Being a New York City bridal photographer is a title I honor and cherich. My love and appreciation of New York City is showcased in this sunrise chic and minimalist bridal session in Central Park. I collaborated on the shoot my friend and destination wedding and event planner, Jasmine from Vivid Vibes Event Planning. We planned the session with simple, elegant details and played off the nature and beauty of Central Park before sunrise.

Planning a New York City Bridal Photography session

For those of us who love clean lines, minimalism is a way of life. But just because it’s simple that doesn’t mean it can’t be organic and luxurious. For this minimalist bridal session, we showcased a bride that wants to be feminine and yet look strong, independent, and current. Although sometimes minimalism can translate poorly. If the design isn’t carefully curated, it could just look simple. Or even worse, cheap! But the key to quality minimalism is using quality products. Like flowers.

Always, at every shoot I do I know that the flowers will make the difference. Through lots of Instagram searching, Jasmine found Amanda. Asking her if she would want to team up with a New York City Bridal photographer, we got her on board. Amanda, who is from Studio Imbue, designed florals that perfectly blended into the natural flora and fauna of the city; meant to look like they were growing out of the cracks of the NYC pavement. The end result was effortlessly chic.

As mentioned in past bridal sessions, these can be my favorite photoshoots. It’s easier to grab a bride/model, an amazing bouquet of flowers and show up early to a location. Most importantly, scouting a location like Central Park in New York is key and important to the success of a shoot like this.

Minimalist Bridal Session Vendors

Photographer Bonnie Sen Photography

Wedding Planner Vivid Vibes Event Planning

Planning Florals Studio Imbue

Wedding Dress Sarah Seven

Model Mariah Scott

Film Lab Goodman Film Lab

Details were king at this modern wedding at The LINE in Washington DC. Our bride Jennifer admits “no detail was too small for me to think about. I knew that the details mattered to me, even if they wouldn’t be noticeable by everyone in the end.” As photographers we could not be more happy with Jen’s state of mind! As a result this minimalist wedding was chock full of gorgeous details to capture.

Jay proposed to Jen at the base of the Washington Monument. As the planning began the couple landed on The LINE for their I dos even before the hotel opened. Uniquely, the LINE is not your traditional hotel ballroom but a historic church converted to a modern hotel. Details like the organ turned in to a chandelier and pews used as seating create a space unlike anywhere else. Not to mention breathtaking views from the rooftop of the Washington Monument which created such a special full circle first look for J&J.

Personal and Thoughtful Details

Jen and Jay worked person touches all throughout the wedding celebration to honor both their love and they city they love together. For instance the meal and bar featured ingredients and spirts from local providers. Correspondingly, one of the specialty cocktails was a recreation of a family punch recipe. Also, as a nod to history Jen had her wedding dress customized with a pearl button from her grandmother. Also, the couple’s dog, Panda, served as the “dog of honor” walking down the aisle with the best man.

Jen initially didn’t want any flowers for the dinner tables. Jen’s planner and florist, Julie of Kruse & Vieira, convinced her that a few simple arrangements of roses and greenery would be elegant and modern. Furthermore Julie and Jen designed the tablescape to be minimal allowing for the family style meal to be served.

Finally, the table numbers were based on the four letter park codes assigned to each National Park by the National Park Service. Not only did the groom work for the NPS, but the bride and her late father spent a lot of time hiking in National Parks. Furthermore the ode to the National Parks continued with vintage parks postcards on the tables and a donation to the National Park Service made in lieu of favors in memory of bride’s dad. 

See much more of this modern wedding featured on Brides.com.

Modern Wedding Vendors

Ceremony & Reception Site: The LINE DC

Planner & Floral Design: Kruse & Vieira Events

Officiant: Jeffrey Schwartz

Bride’s Dress: Floravere 

Bride’s Veil: Tania Maras 

Alterations: Cheryl Lofton & Associates 

Bride’s Jewelry: BLHDN, Giantlion

Bride’s Shoes: Stuart Weitzman 

Bridesmaid Dresses: BLHDN

Groom’s Attire: Ezra Paul Clothing 

Groom’s Barber: Max Men DC 

Flower Girl Attire: Ava & Yelly, Nordstrom

Rings: Tiffany & Co

Stationery: Minted 

Guest Book: Ansel Adams 

Music: Mixing Maryland 

Catering: The LINE DC 

Cake: Buttercream Bakery

This Indian elopement is a partnership with Nisha of Bridelan, an Indian styling company. We went on a Calcutta trail. Partly to rediscover my and Nisha’s roots. And partly to bring the Calcutta of our collective consciousness to the contemporary lens.

