Official blog of Ben Lau, an international wedding photographer based in Northern NJ.

11-28-2012

[Wedding] Lisa & Matt – Baltimore Museum of Industry in Baltimore, MD (Sneak Peeks)

Lisa and Matt’s wedding was very memorable for us, for oh so many reasons! Never mind the (really) strange coincidence that two of my former high school classmates would get married on the same weekend (and both brides would hire me as their photographer), or the fact that my entire weekend was essentially a blast from the past taking place in two different states. If anything, there was a sense of measured trepidation – in hopes that everyone had forgotten how obnoxiously nerdy I was in high school :). Yes (sigh), it’s true. Once upon a time, I was the awkward and eccentric teenager with a penchant for corny jokes and horrible wardrobe decisions. Now I’m just the awkward and eccentric dude with the camera, with a penchant for (really) corny jokes and (really) horrible wardrobe decisions (according to Karis).

Lisa and Matt tied the knot at the Baltimore Museum of Industry in my old stomping grounds of the Inner Harbor of Baltimore. The place was just teeming with relics of Baltimore’s industrial past and a perfect setting for Lisa and Matt’s wedding celebration.

Here are some sneak peeks of their day.

Bride Lisa looks out the window while her mother helps her into her dress on the morning of her wedding at the Baltimore Museum of Industry. Captured by Ben Lau Photography.

Groom gets ready for his wedding at the Baltimore Museum of Industry. Captured by Ben Lau Photography.

Bride and groom portraits at the Baltimore Museum of Industry. Captured by Ben Lau Photography.

There’s more where that came from! Stay tuned, folks!

We’re on a roll :).

Ben & Karis

11-27-2012

[Engagement] Rosalen & Chris in Roslyn Harbor, NY

As I’m writing this post today, I can’t help but do cartwheels around our office because it’s SNOWING! I may be one of the few people on the east coast who actually enjoys this wintry weather. It’s not about the kids staying home from school or the kids pelting each other with snowballs. It’s about the fact we got an SUV last year for a winter that never happened. So you best believe we’ll be out there today!

But I digress :).

Rosalen and Chris’ engagement session took place before all this snow arrived, on the beautiful (and warmer) grounds of Nassau County’s Museum of Art. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again…I love coming out to Long Island, though I’m sure many of these resident commuters may disagree :). Long Island is just a treasure trove filled with all kinds of shooting locations just waiting to be photographed. I first met these two at one of my favorite pubs in the city after their eyes fell upon one of my previous engagement sessions. After a few rounds of sliders and drinks that afternoon, the rest was history :).

Rosalen and Chris, congrats again on your engagement! We are so happy to be there for you guys on your special day, and we can’t wait to see you guys again in just a few more weeks! We hope you enjoy these images as much as we enjoyed capturing them.

And now we’re off to run some errands and teaching Lil Monster how to catch snowflakes with his tongue :).

Ben & Karis

11-26-2012

[Wedding] Sandra & Drew – Perona Farms in Andover, NJ

We hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving and got to stuff themselves silly with turkey and lots of yummilicious food with their family and friends. As for us here at HQ, it’s been a working staycation this past week with a non-stop shooting schedule that would finally mark the conclusion of our wedding season. We did manage to squeeze in a few bites of turkey in between a few of these weddings. And as expected, we now find ourselves swimming in wedding images ~~waiting~~ just dying to be processed. Through hell or high water, we’re gonna get these all out by the end of December!

We always love any opportunities to go out into the country for a country wedding. Fresh air, farm houses, barns, tractors and horses – what’s there not to love? We welcome these occasional breaks from a metropolitan-suburban life, and try to resist to urge to prance around the cornfields with a camera in hand and my fellow prancing couples in the other. But it goes without saying, this is hardly ever the case (boo).

But nevertheless, when Sandra and Drew told us they would be tying the knot at Perona Farms, we were absolutely thrilled. Prancing through fields notwithstanding, we knew we were going to have a blast.

The bride’s day started at their home in Colonia, NJ. The groom had sent her a self-authored book chronicling all their adventures, past, present and future.

They groom’s day started off in a hotel room, not far away. Like many of our grooms, just figuring out the buttons is a task unto itself :).

I will concur with these folks: the sermon was pretty funny.

Congrats again to Sandra and Drew for hosting such a fabulous wedding at Perona Farms. We wish you two many years of marital bliss and we hope you enjoy these images as much as we enjoyed capturing them. And of course, this party wouldn’t have been possible without the help of these awesome people!

Ceremony :	: St. Agnes Parish in Clark, NJ
Reception :	: Perona Farms in Andover, NJ
Gown :	: Mikaella
Shoes :	: David’s Bridal
Jewelry :	: Neil Lane
Hair :	: Enza – Personal Stylist
Make-up :	: Mac
Grooms Attire :	: Vera Wang
Entertainment :	: DJ Adam – This Magic Moment
Cake :	: Palermo’s
Floral :	: Vintage Nouveau – Colonia, NJ
Favors :	: DIY
Stationery:	: Cards and Pockets
Secondary Photography :	: Benson Lau Photography

On a slightly unrelated note, our leftover turkey didn’t last as long as we thought – which is pretty surprising because I remember there being a pretty big bird on our dining room table last Thursday. But nevertheless, this means I’ve got all of winter to get back in to beach shape for next year! Time to hit the asphalt!

