Patti and Steve… where do I even begin? First of all, Masso’s Crystal Manor was the most amazing venue! I loved it there and the two of you are such a beautiful couple. It’s not everyday that you see as much love in someones eyes, as I did on your day! The way you two hold hands, the way you glance at eachother from across the room, the way you smash cake in one anothers face. (haha). You two honestly did marry your best friend. Some people go years without finding their true love, and you two, have got it! Hang on tight, and never let go!

Masso’s Crystal Manor is such a beautiful place. I hadn’t heard of it before your wedding, I even got lost! I kept thinking I was passing a bakery or something, but no, it was the venue! I drove into a parking lot, and didn’t know where to go, thankfully I saw the mother of the bride and she helped me find my way. When I turned the corner, I was shocked to see a fully shaded BEAUTIFUL waterfall garden! WOW! I couldn’t believe my eyes. This gem is hiding in South Jersey! People give our state a lot of grief, but New Jersey has some GORGEOUS locations! This, is just one of them, and I am so glad I was able to shoot here, and document this perfect wedding!

Take a loot at this wedding, and how truly amazing it was! If you’re looking for a gorgeous wedding venue with a waterfall behind you as you married your love, than look check out Masso’s Crystal Manor! Congrats you two and thank you again for trusting me with your memories!

xoxo,
Lauren

I love Philadelphia. Everything about this city makes me smile. On this particular engagement session, things were happening everywhere! It was a sunrise session so the city was just waking up! It was full of fresh flowers and fruit, an outside market was setting up for their day, and I was just in awe. Living in Southern New Jersey, we see a lot of things, but being in the city is just so exciting! I spend my time with this couple, walking around the city, enjoying the sights, stopping to smell the flowers, taking everything in and just making a wonderful experience of the days activities!

So In love with these images, and can’t wait to go back to Philadelphia!

On my wedding day, we trusted our photos to amazing photographers, who I am so proud to say are dear friends of mine. Looking back at the pictures, I KNOW I made the right decision in hiring them. I want everyone to know and understand that choosing a wedding photographer isn’t just about pretty pictures. It’s so much more than that. It’s knowing who is taking your pictures, and understanding what goes into it. There is a lot of planning on a photographers end because they want your day to be captured the way you want it to be. I spoke to my photographers all the time, up until our wedding day. They knew what I liked, They knew what was most important to me, and they were able to translate all of my crazy, into the most memorable thing I could have ever dreamed of.

I have a few tips on finding the right photographer.

1. DO YOUR RESEARCH: 

In this day and age we have something so amazing and right in our fingertips! THE INTERNET! I am talking about Google, pinterest, Facebook, the knot, etc. Go look at different photographers in your area and look at their work. Look at reviews. Read about them; Google their names. Ask your friends! Finding out as much as you can on a photographer is a great start to finding out if you will like them or not! It’s very important that you like your photographer; you will be spending a lot of time with them!

2. EMAIL OR CALL:

Don’t just sit around and look at photographers. You’re engaged; take some action! Email them or call them! If you email a photographer, expect an email back. If you call them, expect a phone call back. The reason for this, is that they don’t (or at least I don’t) want to bother you. If you emailed me, maybe you don’t like talking on the phone. If you call me maybe you hate emailing. I want to respect that by returning my correspondence the same way you reached out to me. It’s important to make contact because you can then begin to ask questions. If price is your main concern, yes absolutely ask for pricing. If you want to know if they’re available because you love them, yes ask this too! Anything goes ladies, but it all starts by making contact.

3. SCHEDULE A CONSULTATION: 

THEY’RE FREE! Schedule a meeting with a photographer. How will you know if you really like them if you don’t meet with them? Photographers are nice! They want to talk to you, show you albums, and answer all of your questions (because YOU HAVE A TON, we know this, and we’re ready with answers!)

4. TAKE IT ALL IN:

Take everything you’ve learned from that photographer in, take notes if you need to, and talk to someone else! You may LOVE the photographer you met with – but are they the ONE? You want to be certain! There may be a ton of deciding factors. Were they less expensive? Were their photos SOOO much clearer, nicer, more your style? Were they just so down to earth that you wanted to be their BESTIE? Seriously lol, all jokes aside, make a solid decision because your photographer is going to be capturing the most important day of your life!

5. BOOK THEM!

This is the last step but its the most important one of all! If you find a photographer you love, you should book them! Wedding dates fill up SO FAST, and if you take too long to think if they’re the right photographer for you, someone else may take your day. It is so sad, but it’s happened before and it will happen again! Make a decision, and go with your gut! Once you book your photographer, things start to look up!

I hope this information helped you ladies! (And Gent’s) If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask, and yes, I love consultations! So please email me and we can definitely go out for some coffee (MY treat!)

Email: Lauren@bokehlovephotography.net