So you already know Sarah and Nicole like to things a little different. So they wanted a New York engagement session somewhere that hadn’t been done. Ya- that’s not easy. But they found an amazing spot- the NYC Transit Museum. With vintage outfits. Be still my heart!

So this week it’s all about Sarah and Nicole. I’m switching things up by posting their Trash The Dress shoot before their actual wedding because I literally was editing them yesterday and am just twitching to share them.

Sarah and Nicole got married in Asbury Park, NJ and you’ll find out more about their wedding tomorrow, but we decided that their Trash The Dress shoot should be in the same awesome location. They had fallen in love with the funky vibe that Asbury Park has and the fact it’s full of gay people and families. Seriously, I saw at least 4 or 5 lesbian moms having fun on the beach with their kids. I was melting from the cuteness.

So I finally get to NJ (long story) and there are red flags on the beach. Meaning rip tides and strong waves. Ok, I thought, we can make this work. So we shot around the boardwalk, leaving the actual jumping in the ocean part till the end. And when we finally got in the water we quickly found out the waves were big and strong. I was trying to keep my feet firmly planted in the sinking sand so me and my camera equipment didn’t become one big wet mess. And Sarah and Nicole were trying to keep their faces from being “Holy shit I’m about to fall every time a wave hits me” in each picture. Which was a real issue. But with the crazy waves and balance issues they couldn’t stop laughing. It was crazy but it was fun! Here we are, in the ocean, with reds flags on the beach, in their wedding dresses.

For the last shots, I had them sit on some awesome rocks going into the ocean but didn’t realize, d’uh, perfect spot for a goods rip tide. So a big wave came and Nicole was literally hanging on to the rock she was sitting on. We quickly moved her to safer ground, and snapped a few more pictures. We were all soaking at this point, covered in sand, and laughing like crazy. Which made me realize, I LOVE trash the dress sessions.

I met Mariko and her family of four girls while shooting her sister’s wedding. And you would expect with four girls, you would find complete and utter chaos. But Mariko, their mom, was so calm and fun to talk to. We chatted about Nat’s program at Yale, my art school- all while she was getting four litte girls ready for a wedding.

So I was excited to go back and get family shots of all the girls. I show up to two of the girls playing on scooters in their house (I want a cool mom like that! No offense mom! I still love you even though your death glare comes out when people don’t remove their shoes when they come in the house- I’m the same way now, ha!). Their gorgeous home in New Canaan is full of spots to shoot. A big playground. A pool. And plenty of historic stone walls.

Thankfully, the girls were ready to play and not at all shy. I had gotten to know them a bit at the wedding and even discovered at the end of the night, Alexandra was holding my hand while I shot the first dance. So I mostly watched them play, took photos, gathered them for group shots and then watched them run away in 30 seconds. And reeeeeally really tried to get Brooke, the youngest to smile. She mostly was running around trying to do everything the bigger girls were doing and getting frustrated when she couldn’t. But after some swing time with Mommy, things got better Thank you Mariko for letting me shoot your lovely family!

So I could talk on and on about Rachel and Nicole. I mean, how can I not love someone who brings me gluten free brownies? But today, I’m going to be silent (I know, I know, hard to believe) and direct you to their side of the story over on So You’re EnGAYged.

The farthest west I had ever been before Nebraska was PA. So Lara and I traveled to Omaha Nebraska for Ebie and Zachary’s wedding. I love love second shooting and my favorite person in the world to second shoot for is Lara. So Nebraska did live up to it’s rumors of being flat. Like, flat flat. So you could see amazing amounts of sky just everywhere. And the fields full of wild flowers had be swooning. I really wish my backyard could look like that!

Dont’s you love Ebie’s look when the Priest announces them as husband and wife? And Lara (the one with the camera folks) with all her collage friends who came out for the wedding! Thanks so much Lara!