what i love about creating captivating imagery for the hospitality, resort & architecture industries, is that it often allows a photographer to travel. most recently, i had the opportunity to photograph for moon dance resorts at their moon dance cliffs hotel location in negril, jamaica. before the shoot, i consulted a lot with my cousin keshara who is a production manager for GE Projects. she had previously done a lot of international resort photography with barbara kraft, one of the leading hospitality photographers, having work featured in architectural digest and other notable publications. i was excited to head down to jamaica.
after a nearly a full day of travel, i was met by a polite, informative and very friendly driver and we embarked on long drive (no freeways) from montego bay to negril, winding along the coast, and weaving through colorful villages. i arrived at the resort just as the sun was going down. i had just enough energy in me to get a brief tour of the grounds before hitting the hay. around 5am i got my canon and hasselblad cameras ready and ran around resort snapping some test shots under the early morning light. i shot all day and by sundown, i was tired enough to go to bed early. the second day had the most favorable skies. while shooting at moon dance cliffs and villas, i experienced the most exceptional 5-star service and met some of the nicest people i have ever met in my life. in the upcoming weeks, i aim to share more images from jamaica, including a wedding i photographed at moon dance villas. below are some examples of luxury resort architectural photography.
people often speak of having a storybook wedding. well, this wedding comes literally straight from teh storybooks of alice in wonderland. shortly after photographing sam & hezzie’s wedding at gallery 1028, i was hired for sam’s sister liza’s wedding. i am picky when it comes to photographing on holidays, so if i was going to forfeit halloween, it had to be for a fun shoot. they convinced me right away when i was informed that the wedding was going to be themed as a mad hatter tea party. i met liza at her brother’s wedding, and at the time, i had no idea i would get to work with her again. liza plays by her own rules, she is an offbeat bride. heck she even made her own blue wedding dress! with the help of her mother deborah who owns norton’s usa (a unique all-american general store), the wedding would go down in the books as being one of the most memorable for everyone in attendance. they merged a mad hatter tea party theme with elements of autumn. the wedding was held at home, in a strikingly beautiful, yet mysterious house. during the ceremony, the bride emerged from a secret bookcase door, surprising guests. the groom, richard, is from manchester, uk.
it was a real pleasure photographing this wedding, as there was such great scenery and carefully thought out decorations to work with. liza’s family has two amazing horses, and a barn full of teeny kittens!
from the mother of the bride:
Hi Heather!!! They are wonderful! Glad you had fun! We all looked with Sam’s computer yesterday and we’re thrilled. Thank you so much for coming and shooting Liza & Richards wedding.
“I didn’t get to see all of Sam and Hezi’s pics but what I did see are fabulous! You really are so very talented!
Thank you from the bottomof my heart
Deborah”
i always love having opportunity of shooting cultural weddings. i met with charlotte last year and was so excited to be hired to photograph her and mike’s wedding. earlier this year i photographed charlotte and mike’s engagement shoot, and since charlotte and mike travel frequently for work, we did a lot of communication via email regarding the details of the wedding day and her photography plans and ideas. in addition to wedding-related chatter, charlotte, being a foodie, she gave me some great tips on where to find true Québécois poutine made with real cheese curds.
charlotte is from singapore and her family spoke mandarin, while mike’s family spoke cantonese. i love being able to document cultural and family traditions, and this wedding in particular had some especially fun parts to photograph. i witnessed some hilarious games and a pretty tea ceremony which happened before the traditional style wedding ceremony that i am used to. before tea, the groom was quizzed by bride’s friends and family and had to partake in humorous demands before the mother of the bride released her daughter to the groom.
i asked charlotte about some of the details of her wedding day and she said:
The Chinese tea ceremony was requested by my mom. Basically it is a way for us to thank our families for raising us. The groom comes to the bride’s house to collect the bride. But the bride’s friends and family will try and block the groom and his men. The groom will have to go a series of games to prove his love for the bride. At the end, the girls will negotiate a price for the bride. Usually the number ends in 99. So $299, $399, etc.
When the groom claims the bride, they are supposed to go to the groom’s family to do the tea ceremony. Then they return to the bride’s family to do the tea ceremony. We did it all in the same room to save time!
Mike and I are so laid back, so we wanted fun pictures. Mike requested the lakefront shots and I like indoor shots and vintage looking locales, so Union Station was awesome! I love the look and feel of your photos! Very different from the others I have seen and very imaginative! That was ultimately the reason why we picked you!
after their wedding, the bride and groom headed to Curaçao for their honeymoon where they went to explore the island’s shores via scuba diving.