Happy Monday ya’ll!

Ben & Karis

11-20-2012

[Wedding] Sandra & Drew – Perona Farms in Andover, NJ (sneak peeks)

I can’t help but feel elated that my shooting season is finally winding down after this weekend. This naturally called for some midweek festivities, but it felt a little awkward filling the rooms of our house with holiday music. Instead, I’ve filled our home with holiday candy. For the record, I’d like to proclaim that the inventor of smarties-flavored candy canes is a friggin genius. Lil Monster agrees.

A winding down of my shooting season also means that we’ll have some very happy Fall brides, starting with this one :).

Hope you guys enjoy these sneak peeks of Sandra and Drew’s wedding at the gorgeous Perona Farms in Andover, NJ.

Stay tuned for more :).

Ben & Karis

11-19-2012

[Engagement] Elisa & Joe – Manhattan, NY

I know I’ve said this before, but I’m probably the worst local non-local New Yorker one will ever meet. Despite being born and raised here (and now settled in the tree-lined suburbia of NJ), I’m completely clueless when it comes to anything related to folks who live, work and breathe everything New York City-related. Case in point, I’d only set foot into Central Park ONCE before I became a wedding photographer. Even more embarrassing, 2012 marked the year I would finally get to try a Gray’s Papaya hot dog and a Shake Shack burger…thanks to my wonderful clients who also seem to share my joy in consuming mystery meats stuffed between two buns :).

Elisa and Joe has a highly energetic little boy around the same age as our lil monster. When I first saw him, I just wanted to bite those cheeks (after I placed them between two slices of bread, of course). What’s even more awesome is that Elisa and Joe live literally 5 minutes away from our house (play dates for everyone!). So while I haven’t done many family sessions this year due to my hectic wedding schedule, I jumped at the opportunity to get those chubby cheeks in front of my camera. Hook. Line. Sinker!

They wanted to shoot their engagement session in Midtown Manhattan. Bryant Park was their first choice.

Bryant Park had all kinds of craziness going on in preparation for the holidays. We were forced to make our own private space :).

New York Public Library is probably one of my favorite location for engagement sessions.

After all, this is where they filmed Ghostbusters :).

Mucho congrats again to Elisa and Joe! We hope you enjoyed our little Midtown adventure and we can’t wait to see you guys again in a few more days!

This is our last week of weekend weddings for the year, which means we’ll finally be able to get to sleep for more than 4 hours a night. But even more importantly, we’re going to have some very happy Fall brides before the year is over :). Hope you guys had a fantastic weekend, and we KNOW everyone’s excited for some yummilicious turkey in a few more days!

Gobble gobble!

Ben & Karis

by Ben Lau

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[Wedding] Kelly & Rob – Neshanic Valley Golf Course, Neshanic Station, NJ

One of the most common (and somewhat amusing) things I’ve seen as a wedding photographer who provides full day coverage is the frantic running of the bridesmaids when they realize I’ve arrived on site. When I tell my clients that much of the action happens before the first look, this isn’t exactly what I meatn – but I can certainly understand unintentional connection :). The reason why we begin so early is because I’m a firm believer that a wedding day comprises of the entire day in the life of these two individuals, and it doesn’t start just moments before their first look or when the bride’s about to put on her dress. It starts the moment the bride and groom wake up that morning and realize they’re going to be committing themselves to that one special person for the rest of their lives. The emotions and mental preparation that swirl inside their heads as they go on through the motions of their morning routine, ironing their clothes and consuming copious amounts of ~~mimosas~~ coffee in anticipation of one of the most momentous occasion in their lives, is exactly why/what we’re there that early to capture. These feelings and expressions are raw, uncensored, and remembered forever. We’re just there to make sure it stays that way :).

Kelly and Rob’s wedding also officially kicked off the unofficial countdown of the birth of our second Lil Monster.
Much to everyone’s relief (as we all presently know), he didn’t arrive while his daddios was out shooting a wedding :).

Congrats again, you two lovebirds! We hope you enjoy these images as much as we enjoyed capturing them.
We had a blast, and it looks like you did too :).

