Charley & Cristina
Newport Yachting Center, Newport, Rhode Island
August 8th, 2014*
When you think of Rhode Island, what comes to mind? If you're from here, it's Del's Lemonade, hot wieners and the ocean. And that's with good reason as we're blessed with some of the most breathetaking views of the water in this country.
That's why I was so excited to shoot the wedding of Charley and Cristina this past August at the Newport Yachting Center. While I've attended standup comedy shows there in the past, this was my first chance to shoot a formal event at the location.
It was worth the wait.
I knew right from the start of this wedding that it was going to be one heck of a day as the sun was beaming down and the only thing brighter were the smiles of the bride and groom. It didn't hurt that we were right on the edge of the water and the view was magnificient, of course. In fact, pretty much from the moment I walked in I was just counting down the time to the formal photos as I knew they would be something special. I was not wrong.
Charley and Cristina had a beautiful ceremony but due to the crazy harsh sun, I found myself primarily shooting from an angle where I could focus on the groom. Normally, this hampers me a bit but working with an awesome lead photographer, I was able to just keep my eyes on Charley and he did not disappoint. It was evident right from the start how much this moment meant to him and to see the look of love on his eyes and in his smile was one of my favorite wedding moments from 2014.
What I loved the most about Charley and Cristina is that their excitement leapt to another level once their vows were over. Perhaps moreso than any couple I shot this year, these two only seemed to get MORE excited after their ceremony. Here, I caught a great candid moment of them looking at their rings for the first time side by side. It was like watching two people stare in disbelief and amazement and this stands as one of my favorite wedding photos of 2014 because of it.
Remember when I said I was looking forward to Charley and Cristina's formal photos? I wasn't lying. Even though I was the second photographer and couldn't quite get the angles I wanted to, I still ended up with some great ones next to Cristina's uncle's yacht and, if nothing else, the views alone were worth it. Definitely one of the nicest backdrops I've seen for formal photos.
What I especially loved about Charley and Cristina's wedding was that, once the music started, the two went all out on the dance floor. Even though they had a longer-than-average reception, they made use of every minute and were partying right up until the final few minutes without ever missing a beat.
Overall, Charley and Cristina's wedding was an absolute blast, capped off by a beautiful night by the water with the Newport bridge in the background. I learned a lot during this wedding, none moreso than the fact that if I had to get married again, it would be hard to find a more serene and peaceful venue to hold it at than the Newport Yachting Center.
-PJS
* These photos were taken as part of my work for George Street Photography and are presented here strictly for portfolio/display purposes.