Almost one year ago today, we were delighted to have wrapped up our wedding season with Cindy + Derek’s gorgeous engagement session in Savannah, Georgia. Once again, we find ourselves finishing off the 2014 wedding season with the same amazing couple… and we couldn’t be more honored to do so with anybody else.
Truth be told, we at Dreamlite Photography have been looking forward to this day for quite some time. Having already “tied the knot” on paper, Cindy + Derek emphasized this particular marriage celebration be exactly that– a celebration. Shedding away many of the traditional wedding day formalities allowed this couple to have a really beautiful, easy-flowing schedule. By doing so, this couple made room for a whole lot of dancing, laughter, love, and a few tears along the way (the good kind).
Although the winter weather was in full swing by this weekend (with temperatures dipping to the 20’s), you probably couldn’t tell by the portraits we took around the Princeton University campus. That’s how brave our bride + groom were. We consider ourselves blessed by having such courageous couples to work with. Even when things got really cold, Derek + Cindy pushed through, knowing that these portraits would be worth it.
Typically, our blogposts are filled with real moments… authentic emotions, crazy dance moves, and candid images that reflect our couples’ wedding day stories. And in doing so, we hardly ever shine the spotlight on the details. Not that we have anything against details, but we simply prefer to highlight the living over the inanimate 🙂 However, there was no way we could share this wedding without applauding Nada and her team from DB Events for being the creative force behind all the wedding details. The amount of creative energy poured into making this all possible was truly unspeakable. Every single detail– from the suspended wedding cake to the elegantly designed centerpieces to the dream-like ambiance of the reception room– can be credited to the folks at DB Events. We even had the opportunity to watch two separate dance performances that evening: an Irish dance troupe, followed by Pali Dabke Arabic dancers, to honor our couples’ Irish and Palestinian backgrounds. Thank you DB Events for making the magic real.
Above all else, congratulations to Derek + Cindy on celebrating their new marriage!
(To see more of our work, and even more photos from their celebration, visit us on our facebook page)
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10 Dec ’14 | Categories: Wedding Photography | Tags: arabic unveil Zaffah, arabic weddings dancing, Arabic weddings zaffa wedding march, authentic raw photos, bridal portraits Miller Chapel, cactus v5 wedding photography, Central Jersey weddings, christian louboutin wedding shoes bride, cindy derek, creative photographers, DB Events wedding planners entertainment NJ NYC, december NJ weddings, documentary style wedding photographers, elegant New Jersey weddings, elegant wedding dress, elegant weddings, fotografos de boda nj, high-end highend wedding planners, ireland, irish dance performance wedding, keyport nj photographers, louboutin brides, multicultural multiethnic weddings, multicultural weddings, New Jersey Wedding Photography, nikon CLS, nikon d750 weddings, nikonistas, NJ NYC wedding moments, Pali Dabke dancers wedding celebration, photojournalist weddings, prada wedding groom shoes, Princeton University Photography, Princeton University Portraits, real jersey weddings, red bottom shoes bride, southern brides, suspended wedding cakes, traveling couples, upscale weddings, wedding receptions candelabras, weddings Addison Park, winter weddings 2014 | Comments Off on Cindy + Derek || Winter Weddings at The Addison Park
Yesterday’s wedding with Lindsay + Rich left us nearly speechless. We’re not talking about their ceremony at the St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral (it was stunning, and so was the AC). We’re not talking about this couple’s perfectly fitting chemistry (no doubts they are meant for eachother). We’re not even talking about all the crazy dancing that went on or the hilarious speeches or the excellent food that night. The pictures below should be enough proof for you all…
From morning until cocktail hour, Lindsay and Rich were ON TIME! To everything! Never have we been to a wedding where a couple was on time; it just doesn’t work that way in the wedding world. But somehow Lindsay and Rich did it, and they did in style. They tied the knot at a beautiful cathedral, had portraits done at Roosevelt Park, and celebrated their new life together at The Westwood. They even provided all of their guests with white gloves + shades to dance away under UV lights.
Enjoy the teaser photos below, and congratulations once again to Lindsay & Rich on their new marriage. Be sure to check out our facebook for more images to come in the coming week!
