So, yea. I can pretty much be persuaded to shoot anywhere under any conditions for 1st class round trip tickets. That, and good people, good burgers, and an opportunity for some great photos! (Really, though, 1st class is a must). Just kidding. In fact, this was the first time I have EVER flown 1st class. And to prove it, I took pictures of every single detail, including the peanuts and my seat number. Ryan, the Executive Platinum client behind the free upgrade, suggested I sit by the window to get a good view of NYC as I flew in…and wow, it was beautiful. Here’s an instragram journal of my flight in:

The lady next to me must have thought I was a noob. But, really, first class was so awesome and the next time I fly, I might just sit down in the first available 1st class seat until someone kicks me out. So, anyway, on to Betty and Ryan’s engagement session. FIrst, let me tell you how cold it was. It was cold. Like, freezing cold. Think, 19 degrees and 10-15mph winds, “feels like 8 degrees” cold. (Those of you in Dallas will scoff at this because we recently experienced “feels like 0 degrees” weather.) Ouch.

So, what does this look like in terms of clothes? It’s not one, but two, layers of thermal underwear (tops AND bottoms), a long sleeve shirt, a long sleeve button up, jeans, scarf, a thick wool coat with a hood, a Texas Longhorns beanie, ear muffs, face/neck mask wrap, Columbia omni-heat gloves, smartwool thick wool winter socks, boots, and 8 packs of 10-hour hand warmers. And it was still cold. But, wait till you see what Betty and Ryan wore for the all-over-town engagement session:

These were taken at the New York Public Library, which is more of a museum than a library. I don’t think you’re normally allowed to shoot there, but we spoke to a really nice security guard and promised we would stay quiet and read some books.

No Flash vs. Flash:

Cafe Lalo. (You’ve Got Mail)

I’ve gotta say this was one of my favorite engagement sessions. Betty and Ryan were so fun, had such great attitudes (despite it being negative 100 degrees outside) and we ate some darn good food. I had Shake Shack for the first time and loved it so much that I ordered a 2nd burger after finishing the first. Drool.

Needless to say, I can’t wait for their wedding at Hotel Zaza in March!
P.S. Special thanks to my sister, Christine, for standing in the cold all day, being our public transportation guide, and being the best sister I’ve ever had. In true New Yorker fashion, she had the least amount of layers on among all of us. Incredible.

Yuri and Kee are OG. ‘Nuff said.

VENDORS:

Ceremony | Valley Regency Clifton, New Jersey

Reception | Valley Regency Clifton, New Jersey

Video | Glenmar Photographers

Floral | Metropolitan Plant and Flower Exchange

DJ | Elegant Ensembles

Photo | Table4

Massive winds? Sub 40 Degree weather? Nothing can stop Yuri and Kee. Oh, and they came dressed to impress! We hit up the beautiful Hamilton Park in Weehawken New Jersey (WEE-HAW-KEN) for their engagement session. Yuri and Kee are probably one of the goofiest clients we have, and we love it! The whole time Kee would whisper “I LOVE SLEEP, I LOVE SLEEP” in Yuri’s ear and the both of them would start hysterically laughing. Even though we had no idea what they were talking about, we couldn’t help but join in on the giggle-fest

So here they are, in all their glory! Oh, and the New York City Skyline across the Hudson wasn’t too bad either…

While we were in NYC for Yuri and Kee’s wedding, we took some time off to meet up with Kim and Adam (you may remember them from our preview post). They treated us to a delicious dinner at Buddakan in the Meat Packing District and then took us around town for a mini engagement photo session. We especially love meetings like this because it’s an easy way for us to get to know the couple on a more informal level and, to allow them to get more comfortable with us pointing our cameras at them making out. Hope you enjoy looking at these two because we’ll be posting their gorgeous wedding photos soon too!

We were looking for some posing inspiration so we went to the pros. Not bad, huh?

What happens when you bring together 3 Texans and a Taiwanese in New York City? –>

Melody and Ted welcomed us into New York with open arms and open minds. With no real plan in mind, we jumped into taxis and subways, randomly stopping for photos.  First off was Central Park, but it was the day of the massive New York Marathon, so we had trouble getting some privacy.  Good thing Ted brought his HIMYM yellow umbrella!

I should mention that Melody and I have known each other since high school, but unfortunately, lost touch after we graduated.  I might have seen/talked to her twice since we graduated in 2000, but because of Facebook, we were reunited and now Table4 gets to photograph her wedding!  We love social media! (follow us on twitter & facebook)

We made another stop in Grand Central Station and while the shot on the left was being taken, Andrew was being interviewed about driving in New York City.  Can you spot him?

After GST, we hopped over to Ted’s rooftop and got some amazing views of the sky right before the sun went to bed.

We also made it out to High Line Park, a new urban park that’s got some pretty cool architecture.

As their engagement session came to an end, we found this part in High Line Park that was lit by blue fluorescents, literally. So we decided to have some crazy camera trick photos. These are all straight out of the camera shots, no photoshop blur was added. (explanation below)

The one thing you don’t see from the above photos is how dumb we looked while we took them. These photos require a slower shutter speed and some quick motion while the shutter is open.  The trick is to twist your camera really fast while the shutter is open, which could also look like you’re having a seizure. And then we’re using a synced flash with 2nd curtain so Melody and Ted come out clear and sharp.  Try it out but don’t hurt yourselves!

Thanks Melody and Ted!  You guys are awesome.