[Wedding] Julie & Sammy – Meadow Wood Manor in Randolph, NJ

Julie & Sammy’s engagement session in Brooklyn last year ended up with the both of them on a tree (k-i-s-s-i-n-g!). Luckily for them, Julie found herself in a wedding dress this time around, and it’s no easy task to get all the fabric up into a tree :). Their photo session took us to one of my favorite shooting locations, the Frelinghuysen Arboretum (where we were literally surrounded by trees!), and wrapped up with their beautiful ceremony and celebration at the Meadow Wood Manor.

Wedding photos at Meadow Wood Manor Wedding, captured by NJ wedding photographer Ben Lau.

Venue & Catering: Meadow Wood Manor // Hair & Make-up: Coco Tsang //Dress: Stella York // Shoes: Jessica Simpson // Groom’s attire: Vera Wang // Floral/DÃ©cor: Candle centerpieces rented from Meadow Wood Manor // Entertainment: Ultimate Party Central // Stationery: Wedding Paper Divas // Favors: DIY // Limo: Santos VIP Limousines // Cinematography: Live Picture Studios

Thank you

There are probably more exciting ways to spend an evening than reading a few thousand words about a wedding venue.

But since you're here anyway, and now know more about this venue than some of the people getting married there next weekend, I figure we should probably say hello.

If you're looking for a photographer, I'd love to hear what you're planning.

— Ben

Coverage with Ben starts at $6200
Coverage with Karis starts at $5300

Coverage with Ben's team starts at $3500

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Northern NJ, NYC documentary Wedding Photographer, Educator & All-Around Nice Guy

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Something couples often ask us is: Will you scout our venue/locations before hand? ⁠
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The answer? We’ll generally do some online scouting to see what’s available at your venue/location(s), and if time permits, we’ll do some scouting on the day of as well. ⁠
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However, the trouble with scouting locations in advance is that shooting conditions may be different between the scouting time and the wedding day (lighting, weather, season, etc). ⁠
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But with our expertise, your flexibility and a focus on telling your unique story, we’ll find all the best spots in any condition. ⁠
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Photography: @benlauphoto⁠
Venue: Current by @thepiersixtycollection
Planning: Kymberle (@threesixteenevents)⁠
Beauty: @juju_glam
Florals: @superiorfloristnyc
Entertainment: @danross.nyc
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#njweddingphotographer #nyweddingphotographer #newjerseyweddingphotographer #newyorkweddingphotographer #nycweddingphotographer

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When I punched Venuss’ address into my GPS and saw “5 minutes,” I thought there had to be a mistake. 😂

Nope.

Turns out Venuss and Milton basically live down the street from me. Their church was nearby too. After 17 years of driving all over NJ, NY and everywhere else for weddings, I would like to formally request that all future couples move to my neighborhood before booking me.

The ceremony itself had probably some of the BEST live music I’ve ever heard in a church. Not at all what I was expecting, and they absolutely crushed it.

Then we headed over to @grandmarquiscaterers , where we had beautiful light, plenty of greenery, a little heat, and a whole lot of dancing.

And apparently, after 17 years and 1,600+ weddings, there are still firsts.

MY FIRST HORA LOCA. 😂

Now, you won’t see any of those photos in these sneak peeks because I finished these before the robot came out. But holy cow, it was everything I hoped it would be!

Robots. Lights. Absolute chaos.

Full gallery coming soon.

Congratulations, Venuss & Milton! ❤️

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These two little dudes had absolutely ZERO interest in taking this photo. 😂

They’re maybe four or five years old. It was early. There were better things to do. And whatever agenda Grandma had for them was clearly not on their agenda.

But Grandma really, really wanted this picture.

We tried once. No dice.

Fortunately, I’ve been doing this for 17 years, and I have tricks.

Later, we gathered about 15-20 family members for one giant group photo. We put the boys right in front of Grandma, and I secretly told all the adults what we were going to do.

Take the big photo.

Then, very slowly…

Everybody back away from the children. 😂

And just like that, Grandma had her picture with her two boys.

It might actually be my favorite photo from Annie and Kevin’s wedding.

Generational photos are important. They’re proof that we were all here, together, at the same time.

Those two boys have absolutely no idea why this picture matters right now. Seventy years from now, they will. And someday their kids, and their kids’ kids, might look at this photograph and see people they never had the chance to meet.

