KYLEROSE AND JEFFERY'S NEW YEARS EVE WEDDING AT THE DARIEN COUNTRY CLUB

There is something really special about a New Year’s Eve Wedding. In my film maker brain it feels like something straight out of cinema. Everyone is dressed well, there is champagne all around, great food, lots of people, dancing etc. But for Kyle and Jeffery it was more significant than just a day to party, it was the day they met years ago and wanted to celebrate their marriage by recognizing the day that they were introduced to each other. New Year new life as husband as wife.

As someone that likes to support local businesses I really appreciated how much of a Darien affair this wedding was. The dress was from a local vendor (and friend I might add) A Little Something White and The Darien Country Club is literally across the street from where Kylerose and her sisters grew up. The wedding was such a beautiful event and so quintessentially New Years Eve. From the black tie attire, to the jazz quartet during happy hour and of course the grand finale of fireworks. Alright thats enough from me and I’ll let the video do the rest of the talking. Cheers to Kylerose and Jeffery!

Will

LARA AND MIKE'S WEDDING AT THE PAVILION IN NORWALK

Let me just start off by saying what will soon be on all of your minds that watch this…she bought him a damn boat! As someone who loves giving gifts watching Mike’s face when that boat rolled in was one of the best moments in my career. The odds of me seeing that again I’d say are pretty slim but meeting a couple like these two don’t happen that often either. Defining the statistics and together since high school, through college and now into their professional lives is something you don’t see everyday…and neither is a bride buying her husband a boat! The wedding itself was absolutely stunning done by my good friend Lindsay of Amy Champagne Events. Nautical themed with classic blue and white colors with the gorgeous backdrop of the water. I can’t thank them enough for having me, it was such an incredible day filled with awesome people. Cheers to Lara and Mike!

-Will

BRITNY AND KYLE'S BACKYARD WEDDING IN RIDGEFIELD - 8 MINUTE FULL LENGTH FILM

It’s no secret, I’ve mentioned it many times on this site before…I LOVE A BACKYARD WEDDING! I always think that it’s so cool that much like a marriage it’s one of a kind. Another thing I absolutely adore is the town of Ridegfield Connecticut. If you haven’t been I urge you to go, it’s beautiful, there is great food, an independent movie theatre, a playhouse etc etc. So needless to say I was really excited about this wedding going into it. After arrival I only had more fun; Britny and Kyle were so relaxed and just so excited to be married, it was all over their face the entire day. I was so honored to be at such an intimate wedding of close friends and family at Kyle’s parents home. It was truly an incredible day working with some of the best in the business.

This video is also an example of the difference between a 7-8 minute format film opposed to a highlight reel which is very popular. It’s still the same level of dedication in the editing room but just a longer format. More things in their entirety and more room to relive all the moments of the day.

Cheers to Britny and Kyle!

-Will

JILL AND ALEX'S PAVILLION AT LONGSHORE WEDDING

If possible I always prefer a face to face introduction with the couple before the wedding if possible. That’s not always the case, sometimes a phone call or a Facetime will have to do but in the case of Jill and Alex we were able to sit down and have lunch together. I don’t mean this with any bias but immediately they felt like old friends I was catching up with rather than new people I was acquainting myself to. We talked about their relationship for a bit, some more wedding details and then it was mostly joking around. Even the day of the wedding I felt like I was a guest rather than an employee of the day. That’s just who these two are, they are friendly, warm, inviting and really honest people. You can see that honesty in the way they interact with each other, the happiness they had to finally be married to each other after 18 years of knowing each other. I’ll stop yapping but I do want to end with the funniest moment of the luncheon was when Alex excused himself from the table Jill said jokingly to me “yea so I married the bad boy from college.” Love these two!

Cheers to Jill and Alex!

