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It wasn't until the day before their wedding that I finally met Betty and Kent. Betty has a smile that could light up a major metropolitan area, and Kent is the kind of man who reminds the world that chivalry is not dead. I so enjoyed my time with these two amazing people, their amazing friends and families. Betty is an interior designer, and in the short time I had the pleasure of being around her, I noticed how naturally it comes to her to arrange everything in a room in such a way as to make it look perfect, simple and elegant. And for her, it's effortless. That's how I would describe this gorgeous, detailed wedding.
I've also never been to a wedding where there was a dog who was like a child. I have rarely seen this kind of love and devotion between two different species. There is some kind of supernatural bond between them, and Kea was in Betty's lap all night – it was so beautiful! I am so happy when I meet animals who have such wonderful and fabulous lives for the owners that love them so much!
Here is a list of the amazing crew that put this amazing wedding together!!:
Coordinator: Christina from Pacific Aisles
Lighting: Hawaii Event Lighting
Food (it was amazing!): Paradise Gourmet Catering
Venue: Puakea Ranch (this place is UH-MAZING! It usually serves as a Bed and Breakfast, and instead of a room, you can rent a whole house on the ranch!!)
Cake: Short-n-Sweet Bakery and Cafe
But wait till you see Betty and Kent's day after session! Yummy!
Sydney and Jeremy are really special people. Not only did they successfully convince me (granted, it didn't take much, but still!) to move to San Francisco eventually, but shooting their wedding was an experience I will always be thankful for. It's rare that you find a community of people who so consistently and genuinely express unconditional love for each other. Everyone there was so supportive, so loving, so expressive of that love, that I had a really hard time choosing even these photos for this blog post. And knowing how special Sydney is, and how special Jeremy is, it comes as no surprise.
The wedding took place at Point O'Pines, a girls camp near Brant Lake in the Adirondack mountains. Did I mention I love shooting in the woods? It inspires me so. One of the coolest things about this wedding was that they rented out the whole camp, and Sydney had a slumber party with her girls the night before in their cabin. How cool is that! Almost every guest stayed the weekend at the camp, and by the time I got there, it really had that lovely bonded camp feeling. As a person who went to summer camp when I was a kid, and as an adult a little bit, too, it reminded me of the warmth of getting to know people away from life. What a great way to get your guests to know each other a little bit better! When I got there, people were canoeing, there was a lap pool structure in the lake, people were going hiking, having bon fires, and a generally awesome relaxing time. And! On the night of the wedding there was no curfew, since everyone was staying there, they could all party all night long with no worries about overstaying welcomes or driving home inebriated! This wedding was awesome!!
When I mentioned at Betty's wedding that I might have to do a blog post only about all her amazing shoes, I was kidding. Until I got the film back from the lab. We arrived a bit early at the ranch in Hawaii, and I went a little shoe crazy. But I think that's one of the many reasons Betty and I get along so well (other than that she lights up every room she walks into!).
SHOES!
Christa and Tim actually got spontaneously officially married a few months before the scheduled day. They won a free wedding at a pop up chapel in Brooklyn (no, no that one!), and made a mad dash of putting a surprise wedding together for all their friends. This was their other, preplanned, everyone knew they were getting married wedding. The details were phenomenal, as to be expected from Christa and her impeccable attention to detail. Also, I am kind of in love with Tim's son, Oliver, who lives in England. There is nothing cuter than an already cute 10 year old in a bow tie with an English accent, calling things knickers and such. This wedding was so much fun, so entirely their personality, and Husbone and I felt right at home. The details were amazing, and I shot mucho film! Yay!
How cute are father and son matching Chucks!??
I just adore Christa and Tim. Their love is laughter, and I love to laugh! I'm so excited for their super laid back September wedding in a couple weeks! Our initial meeting was one of my favorites, and we shared in the joy of being foodies together. There's nothing to bring people together like yummy food!
