“Do I need uplighting?” Many brides and grooms are unaware of what uplighting is, while other couples have heard of it but may have not seen it in action at their wedding venue. Today I arrived early for a client meeting, and luckily I was able to join them on a walk through of their wedding reception rooms. The Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel dates back to 1912, rich with history and old Boston glamour. As the sister hotel to the famed Plaza Hotel New York, Copley Plaza’s Renaissance decor is recognizable in movies such as Bride Wars, The Firm, Blown Away, and My Best Friend’s Wedding. We got a good feel for the layout as we toured the St. James, Singleton, and Copley rooms. Soaring leather ceilings, mahogany walls, and adjoining fireplaces set the perfect tone for a winter wedding. Even without adding additional uplighting, the room will take your breath away. Since its already so beautiful, I don’t my clients had considered lighting for the event space. A lighting designer happened to be in the room, prepping for another event. I definitely saw some jaws dropping as they witnessed transformation of the room when he turned on the lights. With all the expenses of planning a wedding though, upgrades and add-ons have to be carefully considered. Reviewing photography from previous weddings in the same or similar ballrooms may help you in figuring out if the atmosphere that lighting design offers is a priority or unnecessary extra. In addition to some of the extravagant lighting designs you might find in wedding magazines, there may be other lighting options as well. Below are some sample pictures of what a richly appointed ballroom looks like both with and without up-lighting. In this first photo, you can see a ballroom lit with existing chandeliers and no uplighting.
In the next photo, the dark mahogany wood is highlighted with a warm amber tint from the LED uplighting. This warm hue compliments the red, natural tones in the wooden walls.
Purple uplighting changes the atmosphere completely, as seen below:
One of the reasons I love my job as a wedding photographer is that even if I am hired to photograph in the same wedding venue on more than one occasion, each bride and groom choose what is important to them and personalize their wedding in a way that is their own. I have certainly seen it all.
Remember folks, while you may certainly run in a marathon, please pace yourselves when you walk down the aisle.
She pulled inspiration from a variety of sources and pulled it all together by using coordinated 
They baked over 1000 cookies for a cookie buffet which had custom labels from Green Apple Paperie.
With a seaside venue, a lobster set on white and navy blue wedding stationery and invitations set the tone for their wedding.
Their décor had a subtle nautical theme, with shells and coral prints on our paper and fabrics. Since the couple met while they were at Vanderbilt, they included a few southern touches, including a signature cocktail of sweet tea vodka and lemonade. The couple was both active in greek life, and the bride had their pins soldered together and pinned them to the bridal bouquet. They actually got the idea of attaching the pins from the groom’s grandmother, who had her and his grandfathers pins soldered together after they were married.
While traditional and historical venues can easily lend themselves to a formal and traditional wedding, there are always ways to incorporate the ideas of a modern couple. By using bright fun colors, and playful touches like ribbon drink stirrers and pinwheels they maintained a casual fun feel without clashing with the historical venue.
Here is another example of both uplighting and personalized gobo lighting. Rather than cut a name into the lighting, some companies offer customized gobo designs such as these leaf patterns on the wall to set the tone for an autumn wedding:
Pinspotting or pin spot lighting can be used to highlight certain things like centerpieces, cakes, or the head table as shown here:
For lighting design in Boston, I recommend: 