Love, Love, Love Kerry’s hot pink wedding shoes!  You couldn’t even see them until she lifted her dress – then POW – what a great pop of color!  Kerry and Keith had a gorgeous warm 4th of July day to celebrate their wedding.  Following a traditional Catholic ceremony at St Dennis Church in Beekman, an entire bus of wedding party and families headed over to Locust Grove in Poughkeepsie for photos. I can’t forget to mention, Bryce, who was one of the most awesome ring bearers ever – he was just a natural for the camera.  Then on to The Grandview for a reception topped by fireworks over the Mid Hudson Bridge later that evening – a beautiful 4th of July weekend for me!

Dress by Private Label by G; Shoes by Nina; Flowers by Heavens Scent; Ceremony at St Dennis Church in Beekman, Reception at The Grandview; Music by Joseph Carbone

Breathe In, Breathe Out.... Coming down the Aisle

4th of July Fireworks over the Hudson River

All the details and soft romantic colors that Lauren worked so hard on transformed the ballroom at The Grandview from everyday already beautiful to stunningly spectacular.  The soft dusky rose colors perfectly complimented pale champagne accents and white peonies.  The uplighting in the ballroom highlighted all the details and brought oohh’s and ahh’s from the guests as they entered the reception.  I LOVE uplighting!  Lauren and Bill perfectly compliment each other – they are just plain old crazy in love with each other.  A very touching ceremony on the outdoor patio at The Grandview brought tears to Bill as he choked up several times during his vows.  Oh and did I mention the steel drum band that played during the cocktail hour?  I am now firm believer that every wedding should have a steel drum band – they were fantastic!

Ceremony and Reception at The Grandview;  Flowers by Ranita Productions; Dress by Watters & Watters; Shoes by Liz Rene Couture;  Music by Next Generation

Steel Drum band

I knew that Nora and RJ were a perfect match for my wedding photography from the moment I met them.  RJ was rolling around on the floor with the studio dog, Riker, while Nora and I talked about photography, weddings, and everything else under the sun.  Nora jumped at the idea of doing some urban city scenes – they just weren’t flowers and gardens kind of people.  We had a huge amount of time for photos, which is sooo rare!   Nora was one of those DIY’ers and had put so many personal touches into her wedding that it’s hard to recount them all.  Logs carved with her and RJ’s names. an actual tree trunk for a wedding cake stand, rustic hand made – hand tied church programs, a handmade guest book, birds nests, the list just goes on.   Nora and RJ’s wedding had a rustic country theme that came through in every part of the day.  I also had the pleasure of working with some of my fav people to work with!  The fabulous videographer and friend, Jen Cassaro and Stephanie and Jeff of The DJ Solution – a win win day for me!

Flowers by Genesis Florist of Stone Ridge;  Ceremony at St Joesph’s Church, New Paltz; Videography by Jen Cassaro of Masterpiece Weddings; Reception at The Poughkeepsie Grand Hotel; Music by Stephanie & Jeff of The DJ Solution

The cake topper was made from Nora's mother's wedding dress

Diamonds were the word of the day!  From all the heavy jewels on Brianne’s gorgeous cathedral length veil, to the 15 carat diamond necklace she wore, the sparkle of jewels were everywhere.  A beautiful ceremony at Marist College Chapel was followed by photos on the Marist campus and then an evening of dining and dancing in the tent at The Grandview.

I was so delighted that Brianne and Ed selected me to be their wedding photographer!  Brianne had been a bridesmaid  at Kelly & Jaime’s wedding several years ago, so I knew I would be among old friends again that day.  Brianne had described their taste as classic and timeless, and that is exactly what their wedding was.  Classic, elegant, timeless and beautiful.  Brianne and Ed are wonderful couple who perfectly compliment each other.

Dress by Platinum Priscilla of Boston; shoes by Grazia;  Jewelry from Kingston Fine Jewelers; Flowers by Sara of Floral Fantasies; Music by MC Fish; Reception at The Grandview

Dress by Watters; Ceremony and Reception at Mohonk Mountain House, New Paltz, NY; Flowers by Floral Fantasies by Sara; Music by Sausto Productions

The gardens at Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz were an absolutely gorgeous setting for the wedding ceremony of Janna and Kevin.  Guests arrived at the Mountain House and leisurely strolled the garden paths as they made their way to the ceremony site.  Janna and her bridesmaids arrived by horse drawn carriage.  Both Kevin and Janna cried as they exchanged vows – a truly emotional wedding ceremony!  Since Janna works for Sara at Floral Fantasies, the flowers were exceptionally amazing – white orchids, green hydrandeas, touches of gold and yellow.  The day ended with the entire bridal party and a few guests bringing down the house with the entire 4 minute plus dance version of Michael Jackson’s Thriller.

