Karen Wise Photo Blog

Some Favorite Wedding Photos from 2012

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!

Wishing you a holiday filled with warmth, love and happiness!

All the best in 2013, Karen

Sneak Peek: Catskills Wedding

More to come of this gorgeous Catskills wedding soon...

Snowy New York Wedding at Per Se

There is nothing so wonderful as being asked to photograph a wedding for an elegant couple at one of the best restaurants in New York City. In late October, during a fluke snowstorm, I had the pleasure of photographing an intimate affair Thomas Keller's Per Se.

Here are some of my favorite details from that day:

Creative Team:

Event Planner: Ang Weddings and Events
Florist: Rountree Flowers 
Venue: Per Se 
Getting Ready Hotel: Mandarin Oriental
Makeup: Lindsey Jones Makeup Artistry
Wedding Dress: Jason Wu
Shoes: Gucci
Menu, Escort cards: Ellen Weldon Design 
Table Signs: DIY

I'm also thrilled to see this wedding featured on The Bride's Cafe today. To see the post click here.

Modern Winter Styled Photo Shoot

In January, I had the pleasure of participating in a modern winter styled wedding photo shoot here in Brooklyn. It took place at a gorgeous mansion in Clinton Hill owned by an interior designer and her husband.

The film stock I used to create the above photos was Kodak's Portra 400, which in the New York provides me with the richness and color saturation I love. I used mostly natural daylight on this shoot.

Below I list the whole creative team involved.

And here is the documentary video made by Love in Progress about our process while at work!

Modern Winter Styled Shoot

 

Event Planning + Event Design: Ang Weddings and Events
Flowers + Event Design: Rountree Flowers
Catering + Dessert Table: Naturally Delicious (Naturally Delicious is the exclusive caterer of the venue)
Paper Goods: Regas
Makeup: Lindsey Jones
Cinematographer: Love in Progress
Venue: Brooklyn Historic Mansion (email: 280Washington@gmail.com)
Dress: Angelo Lambrou via Gabriella New York Bridal Salon
Shoes: Aruna Seth
Headpiece: Sara Gabriel
Clutch: Moyna Handbags
Jewelry: Paris via Mark Ingram Atelier
Suit: Duncan Quinn
Grey Bridesmaid Dress: 57 Grand
Green Bridesmaid Dress: Anthropologie
Rentals: Broadway Party Rentals
Couple: Abbi Crutchfield + Luke Thayer (both comedians/models and both really married to each other!)

We're also very excited our photo shoot was featured on Style Me Pretty today!!

Link to Style Me Pretty

Some Favorite Images from Last Year

Some of my favorite images from 2011...

Rachel & Kelley - Garrison, NY

It was a pleasure getting to know Rachel and Kelley at their wedding, what a wonderful couple!

This wedding was featured recently on Style Me Pretty blog. You may see the post here.

In the feature, Rachel recounts:

When Kelley proposed, I had received a promotion at work (I worked in HR at a hedge fund in Connecticut), it was my 28th birthday, and our 2 year anniversary.  We had so much to celebrate, I didn’t think a proposal was coming even when Kelley surprised me with lunch at Per Se.  He knew I would want to have a say in the design of my engagement ring, so he gave me a simple gold ring on a necklace.  I didn’t figure out he was proposing until I read the engraving “Will you marry me” on the inside of the ring.  That ring is now my wedding band.

When we were planning the wedding, we wanted everything to be elegant but comfortable at the same time.  Where we could, we included our local favorites and sentimental details from our relationship.  The wedding and reception were at the country club attached to our favorite restaurant in the area, The Tavern at the Highlands Country Club.  The favors were burnt caramel and Hawaiian sea salt truffles from a chocolate shop in our town.  The invitations and all of the paper goods were custom made by my friend Misako, who owns the paper company, To You From Me.  Kelley and I share a love for wine, so both the invitations and the flowers included vines. 

I studied photography at Cornell, so the other aspect that was really important was that we have good quality photos.  I came across our photographer, Karen Wise, through a friend.  I fell in love with her documentary style, which went with the relaxed feel of the wedding.  She also uses medium format film, which is impossible to find, and the photos made everything look that much better.  The wedding was not only gorgeous, but incredibly touching and great fun!