婚礼摄影师在芝加哥
中文和粤语的新娘和新郎
charlotte purchased adorable containers for the wedding rings which were enscribed with to have and to hold.the bride’s mother watched over over the groom during some lighthearted gamesthe groom answered questions regarding his new bridemike and char were a very easy-going couple – they joked around a lot and had a blast all day!two families came together during a tea ceremony overlooking famous michigan avenue. they had one of the best hotel suites i have ever photographed in.charlotte takes tea to present to the families.i heard someone mutter that some of the tea had some wasabi in it!the groom leaves the room before the bride changes into a white wedding gown.simple bouquet of flowers to match a simple elegant dress.the groom waits in the hotel lobby for a scheduled “first look” as the bride descended down a grand glowing staircase.we took a limo to museum campus and played a little game of trust over lake michigan.the chicago skyline is in the distance as the groom holds on tight to his bride.charlotte forgot the disposable adhesive heating pads in her hotel room to keep her bridesmaids warm for outdoor photos so we went to union station after museum campus. she had prepared for inclement weather by buying a photo permit in advance for union station so that we would have no issues if we needed to use the location as a setting for her wedding photos.the groom looked dapper don’t you think?the groom looked dapper, don’t you think?we wrapped up our 90 minute photo shoot by heading back to michigan ave and the bride and groom were cuffed by a chicago cop (all in good fun of course!).the newlyweds had beautiful rings which i photographed on the stem of a tulip.cocktail hour…what a cute nephew and a proud father!here are some of the wedding reception details including favors, cupcake centerpieces, and an overall theme of red – the color of happiness.and a toast…and a cake cutting and a cake smoosh followed by a smooch.guests seemed to be having a great timecharlotte’s matron of honor was just as fun as she, and raised the bar on the dancefloor getting everyone going!the bride and groom were a very fun laid-back couple to work with, and definitely know how to throw a party!
au·tumnn. – when they turn off the fountains and the leaves go orange.
it was a surprisingly tolerable morning, weather-wise! i photographed victor and nicole for their engagement shoot at their favorite park. their dog gizmo is hiding in one of these photos… where’s gizmo?
i will be photographing their wedding in july 2010 at pazzo’s 311 located at 311 South Wacker Drive Chicago, IL 60606-6627 (312) 913-1600
during their engagement shoot, abigail and sam told me about their wedding planning and were excited about having hired a professional lighting design team for their stan mansion wedding. they transformed a space that was a true blank canvas by choosing purple lighting that created an atmosphere for their wedding that guests commented about all night.
i photographed abigail getting ready at her home, and on the wall i noticed a painting by jamie haynes! i immediately recognized she had a connection to my favorite city: new orleans. abigail’s mother lives in new orleans’ garden district and we chatted a bit about second line parades. abigail didn’t grow up in NOLA otherwise i probably would have photographed another bride and groom in new orleans. abigal and sam headed to logan square for a planned meeting where they would have a documented “first look,” followed by some fun photos before the ceremony. after we finished creative photos in the park, sam went to stan mansion and made sure every detail was set perfectly, and gave a thumbs up to begin the ceremony. i wanted to make sure as much purple light was visible in their wedding photos as possible so i used my one of my favorite lenses for most of the night, that enables me to shoot without use of flash. whenever possible, i try to shoot without flash, or with low flash, so that the natural colors, shadows, and true look is preserved. i want my clients to have photos that accurately document their wedding from the little details, to the atmosphere of the room.
yesterday, alexa and andrew welcomed me into their chicago loft apartment for an engagement shoot. their sleek, modern loft is a strong contrast to where i will be shooting their new england wedding in july of 2010 – at the historic, seaside wedding destination known as the Castle Hill on the Crane Estate, which in my opinion is the boston area’s best mansion available for wedding ceremonies and receptions.
i was thrilled to shoot an engagement shoot in a home. there is a true connection couples have to the space that they have created. alexa and andrew had just gotten back from a vacation in the bahamas, and were at ease when i photographed them. for part of the shoot, they wanted me to photograph them cooking. this was such an original, refreshing idea. after prepping some apple cobbler together and having that documented, we headed up to the roof deck, followed by a walk around the neighborhood.
