Ashford Castle, Ireland wedding /  by Ryan Brenizer

It's hard to overstate the beauty of Ashford Castle: It was something so profound that Casey knew she had to share it with her friends and family, even though absolutely none of them, Casey and Ford included, live in Ireland. But maybe, for a second, let's not put it center-stage. Let's focus on the bonds that made Casey and Ford plan a complicated multi-day celebration in an Irish castle just to show their friends and family a good time, and the bonds that made so many of these friends and family show up that they completely sold out the castle.

And it's not a small castle.

Ireland is an incredibly gorgeous country -- the cliches are true. There are colors of green that don't exist anywhere else, times when you have to turn down the saturation in your camera just so reality doesn't look fake. But, of course, it comes with a lot of what the Irish call "soft" weather: Rain, and a lot of it.

So yes, it rained on this wedding, but … well, all you need to know about the mood is that, after days of carousing together, there was enough joyful energy left that festivities were still going strong by sunrise.

Thank you to Olivia Buckley for her fantastic planning work, making a wet, complicated event come out perfectly, and to Casey and Ford for kindly planning their Ireland wedding just at the right time for our "working honeymoon" in the best place we could imagine.

Hudson Loft wedding /  by Ryan Brenizer

We knew we were in for something special with this day since we had seen Alexis and Danny's energy and passion for each other at her sister Taylor's wedding, but they surpassed even our high expectations. As soon as Alexis wrote to us, we did a little happy dance to be able to spend time with her family again … and now we got to meet Danny's fantastic family including his daughters. There is a special place in our hearts for weddings where the bride, groom, or both have children because it makes so clear what weddings are: the forging of a new family.

It doesn't hurt that Alexis and Danny both hit you in the face with their charisma, too. These are people ready to smile, laugh, and dance at any moment. They had an entirely new emotional spin on a first look. There was such a huge pent-up release of energy when they saw each other, and a culmination of countless in-jokes during their planning process, that they burst into uproarious, can't-catch-your-breath laughter.

This was matched only by the tears from Danny's daughters eager to make Alexis their step-mom, heartfelt testimonials in private moments before the ceremony, and exuberance from family and friends ready to party.

It gave us joy to document this story, and more joy to re-live it through the photos, and we hope it does the same for you.

Planner: Kerry Gittle at Awe by Kerry
Hair: Olivia Halpin Hair
Makeup: Elizabeth Lerman
Chuppah: Your Chuppah NY
Officiant: Weddings by Bettina
Caterers: On the Marc Events
DJ: DJ Vik Events
Videographers: Intrigue Wedding Films


Villa Sheherezade Dubrovnik wedding /  by Ryan Brenizer

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When Lynn inquired with us, we thought for sure we were being scammed. What would you think if your phone chimed and you read a text message from a strange number: “Quick question. Are you available for our destination wedding in Dubrovnik, Croatia this year? We live in London. I’m from Taiwan and he is from Belgium :-)” And the date happened to be fast approaching and the only weekend that month we were free? It all sounded too good to be true: She might as well have said that she’s a Nigerian prince.

But it turns out that not only are Lynn and Kristof very real, they are also an amazing couple who match each other in zeal for life and each other, if not in height. And so we were on our way to Dubrovnik, an area long known for its beauty and now exploding in fame as the site of much of the otherworldly beauty of Game of Thrones.

Under the planning guidance of Matthew and Bertie at Matthew Oliver Weddings and local coordinator Marcela at Dubrovnik Wedding Inspiration, their wedding took advantage of all the amazingness the area has to offer. The rehearsal dinner was set on Lokrum Island, where Lynn was overjoyed by the preponderance of peacocks and bunnies that have overtaken the island.

The ceremony was a gorgeous affair in the five-century-old Sponza Palace, officiated by a dear friend and mentor, who ensured it was touching and deeply personal. Afterward, Lynn and Kristof headed to the reception on their own boat, speeding down the harbor to the fantastic Villa Sheherezade.

The reception was filled with surprises. Kristof’s best man is a rare combination of entrepreneur and professionally trained clown, and he gave a lion dance performance before revealing himself to the crowd … by taking off the head and blowing a giant fireball.

But nothing could top what Kristof had for Lynn. To begin the dancing, he took her over to the cake-cutting and said “Lynn, I promise I will never stop surprising you.”

And then the sky exploded into fireworks.

That’s the sort of energy and love we’re talking about, and we are so excited that we were able to tell this story.

Stylist: Christine from CC Wedding Studio in Taiwan
DJ: Jordi Ruz from Ibiza
Venue and staff: Anamarija and Lindita Adriatic Luxury Hotels
Video: Justina from HDmoments (their video teaser from the wedding here!)

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden wedding /  by Ryan Brenizer

We know we will vividly remember Sarah and Joseph’s wedding for the rest of our lives. It wasn’t just that Sarah and Jospeh leave an indelible mark on every person they meet. But this wedding stood on the brink of a precipice larger than any of us knew at the time, as our last wedding before the full effect of the Coronavirus pandemic hit the United States.

This wedding exemplified everything that we have missed so much about large weddings — the energy, the hilarity, the multitudes contained in a day that has both incredibly intimate love and commitment and loud, intense, hysterical celebration.

In a year where most of us have been separated from so many loved ones, it was a blessing to be a part of an awesome celebration like this. Special thanks to Masi Events who somehow amplified one of the most already gorgeous places in America - the Fairchild Botanic Gardens.

Onteora Mountain House wedding /  by Ryan Brenizer

I’m not going to spend too much time here, because each word I write comes between you and the photos of this fantastic wedding for a few hundredths of a second. But a lot of people ask my advice for how to have a good wedding, and my advice is the same for a good relationship: If you’re having fun, most of the other stuff falls into place. This doesn’t mean that planning isn’t important — it’s not really so much fun to have a wedding in a field during a thunderstorm because you didn’t have a good plan — but it’s too easy to forget that having fun together comes first.

So yes, it’s pretty great that Crista and Robert chose the beautiful Onteora Mountain House for their wedding, and that the weather — while chilly — allowed everyone to enjoy the mountain views. It doesn’t hurt that Crista and Robert are basically action heroes, with Robert trained in every sort of theatrical movement and Crista … well, none of Crista’s bridesmaids even batted an eye when she started walking around on her hands. But what matters is how much fun everyone had together, how deep and boisterous and joyful the connections, from streaming tears to bendy backs on the dance floor. And it’s what we all remember.

Just as importantly, I remember how much fun I had in my own partnership, shooting this with the incredible Tatiana Breslow. I will never get over the fact that the woman I fell so deeply in love with happens to also be my favorite shooting partner out of everyone I’ve worked with, that our eyes and our choices are so in sync. We are going to be merging not only our lives but also our businesses, and I am so excited for this future on every level, and to show the world what we can do together. It’s going to be fun.

Reading Terminal Market wedding /  by Ryan Brenizer

We have always said that the highest compliment we can give a wedding is that we would have loved to attend even if we weren’t photographing that — well, Ally and Andrew’s wedding was all of that and a bit more, since it was in a venue we would love to explore even when there isn’t a wedding there!

The wedding was in the culinary cornucopia of Philadelphia’s Reading Terminal Market, and it took full advantage of the numerous stalls and marketplaces, as well as a dance floor in the middle of a usually-crowded terminal. To balance the industrial feel of the reception, the ceremony was in the gorgeous and historic Masonic Temple Library and Museum.

We knew from the engagement shoot how much fun this would be — it was sometimes hard to find pictures of them not laughing together, enjoying each other’s and their friends’ raucous energy. It did not disappoint from beginning to end, and we smile just looking back.