cute little Italian restaurant in Little Italy. She is thrilled and begins to stretch out in the back of the limo - what a way to relax after a long day of work! Her night couldn’t get any better than this. And then it did. With the best surprise of the night, he reaches into his pocket and presents her with the most beautiful ring she’s ever seen.
- JEANAMARIE & ANTHONY -
We were looking forward to Jeanamarie & Anthony’s engagement session ever since our first meeting with them a couple of months ago. The way they interacted with each other was so sweet; the way he pushes the hair away from her face, they way she looks at him - it just makes you smile. And that’s they way they were when seated together on a couch! So we knew it would be so much fun to capture that interaction during their engagement session, and we were right! That’s what we love most about engagement sessions, capturing the feelings that couples convey to one another without words.
We met Jeanamarie & Anthony in downtown New Haven the last week of February. Yes, it was cold, but we all made it through and it was definitely worth it. We ventured into the Yale campus for a bunch of shots, since a) it’s a beautiful campus and b) the tall buildings provided some great protection from the bitter wind. We were loving the grounds of the campus so much that when we actually went inside some of the buildings it was such a bonus! Anthony builds playgrounds, so it was important to him and Jeana that we incorporate one into the session. To do this, we then headed over to a park in Branford which had not only one of his playgrounds, but also some incredible views of the Long Island Sound, and, Rob’s favorite, tall beach grass!!
Yale is such a beautiful place and we really wanted to take advantage of it. To escape the hustle and the bustle of the city we found this really great quad where the buildings provided such beautiful backdrops.
I LOVE this moment that Kathleen captured. Jeana and Anthony are such happy and wonderful people, with incredibly contagious smiles.
We were obsessed with the Yale buildings, the detail is incredible.
We walked around some of dormitories for a while just enjoying the day and getting some fun shots.
Anthony leaned over and gave Jeana a sweet kiss while taking a seat on the stairs.
It was really cold outside so we went in to one of the dorms to warm up. We love the moodiness of this shot. The bricks, the lighting, and of course the moment makes us so happy!
While I was taking this photo I realized that I really like taking photos around bikes, I'm not sure why I just think that they are fun.
We went into another building to escape the cold. The light coming in from the window was so nice.
We were so obsessed with the architecture of the buildings. It was such a great place to photograph these two.
Kathleen saw this little balcony and came up with the idea for us to shoot from below. I LOVE this shot!
As many of you know, I really enjoy shooting silhouettes. We found this little tunnel and I was so excited to see how it turned out. This may be one my personal favorite from their session.
Such a sweet moment. I love the closeness and how Jeana's ring show so nicely.
Kathleen and I kept telling both Jeana and Anthony that they both have really nice eyes. I think you can see why here.
These buildings are so amazing!!
As we were heading back to our cars before heading off to the beach, we spotted this area and we just had to take a few photos. This one is my view...
...and this one is Kathleen's of the same moment.
Also on the way back to the cars, we found this bright red wall. We really LOVE bricks!
One of my all time favorite things to use as a background is long grass. In fact sometimes Kathleen and I joke when we see long grass on the side of the road, even if it is in the middle of a highway that "this would be the perfect place to shoot!" This one is my view...
...and this is Kathleen's!
The beach (although a little chilly) was a nice place to shoot. It was cloudy out so we had some really nice even lighting.
We LOVE this one, these two are so much fun!
Anthony has a really cool job, he gets to build professional playground equipment, how fun is that! There was a playground setup at the beach we went to. It was really fun to take some photos on the playground setup that he put together.
I love the simplicity of this one.
You can always tell when you are on an east coast beach, they look very different than most beaches on the west coast. That's not a bad thing though because all of the detail really makes for some really fun photos.
Jeanamarie & Anthony - thanks so much for a wonderful afternoon and for braving the cold!! September will be much warmer!! :)