i encourage all couples to think outside the box to create some one-of-a-kind engagement photos. sometimes the greatest photographs can be made at locations closer than many think.
i love when engagement shoots have props, couples that dress smart, and loads of colors. alison and steve arrived ready for some fun. i pedaled to the shoot on my vintage schwinn yellow bicycle and alison asked if we could use it during the shoot. the yellow bike and her fun red shoes coordinated perfectly wiht the vibrant colors we passed while making our way through their neighborhood.
michelle and tom are one of the nicest couples i have ever worked with. they had a fabulous friday wedding. their ceremony was at saint athanasius church, which restricted the use of flash photography. i was able to conquer that obstacle by using the right lenses and i love the natural lights and shadows that are visible when flash is not used. challenges like this often create the most wonderful, emotional images. thank you michelle and tom for allowing me to document your special day!
update august 26, 2009, from the bride michelle:
“Picking your wedding photographer is so important — and Heather made that decision easy. Heather is not only a very talented photographer who knows her craft expertly, she was also able to capture our wedding day without intruding into it. Heather knew which parts of the day were especially good for “Kodak moments,” offered suggestions when appropriate, and was very easy and relaxed to work with. All while being very professional. My husband and I are camera shy, but Heather made us feel comfortable and has produced pictures that we can’t stop looking at! We couldn’t be more happy with Heather and our pictures!”
i have photographed many jewish weddings and many christian/jewish “combo” weddings. this particular wedding brought together a catholic bride and jewish groom. it is always interesting to see friends and familiy being introduced to new traditions, especially the horah.
update august 24, 2009, the bride jill writes:
“Heather photographed our wedding in July, and we were really happy with the results. Her photographs truly captured the day, from makeup application to dancing. In looking for a photographer, we wanted someone who would document everything beautifully, but we didn’t want to pay an arm and a leg. We were also looking for a little style and creativity; we didn’t want just stuffy posed shots. Heather and her assistant were the perfect choice for us. Their style is modern, fun, creative, but they also do the group shots that you want.
Since we received the link to the online gallery, we’ve been getting rave reviews of the photos from family and friends. My uncle, in particular, was really impressed. He emailed me: “Without question those are the best pictures of a wedding I have ever seen. Incredible job.” One of my friends thought the photos looked like those you’d find in a magazine. It was the perfect ending to our wedding experience to get such amazing photos to reflect our day.
We were also really happy with our communication with Heather prior to the wedding. Since we live on the west coast, we were unable to meet with her before the big day. She tended to be super fast at replying to our emails, though, which comforted us and made us more confident that we were being listened to and were being taken care of.”
i had a ton of fun shooting sara and andy’s beach wedding. during their ceremony (and of course during the important moments) the rain began to fall. it soon cleared up and we took a few photos along the water before making our way to the reception venue. as i am working on editing a ton of weddings, here are just a few teasers followed by a link to some more photographs.
charlotte purchased adorable containers for the wedding rings which were enscribed with to have and to hold.
the bride’s mother watched over over the groom during some lighthearted games
the groom answered questions regarding his new bride
mike and char were a very easy-going couple – they joked around a lot and had a blast all day!
two families came together during a tea ceremony overlooking famous michigan avenue. they had one of the best hotel suites i have ever photographed in.
charlotte takes tea to present to the families.
i heard someone mutter that some of the tea had some wasabi in it!
the groom leaves the room before the bride changes into a white wedding gown.
simple bouquet of flowers to match a simple elegant dress.
the groom waits in the hotel lobby for a scheduled “first look” as the bride descended down a grand glowing staircase.
we took a limo to museum campus and played a little game of trust over lake michigan.
the chicago skyline is in the distance as the groom holds on tight to his bride.
charlotte forgot the 
the groom looked dapper don’t you think?
the groom looked dapper, don’t you think?
we wrapped up our 90 minute photo shoot by heading back to michigan ave and the bride and groom were cuffed by a chicago cop (all in good fun of course!).
the newlyweds had beautiful rings which i photographed on the stem of a tulip.
cocktail hour…
what a cute nephew and a proud father!
here are some of the wedding reception details including favors, cupcake centerpieces, and an overall theme of red – the color of happiness.
and a toast…
and a cake cutting and a cake smoosh followed by a smooch.
guests seemed to be having a great time
charlotte’s matron of honor was just as fun as she, and raised the bar on the dancefloor getting everyone going!
the bride and groom were a very fun laid-back couple to work with, and definitely know how to throw a party!