DANA AND PATRICK'S VERMONT WEDDING

This wedding is special to me, this was this wedding that sparked my relationship and love for Vermont. I've been to the state before but I haven't paid much attention to it for close to 20 years. That changed once I met the wonderful ladies Jackie and Stefanie of Jacklyn Watson Events and they convinced me to come up their way and do some weddings with them. Where do I start? The state is gorgeous, the people are kind, the pace is slow and it's where the best ice cream in the world comes from (Ben and Jerry's for life baby!). The way I described Vermont is exactly how I would describe this wedding, though sadly, sans ice cream. Top to bottom it was gorgeous, the generational family grounds where Dana and Patrick live as the location for their beautiful wedding. The genuine love you felt every time Dana and Patrick where near each other, they have a respect and love for each other that just radiates from them. As business partners and lovers they do everything as a team and you felt that at this wedding. 

All day I kept pinching myself looking at the backdrops I had to work with. I'm from Connecticut, my state is beautiful and has a charm I don't find a lot around the country BUT hot damn is Vermont breath taking. Where the day began and the first look was held didn't even seem real, the mist of the lake, the perfect amount of wind, the overcast skies...perfection. I mentioned this before but it's worth repeating, the horses, the lake, the quintessentially New England house, thats their home! This was a "backyard" wedding. 

Also what separates this wedding video from all others on my website it is the very first of the "7 Minute Video" option offered in my packages. It is becoming more popular and after you watch it you'll see it's just that slight bit of extra goodness for everybody to enjoy. I'll stop yapping and just let you enjoy Dana and Patricks beautiful wedding video!

-Will

REBECCA AND DANIEL'S NYC WEDDING AT THE BOWERY

I've said this on my blog before but sometimes I have the opportunity to meet a couple before their wedding, other times it's all phone interactions. I had never met Becky and Dan before their wedding, only a few conversations over the phone. I don't remember the conversations other than they were short and they were quiet lol. Needless to say I didn't know what to expect from these two based on the phone conversations. Turns out they were some of the nicest, most inviting,  people I could've met. The same goes for their families, everyone involved in this wedding was a delight to be around. As far as Becky and Dan with each other, the couple that had nothing to say to me on phone were full of energy, exuded love for each other and were so easy to work with. It was FREEZING outside and they were completely game for as many outdoor shots as needed for an awesome video. 

The wedding itself was at the iconic NYC Bowery Hotel and styled by the amazing Talida Chen of Savour Weddings. I had never worked in the Bowery before and was definitely spoiled with this one. First off I saw John Legend and Chrissy Teigan leave the hotel, that has nothing to do with my workday but I am a giant fan of John so it was cool to see him ;). Secondly, Talida out did herself, stunning floral accents and design on the table scapes with enough candles to completely illuminate the room. I can't put my finger on exactly why but everything about this wedding felt so quintessentially "wintertime in the city." I'll stop yapping and let you all hit play but I can't thank Becky and Dan enough for having me capture their big day and Talida for recommending me to them. Cheers to these two, it was a great way to close out 2017!
 

-Will

ALEXA AND DOUG'S WATERVIEW WEDDING

I just want to start off by saying these two define what commitment means. On our first consultation which was a 14 hour time difference while they were in Guam where Doug was stationed ( and that I did in my pajamas because I'm not great in the morning lol) I saw not only how much they are in love but how they genuinely enjoy each others company. Alexa told me a story where she flew to Guam for only three days to watch Doug during his pinning ceremony. Is that registering folks? Thats 40 hours of flight time to be somewhere for less than 72 hours. 

This was actually my first inquiry and contracted wedding I've ever received from being discovered on Instagram. Which means I follow them and see a lot into their life together. So on the flip side Doug is an amazing partner to Alexa. I always see them getting ramen, watching movies, going on little adventures etc. You can feel how much they appreciate each others company just through 15 second moments in time. Their love is beautiful, the timeless type of love that finds itself in movies and songs. It was such a pleasure to get to know them and an honor to be a part of their big day. Cheers to Alexa and Doug!