(and for those of you who are wondering why there are 4 rings in the first image below.. that’s four generations of wedding bands. Great grandmothers‘, grandmothers’, mother of the bride’s, and our bride’s.)
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1 Jul ’12 | Categories: Wedding Photography | Tags: blacklight wedding dance, Central Jersey weddings, creative wedding ring lighting photos, Lindsay Rich, New Jersey Wedding Photographers, nikon CLS weddings, union county photographers, wedding teasers, Weddings in Garwood NJ, weddings in Metuchen NJ, Westwood Wedding Photography | 1 Comment »
In case you missed Fanny and Ben’s wedding teasers from a few weeks back, be sure to check them out here. Back in early September, we joined this wonderful couple for their wedding celebration. Their ceremony took place at RCCC, followed by a relaxing Crowne Plaza reception in Edison, NJ. The Matron of Honor’s speech was by far one of the funniest deliveries we have heard all summer. Among the “welcome to your new marriage” gifts presented by the Matron of Honor, she made sure to include a giant bag of nacho cheesy Doritos. Apparently these chips are the groom’s keys to winning over his new wife’s favor (and besides, you can’t not listen to advice given by the bridesmaids). In regards to the dance floor, it was pretty packed all night long. Special thanks to the guest entertainers of the night (aka one father in particular) for motivating all of the young children to stay on the dance floor.
Wedding bands: Fords Jewelers
Diamonds: Helzberg Diamonds
Vera Wang Dress: Isabelle’s
Music & Entertainment by DJ Jason Estes of Elite Entertainment
Congratulations once again to Fanny + Ben!
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21 Oct ’11 | Categories: Wedding Photography | Tags: Ben Fanny, Central Jersey weddings, creative lighting, Crowne Plaza Edison NJ, nacho cheese doritos as wedding gift, RCCC Weddings, Rutgers Community Christian Church NJ Weddings, Vera Wang Wedding Dress, Wedding Photography | 13 Comments »
Having recently capped off an exciting, relaxing and adventurous winter break, we’re excited to share with you our first full wedding set of the year. After spending the morning getting her hair done with Peach (hairstylist at Tekniques Salon), Justine headed home for makeup with a MAC artist and some quality time with her ladies.
Typically, you might expect the groomsmen to be going about their day in this order 1) sleeping in 2) watching t.v. 3) drinking beers 4) getting their suits on 30 minutes before the ceremony. However, Mike and his groomsmen had other plans. Their morning started with a 10am appointment at the Old World Shaving Parlor in Red Bank, NJ. This old fashion barbershop had all the makings of a classic movie… shaving cream, steaming hot face towels, and an ultra-smooth razor shave. Until that day, we (as wedding photographers) had never heard of this service before, but we definitely recommend this Red Bank parlor to everyone.
The rest of the morning was spent getting ready with close friends and family. One of the many unique aspects of their wedding day was the trolley they rented for transportation. Thanks to the Long Branch Trolley Company, the bridal parties traveled to both the ceremony and reception in style. Their ceremony– packed with friends and family, a healthy dose of humorous moments, and a beautiful exchange of vows– seemed to go just as planned. If we were asked to pick our favorite moment of the day, it would probably be at the very beginning of the ceremony. Rather than timidly walking down the aisle as many ringbearers do, these young fellows bolted down the aisle as if it were the finish line to the NYC Marathon. Photographic proof can be seen on the teaser post here.
Afterwards, we headed down the street to the regionally famous, family-run Delicious Orchards. How in the world, might you ask, did we get permission to photograph the bride and groom at a country market? Easy… our awesome groom is a part of this family business. When we finished the bridal party photos inside the market itself, we spent some time doing portraits of Mike and Justine at the farm next door… also a part of Mike’s family!
We finished off the night at the phenomenal Jumping Brook Country Club in Neptune City, NJ. There was plenty of dancing, celebrating and toasting to go around for our newlyweds. Though we already expected our bride and groom to lead their guests in an all-nightlong dance party, they certainly couldn’t have done it without the exceptional live music provided by Platinum Band Music. Hands down, the best live music wedding band we’ve seen in NJ. At one point near the end of the night, Jon had mentioned to Howie, “Man.. I would definitely like to have this band at my own wedding someday.” Congratulations once again to Mike & Justine on their new marriage!
