Engagement photos are a great precursor to wedding photographs - Leslie and Brandon were able to get a feel for how I will photograph their wedding, and I can get a good idea of how they react to the camera. During the photography for their Rochester wedding, I’ll be able to draw on the engagement session to achieve more fluid and less invasive wedding day photography. As a Rochester wedding photographer, I’m committed to delivering the very best wedding photographs - engagement photos are one way that I differentiate myself and offer truly exceptional wedding photography.

Here are a few of my favorite photographs from Leslie & Brandon’s engagement session. Enjoy!

The events coordinator, Carmen, has been a part of Belhurst for over 20 years and she was extremely helpful at answering Sarah and Brian’s wedding-day questions and putting them both at ease. Part of the stress of planning a wedding is answering the question, “Who’s going to do what - when?”. Belhurst’s attention to detail and customer-oriented approach is exceptional, putting any wedding-day jitters to rest and reassuring the wedding couple that every detail is masterfully and thoughtfully taken care of.

The possibilities for wedding photography on the grounds of the Belhurst Castle are more or less limitless; it really depends what style of wedding photography the bride and groom gravitate toward. For Sarah and Brian, I’m going to concentrate on edgy, sexy, fashion-inspired wedding photography with a look similar to that in a high-end magazine spread. We even discussed some ways of shooting the formal and bridal party wedding photographs in unique and different ways to really punctuate the desire for artistic and truly original photographs.

I brought my camera along and took a dozen or so photos while walking around the Belhurst grounds, talking about the wedding day in general and specifically the wedding photography. I’ve included a few of my favorite photographs below (I really like the photograph of Brian looking out at Geneva Lake and the photograph of Sarah silhouetted while standing next to the wrought-iron door inside the Belhurst Castle).

In August, I’m photographing Caitlin and Erich’s wedding in Scottsville. This is a couple who is very on top of things - finding time to assemble a wedding web site blog with details on places to visit and things to do for guests visiting from out of town. Creating a wedding web site is a fantastic idea as it allows easy dissemination of information to a large group of people quickly and effortlessly - the blog format increases readability and maintenance too. Blogger.com is a free service from Google that allows you to setup a wedding web site blog effortlessly - try it now and spread the news that you’re getting married (and that you’ve found that perfect wedding photographer)!

As an aside from wedding photography, I was downstate last week and took a few photos of the Lain family farm in Westtown, NY. Here are a few of my favorite pics, and one additional photograph of my cousin Michelle during my trip down to Florida over Christmas. Enjoy!

If 2009 is your year to get married, but you haven’t decided on a wedding photographer, or maybe you haven’t had time to research a local wedding photographer, today is a great day to get in touch with Ryan, setup an appointment, and discuss exactly how you envision your wedding being photographed and how best to achieve that vision. There are still several dates available during the summer of 2009 - however, with the wedding season fast approaching, it’s best to contact your Rochester wedding photographer as soon as possible to lock in your wedding day!

“With reception dinner, bridal and bride’s maids’ dresses, cake, tuxes, invitations, and transportation costs, a wedding can be an expensive undertaking! I’d like to help by saving couples some money on their wedding photography. After all, next to your own personal memories and stories of your wedding day, your wedding photographs are the only assets that truly preserve one of the biggest days in your entire lives!

During the month of February, I’m giving couples who book their wedding photography by the end of the month 10% off any wedding photography package - including customized packages! This is a really great way for couples to save up to $500 or more on their wedding photography costs.”

There’s a simple wedding photography contact form that you can fill out to get started, or call Ryan at 585.217.7510 and he’ll setup a day and time to meet with you personally and put your mind totally at ease - if your wedding is in less than a week or if it’s more than a year away!

Congratulations to my many wedding couples who are spending their first Christmas together as a married couple. It was an honor and a priveledge photographing your weddings. ;)

I’ve already booked many weddings for the upcoming summer, and I look forward to photographing all of my new clients’ weddings in 2009!

Wishing everyone the very best in the new year, congratulations on your engagement and here’s to your year!

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