-Will 

CHRISTINA AND STEVE'S MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM INSPIRED WEDDING AT THE BEE AND THISTLE INN

Make note of the title, a Midsummer's night dream was the inspiration for the design of this wedding, an homage to a favorite story of the bride...not a theme. I only say that because "themed" events often are filled with fabrications to achieved the desired look. What was amazing about the Bee and Thistle Inn was it naturally provided everything needed for a Midsummer's Night inspired wedding mixed with the brilliant design and planning of Jacklyn and Stefanie from Jacklyn Watson Events. It was a triumphant effort from both ladies achieving a very obvious Midsummer's Night inspiration but framed in a manner that still felt like a wedding not a set design. Also a giant shout out to Apotheca flowers for making some of the most creative and breathtaking floral arrangements I've seen in my career. Enough talking, you all need to see it for yourself, click the link and find out what I'm talking about!

- Will 

MEG AND CLAUDY'S WEDDING AT THE DELAMAR HOTEL IN SOUTHPORT CT

First off shout out to Meg's brother who had never officiated a wedding before but got up there and did an incredible job! Keep that in mind when watching this, that was his first attempt at officiating a wedding ceremony. Now onto the couple... In a world of dating apps and forced connections its was refreshing to see a fortuitous connection blossom into love. Meg works for an organization "Hope for Haiti" and as you can imagine, she has to frequent Haiti. Claudy is from Haiti and the rest is history.  One thing I noticed that seemed to be a testament to their wonderful relationship is how their families respected and adored each others partner. Claudy's family clearly loved Meg and everyone in Meg's family the same for Claudy. 

The wedding itself was at the beautiful Delamar Hotel in Southport, CT. So quintessentially southern Connecticut with it's decor and the surrounding areas were perfectly picturesque for the first look and formals. I had never shot at the hotel before but I had plenty of familiar faces around me especially working next to the wonderful Brooke Sforza of Brooke Alison Photo and her team which made for a great work day full of laughs and shop talk. Anyway hit play enjoy and cheers to Meg and Claudy!

-Will 

ROBIN AND ALEJANDRO'S WEDDING AT THE COVELEIGH CLUB

Robin and Alejandro live in San Fransisco but have plenty of roots here in the Northeast so they came here opposed to having everyone come out to the bay. Even with a forecast of rain these two were all smiles. They didn't have a care in the world that day other than getting married and making sure their friends were enjoying the party. It was a pleasure to be a part of such a wonderful celebration of family and friends. The rain holding out was a nice plus too ;)
Cheers to Robin and Alex!

Will 

ALYSON AND DAN'S NEW YORK CITY WEDDING AT CHELSEA PIER

I don't know if there will be a moment in my career where I can properly articulate what makes working a wedding in NYC such a special event. There's so many neighborhoods, art, structures etc. as backdrops to work with; it's kind of an endless supply of imagery. In addition to the magic of NYC I was able to have the honor of capturing Alyson and Dan's wedding. These two are both those type of persons that people are just happy to be around. They were so much in love and just exuded great energy all day; really, they could not have been easier to work with! The wedding itself was a stunning nautical inspired wedding on the Chelsea Pier with the beautiful evening Hudson River as a backdrop. Such an incredible day of perfect weather and great vibes between friends and family! Cheers to Aly and Dan!

Will 

NIKKI AND NICK'S LAKESIDE BACKYARD WEDDING - CANDLEWOOD LAKE NEW FAIRFIELD CT WEDDING

I think the term "backyard" here is used only on a technicality because it was behind a residence. Otherwise this was a wedding that could have been at one of the most exclusive venues in the area. The backdrop looked like a scenic point in Hudson Valley, the first look was at the highest point of the isle and the design...com on! Amy of Amy Champagne Events presented everyone with what could be considered her best work to date. The lights, the details, the flowers, the tables, I was blown with the attention to detail at this wedding.

What was particularly impressive was that despite the elaborate planning and design it was still playful, fun and without any pretense, just like our featured couple. First off Nikki wins for being the ultimate "bridechilla." She was full of smiles and couldn't have been more laid back; the same goes for her husband. The lake itself is significant to Nikki and Nick but so is the water, both being avid surfers and wake boarders water played a big role in the design of the wedding (the lake itself is in almost every scene). Their light heartedness toward life and love for each translates itself perfectly in their highlight reel. You can feel how carefree they both are and how much they love being around one another, especially at their lake house. 