Finally, a list of the awesome vendors we met along the way:
Delicious Orchards http://www.deliciousorchardsnj.com/welcome/index.php
Long Branch Trolley Company (Bridal Party Transportation) http://www.longbranchtrolley.com/
Colts Neck Reformed Church (Wedding Ceremony) 72 County Road 537 East, Colts Neck, NJ
Jumping Brook Country Club, Neptune City, NJ (Wedding Reception) http://www.jumpingbrookcc.com/golf/proto/jumpingbrookcc/weddings/weddings.htm
Tekniques Salon (hair stylist: Peach) of Shrewsbury, NJ http://local.yahoo.com/info-10812307-tekniques-salon-shrewsbury
Old World Shaving Parlor http://oldworldshavingparlor.com/
Platinum Band Music http://www.platinumbandmusic.com/aboutus.html
Leonardo Jewelers http://www.leonardojewelers.com (info@leonardojewelers.com)
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3 Apr ’11 | Categories: Wedding Photography | Tags: Bridal Party Photos New Jersey Orchards, Central Jersey weddings, Colts Neck NJ weddings, Colts Neck Reformed Church Wedding Ceremony NJ, Delicious Orchards NJ New Jersey Wedding Photos, Dreamlite's Friends Wedding, Groom Groomsmen Old World Shaving Parlor Red Bank NJ, Hairstylists Tekniques Salon of Shrewsbury NJ, Jumping Brook Country Club reception Neptune City NJ, MAC cosmetics wedding, March Weddings, Men Wedding Cigars, mike justine, old world barbershop, south jersey weddings, teasers, Wedding Cakes, Wedding Photography, Wedding Reception Dancing Photos Lighting, Wedding Rings Bands by Leonardo Jewelers | 35 Comments »
Now that we’re both back in NJ for another wedding season, it would be an understatement to say that the 2011 season couldn’t have gotten off to a better start. Though our bodies are still recovering from yesterday’s wedding celebration, we’re excited to share with you a few teaser photos from Mike and Justine’s big day. Congratulations you two!
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27 Mar ’11 | Categories: Wedding Photography | Tags: Central Jersey weddings, Colts Neck NJ weddings, humor ring bearer runs down aisle, mike justine, reflections, south jersey weddings, teasers, Wedding Photography, wedding teasers | 2 Comments »
A few months back, we had the privilege of photographing Ryan and Betty’s wedding.
It is always great to shoot the bride in a place she is very familiar with, as we did most of our shoot at her alma mater (Rutgers University). We did the bridal party session on Busch Campus. Ryan and Betty’s ceremony took place at the beautiful Kirkpatrick Chapel. We originally worried about the red hued walls of the chapel, but nevertheless everything turned out great. Our bride also chose red brides maid dresses which matched the chapel’s interior very well.
When we photographed the entire bridal party, Ryan and Betty had the great idea of incorporating parasols for the photos. We felt very privileged when we received their Thank You card in the mail– they had used one of the bridal party images as on their card! (see final image)
Congratulations again to Ryan & Betty.
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24 Jan ’11 | Categories: Wedding Photography | Tags: Central Jersey weddings, elevator photograph wedding bridal party, Kirkpatrick Chapel wedding ceremony, New Brunswick Wedding, Parasols for Wedding, Red Wedding, Rutgers New Jersey NJ weddings, Rutgers Wedding, Ryan Betty, Wedding Jumping Picture, Wedding Photography, White and Red Wedding Dress | 2 Comments »
Don’t worry, we haven’t forgotten about our blog! We know we’ve been neglecting this blog for a while now (our apologies), but this summer’s been quite the busy one for us. We’ve been so busy traveling/photographing/editing/meeting with couples that we haven’t set much time aside for full sets. In saying all this, I’ve finally found some free time to put together my favorite images from Brian and Sara’s wedding ceremony from earlier this summer.