More of their artistic team:

Floral Design: Engaging Floral Designs / Band: Miracle via IGMC / Venue: The Highlands Country Club / Coordinator: Adrienne Madama / Stationery: To You From Me, Misako Rothery / Wedding Dress: Priscilla of Boston / Favors: Bittersweets

Image of the Month: Lindsey & Brian in Brooklyn

It's been a busy summer. After my own wedding in May, I came back to New York and photographed 5 more in June! 

August is the month that many New Yorkers take off. Many day trip to the beach, or take a long weekend away... This August I find myself shooting and editing, but also catching up on creative projects like painting my  home/studio a few new shades of white :)

A few weeks ago, I photographed Lindsey and Brian in DUMBO, Brooklyn. DUMBO stands for Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass. It's a quaint little neighborhood between 2 bridges, with much cobble stone, textures and views – a beautiful backdrop for any photo shoot. Lindsey and Brian, who are joint owners of a greenhouse in Nyack, have a love for flowers and for Brooklyn, and decided to tie the knot at a gallery space there. 

Because they sell and look at flowers on a daily basis, they wanted something really different for their wedding. Lindsey's bouquet was one of the most unique bunch of flowers I'd ever seen! According to Blossom and Branch who designed it, it was a collection of cymbidium orchids, scabiosas, artichokes, croc ferns, succulents, viburnum berry, safari sunset and fern curls.

The bright colors and hearty textures played perfectly against this rustic historic district of Brooklyn.

For more images from Lindsey + Brian's wedding click here. You may also see more of my wedding photography here.

Lindsey & Brian in Brooklyn

Congratulations to Lindsey & Brian who were married this past June at Smack Mellon Gallery in DUMBO, Brooklyn.

Bride's dress: Marchesa

Bride's shoes: Christian Louboutin

Groom's suit: Ralph Lauren

Planner: Elizabeth Leath of Just About Married

Flowers by Blossom and Branch (Cymbidium orchids, scabiosas, artichokes, croc ferns, succulents, viburnum berry, safari sunset, fern curls)

Cake by Nine Cakes

Music by Andy Anderson/Gotham DJ

Food by CaraLeo Catering

Lindsey + Brian - Prints on my Table

Lindsey + Brian were married on June 11th in Brooklyn.

Their flowers were designed by the talented Blossom and Branch and their fabulous cake was made by Nine Cakes

Veronica & Nick - Part I

Silver and Grey (and Rose)

I'm dying over these shoes. The silver and grey tones, the fabric, the toe detail, the height of the heel.

Kudos to Veronica for having them on her feet all day and all night at her wedding!

Shoes: Roger Vivier

Flowers: Fleurs 

Suite: Trump Soho Hotel

more from veronica and nick's wedding to come...

Image of the Month: Flower Covered Windmill

It's been a couple of months since I created an Image of the Month blog post.

I was married in May, and needless to say it has been busy!

I’m resuming this June with this Holga photograph of an old windmill in Barbados. This photo is part of a colorful series I made in April while visiting with my aunt and uncle. On my daily walks through their neighborhood, in their garden, and during visits to the Barbadian countryside visiting chattel houses, windmills and cane fields, I closely documented what seemed to be really unique to me in this tropical, romantic paradise.

This flower covered windmill, with blooms that last only two days per year, happened to be in bloom on the day that I visited it! This creeping vine called Cat's Claw Whisk is commonly named Shower of Gold because its golden blooms that shower whatever it grows on with gold once a year. In Barbados it grows like crazy. It is especially drawn to old windmills, wrapping its loving vines around them, and bursting into bright yellow bloom for just a couple of days.

For more images from my trip to Barbados you may look at these previous blog posts. 

You may also see more of my travel photography under places on my Food and Art website.

April in Barbados - Part II

These two Barbados posts feature the following flowers: Desert Rose, White Petrea, Pink Bougainvillea, Sedum Variety (succulent), Shower of Gold (the yellow flower growing up the windmill).

This post also features my Aunt's biscotti (mandlebrot) from her baked goods company: Crumbs Homemade  which we snacked on at Faraway cottage.

April in Barbados

In April I went to Barbados for a little R&R, to settle my wedding planning nerves and to see my Auntie Debbie and Uncle Geoff who live there. While I was there I photographed inside an old chattel house, saw an old windmill coated in yellow flowers which bloom on one day only per year, and photographed in my aunt and uncle's garden.