Quick shout out to Kristen Kiraly for being an amazing second shooter along with Matt at BSC Photo for always being the best to work with. 

Congrats to Nikki and Nick! Cheers!

- Will 

JANA AND ANDREW'S DOWNTOWN HARTFORD WEDDING AT THE GERSHON BALLROOM

I remember Jana coming into the restaurant we both worked at almost 12 years ago and telling me about this guy Andrew she started dating. Jana and I stayed friends and I've had the pleasure of seeing their entire relationship develop. The firsts, the trips, the milestones etc. I had the privilege to know about all of them! Needless to say I was beyond honored to not only witness their wedding but to capture Jana and Andrew's gorgeous wedding at the Gershon Ballroom!

Cheers you two crazy kids! 

-Will 

WEIYI AND IAN'S WEDDING AT CLASSIC CAR CLUB MANHATTAN

I normally start off describing a wedding by discussing decisions the couple made to enhance their wedding in terms of additions. What type of flowers, theme, layout, location, color palette etc. All with the goal to make their wedding day as unique as their story. This blog post is in the same spirit but instead focuses on the subtractions made to set their wedding apart. Weiyi and Ian had only one objective for their wedding day which was to make sure everyone had a great time and didn't feel like they were at a formal event. To ensure this they stripped away most of the formalities associated with a wedding day. Starting from the beginning of they day where they got ready in the same room, there was no first dance, parents dance, seating arrangement, sit down dinner or cake cutting, along with business causal attire. Instead 40oz bottles of Coor's light were flowing around (ironically but still awesome), passed food all night including a delicious bowl of ramen, a self serve giant dessert table, a scotch bar, an acoustic music performance before the DJ got the crowd moving. To wrap this post up, Weiyi and Ian's wedding was exactly what they wanted in the way they wanted everyone to experience it and just based on the interactions I had with them on their wedding day, thats how they like to live their life. 

Cheers to Weiyi and Ian... affectionately known as "Weiyian!" 

JACQUELINE AND JONATHAN'S LONGSHORE WEDDING

For the people that check out my blog who are not in the wedding industry one thing you may not know is the relationship between client and vendor really does vary from couple to couple. Sometimes you know everything about them, sometimes you barely know anything other than the formal interactions over the phone and the rest unfolds on the wedding day. While Jacqueline and I conversed over e-mails and had a couple phone conversations I had no idea that her and Jonathan have a beautiful story of rekindled love over the course of many years. Best friends that lost touch for a moment and then found each other as their partner in love.

Aside from their beautiful story the wedding itself was gorgeous. Stunning flowers everywhere, subtle nautical details, including the "Jacs and Jonathan" glass as a gift. Also, Jacqueline was the star of the show but a very close second was a good boy named "Tank" who let everyone know when the bride was coming! 

Another great wedding in the books at one of my favorite venues in Connecticut. We were honored to be there and wish Jacs and Jonathan a lifetime of good memories. Cheers!

- Will 

ANGELA AND MAX'S BACKYARD WEDDING

I'm not one to pick favorites but I do love a backyard wedding. The videos always have such a personal touch because there has never been a wedding there before and there probably won't be one after. It's a one of kind thing (much like a marriage) and this wedding truly was one of a kind. A beautiful celebration of cultures and traditions from the vows to the food, they both put everything they love about each other into their wedding day. Also, these two couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day and a better team to work with. The wedding was designed by the ladies at Double G Events and they did an incredible job. Aside from making a ceremony site and reception hall in limited space happen the design itself was stunning. I particularly loved the custom napkins from Minted. 

Angela and Max were adorable together all day, sneaking in dance moves wherever they could and they both showed a charming display of affection by speaking in each others first language for the ceremony. Cheers to Angela and Max!