To say nothing of the natural surroundings setting the scene. The flowers growing on the property grounds were the main floral feature. We loved being able to incorporate these local flowers.

Indian Elopement Inspiration

Bengali life is full of nostalgia. And therefore we aimed to capture this element in our shoot. Ultimately we took our inspiration from the venue, the Raj Bari, a historic elite mansion turned luxury hotel. The venue is located on the outskirts of Calcutta. Additionally, the venue is a great example of western-influenced Indian architecture. As a result, we love the combination of the two.

Along those lines, we styled two bridal looks for the elopement. Firstly we have an elegant lace gown by Naeem Khan, who has the ability to bridge cultures in an elegant and understated way. Secondly we had to have a look is by Sabyasachi, India’s most famous bridal designer. In India, brides from Bengal traditionally wear red for the Hindu ceremony. However, in a departure, we kept it white. Our inspiration was the white wedding dress made in Indian style, paired with red accents of Bengal.

Equally important, the florals were simple. And pulled inspiration from the colors of the environment. Bright fuchsia greeted guests in the main hall of the Bari. Then we used those colors to create the tablescape and ceremony backdrop. Additionally, the cake design was inspired by the celebration of the most important goddess to Hindy locals, Durga. The minimalist cake design by the Rogue Cafe was, as with the rest of the shoot, a beautiful blend of cultures. 

See more of this Indian elopement and read more of our inspiration for the shoot on Style Me Pretty.

Indian Elopement Vendors:

Photographer Bonnie Sen Photography Film Fuji Film Styling & Creative Direction Bridelan Florist Orchid Garden Banquet Cake Rogue Cafe Jewelry Raniwala Hair & Makeup Bhavani Kumar Calligrapher Bawa Studios Venue The Rajbari Bawali Video Devang Vyas Film Scanning Goodman Film Lab Creative Consulting Linda Ha Wardrobe Naeem Khan Paper Goods Niru & Baku Wardrobe Sabyasachi Producer Shaikh Ayaz, Sinaya Khan and Tom Milavec

New York City Engagement sessions will always be my favorite. Ever since I went to high school in upstate New York (Hyde Park to be exact) I have loved returning to the city whenever possible. Often we have couples who are getting married somewhere other than their current place of residence. And in this case, they will request for us to travel to their current location. This is a great way to celebrate both locations, where you live and where you’re from. Of course, it’s always exciting for us because we get to explore a new place. In great, great detail.

In the city that never sleeps, there are very few things worth waking up at dawn. Rachel and Jon’s NYC engagement shoot was one of them. New York City Engagement photos have so many opportunities for an active backdrop. Although Central Park and SoHo have been popular for us in the past few trips, I can think of many other places to shoot. I’d love to shoot in Chinatown, at the new Whitney, the Highline (again), and of course the MOMA or the Met, two of my favorite places.

We will be shooting Rachel and Jon’s wedding this November at the St. Regis in DC. The pair lives on the Upper West Side so we headed up for a NYC engagement shoot. We love capturing our couples in the cities where they have built a life together.

We started the day at sunrise with the classic Bethesda Terrace in Central Park. The gorgeous morning light and early hours free of tourists made for one of those magical NYC moments only true New Yorkers get to experience. After a quick outfit change to a second Rent the Runway look, we ventured to SoHo to finish off the day.

It is no secret that my husband Tom and I love all things architecture.So when we met this adorable couple, with an architect groom, we knew it was a match made on a blueprint. Hayley and John are getting married later this year in Annapolis but for their destination engagement shoot we headed north to Rhode Island.

Second only to architecture is our love for travel so we love a destination engagement shoot. We absolutely love visiting Newport, Rhode Island and will be back soon. It is impossible to not feel like you are in a Diane Keaton movie as you stroll along the beach and staring up at the stunning houses. If only I hadn’t left my perfect cream turtleneck at home!

Planning is important when planning a destination engagement photo shoot or session. Lots of research. We start with scouting the location via google maps. Then we look for any weather information available. Finally, we always look for places we can go sightseeing for context images. Read this blog post about planning a destination engagement session

We will be back near the water in September as these two tie the knot with the help of Strawberry Milk Events. And can’t wait to get these two behind the camera again.