2013 was a great year! Thank you to all the wonderful couples I worked with these past 12 months. It was an honor to be part of so many beautiful weddings.

This year I reached a lot of goals. I photographed my 100th wedding. I was honored to be published on Style Me Pretty, Wedding Chicks, and many other lovely wedding blogs. I hit 1,000 fans on Facebook. I photographed weddings at some beautiful locations including the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, The W Union Square, and The Manhattan Penthouse. I photographed my first Orthodox Jewish wedding and my first Cambodian wedding. I was honored to receive the Best of Weddings 2014 award from the Knot for the fourth consecutive year.

Personally, this year has been full of happiness, bringing my puppy Josie home in February and celebrating my 30th birthday. It has also been a scary one as I watched my husband, Eric, break his leg in a boating accident that required emergency surgery over the summer. He had a titanium rod installed in his femur and we now call him Superman, the Man of Steel. He is still going to physical therapy, but he is doing great! We just celebrated Christmas with our families in Maryland and Virginia and are looking forward to no broken bones in 2014.

2014 looks exciting! I have 14 weddings booked so far, including weddings at some locations I have been so excited to capture: The Foundry in Long Island City, 501 Union, the Green Building, and a yacht circling Manhattan, and I will be traveling for a wedding in North Carolina.

To everyone, and especially for those of you celebrating your first holiday season as a married couple, I wish you lots of JOY and LOVE!

Happy New Year!

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Lauren and Christian came all the way from Germany to get married in NYC at City Hall.

Lauren began getting ready for the day at the beautiful Warwick Hotel.

nyc wedding elopement photography warwick hotel

nyc wedding elopement photography warwick hotel

nyc wedding elopement photography warwick hotel

Everyone got into a limo and made their way down to City Hall for the ceremony.

nyc wedding elopement photography city hall

City hall wedding NYC

City hall wedding NYC

City hall wedding NYC elopement

Wedding photography Love sculpture NYC

City hall wedding NYC central park

Married! Congratulations to the happy couple!

Wedding NYC central park

Wedding NYC central park winter snow

Wedding NYC central park winter

Wedding NYC central park winter snow

The celebration kept on going at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Columbus Circle for a wedding toast and brunch.

Wedding NYC

Mandarin Oriental Hotel Wedding NYC wedding photography

Mandarin Oriental Hotel Wedding NYC wedding

Congratulations Lauren and Christian!

Taneshia and Earl were married on a beautiful, brisk October day in the Poconos.

Wedding Photography

Taneshia wore gorgeous sparkly Badgley Mischkas!

badgley mischka sparkly bridal wedding shoes

Calla Lily bouquet pink and purple

Poconos Wedding photography Pennsylvania

Taneshia and Earl had many favorite moments of the wedding day. She shares, “We both loved the first look. I was sooooo anxious beforehand and seeing Earl made me feel so calm, plus this was the only real alone time we got to spend together during the day.”

Poconos Wedding photography Pennsylvania

Poconos wedding

Poconos wedding

Poconos Wedding Photography

Poconos Wedding photography Pennsylvania

Poconos Wedding photography Pennsylvania

Wedding Poconos

The ceremony was held outdoors of the Stroudsmoor Country Inn with a fabulous view of the Pocono Mountains.

Poconos Wedding photography Pennsylvania

Stroudsmoor Country Inn Wedding Cake photography

Taneshia describes her wedding as  “a ceremony full of love that was uniquely us and a reception where everyone can come together, celebrate our love and have a great time!!!”

Poconos Wedding Stroudsmoor

Husband and wife!

Poconos wedding

Sunset Poconos Mountains

Poconos Wedding Chalkboard menu

Taneshia continues, “Our all-time favorite moments were when we entered the reception and were announced as Mr. and Mrs. and the crazy bouquet toss/battle.” Taneshia’s bouquet toss was one of the wildest I have ever seen. A few girls ended up on the floor!

Wedding Poconos

Wedding first dance

Stroudsmoor Country Inn Wedding Cake photography

Wedding cake photography

Congratulations Taneshia and Earl!

For more photos check out the slideshow:


Also check out their wedding photo booth here!