ERIN AND TOMMY'S LONGSHORE WEDDING

I usually start off by talking about the couple but I would like to make a brief statement about their families. Both families were some of the most warm and welcoming people I have ever encountered at a wedding and Erin and Tommy are a reflection of the best of them. If you need an example of the caliber of kindness in these household’s; Erin’s mom called me Monday morning, not a text or an email, a phone call to tell me how much it meant that I was a part of a perfect wedding day for her daughter. That NEVER happens. To be clear I don’t expect it or feel I deserve it, I’m doing my job, but I damn near got teary eyed when I hung up the phone. Alright fine... I got a little teary eyed.

The wedding was on a perfect summer day with a ceremony at Erin’s former high school Laurelton Hall, officiated by a clergy member from their alma mater and a reception at The Inn at Longshore. I’ve worked a few weddings at Longshore and once the sun begins to set it’s one of the most beautiful venues in Connecticut. I’ll never get tired of shooting a happy couple with the shoreline backdrop, literally glowing from the golden sun rays. Of course it didn’t hurt that these two were so in love and easy to work with. The photographer Brooke of Brooke Alison Photo and I kept getting excited about good light to work and they never felt bothered as well briefly interrupted their wedding day partying for a few minutes to work with us; they actually got just as excited as we did!  

I'll wrap this up with a congratulations to a wonderful couple and I agree with Erin's mom that it was a perfect day!

Congrats to Erin and Tommy!

LISA AND SHAWN SOUTH FARMS WEDDING

There are two things you can never control on a wedding day; time and weather. Weather is the tricky one, when the cards are laid out for you it’s easy to plan accordingly. For example, if it is raining, I can mentally prepare for what type of shots I can capture indoors. Or if it is blazing heat I can bring reflectors and diffusors to fend off some of that direct sunlight. Where it gets tricky is that in between, the “is it going to rain.” Nothing is more terrifying than having your cameras set up for an outdoor ceremony and hearing an impending storm in the distance; mentally preparing for what you would do if it started raining.  Needless to say, it didn’t rain but it wasn’t far away. What did happen was some particularly beautiful moody atmosphere for a gorgeous backdrop for an amazing wedding at South Farms in Morris, Connecticut designed by the incomparable Amy Jones of Amy Champagne events.

I had never worked a wedding at South Farms before and I was surely spoiled with this as my first experience. For starters I was working with all my friends, Brooke Allison was the photographer, Amy Jones was the planner, On the Marc was the caterer, Jenn Kinford did the makeup, Carrie Wilcox did the flowers and my favorite New Yorker Kristen Kiraly came through as my second shooter. Big shout out to her for traveling almost three hours to help me out. As mentioned before I think Amy is talented but she outdid herself with this wedding. Everything was so expertly designed it just seemed to flow as an extension of the farm and it’s space.

So the weather held out and was on our side, I had nothing but friends working with me and to top it off I had an adorable story since Lisa and Shawn have two adorable children that they were able to feature in their wedding. Which leads me to my favorite part of this wedding; they did this for themselves on their own terms. They didn’t abide to any traditions of time or order, they did it the way they wanted to when they wanted to. I love that.

So hit play and enjoy the highlight reel of Lisa and Shawn’s South Farm wedding!

Cheers,

Will

Also shout out to The Plumed Serpent for providing her stunning wedding dress by Bliss Monique Lhuillier

B FOR BETTER! A COUPLE TIPS TO CAPTURE BETTER WEDDING B-ROLL

So what is B- Roll exactly? It is all the alternative footage that isn't the main shot. Lets break down some moments from my latest wedding video to show you some b-roll examples and tips to improve your story telling with b-roll. I mean when you deconstruct a modern wedding video they are all basically meditations in b-roll. Even those key moments of the day, like the bride and groom preps are basically b-roll since the ceremony is usually the background audio source making the imagery the main focus but the message secondary. So lets begin.

So in the case of Lauren and Marshal I almost immediately introduce the actual wedding ceremony. So this becomes the main shot, it is the only moment that incorporates the audio with the visuals so by default, no matter how significant other imagery is, until we as viewers leave the ceremony, everything else is b-roll. 

