Hey everyone… just a quick note from me… 2010 was a great year and 2011 is shaping up to be a great year as well.  Yesterday was a particularly awesome day… we booked another great couple for their wedding… I received my pre-ordered copy of my good friend Neil Van Neikerk’s book… and I also received our copies of Brides New York magazine that feature images from both Kawana and Isaac’s engagement session and of Jen and Joe’s wedding.  Not only that, but they quoted me in an article about Central Park photography, and my work is featured next to the work of my friends Steven and Tak.  Their work always inspires me, and so it is an honor to be featured next to them.  We’ve been featured online before for our video and our images, but being in print is always cool… And so, to cap off yesterday, writer/director Brant Sersen asked if Small Moments Studios would come and capture some behind-the-scene images for his latest movie.

So yesterday was definitely a good day.  And so today continues the cool as some of our new enlargements and mounted images showed up in time for this weekend’s bridal show… my 2010 couples look amazing printed out in 16×20 and 20×30.  We’ve got a couple of new sample albums on their way as well and they looked great on the computer, so I know they’ll look amazing once our printer finishes them up.  It made me think of the name of my studio… using my name as the name of the studio didn’t seem right… when we came up with the name it was after talking about what it was I wanted to accomplish.  I wanted to capture interactions, the relationships, the small moments of such a big day… from capturing those moments I wanted to invoke lasting memories.  And so, though it’s not listed anywhere as far as I know, the studio slogan in my head is “Small Moments, Lasting Memories”.  The key is to realize that small does not equal insignificant.  In looking at some of the images I chose to enlarge, I realized that though I printed some great shots from our formal sessions, the ones that I gravitated towards were the small connections… the moments where a couple was just interacting with themselves with no real thought to smiling or posing.  Maybe they’re laughing during a first dance or sharing a kiss… maybe I placed them where the lighting would be best, and maybe I put them where the background looked cool, but that in itself would not make a good image.  You guys make the image… it’s our job to know what image to capture and to capture it well.

Okay, so we’ve got a wedding and two bridal shows to prepare for… our 2011 is quickly being booked up, and we’re editing videos, designing albums, keeping everything moving along as much as possible.  Check back next week for images from Ashley and Doug’s wedding… maybe a couple of spreads from our newest album… definitely an article on hair/makeup and probably another couple of video teasers.  Yes, it’s the “off” season, but we’re definitely still here and working.

Be well.

-Ryan.

Jen and Rich had a great wedding… and a great bridal party (legally I’m not allowed to say “best bridal party ever”… but they know how I feel).  And here is a wedding video trailer from the day.

Here’s a trailer video from January and Peter’s awesome wedding… Small Moments Studios was honored to be a part of their big day, with Keith shooting video and me capturing images at their Town and Country wedding in Rockland. Enjoy!  And as we mentioned previously, we’re stepping up our video in 2011 as Steve will be joining us to second shoot video along side Keith.

-Ryan.

…here’s a teaser from a wedding we shot last year… more teasers on their way shortly!

Caitlin and Andrew’s ROCK STAR slideshow from last year… from their Dutchess Manor Wedding.  Check it out!  Great fun, great couple…

I had such a great time with Jonathan and Natalia during their engagement session (and got one of my favorite pictures of the year)… I knew that their wedding would be awesome and I was not disappointed. Falkirk is a great venue and the staff made everything run smoothly.  The venue is newly renovated and revitalized and it shows in all of the details.  The ceremony was performed by Reverend Phillip Passantino from www.AmazingCeremonies.com and the DJ was DJ Victor Vargas… they kept the party rockin’ on the brand new “night sky” dance floor.  And Nicole was on hand from BeautyByNicole.com to make the beautiful Natalia look especially elegant… Natalia had told me that “Nicole” would be there and I just assumed it was the Nicole I know… and I was glad I was correct.  It’s always great working with professionals that I know do an outstanding job.

So Natalia and Jonathan were lots of fun, and so was their bridal party… we’ve got so many great images from the day that I’m putting some here, but you can check out the fan page on facebook to see more (later tonight).  We had the ever popular SPOTLIGHT photobooth going, and we got outstanding video by Keith and our newest crew member, Steve (see two posts down!).

I love the posed shots and formal shots we got, but I was definitely able to capture some amazing “small moments” that make me quite happy.  It was an amazing wedding… congratulations again, Jonathan and Natalia!

Be well,

-Ryan.

Falkirk Estate seems like a new name on the wedding venue scene, but pulling up to it for Jonathan and Natalia’s wedding, I recognized it instantly.  I recognized the location as The Inn at Central Valley, but it has been revamped, transformed and given a facelift… new name, new owners, new caterers.  The venue has been expanded, the dance floor has been replaced and the grounds look better than ever.  As this was a winter wedding, and considering all the snow we’ve had, we didn’t get a chance to take full advantage of the beautiful grounds, but even an inside wedding at this venue looked great, and then we did get outside for some great bridal party shots.  Overall, the staff was attentive, and Matthew Fichera, Chief Operating Officer, was on site along with Event Manager Jennifer and co-worker Laura keeping an eye on everything to make sure everything ran smoothly.

And of course, a beautiful venue is great, but if the food wasn’t up to par, no one would remember the awesome new dance floor and beautiful new expansion.  I have to say, the food was beautifully presented and just as tasty as it was plentiful.  Look below to see some of the delicious offerings from Falkirk Estate… along with a picture of COO Matthew with the owner’s daughter Kim and friend Christine… we got them into our SPOTLIGHT photobooth for a shot or two.

Jonathan and Natalia had a classy wedding, and the venue definitely set the tone.  I’m looking forward to shooting more weddings at such a great venue!  Now look out for the next blog post… more pictures from Jonathan and Natalia’s wedding… featuring less food and more of the fun!

Be well!

-Ryan.