Special thanks to all the Vendors:
Venue: Stroudsmoor Country Inn
Coordinator: The Stroudsmoor’s Cathleen Fillman
Officiant: Suzanne Wilson, Journeys of the Heart
Cake: Stroudsmoor Inn Towne
DJ/Band: DJ Nix in the Mix
Florist: The Village Common at Stroudsmoor
Makeup: Stroudsmoor Spa and Bridal Studio
Rings: K. Scott Jewelers
Bride’s Dress: Mori Lee, Irini’s Originals
Bride’s Shoes: Badgley Mischka
Jewelry: Swarvoski
Bridesmaid Dresses: Irini’s Originals
Groom and Groomsmen’s Suits: Men’s Wearhouse
Videographers: Willow Tree Films
Slideshow Song: Where Do We Go by John Lengend
Photography: Jessica Schmitt and Eric Swartz

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Lauren and Todd had a modern, elegant, and very fun wedding at the W Union Square Hotel.

The W hotel Union Square Wedding suite

New York book wedding photography

Union Square view NYC

bride getting ready

groom getting ready

Classic black and white new york invitation

They both got ready in rooms at the W and then met for the first look in Union Square.

Union Square Wedding NYC

Todd’s favorite moment from the wedding day was right after the first look, “Before the first look Lauren was the bride and I was the groom, but once that was all done, we were just Todd and Lauren again.  Everything was normal and I knew the rest of the day would go off without a hitch because even in our wedding attire, we were still ourselves.”

Union Square Wedding NYC

Union Square Subwau station Wedding NYC

W Union Square Hotel Wedding NYC taxi

W Union Square Hotel Wedding NYC

Todd shares, “Lauren and I met at the New York Sports Club on 15th and Irving. She taught the Monday evening spinning class, which I dutifully attended each week. After months of small talk and flirting before and after class, Lauren mentioned to me that she was teaching on the Upper West side that weekend, so I trekked from Brooklyn to the UWS early on a Sunday to be there. After class we grabbed some breakfast, which finally gave me the courage to ask her on a real date. The rest is history.”
bride and groom NYCS
“I moved to LA in November 2010 and Lauren followed in February of 2012, but we will always be New Yorkers at heart. During the 1 year plus that we were doing long distance, the Ferris wheel at the Santa Monica Pier was always our safe place. The place we went just to forget about the fact that we lived 3,000 miles away from each other and have fun. So that is where I proposed.”
Union Square Wedding photography

Union Square NYC wedding photography

Lauren and Todd stopped to share an iced coffee at the hotel’s Todd English Bar, Olives, just before the ceremony.

Todd English bar Olives Union Square

W Union Square Hotel Wedding NYC

Todd and Lauren designed their wedding with one goal in mind:  for everybody to have fun. Todd continues, “We designed our wedding so WE could enjoy it.  This was our big night out in NYC and our chance to show our friends from all over the world–Los Angeles, New York, Hong Kong, Detroit, and Cleveland–how we throw a party. We figured if we were having fun, everybody else would feed off of us.

“We aimed to keep the mood light the whole way through, from our bridal party entrance music (I walked down to the Hulk Hogan theme!) to our joking around during the ceremony… we made sure to enjoy every moment.  The goal was to be classically Manhattan without being pretentious.  For this, the W was the perfect choice as the room had the beautiful gold ceiling while the rest of the hotel had a very modern feel.”

The W Union Square Wedding photography NYC

The W Union Square hotel Wedding photography NY

W Union Square Hotel Wedding photography

W Union Square Hotel Wedding Ballroom Photography

The FUN continued right into the reception.

W Union Square Hotel Wedding Ballroom Photography

Hora Jewish wedding dance photography

W Union Square Hotel Wedding Ballroom Photography

W Union Square Hotel event reception

Union Square NYC White wedding cake with flowers

Congratulations Lauren and Todd!

For more photos check out the slideshow:

Special thanks to all the vendors:
Venue: W Union Square
Officiant: Rev. Annie Lawrence
Florist: Greenworks
DJ: Star Talent DJ
Cake: Provided by the W Hotel
Groom’s Suit Designer: J. Crew
Groomsmen Suits: TheBlackTux.com
Engagement Ring: Custom-designed
Bridesmaids’ Blue Bracelets: Made by Lauren!

