RJ + Christina || Farmstead Golf and Country Club Wedding
Christina and RJ’s story began a little after college, when they met through online dating. Through that season in their life, they discovered so many more shared interests– good food, tasty beers, superheroes, and animals. Funny enough, all those interests were highlighted on their wedding day.
From the get-go, we had a very memorable time with this couple. Weather wise, we couldn’t have asked for a more pleasant autumn day. The fall colors were vibrant throughout the day, especially with all of the sunshine we had. We spent most of the day at the Farmstead Golf & Country Club, a beautiful gem nestled amongst the mountains and forests in northern New Jersey. Their ceremony took place outdoors, followed by a reception inside FGCC’s historic and very charming two-story barn.
Perhaps our favorite aspect of RJ + Christina’s wedding was all of the many details that were thoughtfully incorporated all throughout their special day.
First off, beers. It’s no secret that Christina + RJ love beers… Even their engagement session took place at a local North Jersey brewery. What better way to highlight that love than to include beers details in both their reception decorations, as well as the floral bouquets?
They also gave a big shoutout to DC/Marvel superheroes by giving the groomsmen masks as they paraded into the reception hall. When it was Christina + RJ’s turn to enter their reception, they wore animals masks and danced in to the tune of “What Does the Fox Say?” Not too long after, the bride and her father pulled a surprise dance routine out of their sleeves, followed by an evening of partying in every corner of the barn.
All the best to our newlyweds, Christina + RJ! #hopfuzzwedding
Cindy + Derek || Winter Weddings at The Addison Park
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)
Josh + Vanessa || Royce Brook Golf Club Weddings
Autumn is quickly becoming our favorite season to photograph weddings, and Josh + Vanessa’s celebration is one more reminder of that.
This couple couldn’t have picked a better time to tie the knot. The weather on their big day was absolutely perfect, and the entire wedding day went forward without a hitch. The most enjoyable part of our day was realizing how relaxed our newlyweds were throughout the day. Vanessa + Josh exchanged marriage covenants at the Calvary Baptist Church in village of Millstone, NJ, followed by a wonderful reception at the Royce Brook Golf Club in Hillsborough. Not only were we blessed with the full array of fall colors, but also we had superb weather to go with it. To top it all off, we were blown away with the fall colors + dramatic clouds that surrounded us during the afternoon portrait session.
Beyond all the dancing and music, there were two games during the reception that we will definitely never forget. Typically after the bouquet and garter toss, the two resulting catchers get the center spotlight on the floor. Instead of having the winning guy put the garter on the winning gal (the maid of honor, in this case), the guy was blindfolded before he made it to the dance floor. Quickly, the maid of honor switched with another guest from the crowd, and a good comic relief ensued.
After the speeches, masked groomsmen “kidnapped” Josh away into the parking lot, unaware that he was about to lose his pants. You heard right; the groomsmen brought him out to the parking, removed his suit pants, and told him they’d be right back. They tied the pant legs off, returned to the reception, and collected money from the wedding guests inside. The money was later determined to be a surprise monetary gift to the couple on their honeymoon.
All in all, everything turned out all right that day… just as our bride + groom had hoped for.
Thanks again to Josh + Vanessa for inviting us along for the celebration, for giving us the “o.k” to use sparklers near their wedding bands, and we wish them the very best in their new life together.
NaDea + Daniel || Addison Park Weddings
NaDea and Daniel’s wedding celebration was a long time coming. This spectacular couple was so well planned, organized and on top of all their email communications, we thought we were dealing with industry pros, not newlyweds.
Just one year earlier, we met up with this couple for their engagement session at Longwood Garden. A vibrant, down-to-earth couple who also happen to share the love for good food, we got a bit too excited when we heard about their honeymoon plans to Hawaii… So of course, we wrote them a giant email that included all of the local food recommendations on the island of Oahu that we wanted them to experience!
Regarding their wedding day, we had a truly wonderful time documenting their late September wedding extravaganza. The weather just as perfect as we had hoped– a healthy dose of sunshine, a little bit of clouds, and enough of the September breeze to keep us all comfortable. This was also our first time at stunning Addison Park, and the wedding venue certainly lived up to it’s reputation. We loved the effortless blending of their Chinese & American backgrounds, which included a surprise Lion Dance performance, and a very american (but lesser seen) broom jumping tradition at the end of the wedding ceremony. The dancing & speeches portion of the reception was so full of energy, we wish the party was extended for another couple of hours.
A very special + honorable mention goes out to the lovely wedding coordinator Carla of Details Made Simple. Without her professional guidance + wisdom on the day of, we really wouldn’t have had such a memorable wedding experience.
Thank you both for having us at your wedding day, and we wish you two the very best in your new lives together!
Thais + Gonzalo || Weddings at The Fountainhead
Hay un dicho muy común que dice: “Sólo se casa una vez.” Si Thais y Gonzalo se casarían otra vez la próxima semana, estaríamos allá en un ratito. Y la proxima semana. Y la semana siguiente .
Documentar la boda de esta bellísima pareja fue un placer. Era un día tan especial que haciendo fácil y divertido nuestro trabajo. Los novios incluido tiempo asignado para fotos entre eventos y transiciones que pensábamos que estábamos en el paraíso. La ceremonia se llevó a la Iglesia de San Jose, un Catedral maravilloso y histórico en Long Island City . Viajamos a Glen Island Park para retratos, seguido de la recepción en The Fountainhead en New Rochelle , NY .
La pareja mandaron un e-mail a nosotros unos días antes de la celebración de la boda a la perfección. Nos habían enviado un e-mail algunos detalles finales, y terminó su e-mail con estas palabras, “Dejar que la fiesta comience !! “
La noche se llenó de risas , discursos conmovedores, y bailar, bailar, bailar. Admiramos cómo esta pareja se deshizo de algunas de las cosas más tradicionales (ramo tirar , liga) en lugar de las cosas más importantes en la vida — más tiempo para comer y bailar y celebrar con ser queridos. ¡ Que súper la elección, ustedes dos !
Felicitaciones una vez más a nuestro espectacular pareja, y gracias por permitirnos estar allí.
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They say, “you only get married once.” If Thais and Gonzalo got married again next week, we’d be there in a heartbeat. And the next week. And the week after.
Documenting their wedding day was a breeze. The bride and groom included so much extra time in between events & transitions that we thought we were in heaven. Their wedding ceremony took place at St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church, a marvelous & historic cathedral in Long Island City. We journeyed to Glen Island Park for portraits, followed by the evening reception at The Fountainhead in New Rochelle, NY.