Big shout out to the following folks who made this day possible:

Ceremony :	: Neshanic Valley Golf Course
Reception :	: Neshanic Valley Golf Course
Gown :	: Maggie Sottero
Shoes :	: Enzo Angiolini
Jewelry :	: Tacori
Hair :	: Danielle Castellano
Make-up :	: Courtney Rauch
Grooms Attire :	: Vera Wang
Catering :	: Neshanic Valley Golf Course
Cake :	: Neshanic Valley Golf Course
Floral :	: Flemington Floral
Favors :	: http://www.theknot.com
Stationery:	: http://www.minted.com
Secondary Photography :	: Benson Lau Photography

Starting with tomorrow’s wedding, we officially count down to the climactic season finale of our shooting schedule. We’ve got three more weeks till we get to the light at the end of our tunnel, so it’s full speed ahead!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Ben & Karis

11-14-2012

[Engagement] Catherine & Matt – NJ Botanical Gardens

As I’m writing this post, I don’t even remember how long it’s been since I’ve worn a short-sleeve shirt and shorts. It’s hard to believe that the weather was so beautiful before Sandy came through and gave us a good walloping. But I digress :). Catherine and Matt will be hosting a beautiful New England wedding next Fall and the NJ Botanical Gardens seemed like the perfect location for their engagement session. These two are probably the funniest couples we’ve ever encountered, and we’re super excited to be capturing their big day. Here are some peaks into their engagement session.

Big congrats again to Catherine and Matt on your engagement! We hope you enjoy these images as much as we enjoyed capturing them and we can’t wait to see you guys again next year!

We’ve been super productive this past week, and I’ve got all the candy wrappers to prove it (shame on us). We’ve got only a few more weeks till the end of our wedding season, and we can’t wait to crank up this post-production marathon to full speed (our couples are counting on it!). In other news, Karis will also finally be returning from maternity leave and will be shooting her first wedding this weekend since signing off earlier this year. We’re excited to get her back in the field and we’re totally hoping that our Lil Monsters don’t torment their grandparents…too much :).

Much love, friends!

Ben & Karis

11-13-2012

[Engagement] Amedea & Ray – West Village, NY

Whenever I’ve ever shot engagement sessions in the West Village of New York City, I’ve always found myself driving up and down its cobblestone streets looking for those ever-elusive parking spots. Its windy, anti-conformist streets with all its glorious alternate-side regulations are part of the reason why we schedule in extra time whenever we’re in this part of the city. We’ve accepted this experience as a part of our usual workflow, as most the nearby neighborhoods in this part of town rank in the top 10 most requested locations for our NYC couples.

And despite living just a stone’s throw away from The High Line (#3 on our list, by my un-official count), Amedea and Ray naturally wanted something a little different. Square pegs and round holes? Count me in!

We first met Amedea and Ray at another wedding. Despite having left my sales hat at home that day (which is the professional thing to do, people!), I found myself in their apartment only a few days later discussing their wedding plans. Awesome-sauce :).

We started their session in their cozy West Village apartment.

Naturally, the dog wanted some piece of the photo-fun action as well :).

Amedea and Ray wanted something natural and fun for their engagement session, and representative of their daily lives together.

This would sometimes include cooking together.

And sometimes, it’d also include Ray providing Amedea some insight on how to properly dice tomatoes :).

Amedea and Ray, we had tons of fun getting you guys in front of our cameras not once, but TWICE this season. We looking forward to #3 next year, and we’re tremendously honored to be there for you guys on your special day. We hope you enjoy these images as much as we enjoyed capturing them. Congrats on your engagement and we can’t wait to see you guys again.

And before I forget, big shout-out to Hector Espinal for providing your awesome make-up talent for this shoot!

It’s a quiet, rainy day here at HQ and we’re 90% caught up from all the work that’s been piling up due to Sandy. We’ve got some jaw-dropping weddings to share with you guys in coming weeks and we can’t wait to put ‘em up!

Happy Tuesday ya’ll!

Ben & Karis

by Ben Lau

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[Wedding] Kelly & Rob – Neshanic Valley Golf Course in Neshanic Station, NJ

It’s Friday and we’re happy to announce that we’re currently somewhat, sorta-kinda caught up with all of the work we’ve had piling up these past two weeks due to Sandy. But the even BETTER news is that our coffee machine is working, and the Lil Monsters understand that Mom and Dad have mucho work to do :). Kelly and Rob tied the knot at the Neshanic Valley Golf Course a few months ago, and officially kicked off our insanos Fall wedding schedule. Here are a few sneak peaks of their day. Hope you enjoy these awesome images :).

We hope to be back at 100% by Monday. Hope you guys have a fantastic weekend!

Ben & Karis

11-08-2012

Giraffes Only Appear When It Rains Sideways

“What will we do if it rains?” she asked during our first meeting.

I went through my usual responses, which typically involves my awesome use of umbrellas as props and some suggestions for indoor shooting locations

“However…the only exception is if it starts raining sideways and we’re standing in a foot of water.” I explained. While I’m confident that the weather sealing on my equipment would hold up, it didn’t mean my shoes would. And nobody hates wearing wet socks more than me.

And of course as we all know, it did rain sideways…and there were several feet of water. So we did end up rescheduling, but I’m super thankful that we did.

Sometimes misfortunes are just opportunities in disguise.

And sometimes…they’re named Sandy :).

It’s Day 1 back at the office, and this image popped up on our screen while we were sorting through all our images from these past 2 weeks.
It’s a slight detour from our regularly scheduled programming, but we couldn’t resist.

But even more importantly, we’ll be back to some wedding awesomeness very soon…promise!

Thanks for your patience, folks!

Ben & Karis

by Ben Lau

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