Invitation: Vera Wang
Slideshow song: Nothing Here But Love by Lenka
Photography: Jessica Schmitt Photography with Eric Swartz and Brandi Toole

Mallory and Dale were married on a warm October day in Georgetown, Washington D.C.

The day began with preparations in a suite at the Ritz-Carlton, Georgetown.

Wedding Photography Georgetown Washington DC

Mallory’s mom and sister helped her get ready. Mallory, your dress is GORGEOUS!

Wedding suite in Georgetown Ritz Carlton bride getting ready

Fall wedding invitation purple and orange

Mallory and Dale shared a first look––seeing each other before the ceremony. It was so sweet! Then we went straight into portraits all around the beautiful, historic Grace Church.

First look bride and groom wedding

Grace Church, Wedding Photography Georgetown, Washington DC

Wedding at Grace Church, Georgetown, Washington DC

beautiful wedding photography, washington dc

Wedding Photography Ritz Carlton Georgetown, Washington DC

Wedding Photography Georgetown, Washington DC

Wedding Photography Georgetown, Washington DC

Mallory shares, “You can’t take a wedding too seriously, so to complement our formal attire, I wore bright green heels and Dale sported funky socks.”

Wedding green shoes and crazy fun socks

Wedding autumn colors orange and purple

Wedding Bridal Party celebration cheering

Grace Church Wedding Photography Georgetown, Washington DC.

Wedding Bridesmaids wearing purple fall colors

Groomsmen with green and purple ties

Grace Church Wedding Photography Georgetown, Washington DC

Church with red doors, Wedding Photography Georgetown, Washington DC

Grace Church Wedding Photography Georgetown, Washington DC

Grace Church Wedding Photography Georgetown, Washington DC

Mallory tells me, “Our wedding was perfect. To have all of our friends and family in one place, many traveling thousands of miles to be with us, was incredibly special. It meant the world to us to have everyone there.”

Dale’s brother, Ben, played the cello during the ceremony and Tim, his youngest brother, joined the band at the reception and playing the bass.

Grace Church Wedding Photography Georgetown, Washington DC

This might be my favorite photo from the day! Immediately following the ceremony Mallory and Dale recessed down the aisle and exited the church through the big red front doors. There is no denying, they were so happy to be married!

Wedding Grace Church

I also love the emotion in this photo of Dale picking up his bride and spinning her around!

Unusual artistic wedding photography motion blur

Mallory shares, “My favorite moment from the wedding was after the ceremony, after the photos, when Dale and I snuck up to the reception room during the cocktail hour to check out the decor and have a cocktail before heading down to cocktails with everyone else. We had ten minutes to stop, take it all in, practice our first dance, and realize how incredibly lucky we are. It was the perfect moment.”

The reception was held in the ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton.

Ritz Carlton Wedding Photography, Georgetown, Washington DC.

Ritz Carlton Wedding reception Photography, Georgetown, Washington DC.

DIY burlap stamp wedding escort name cards brown

Ritz Carlton Washington DC

Dancing Ritz Carlton Washington DC

Bemcha, a Latin jazz ensemble, played throughout the reception. They were fantastic and added a unique and fun flair to the dance floor.

Mallory’s mom made these adorable owl cake toppers, that commemorated their college mascot.

Wedding cake with cute owl topper

Congratulations Mallory and Dale!

For more photos check out the slideshow:

Special thanks to all the vendors:
Venues: Grace Church and Ritz-Carlton, Georgetown
Officiant: Rev. Matthew E. Davis, Lamington Presbyterian Church
Band: Bemcha
Florist: Greenworks
Invitations: Paper Patch by Beth, Tucson, AZ
Hair: David Rios Salon, Georgetown
Rings: Tiffany & Co.
Bride’s Dress: Pronovias, Gigi’s Bridal Boutique, Tucson, AZ
Groom’s Tie: Charles Tyrwhitt 
Slideshow song: Venice by The Lighthouse and the Whaler
Photography: Jessica Schmitt 

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