Jan 24 2025

Buffalo History Museum Wedding

Heather and JJ created an atmosphere that was romantic, formal and fifty shades of fun for their Buffalo History Museum wedding. It had to be the darkest, dreariest of all fall days, but the vibes were nothing but elegant and cozy inside the museum.

Speaking of vibes, on three separate occasions in recent weeks, the topic of “atmosphere” came up with prospective wedding clients. One couple, both architects, mentioned that one thing that set my work apart for them was the attention to the ambiance of the entire scene, not just the action of the couple. They specifically cited another photographers work whose first dance images were great action shots, but had the dj and their speakers loud and proud in the background, rather than the architecture and guests.

<Gasp>

After I got over their delightful level of visual literacy, I reflected on this and first thought about the way I approach lighting a space. I always mention to couples that they’ll spend a ton of time thinking about the mood of their wedding, from the colors to the lighting to the florals, etc. I want those sensory elements to be felt in the pictures. I’m not going to walk in to a candle lit reception with a bunch of my own lighting and completely change the scene. Just as I’m not going to slap a cheap filter on to your timeless heirlooms. I’m will honor the vibe you’ve thoughtfully created and only enhance the scene with my lighting and editing wizardry.

It also got me thinking about framing. When this couple mentioned how the first dance pictures framed the couple beautifully within the architecture my thought was, “but of course!” It feels like common sense to me. I forget how much I’m truly considering with every picture I make. But one of my favorite things about being a wedding photographer is walking in to a space and seeing a giant puzzle for me to solve. Great wedding photographers have to be great all around photographers. From still lifes to portraits to candid moments to landscapes and architecture, the good ones can do it all really well. And moreover, they can do it FAST under pressure. It’s NOT fun for most photographers. It’s VERY fun for good wedding photographers.

Enough words on atmosphere. Let’s SEE the photography from the gorgeous scene Heather and JJ created for their wedding day.

But first, a few from their family homes where they got ready. Heather put on her dress in her childhood room! How special is that?

Given our rough weather day, the cover of the portico at the Buffalo History Museum was a savior. We were able to utilize the space for the first look and all of the portraits. A few puddles were about our only concern.

The original location for Heather and JJ’s wedding ceremony was the gorgeous lawn of the Buffalo History Museum. Unfortunately, the bad weather confined us to the Portico Gallery… which is basically a nice basement with pretty columns and approximately 570 spotlights on the ceiling. We make lemonade around here though and worked with what we had. Believe it or not, most of the lights are photoshopped out of these pictures. Yes… that’s right, there are way more than what you see. It’s a wild amount of light in every imaginable direction. But that’s why you hire the pros. 😉

After the ceremony, guests ventured upstairs to the Buffalo History Museum’s portico for the wedding cocktail hour.

This separation between cocktail hour and reception is the delight of photographers. We love an opportunity to photograph the details of your fabulous space *before* the guests show it their love. Rest assured, your Auntie WILL come in and hang her magenta cardigan on her chair and inspect all the place cards around hers first though. EVERY. Single. Wedding. <3