You + Me = Love

I LOVE to photograph in different and unique places. I LOVE peoples' love stories. So when I heard that Jessica and Vin fell in love in a classroom, ummm, how could we not photograph their engagement session in one? Yeah, I thought so! I made a phone call to our local High School in Ridgewood and went straight to the top - the Principal himself...dom,-da--dom-da-dommmm...to my surprise he was an amazing fellow who gladly opened his doors to us and said he would happily provide a custodian to help us into a classroom when we needed. Wow! I love my local community-they are awesome! Anyway,  Vin told me just before the session that Jess HATES her photo being taken. As a matter of fact, at a wedding they attended a few months earlier, Vin's friends approached him and asked him where Jess was and Vin replied "in a corner, hiding from the wedding photographer". LOL, well she certainly didn't hide from me during our E-session, and I'm pretty sure she'll stick around on her wedding day too ;-D  So go ahead and peruse a few of their images and drop a note or two on the bottom to let them and us know what you think...does Jess look like the kinda gal who hates having her picture taken? 

Branches Catering - NJ Discover

 
This summer Scott and I shall be photographing a number of weddings at Branches in Long Branch, New Jersey where we are featured as their preferred vendor. We thought we'd take a minute to share with all our faithful readers a video that was recently posted by Branches which highlights some of our beach wedding photographs! Thanks Branches ;-)

The Serenade

This blog is dedicated to all my devoted fans who have been on my arse this past week, wondering why I have not blogged (in particular they are looking for engagement shoots). Well ladies (and gentlemen) I did just get over a crazy case of the flu so excuse the delay...

Ahem, (clearing of throat)...Say hello to Vinny and Melissa...

 A few weeks ago we changed gears. You may be wondering "Whatever do you mean Cat?" Well we were originally scheduled to head to NYC and begin our adventures at the Empire State Building for Melissa & Vinny's engagement shoot which is where they officially were engaged, but as Melis and I talked on the phone she decided to switch her location to Willowwood Arboretum because she desired something a little more natural and relaxed. Starting to photograph an hour or so before sunset gave us the perfect opportunity to capture the golden sunlight which played softly with Melissa's hair and allowed us to feel the warm and perfect slight breeze that blew every so often. We found a patch of daffodils and had them sit amongst them, which was breathtaking...as is Melissa.

 At the very end of our session we started to hear faint music playing in the background and so we went on the search to find the source. Low and behold its was two guys walking around with guitars just jamming. They are part of a band called Reverse Curve. When asked if they would serenade our couple without a pause they started playing Mozart's Pachelbel Canon in D Major. It was awesome! What a way to end our amazing evening together!

I LOVE FAMILY PORTRAITS!!!

I can't say it enough...I really love being with happy families and capturing the craziness of children running around while I chase them and laughing and of course the possibility of snot flying everywhere, lol. It just can't be beat. A few weeks back Scott and I were commissioned to photograph our friends Melina, Caesar and their gorgeous son Julian to Branch Brook Park in Bloomfield, NJ at the peak of the Cherry Blossom Trees. It was so much fun but boy is it a workout chasing around a 3 year old who has endless abounding, exploding energy. He was non-stop and I was right behind him rolling in the grass, jumping over logs, running up hills, running back down hills  and all the while hearing him giggle incessantly because he knew I was always 3 steps behind. Here are a few snapshots of our afternoon together. By the way, check out MY cutie pie Scott at the end. Kids love him so much and Julian was no exception. While on Scott's shoulders he gave the command to go up, then down, up then down. Scott must have done about 50 squats with him on his shoulders. The next day he was definitely limping...(shh, he totally needs to do more of those).  And if your wondering where Julian's snazzy little preppy outfit came from then you totally need to check out the very trendy Bellie & Katrina in Hoboken!

