I’m about to embark on a big trip to Southeast Asia in a couple of weeks but before I took off, I wanted to recap a special wedding I photographed back in November. It was my final wedding of last year, a Sunday affair, and began at Anna and Jourdan’s apartment in Dumbo, Brooklyn. The ceremony was held on their fabulous rooftop overlooking both the Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges, the BQE, and the entire New York City skyline. The weather couldn’t have been any more pleasant for a November morning. After the ceremony, Anna and Jourdan, along with all 80-some guests walked through the streets of Dumbo, waving at passing pedestrians. We arrived at the East River Ferry dock for a huge group portrait. Anna and Jourdan had purchased tickets for everyone beforehand so we took over the boat and arrived in style to Greenpoint where the reception was to take place.
The guests went ahead while I stayed back with Anna and Jourdan and took them on a photo walk through the industrial, graffiti-filled streets of Greenpoint’s Franklin Avenue area. It’s one of my favorite spots in the neighborhood for portraits (and somewhat of a secret spot). I was glad to hear Anna and Jourdan were both into graffiti which made for some classic Brooklyn-esque portraits.
We rejoined everyone at Paulie Gee‘s, the best of all the new-school pizza joints, where you’ll find such toppings as “baconmarmalade” and can douse your pie with “Mike’s Hot Honey.” The restaurant isn’t normally open during the day but they make exceptions for weddings. In fact, both Mr. and Mrs. Gee were on hand to set the tables, serve pies and generally take care of everything and everyone — old school Italian style! Mrs. Gee even asked to make sure that I had breakfast that morning and that I should “eat something” because I was working hard. (She eventually sat me down for a Hellboy pie with a Mexican coke.)
From a photographer’s eye, my favorite part of the venue was all the natural light seeping through the skylights and windows making the entire restaurant into a giant softbox. I had dined at Paulie’s on several occasions but always at night, and my fingers couldn’t stop clicking the shutter button. The photos that came out of the restaurant are — without doubt — some of my favorite shots ever.
Big congrats to Anna and Jourdan and thank you for making me part of such a special day in you lives!
- Contact me to receive a quote for your wedding photography needs.
