Grace & Alex – June 14, 2014
Pre-Ceremony – The Hotel Modern, New Orleans, LA
Wedding & Recption – The Eiffel Society , New Orleans, LA
Photography & Video by – Robert & Lisa Welch
We had a very busy year in 2014, still just trying to get some of the older wedding posted on our website. So this one was from last June, finishing out the first half of the year with a lovely wedding at the Eiffel Society on St. Charles Ave. in New Orleans. When Grace first contacted me, I was excited to do our first wedding at the Eiffel Society as I’d heard about the unique decor and architecture of the location. It probed to have plenty of that.
She also wanted to do a First Look before the wedding with her and Alex. We discussed locations for this, including some hotels in the French Quarter. I recommended something closer to the area where the wedding would be as it would be easier to get from the hotel if they didn’t have to deal with the limited access within the French Quarter to get everyone from one location to the next. It turned out to be a great suggestion as there was a big event happening that day in the French Quarter, and it certainly would have proved difficult to get in and out of the area. She wound up picking the Hotel Modern, right along Lee Circle, which has easy access to St. Charles Ave. When we got to the hotel, I found a nice area outside between two buildings of the hotel that gave us some privacy for the First Look.
I’ll say a few thoughts on doing First Look sessions. First, the idea is to create a special moment for the bride and groom to see each other for the first time on their wedding day. Of course, since it’s not like a wedding ceremony, where the moment is set in formal traditions of the bride walking down the aisle, there are a lot of variations in how it can be approached. My main question for the bride and groom is if they want it private, or with their family and friends in attendance. We’ve done it both ways, so it’s really just personal preference. Then it’s a matter of picking a good spot and setting up for it to happen so that they have a moment together when they first greet each other. After they have had that time, we are able to get portraits taken care of that would normally have to be done after the wedding ceremony.
At the Eiffel Society, Grace and Alex’ wedding was a lovely affair, with a hoopa set up for a background to the ceremony. Right away after the ceremony, we got the license signed, took a few extra photos, and were able to go into the first dances, and the rest of the reception. Everyone enjoyed themselves, and they did the carrying of the bride in groom in chairs around the room, A Jewish tradition called the Hora dance. They had their toasts with the best man and maid of honor stepping up to do the honors admirably, and plenty of more dancing to fill out the evening. For the end, they had a second line dance with umbrellas followed by a sparkler exit down the ramp that goes to the avenue. All in all it was a fabulous evening for the happy couple, they were very pleased with everything and I think we did a wonderful job capturing it for them.