Elyse & Aaron at Addison Park

"April 9, 2010 is your second and last time to make an appearance in a wedding party as a Matron of Honor!" That is according  to the ban my husband Scott has put in place, lol. The first time was my sister Sabrina who was married two years ago in March and this time it was my very good friend Elyse of whom is like my little sister. As much fun as I had goofing off...constantly...with my new found friend Cherie (we were like two kindergartners at recess hopped up on Mountain Dew) Scott certainly felt the pressure of trying to reign us all in, lol, sorry ScottyDo...love you ;-) 

Well in between being in some of the photo's I managed to steal the camera from under Scott's nose and snapped a few getting ready shots of Elyse...some of my favorite. We had a blast as you can see by the images. Elyse was such a fabulous bride because not only did she look unbelievably hot but she danced up a storm and laughed it up all the while! I love when brides are so full of expression...it makes our job a whole lot easier! So sit back, relax and enjoy a few of the highlights of Elyse and Aaron's beautiful wedding held at Addison Park, a gorgeous venue in Aberdeen, New Jersey. Oh, and I mustn't forget to give props to the very talanted Vic Pellicier who was our associate photographer. He did a great job and came up with some amazing and artistic shots himself...go ahead and check him out too ;-)

I love Elyse's expression as well as the bridesmaids in the background...hysterical!

Elyse busts a move...go Elyse, its your wedding, lol.

Look out here comes the force of Aaron! He unleashed the beast ;-D

Ingrid Michaelson @ Snug Harbor

On Saturday, March 6th I kinda sorta (;-D) dragged Scott to take me to see Ingrid Michaelson in concert at Staten Islands Snug Harbor - a venue we will be photographing an awesome wedding in October for our bride and groom-Rachel & Jeremy. Rachel is actually the one who introduced me to Snug Harbor. Snug Harbor is not only one of the most architecturally and historically significant sites in the country, it is a place where history, architecture, the visual and performing arts, environmental science included in performing arts all come together to provide a rich and powerful learning experience for audiences young and old.  Now, I am getting off point...lolol. Let me continue...

You see, I LOVE Ingrid. To me her voice encapsulates a realness and raw crisp energy that, if given the opportunity in the car alone, I try VERY hard to emulate myself...good thing you can't hear me! So along with Scott I took my next favorite thing, my camera, and while the concert played on I was able to move around the venue and capture some moments of Ingrid and the gang singing along. Underneath my viewfinder, all the while, I had a grin from ear to ear. I managed to combine  my two most favorite pass times - attending a concert AND photographing it! Ahhh, I love life!

Ingrid sings and makes us all laugh - she is one hysterically sarcastic chick! And so adorable too, in a geeky sorta way.

This is the outside of the Music Hall which is the 2nd oldest in NYC. I loved the way the tree limbs intricately decorate the columns with their lacy branches.

Ingrid sings all together with the band. You can definitely see they have a fabulous time together on tour!

For the grand finale Ingrid and everyone else switches places and plays a different instrument-she's on the drums...amazing talent there!

Valley of Death

So a few weeks back Scott and I took a trip out to Las Vegas for a humongous photography convention/trade show where 14,000 photographers attended...Needless to say it was huge and overwhelming at times. So at the end of the four day extravaganza we decided, on a whim, to rent a car and drive down to Death Valley, CA at the encouragement of our fellow photographer friends who had said it is like no other place in the world. Well ,my friends were right! Here is one of the many awesome photos we took...and yes it was a self timer, balanced on a very, VERY low rock which was so slanted that when the wind forcefully blew through the canyon, Scott nearly pooped in his pants as I ran toward him to make it before it snapped our photo. Its one of my favorites...I shall put more up as I have a moment. Ciao!

P.S. We are so not cool with our matching t-shirts we got for free at the trade show...though BigFolio sure would be happy!

Daddy's Little Girl...no more

I am normally not a fan of my brides looking directly at my lense in a moment like this, but God Ruby you looked so incredibly mesmerizing! And I totally love your father's emotion in this moment!

On March 7th, 2010 Ruby and Maurice tied the knot in New Rochelle, NY and held their reception celebration in Westbury Manor, Long Island and what a beautiful day it was! Well, I shall share more images of that another time. However, today, as I pour through and edit their images of that day I couldn't resist sharing my two favorite Daddy & Daughter first dance photographs with you. I love the way Ruby's dad is looking so debonair and proud...or maybe he was so excited cause he was getting ready to bust a move. Everyone clapped joyously at the end of their dance because I think we would all agree - it was the liveliest Father/Daughter dance we had all ever seen!

One moment is was slow dancing and all of the sudden they broke out in a full jive, lol, total awesomeness.

Is that really you?