Dancing to 'Thriller'

Flowers by Becky – the bride!,    Music by DJ Domenic,   Ceremony & Reception at The Links at Union Vale

Becky and Justin planned their New York wedding from Ohio – everything was done in quick visits and alot of phone calls and emails.  Their wedding day was a beautiful 80 degrees – the perfect weather for an outdoor ceremony at The Links at Union Vale golf club.  Cherry blossoms decorated the ceremony programs and tables.  Becky and Justin were so relaxed and carefree – they were a wonderful couple to work with!  The day flowed perfectly and I really don’t think it would have bothered them at all even if it hadn’t.  I had also been the wedding photographer for two other couples who were guests – it was like spending the day with old friends.  Thank you Becky and Justin for asking me to spend your wedding day with you!

A great toast always brings tears

Followed by laughter

The Magic Bus at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts

Reception and Photos at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts – Event Gallery, Museum and Site of the 1969 Woodstock Festival

Flowers by Monticello Greenhouse, Dress by Essence of Australia, Shoes by Jimmy Choo, Rings by Tiffany,  Music by Common Ground Orchestra

Speedboats,  a Psychdelic Bus, The site of the 1969 Woodstock festival… what more could I ask for as a photographer!  Allison and Russ’s wedding plans excited me from the moment I first heard of them.  Or almost all of them – they left the antique speedboat part out until the day of (I thought we’d be doing a few photos posed in front of an old rowboat for some reason).  Allison’s dad had me popped into a boat and speeding across Masten Lake behind Allison and Russ before I could even think clearly about my lack of good swimming skills.  Then we zipped off to the Bethel Woods Center for the Performing Arts – site of the 1969 Woodstock festival – for a cruise through the fabulous and psychedelic Woodstock Museum and then into the gorgeous event gallery for a rocking reception kicked off by the Common Ground Orchestra.

If you get the chance, the museum at Bethel Woods is not to be missed!

The Event Center at Bethel Woods

Russ, the groom, is a pilot, so these luggage tags as guest placecards were the perfect touch of detail!

Peace & Love on the Great Lawn

]]> http://www.loriotooleblog.com/2010/05/woodstock-lives-on-at-a-bethel-woods-center-for-the-arts-wedding/feed/ 0 http://www.loriotooleblog.com/2010/04/wedding-season-april-wedding-at-the-grandview/ http://www.loriotooleblog.com/2010/04/wedding-season-april-wedding-at-the-grandview/#comments Fri, 09 Apr 2010 15:10:16 +0000 admin http://www.loriotooleblog.com/?p=1210

The 2010 wedding season has begun!  Jennifer and Brett had a beautiful warm sunny day in April for their wedding at The Grandview in Poughkeepsie.  This was the perfect start of spring for me.  A very touching service was performed by the Rabbi Jonathan Kligler of Woodstock under a chuppah that Brett had made himself.  I heard that Brett was at The Grandview very early on the morning of his wedding assembling the chuppah made of antique doors.  It was beautiful!  One of the most complex and yet simple chuppahs I have ever seen.  This couple had put alot of thoughtful and meaningful touches onto their wedding, from the beautifully printed ceremony and menu cards, to the custom engraving saying ‘TEAM AWESOME’ inside of Brett’s wedding band.  A perfect start to their marriage and my year!

Ceremony and Reception at The Grandview, Poughkeepsie, New York

Dress by Allure Bridals, Shoes by Steve Madden, Flowers by Sara Gast

Music by The DJ Solution

Brent handmade the chuppah

So you like me, you Really Really do!  Thanks to everyone who voted me a 2010 Wedding Wire Bride's Choice.

Muchas gracias.

“February 2, 2010 – WeddingWire, the nation’s leading wedding technology company, just announced Lori O’Toole Images has been selected to receive the WeddingWire 2010 Bride’s Choice Awards™ for photography!

The annual Bride’s Choice Awards recognizes and celebrates excellence in quality and service within the wedding industry, as determined by recent reviews and extensive surveys from over 500,000 newlyweds. Lori O’Toole Images is among the top five percent of all vendors in the WeddingWire community, which includes over 100,000 wedding professionals across the US and Canada. Awards were given to winners across 19 different service categories, from wedding venues to wedding photographers.

We are happy to announce that Lori O’Toole Images is among the very best in photography within the WeddingWire Network, which includes WeddingWire and Martha Stewart Weddings.”

So you have a winter wedding, it’s cold and dark out.  Plans for photos had been talked about, but nothing came through.  Well, we winged it.  Just parked on Main Street Beacon and looked around for someplace cool and hoped they’d let us in.  I want to send everyone I know to the Chill Wine Bar!  What a gorgeous spot.  Beautiful brick walls, concrete floors, NYC lighting, comfortable sofas and great ambiance.  Plus all that wine….this spot was amazing and owner Jim Svetz welcomed us in and let us take some gorgeous photos of Megan and Dan on their wedding day.  We wanted to stay, I can’t wait to go back.  Big shout out to the Chill Wine Bar at 173 Main Street in Beacon – we will be back!

More on Megan and Dan’s wedding next week – I just had to post these and give thanks to our impromptu hosts.