Both of Brian and Sara’s wedding ceremonies have been exciting, intimate, and completely different. Their first ceremony, which took place a week earlier, included a very detailed set of traditional Korean wedding practices. In this set, it was a whole new party. Brian and Sara chose the Somerset Hills Hotel for their wedding reception, which was a gorgeous venue inside and out. Since Brian hails from the midwest, their reception included a Boot Scootin’ Boogie Line Dance (led by the Bride and Groom + the wedding party, later joined by the whole crowd), and a cowboy hat toss. Best of all, the song selection for the night included a lot of country music (a music genre I really like, for those who don’t know). Enjoy this latest set. JT
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25 Sep ’10 | Categories: Wedding Photography | Tags: Boot Scootin Boogie Line Dance, Brian Sara, bridal party prayer, Central Jersey weddings, Country music, cowboy hat, Jesus wall mural, jt, NJ, The Somerset Hills Hotel in Basking Ridge, Wedding Photography | Comments Off on Brian + Sara (Traditional Ceremony)
While everyone else is enjoying their wintery weather, we’ve been working hard to catch you all up on photos from this past wedding season. With more time on our hands, we have been preparing a whole slew of weddings/engagements/family photos to slowly release to all of our faithful blog followers. Here is our latest set.
We had been introduced to Caitlin and Danish through one of Jon’s friend’s at Rutgers, and definitely have to say this was one of the smoothest wedding days of 2010. Although the wedding day schedule was pretty packed, we had plenty of time (and creative room) to capture their beautiful wedding day celebration. One of the many significant details to their wedding day was actually the church that Caitlin and Danish chose to have their wedding ceremony in. This was the exact same church that our bride’s parents got married in, many years back (see image#4 and remember that photo as you browse). Some of our favorite images from this day include Danish’s teary-eyed reaction to seeing his bride walk down the aisle, the moment Caitlin helped Danish wipe away his runny nose (that’s real love right there), and the bridal party photos we took at Deep Cut Gardens in Middletown, NJ. They celebrated the night away at an excellent waterfront reception, the Oyster Point Hotel. The spectacular music for the night was provided by Dynasty Entertainment (highly recommended by us… their covers and vibe are one-of-a-kind). Enjoy these photos, and once again congratulations to Danish & Caitlin.
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20 Aug ’10 | Categories: Wedding Photography | Tags: Central Jersey weddings, Danish Caitlin, Deep Cut Gardens Photos Middletown NJ, dogs in wedding attire, MAC cosmetics wedding, Oyster Point Hotel in Red Bank NJ, pet dogs in costume for wedding, Wedding Photography | 2 Comments »
Our summer wedding season is in full swing!!
Jon has the honor of photographing Brian and Sara for back-to-back weekends. This past weekend, this awesome couple celebrated their union with a traditional Korean wedding ceremony, while this upcoming weekend will be their traditional “american” ceremony. Meanwhile, Howie’s currently on the plane to Minnesota for another wedding (but that’s a whole ‘nother story…)
As always, here’s a sneak preview of a few favorites from last Saturday. Enjoy!
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17 Jun ’10 | Categories: Wedding Photography | Tags: Brian Sara, Central Jersey weddings, jt, Korean wedding ceremonies in Central New Jersey, PPC Praise Presbyterian Church of NJ, Somerset NJ Weddings, teasers, wedding teasers | 753 Comments »
Carlos and Toni’s wedding was definitely an adventure for us. The weather was pouring throughout most of the day, but thankfully the entire wedding day took place indoors. The wedding ceremony took place in a very classic central jersey location– the Voorhees Chapel— situated on the Douglass campus of Rutgers University. The chapel has a pretty neat design (both inside and out), and an overall great location for weddings.
Below are many of our favorite captures from Carlos and Toni’s wedding. We always love the moment when the bride and groom first see eachother as the bride enters the ceremony area. Carlos was definitely choking back those tears when he saw her walking down.
The reception took place at the newly renovated Ariana’s Grand in Woodbridge, NJ. Though it was our first time there, we definitely recommend this location for it’s friendly staff and tastes-like-home food. And as always, the dance floor was sufficient enough for all the celebratory dancing that took place throughout the night.
Carlos and Toni– thank you for having us be a part of that special day, and congratulations once again!
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18 Apr ’10 | Categories: Wedding Photography | Tags: Ariana's Grand in Woodbridge NJ, Carlos Toni, Central Jersey weddings, Hyatt Regency New Brunswick, New Brunswick NJ, Rutgers University New Brunswick, The Heldrich Hotel, Voorhees Chapel NJ, wedding, Woodbridge NJ Reception Hall | Comments Off on Carlos + Toni Wedding (Part 2)
