A Sweet Elopement at Fort Tryon Park Amidst the Corona Virus Pandemic

The corona virus pandemic took NYC by storm. By mid march, everything was shut down- restaurants, bars, companies were all working remote and all services were all on halt- including all nyc wedding photographers and the New York City Hall Wedding Bureau!! Everything just froze in time… and it seemed that no one would be getting married in nyc anytime soon. It was a time of so much uncertainty. But we overcame!!! NYC took precautions, played it safe and we started to flatten the curve! By late June, we were already in Phase 2 of re-opening- which meant: NYC weddings + photography were allowed to happen!!! (IN SMALL GROUPS while practicing social distancing and mask-wearing! :D) …. And I got SO lucky to meet Minji & Don! They wanted to have their intimate ceremony at Fort Tryon Park on the Upper West Side of New York City. It was going to be a small little group and they would have a camera set up to broadcast to more friends & family via zoom. It was a SUPER sweet ceremony. Beautiful music (played off a speaker by a close friend) and some heart warming speeches to their parents. I loved the way Don looked so lovingly at Minji at all moments of the ceremony and I loved that I was able to capture this sweet, sweet moment in time!! I am so thankful to have been part of this celebration- it was more of a blessing to myself more than I think even Minji & Don realized! I was separated from my craft— my passion—my joy and source of creativity for months without any real hope or idea of what would happen next— so be able to photograph this wedding brought me BACK TO LIFE!!! I am so thankful for the opportunity to continue to do what I love in this great city. I know we’re not through this pandemic yet— but I am thankful that with proper care and guidelines we can have these moments again.

And with that… I will share with you guys some of my favorite shots from their session!

Why Elopements Are the Way to Get Married in NYC!!

Why Elopements Are THE Way to Get Married in NYC!!

( ...especially Now During the Covid-19 Pandemic!! )

LESS IS MORE!

I know that the corona virus has changed our lives completely in the last few months. It’s changed the way we see people, meet people, view people, embrace people, socialize with people. It’s changed the way we find entertainment, how we travel and even how we eat! And it’s trickled into every industry and has hit many of us hard. One particular place it’s hit pretty hard is the wedding industry. People are more apprehensive now to have big crazy parties with all their friends and families. So with that, we have to adapt.

I think those weddings are awesome and hopefully we will be back to that in the near future.. but as times are changing, you may also have to be up for a slight change! So if you’re up for it, having an elopement is a great idea! In fact, even before Covid-19, I’ve been photographing a lot of elopements! A lot of couples I know choose to have an intimate small elopement ceremony and still have another big reception party a little afterwards! If you’re trying to figure out what to do right now, or on the fence about elopements, I decided to sum up a few perks as to why elopements are a GREAT direction to go!!

1. Save Money….

You can also spend a little more on the parts for the elopement that will last and that matter most to YOU! For instance your WEDDING photos!! :D (But for real, wedding photos last forever… not anything else) But also if you want that beautiful BHLDN dress that you’ve been thinking about forever, those Cartier specialty rings, that DELICIOUS Taste Creme Cake, or that kick ass Fox Fodder Farm bouquet … GET IT… because you have the cash flow —instead of having it all tied up in a reception venue deposit! Best part, you don’t even need to share the cake : )

But, if you choose to have an intimate elopement ceremony before the big reception party, you can also buy some time to….

2. Save Up for a BIGGER Party Later!

You can save up for that amazing restaurant or dream venue (Hello, Blue Hill At Stone Barns), enjoy the food AND have that crazy dance party when the time is PERFECT! It’ll be even more fun because you don’t have to stress about the ceremony or any thing else! Just about enjoying yourself with your friends, family and guests— eating, drinking and dancing!

3. Less Headaches or Deadlines

With a small intimate elopement ceremony, you don’t need to think about sending out save the dates, invitations, RSVPS, or venue deposits. Just call and text your closest people, tell them when and where to show up and you just show up too. :)

4.  More Time for Photography

This is honestly KEY. With an smaller and quieter ceremony, you’ll be able to have a much more laid back portrait session! Most large weddings have time constraints on photography since we’re always trying to rush back in time to the guests and the party schedule. But having a small elopement allows you to slow down and ease into more getting comfortable in front of the camera and allowing your photographer (hopefully it’s me hehe!) to get some amazing intimate portraits of you two. You can even schedule to go to more locations around NYC since there are less people out and about!

5. Less Traffic

This may seem like a silly thing to list… but in New York City, not having to sit in traffic is like a DREAM. Being able to get yourself and your close peoples to the right place at the right time will be much easier and also less headache. The less people you have to move around and plan for, the easier!

6. Zoom-Able to Meet in New York City

You can now just easily live-stream your wedding either via facebook, instagram, zoom, google meets- whatever!— so that those near and far can tune in on the festivities! Right in their pajamas! (You could also make them dress up- the fun is up to you!!) But it’s awesome because you can bring EVERYONE from all over the world to your intimate ceremony in New York City!

And last but not least…

7. Full Focus on Each Other

With all those 10,048,584,449 things out of the way when planning big weddings, you can truly SEE your significant other clearly and soak in every moment of your intimate ceremony. With less distractions, less things to stress over, less things to think about— you can truly remember WHY you’re marrying the person next to you and enjoy each other’s vows, I DO’s and first kiss! It really is an amazing way to start the next chapter in your life!

I hope you all enjoyed this post and are a little more open to the idea of elopements in new york city!! If you’re interested in learning more about NYC City Hall Elopements or just checking out some elopement inspiration, here are some great links:

I "Zoomed" into this Virtual Wedding during the Covid-19 Pandemic in NYC

I attended my first ZOOM wedding!! Congrats to Michelle and Adrian!!! I am so freaking happy for these two. They've been hit with a lot of obstacles these past few months, but have remained so optimistic and strong. Michelle has been working through the Covid-19 pandemic as a PA in a Queens hospital--had to cancel her bachelorette and wedding plans-- yet still worked her hardest in the front lines-- going ABOVE and beyond for patients, friends and family. I LOVE that Adrian has been there with her, supporting her and loving on her and LETTING HER BE BETTER. (And him too 😂) shoutout also to her kickass mom, who is also working extra hard, running a Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Flushing that was hit hard by Covid-19. I am so thankful that even throughout all of this, her and Adrian are able to have this tender happy moment to celebrate their marriage with close friends and family. Even though we weren't physically in the same room, the emotion and love was PALPABLE. There were many, many tears of joy during this ceremony and again, so so freaking thankful that they were able to have this moment. They even had their best man and maid of honor give beautiful speeches! These are the types of POSITIVE moments we need during these dark times!!!

When this quarantine is over, we’ll finally get to hung, celebrate and eat cake (HEHE) together— and it will be EVEN MORE JOYOUS AND EXCITING!!!! 🎉

Michelle also delivered each of us petite cakes from Taste Creme and shot glasses so we could celebrate with them right after the ceremony!