I’m so excited to get Melissa + Pete’s wedding in the spotlight. Their fall wedding was a stunner!
Our day started at the gorgeous Argos Inn in Ithaca, NY. I’ve been a huge fan of this place since I got to experience it as a backdrop for one of our styled photoshoots. Getting to come back for an actual wedding was a dream and I was so excited to spend some time here.
As always, we started with the details. 
Behind the Argos Inn is a patio which whisks you away to somewhere in Tuscany. Between the aesthetic of the space itself and the yellow fall leaves, we were elated with the perfect way it framed our gorgeous bride. 
I absolutely love the back of this wedding dress. Melissa looked so classic and beautiful wearing it. 
This bouquet masterpiece was created by Michaleen’s Florist and Garden Center in Ithaca, NY.
If you’re not wearing fancy wedding socks as the groom in a wedding, should you even be getting married?
Melissa + Pete chose to do a first look before their wedding. (For anyone new to this growing tradition, it’s when the bride and groom choose to see each other before the ceremony takes place. I LOVE capturing the joy on my client’s faces when they see each other for the first time on their wedding day.) We headed over to Cornell’s botanical gardens for this special moment. What you CAN’T see in this photo is how frigidly freezing this day was. Even with the sun to keep us company, the wind was whipping ice at us and in some shots you can even see some snow on the ground. Melissa and Pete were unaffected, or at least they sure made it look that way. These two were a dream to capture!
We chose to take all of the bride and groom/bridal party photos before the ceremony. These are just a handful of my favorites and it was SO hard choosing which ones I would share with all of you.
I had never visited Cornell’s botanical gardens up until this point and I’m so glad that Melissa and Pete suggested it. This place is a photographer’s dream come true. There are so many pretty spots to take pictures. I’m so happy the sun peeked out from time to time to give us that dreamy light too.
Some of the shots are a bit repetitive but that’s only because I could not choose between them. Each one was like staring at a pretty gem. How do you choose between the gems when they’re all equally as beautiful? This honestly is a process guys. I will spend HOURS going back and forth between pictures and sometimes, I just can’t win against myself. There’s no choosing one. They ALL must be added in. If I truly had to choose, there would be no blog at all. I am literally emotionally invested in each of these images. Sometimes it just has to be that way and I’m ok with that.
The wedding ceremony took place at the Lakewatch Inn. The sky was just starting to darken and the ceremony space was brightened with low lit lanterns, candles and a toasty fireplace. I wish there was a way to truly capture the romantic lighting in this place without blurring the people in them. Everyone would have had to stand very still and you generally shouldn’t ask people during a wedding ceremony to completely freeze and not move so you can capture the light manually. It’s bad manners all around to do anything but try to make yourself as discreet as possible during a wedding. That doesn’t stop my artistic brain child from sulking a little bit because unless you were a guest here, there’s just no getting across how stunning this space is with it’s low lit mood lighting.
Melissa and Pete chose to write their own wedding vows.
The first kiss as husband and wife!
The ceremony space was quickly flipped to reception space by an efficient and magical team at the Lakewatch Inn. (They did an amazing job and were super friendly! Good stuff to know if you’re considering a wedding here.)
A few of my clients have chosen a donut bar for their dessert table. This rendition of the “donut bar” is on my top favorites. I love photographing donuts just as much as I love eating them. Well…no. I take that back. Because I really love eating donuts. Like so much. And I really love photography so that should tell you something.
These donuts were made by a donut shop in Ithaca called One Ring Donuts.
Nutella donuts?! NUTELLA DONUTS! GUYS! EVERYONE! NUTELLAAAA DONUTS. 
The reception was so much fun and if Melissa and Pete’s first dance wasn’t choreographed then they are amazing dancers. They covered a lot of space on that dance floor and did it fluidly until finally ending with a perfectly done dip. (I’ve seen a lot of dips in my day so I can say this honestly.)
DJ Johnny Only MC’d the reception and we were so excited to meet him. He has a great reputation in the wedding world and he didn’t let us down. He was so much fun to work with and is a super funny and great guy. We hope to work with him again soon!
I had to add this photo because it looks like Pete is mashing sunshine into Melissa’s face. 
A huge thank you to Brittni for being my second shooter for this wedding. Some of these pictures were from her perspective and she is truly a talent! I’m the luckiest to have her by my side for weddings.
Also a huge thank you to these wedding vendors. Melissa and Pete had a PERFECT day and it wouldn’t have been so perfect without the contribution of these amazing and talented folks. We highly recommend ALL of them!
