Miriam and Daniel Get Married

A few weeks ago, I had the absolute pleasure of second-shooting a wedding with Amy Little. I already talked about how much fun it was to shoot with her, so I’ll move on to the wedding itself. First of all, I was really excited to be at this wedding, because it was the first Jewish wedding I had ever been to, let alone photographed. It was so fascinating to learn about and witness all of the traditions throughout the day. My favorite was the traditional Jewish dances they did at the reception. It was just like you see in the movies. :) And Miriam and Daniel were so stinkin’ cute, loving all over each other all day. You can tell their marriage is going to be a great one. So, without further ado….

How much do you LOVE the teal walls in the room where Miriam got ready? ‘Cause I sure did.

Here’s Daniel reading a note from Miriam before the ceremony. She was so adorable… She had written a letter to almost everyone there, including Amy! So thoughtful.

And get a load of this DRESS. Miriam totally scored on this one. It actually belongs to one of her coworkers, who JUST so happens to be the exact same size. Um, how lucky is THAT?

I’m telling you, Amy and I were challenged more than we’ve ever been as far as working with light went for this wedding. For one, it was January. In Salt Lake City. In the middle of the inversion, one of the worst pollution situations I’ve seen. So overall, pretty gray and yucky. On top of that, it was a late ceremony, so we were super pressed for time when we did portraits of the bride and groom, because we were chasing the last little bits of daylight. And on top of THAT, the Kol Ami Synagogue where they got married was dark. I mean, really dark. And though the reception room was gorgeously lit by tons of candles and strategic mood lighting, it was, well, DARK. Shooting at ISO 1600 (on a 40D, at that) was pretty nerve-wracking, but you know, when it was all said and done, I think we worked it and completely made the best of the situation. And if nothing else, it was a great learning experience. Always gotta look for the bright side. :) So with that said, here are some of the outdoor shots. I actually kind of really like the softness of them.

Before the main ceremony, they actually had a separate, private ceremony with just family and close friends. I really didn’t understand much of what was going on, but it was a special moment nonetheless.

Remember what I said about it being dark? Yeahhhh…… I’m glad I was able to snag this shot anyway.

Hot, hot, HOT! Good thinking, Amy. :)

I’m telling you, the way Kim Albers of Every Last Detail transformed this place was unreal. When we first got to the synagogue, this room looked COMPLETELY different. Like a pretty typical reception hall. But man, with all the gorgeous lighting and romantic table decorations…. you’d never know.

Proud of this one.

So I set up one off-camera flash at the corner of the dance floor, and kept another on my camera. Best decision ever. I was so pleasantly surprised by all the different effects the back- and side-lighting created.

LOVE THIS. Miriam and Daniel are getting lifted up on chairs to be danced around. I’m not exactly sure what this tradition is called, but it is pure awesomeness. Just LOOK at their faces!

Magical.

Thank you, guests, for posing for the camera without me even knowing it. :)

It’s kinda weird for my favorites to not even have the bride and groom in them, but these last two seriously are some of my favorite images I’ve ever taken. I love this one because of the juxtaposition of the older couple and the younger couple. In both cases, you can so plainly see how much they adore each other, and it kind of makes me think that the couple on the left is how the couple on the right will be someday. I mean, wow. Just amazing emotions here.

And I hate to admit it, but this one was kind of an accident. Talk about a right place, right time moment. My off camera flash just so happened to be right behind them, my on camera flash just so happened not to fire, the couple just so happened to be smiling at each other, and the result is this lovely silhouette. I love the simplicity and the drama of it. Mmmmm. Don’t you love happy accidents?

I LOVE second shooting, so if you or anyone you know is in need of someone, I’m totally willing! Just let me know!