Amanda and Jordan had a beautiful Diplomat Hotel wedding complete with beautiful flowers, a scrumptious wedding cake, and a day filled with a gentle cool breeze and plenty of sunshine. It was a picture perfect day for this South Florida wedding photographer and a classy bride and groom.
What a wonderful event this was! I asked Amanda why she and Jordan selected the magnificent Diplomat Hotel for their wedding and they said that the place just made them feel happy when they walked in the door! They were drawn to the brightness of the hotel, the interesting architecture and the beautiful pool and beach areas that they knew their guests would enjoy. Also, they were impressed with the stellar staff at the Diplomat Hotel as well, which was a key factor in their decision to have their wedding there.
BELOW: One of my favorite parts of wedding photography is the “First Look” This one took place in the walkway that runs between the main hotel and the ballrooms. Because this part of the hotel has floor the ceiling windows on both sides the lighting is perfect no matter which way the bride and groom are facing. I got a bit artistic with these photos. Both were taken in color. After the wedding, during the editing of the pictures I decided to make the pictures sepia but keep the flowers in color. I think this is a really cool look. South Florida is such a popular place for weddings and as a photographer in this competitive market I’m always looking for ways to create images that are unique and special. I hope you like these two.
As a South Florida wedding photographer, I have photographed many Jewish weddings at the Diplomat Hotel and also the Diplomat Country Club. Both venues are prime locations for weddings here in South Florida due to their great location, fabulous grounds, top-notch food and of course, the attentive catering staff. Amanda and Jordan’s affair was a traditional Jewish wedding, with all of the festivities one would imagine – including the hora, blessing of the challah, or “motzi”, the bedecken, and of course, the breaking of the glass.
Most weddings I have photographed at the Diplomat have actually been destination weddings, with the bride and groom living out of state. Amanda and Jordan live in Washington D.C. for example, but having grown up in South Florida, this was a natural choice as a place for their destination wedding.
Jordan and Amanda have known each other since they were babies – just amazing. They were close as little ones, and then grew apart due to living in different neighborhoods and attending different schools. Their paths crossed again in college, as they both attended the University of Florida. Their renewed friendship soon turned to romance and the rest is history.
ABOVE: Being creative with my South Florida wedding pictures sometimes requires using an alternative photography process. One such process is called infrared. Infrared photography is unique and provides a completely different look than straight black and white photography. During a wedding one of my goals is to produce photos that look unique and odd an extra boost of creativity to the couples pictures. If you would like to see more of my infrared wedding photography check out some of these links: Infrared wedding picture taken at the Broken Sound Country Club. Creative infrared wedding picture taken at The Palms Hotel. Infrared wedding picture taken at The Ocean Reef Club.
I shot this really large wedding party photo while standing on a wall which gave me the extra height needed to get these unique angles. Whenever I’m photographing a South Florida wedding I take pictures from a variety of different angles. I have always found that using a high angle allows me to get everyone heads close together. I shot this in color and converted this image to sepia later. The couple received both the color and sepia images.
When photographing a wedding it’s important to capture all the required pictures. These include pictures of the bride and groom getting ready, the first look, lots and lots of bride and groom pictures and all the family photos. Before the wedding I always talk with the bride and groom about this family pictures that need to be taken. There are the standard photos that should be taken during a wedding. These include the Bride and her parents with family and the groom and his family. Sometimes there are a lot of additional family members that need to be photographed. When I find that there are lots of family members and other relatives I also as for a family photo shot list. Having shot so many South Florida weddings I’m aware of the pictures that need to be taken. However once I hear about aunt Jane, Uncle, Dan, the Brides sister’s husband and kids I start thinking we will need a list.
Amanda’s dress was from Priscilla of Boston, as were the bridesmaids dresses, mother of the bride’s dress and all accessories. For her shoes, Amanda selected a “fun and flirty” style as she put it. For the scheme of her wedding, Amanda didn’t want particular strong colors dominating either the ceremony or reception. The ceremony featured more muted colors and then there was more of a pop of color introduced in the reception décor. In addition, uplighting on the walls added to the atmosphere as well. As Amanda commented, the Diplomat Hotel is so beautiful that there wasn’t much needed to make it special. One additional theme was the bows and rosettes on Amanda’s dress, the bridesmaids and flower girls dresses and baskets as well as the cake.
When shooting people giving toasts my goal is to get great expressions and really good lighting. It’s a huge plus if I could prevent myself from being too distracting. One way I achieve this is by bouncing my flash off the the ceiling. By using bounce light the light is dispersed and doesn’t actually hit the speakers eyes. I wait until the person talking pauses, then I take the picture. I also keep an eye on the bride and groom because chances are there is a good emotional shoot coming in the future.
I love taking wedding cake pictures! This one looks especially pretty. The action that takes place during the cake cutting always makes for great pictures. Some wedding cakes have lots of unique details making the photography really interesting.
Amanda and Jordan also wanted to do a “trash the dress” shoot on the morning following the wedding. We had an absolute blast shooting at the Diplomat Hotel! We utilized both the beach and fabulous pool areas for this shoot.
The bride and groom decided that after the wedding the bridal gown would be donated to a charity that provides gowns to future brides that can’t afford to purchase gowns. However, before parting with her dress the bride and groom decided to take some really fun pictures in the hotel pool and in the ocean while dressed for the wedding. This was a really fun photo session. I just love it when a get to photograph a couple that is so excited to have me take unique wedding pictures!