So if you are following our blog you can probably recall we had a different photo along the top of our blog. It has been a long time that I've stared at that image, and, as much as I loved it, it wasn't us. So this morning, in the shower-a place I have many epiphanies, the light bulb in my head went on and I thought "why not scan in my favorite image from our wedding album and use that as the header?" Genius! I love it! So if you are wondering if that is us...then you now have your answer. And if you are wondering when that beautiful and fun day was, well then the answer is September 7, 1998. We will be celebrating our 12th anniversary this year and YES, we still dance that crazily!

When a Boy Becomes a Man... New Video

Hello there again!  

This morning we had a Premier Release Party for a very excited, very busy mother of two named Debi, who just had her second sons Bar Mitzvah this January. A long awaited and long anticipated event which consumed Debi's every thought, every second of the day, lol. When I first met Debbi she had fell in love with our work and was gushing about our artistic vision but was slightly hesitant due to her budget restraints. HOWEVER, she had just went through her firstborn son Charlies Bar Mitzvah and was so disappointed with the photographs that were taken by another professional photographer that she decided to go with her gut and commission us. 

This mornings Premier Release Party affirmed she made the right decision! She walked into our studio telling us of her over the top excitement as she had not seen one image from the party because none of her friends took any pictures. That made me extra happy because I knew Scott and I were gonna blow her socks off. She brought a friend along with her who also happens to have a daughter with an upcoming Bat Mitzvah and the biggest compliment I could have received was when she solemnly looked at me with her big beautiful green eyes and said "Every image is so beautiful- you really see John's personality in each photograph! Tell me your booked June 5th so I don't feel so bad having already booked another photographer." Don't worry Tobi, you said it yourself, you still have two more children to go so we shall see you then! In the meantime, enjoy the music video we put together for Debbie as a mini surprise :-)  She loved it and we hope you do too!

The Dove Lounge

Ok, brace yourselves . . . I am about to flood you with updates on all the latest happenings with Dove Photography and boy do I have a lot to share! We've been all over the place from Staten Island, to Long Island, Las Vegas to Death Valley in California. So sit back, relax and check out some of the places that captivated & inspired us ;-)

A few weeks ago Scott and I decided to do our first ever Bridal Show Expo at The Crown Plaza Hotel in Secaucus, NJ and while it didn't go perfectly (Scott stayed up all night building two Living Room like adjoining walls that ended up not fitting in the space we were given) we did blow away the competition, if I may say so myself ;-) We designed our (supposed to be 8x10 but in reality 6x8) space to resemble a Lounge, "The Dove Lounge" if you will. We purchased two small leather love seats and brought in a bookshelf that held our monitor display which ran a slideshow of some of our favorite images. We also had a bowl of Dove Chocolates, available to anyone who stopped by, but of course, lol. Most exciting, though was our stunningly beautiful model who wore an amazing gown from Something Special located in Wyckoff, NJ - which by the way offer free alterations. It was a gorgeous ivory embroidered tulle trumpet gown designed by Lazaro with jeweled applique at empire waist and bust and cascading flowers down the back of the skirt with a chapel train which is priced at $4,565. She also wore a beautiful ostrich feathered  by Toni Federic and a Flowered haircomb underneath that by Malis Henderson as well as petite Debra Moreland by Paris earrings, all provided by Something Special. I cannot compliment these three amazing woman - Irene, Lynda and Lisa enough for helping us be so successful at the show and recommending us at their Bridal Boutique. All of them helped Katilyn look breathtaking for the day of the show! So all you brides out there looking for a Wedding Gown that will take you and your husband-to-be breath away, go to Something Special now! They have the best and most caring woman there ready to help you with your every whim and desire :-)

We also received beautiful flowers for our booth from Anna Rose Floral Design  which we prominently displayed between our two love seats as you can see in the images below. And if your wondering about the red rose bouquet that Kaitlyn was holding, well that stunning arrangement was made by Beers Flowers who are located in Ridgewood, NJ. All in all, it was a very good show. We had a constant line of brides, grooms and moms waiting to talk with us, most of whom were inquiring about 2011 so if you are thinking of getting married then ladies, now is the time to book us because we are quickly filling in the 25 slots for 2011 already!