Now this is what we are using to tell our story in a literal sense, this is where they will talk about their history, their love, their future etc. That's our paint and canvas but we need to start painting over here so lets start painting with our b-roll baby!

So in almost every ceremony they discuss the idea of "before." Before the ceremony, the dress, the reception there were two people that fell in love. So we take our viewer back to the before, but in our case its the beginning of the day. Now we introduce some b-roll of everyone getting ready. This is how we really tell the story of the day and display the emotions leading up to our main event, the ceremony. Below are two images only seconds apart but one immediately tells a better story.

Both are flattering shots of our bride, but notice the dress in the bottom one. It's not a huge difference image wise but the story it tells is infinitely better.  So...

TIP 1. USE YOUR ENVIRONMENT TO TELL A BETTER STORY WITH YOUR B-ROLL

The story went from "a woman getting her makeup done" to a "bride getting her makeup done anticipating walking down the isle in her dress."  Be aware of your surroundings, use the architecture, the lines, the symmetry, the "props" (I don't mean to call a wedding dress a prop but it's working as one here). Move stuff around, make the environment the way you want it to look. Clean the room if you have to, It's easy to feel like you are being intrusive when you are starting out but just politely explain that bottles of water everywhere, plastic cups, Starbucks coffee cups all over the place looks terrible. Which leads us to tip 2...

TIP 2. DON'T BE AFRAID TO STAGE SITUATIONS

Who cares if it didn't happen in real time? Don't get caught up with the idea that something is fake if the imagery is believable. You are telling a story, not making a documentary, it's different. Check this out.. 

When the hell would this many grown women sit on a bed smushed in together? Never, thats when. But with a left to right camera movement, a tight lens and a bunch of girls laughing (which I had them do) you have this adorable moment with the bride and her bridesmaids sharing a drink and a laugh...I'm not even sure if anything was in the cups. It's ok to bullshit if the story is good!

or this...

sorry for the blur these are freeze-frames from the video not still images

Cocktail hour isn't very exciting to cover since its mostly people standing, drinking, eating and not wanting to be bothered with a camera since there is probably food in their mouth. I wanted to showcase the food without bothering anybody at the party or do the typical move of waiting until someone grabs something off a tray. So I pulled a server aside and asked if I could follow her into the room but my camera will just focus on the food. It was a great way to showcase the food, the service and to have the video enter the cocktail hour. All planned, all staged, great results. You know whats next folks...third and final tip

TIP 3. SHOOT WITH INTENTION/KNOW WHY YOU ARE HITTING RECORD

This seems simple but it actually takes a good bit of practice to acquire this skill, especially with wedding cinematography.  If someone asked you while you were shooting why you shot something you should always be able to answer them; otherwise you are just wasting hard drive storage. It is so important to collect b-roll with purpose to save storage and the most valuable of all things, time. Why spend hours scrubbing through footage when you can have confidence in the footage acquired because you shot with intention. If you can't picture yourself using it, don't shoot it. I can't tell you how many times a second shooter has given me GB after GB of meaningless garbage that I would never use. Usually all pretty clean, good looking footage but content wise it was useless. Eg. A closeup of a champagne glass or a flower somewhere in the building. Does that tell a story? How does that relate to the couple? It doesn't, so ditch it.  

Alright folks there it is, a couple of tips that hopefully will help spice up your b-roll. Also, I didn't give all my secrets away, within the next month I am doing a workshop based around the idea of creating b-roll to tell a story. Until next time!

-Will 

Also check it out again and keep an eye on the b-roll!

FIRST WEDDING OF THE 2017 SEASON! LAUREN AND MARSHAL AT THE LOADING DOCK STAMFORD CT

Could there have been a better way to kick off my wedding season? I think not. A beautiful day, a wonderful couple, a gorgeous venue and nothing but top notch people working the wedding. Lauren and Marshal were fantastic, so in love and treated me like family the whole day. I was honored to be there and to now call them friends.  Cheers to Lauren and Marshal!

Shout out to Steve Walter for second shooting with me all day and Candace Jeffery for being a fantastic photographer to work with.