Sometimes we’re making photographs for people who aren’t even here yet.

As for Annie and Kevin, they had one of the first beautiful, cool, non-summer-feeling days at the Ryland Inn. They followed their outdoor ceremony with a traditional Chinese tea ceremony and invited ALL of their guests to experience it with them, including many who had never seen one before.

And of course, Benji was there.

Because every wedding needs a main character, and apparently it wasn’t Annie or Kevin. 😂

Congratulations, Annie & Kevin! ❤️

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At our last meeting, Bella and Kyro had one concern.

Rain.

And I get it. You spend six months, a year, sometimes a year and a half planning a wedding, and somewhere in your head, the weather is always perfect.

Me? I don’t really look at the weather anymore. 😂 After doing this for as long as I have, weddings are live events. We’re calling audibles all day anyway. Whatever Mother Nature gives us, that’s what we’re working with.

And for this weekend, she gave us…mist.

Funny enough, during our last meeting I had actually told Bella and Kyro, “Pray for clouds.” Liberty State Park can be tricky when the sun is blasting and you want the NYC skyline behind you.

Welp, they got their clouds alright.

They also got cool weather (which I’m sure Bella was VERY happy about), and also an empty waterfront. But even more importantly, they got the 30 minutes we needed without a drop of rain.

Sometimes you don’t get the weather you imagined.

Sometimes you get exactly the weather you needed.

And as a little bonus for Karis and me, Bella and Kyro happened to get married on our 18th wedding anniversary. So we got to spend ours working together at one of our favorite venues in the universe, celebrating another couple starting theirs.

Not a bad way to spend an anniversary.

Congratulations, Bella & Kyro. ❤️

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I photograph weddings for a living, so you’d think I’d have something profound to say about marriage after 18 years.

I don’t.

You just keep showing up. You figure shit out together. You try not to murder each other. And hopefully, after 20 years, you still genuinely enjoy hanging out with that person.

I do.

Happy anniversary, @heykaris .

You’re still braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.

Although after 20 years of choosing me, I do have some questions about that last one. 😂

JK, of course. Here’s to a million more!

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It’s wedding weekend for these two.

I’m excited to kick off the official fall season at one of my favorite venues, @maritimeparc, with Bella & Kyro. I have a feeling it’s going to be a fun one.

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I was serious about the “tying myself to a tree” part.

Anything for the shot but safety first!

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From purple-haired newlyweds to purple-haired parents - Brittany and Mike have always made beautiful music together, and now they’ve got a new tiny band member. This miracle baby is the sweetest encore. I’m so honored to capture this next movement in their lives.

Let’s just say the applause is endless. 🎻💜👶🏼

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Katie and Adam came down from Buffalo to NJ to do some wedding stuff, which apparently also meant following me into the woods at Lake Minnewaska.

They love hiking. They’d never been here before. And they were game for pretty much anything.

Which was great, because at one point their photographer was busy relearning how to tie himself to a tree.

Fun fact: I am absolutely petrified of heights.

After one slightly-too-close-for-comfort experience, I bought actual climbing gear and learned how to tie proper knots specifically for sessions like this.

Did I look ridiculous? Probably.

Did the knot hold? Well, I’m still alive to write this post.

Also, Katie is an aquatic veterinarian, which means watching movies involving aquatic animals with her must be exhausting.

But if someone ever yells “IS THERE A DOCTOR ON THE PLANE?” I’m grabbing Katie.

She knows how organs work in all kinds of animals.

Human? Piece of cake.

Anyway, two people from Buffalo showed up somewhere they’d never been, trusted me when I said “come this way,” climbed around some rocks, watched me attach myself to a tree, and made some pretty beautiful stuff with me.

Thanks for trusting me, Katie and Adam.

And my knot.

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Joe originally planned to propose in Italy, but ended up proposing on Long Beach Island instead, which made it even more meaningul because this place was already part of their story as a couple. ⁠
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When choosing "the perfect spot" for your engagement session, it can truly be as simple as picking from the heart. ⁠
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@_bcicc @joewesolowski⁠
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#njweddingphotographer #nyweddingphotographer #newjerseyweddingphotographer #newyorkweddingphotographer #nycweddingphotographer

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