Lilian and Scott are so much fun! They just found out a couple of weeks ago that they'll be moving back to their hometown of San Francisco (and also, my future home!), and so we did a session in their ‘hood as a nice keepsake for their time in this wonderful city (and my current home!)! Also! I'm trying out a new feature, so if you click on any of the images they'll open up in a light box! Yay!
Naomi is one of my best friends. We met our first year of college in New York, I was a hot mess, and she had it together. We are very much an odd couple, and we started out by naming our differences. But years pass, and you find that there is always one person who is really there for you, without prompting, who is automatically at your door with a bag of greasy food, the 6 hour long Pride and Prejudice, or cleaning supplies during every single life crisis. Over time, when you have a person like that in your life, they become family. Naomi is my sister, and she hates it when I photograph her. Jerk.
Naomi has just left New York to become an Officer of Law Enforcement in Los Angeles. She's going to see what she's made of and become a gun wielding, hand to hand defensive combat trained bad-ass. I'm so proud of her. (But of course, part of me just wants her to come back to New York!)
New York is a lonely place without my dear friend. My parting gift to her was a session for her puppy Carter, who I also love very much. To be truthful though, I thought Carter was an annoying little brat when I first met him. But he grows on you. Kind of like Naomi 
.
This was my first ENTIRELY film session! The anxiety waiting for these to come back from the lab was unrelenting! Shot with the Contax 645, Fuji film.
Ok. So Pia and Micah are amazing. First of all, when I met Pia our quick lunchtime meeting turned into a 2 hour lady date. I didn't get to meet Micah until last week at their engagement session, but then again, when Pia met Micah, she met him over email. For the most part, I think of Micah as the elusive Micah. And when I finally met him I was struck by the way he made her laugh. It's so easy and beautiful to be given the giggles by the one you love the most.
Second of all, when I met Pia, I knew it was going to seriously be a stylish affair. The shoes, the dress, the venue -everything. I was kind of having a freak out over the shoes. I got to the hotel before she was there, and I think I took 100 pictures of the shoes before she even got there. And the W in Hoboken, is one of the most photogenic hotels I've had the pleasure to make pictures in. And when you meet someone out of context, like I do quite often, you get a sense of a person. I knew that Pia and Micah were so very loved before I met all the lovely people who were with them on their wedding day. So glamorous, and so laid back. It was a pleasure and an honor to shoot this fabulous wedding! And a big, fat, juicy thank you to the fabulous Julia Newman for second shooting with me!
Plus! I was so excited to meet fellow PRO blogger - William Gaff of Human Story Films. When I first saw their work, I was moved to some serious tears. The way they convey the real, basic, unique and amazing love that people have for each other is no less than breathtaking. William rocks!
Running a little late, we found ourselves fighting the setting of the sun at Coney Island. Pia and Micah are so gorgeous, and so at home with each other, that our being pressed for time really had no bearing.
After the shoot, we shared some messy Nathan's hot dogs and marveled at the gift that is Coney Island not being torn down (technically speaking). Seriously, my brides and grooms are all so lovely. I'm finding myself shooting one thing after the next and just thinking –'Wow, I get to work with some beautiful, joyful, amazing folks!!'
I'm thankful for the awesome people I get to work with. Dana and Rob invited myself and Husbone to take some pictures of them in their home town of Hoboken, and then they cooked us an amazing dinner! With ice cream!
We had such a great time, and I so look forward to the beautiful pictures we'll make this October!!
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Punam Bean, New York City
Vendor: Photographer
Website: Punam Bean Photography
About Me: Punam Bean is an international destination wedding and portrait photographer based out of New York City. She loves animals, and particularly longs for the companionship of a bulldog, in addition to that of her ever loving Husband. She eats pizza for breakfast every single day, and spends too much money on dresses. In this, her first year of business, she's booked 30 weddings all around the world, in New York City, California, Jamaica, Venezuela and Nigeria. Her images have been described as emotional, whimsical and elegant.