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

A few weeks back I was commissioned by a most beautiful mother and daughter to photograph them together. They told me they didn't really have any photographs of them together and wanted to preserve some memories while the daughter was still young and so I suggested The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The mom was a tad bit on the hesitant side because being that her daughter was six (going on thirty in my opinion) she was afraid she might be bored. Well I have to say "au contraire mon ami" (to the contrary my friend)! This little girl was so enthralled at all the amazing artifacts she was running from one exhibit to the next and all the while asking a million questions about everything. We had a lot of fun and were all happy to be inside because it was mucho frio (very cold) outside that day. You see, Dove Photography is limitless with ideas on how to capture great images and stay warm. Go ahead and challenge us, I dare you!

Inspiration

As I sit here listening to one of my favorite bands Tricky and write this long overdue blog, I come to you with a heart full of appreciation for the privilege of being able to work at something of which I never consider work, the beauty of photography. Today, I found myself meandering through a second hand store (a small obsession of mine) looking for interesting objects/furniture and I came across a table of about 150 old photographs spread out for the taking, most of which had handwritten messages and were dated on average of 1914-1916. I was immediately entranced and started sifting through each photograph with intense curiosity. A woman perhaps who just finished hanging her laundry to dry and decided to put her baby to sleep in a wicker carriage as the summer breeze blows, a photo of a young couple lounging in the grass with a woman embracing a doll she is too old to play with, a man dressed in a kimono complete with fan and umbrella as a long skinny lit cigar gently smokes on the edge of his lips. Questions arose in my mind, "why was this moment captured? What is the story within this moment that has passed so long ago?" I stopped to ponder and what I realized is that my whole entire existence on this earth has always pulled me like a magnet to images such as these, causing me to ask question after question to those around me who may have known more. I realized that my images today are but a small reflection of my minds eye, things I've subconsciously recorded in my life movie that never stops playing in my head. So today, I share with you these images. Even though I know not any of these individuals, and even though I may never meet them, they will be framed on my studio wall as a constant reminder of what started my passion for freezing moments in time.

Aaron + Elyse = FuN

Before I had met Aaron I had heard much about him from my very good friend Elyse however nothing could prepare me for the copious amounts of fun he brought to the table the day we did their engagement shoot in Central Park, NYC. He made me laugh so many times it was nearly impossible to concentrate on "maintaining a romantic mood", lol. Actually they both provided my lense with a lot of great moments . . . so without further ado . . .

oh and there's a music video too . . . surprise :-)

And this makes it even sweeter!

The Perry Family Music Video

Over the weekend we had a party for my friends the Perry's and we surprised them with this video. A few days before the party we did a portrait session to capture Melissa's belly before she gives birth to her first son. So enjoy the show!

Sunil + Toral.....The Video :)

Shoes Anyone? | Fort Totten, NY

Have you ever seen the movie UP? That question was posed to me a few days before Mary and Frank promised to be each others love forever. Mary wrote me a beautiful e-mail in response to my question of what feeling she wished me to capture on her wedding day. This is some of what she wrote me . . .

"I saw "UP" tonight and as silly as it may sound, it totally made me realize how awesome life really is and why I want to be alive. On Saturday, I want you to capture love. I want you to try and capture a pure love. My flower girls are my babies I love them all and I want lots of shots with them and I want you to capture the innocence of them as well and the connection and bond that Frank and I have for each other. I asked God for someone who has what I need and who needs what I have and Frank has been all of that and more. I am convinced that God has brought us together for so many reasons and I want you to capture friendship and silliness and intensity. Frank is my best friend and my true love."

Mary epitomizes the character Ellie in UP. They both possess the amazing energy and passion for life and all things in it. To give you an idea of the excitement of Frank and Mary's world, after their ceremony she walked up to me with the biggest smile and asked if I minded we stop by a store called Love My Shoes (on our way to the reception at Fort Totten) so she could pick up a pair of flats because her feet were hurting in her high heels. I heartily laughed and said as long as I was permitted to trail behind her with my camera in this adventure I will go anywhere with her! So check out a few of the images we captured along the way, a fly on Mary and Franks wall!

Yes, Mary is just a wee bit taller than her flower girls! She's a cutie petutie!

Here is our Love My Shoes Excursion! The customers in the store did not think this was for real!

Everyone in Frank and Mary's wedding were willing participants for a good time! That is her father in the left image on the far right...he was so awesome!