FAV O R I T E
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PICTURES
kyo morishima photography
It was about 20º when Kyo took these photos at Lincoln Center. At the time, Mauricio was living in Brazil and Lilian in NYC, and the only time they could be together for engagement pictures was February. Kyo suggested that they race each other and jump up onto the concrete planters to warm up. Then he snapped this shot, “Singin’ in the Rain”-style.
This was Jennifer and John’s second marriage. They are so in love. They got very romantic during the portrait session in Palmer Square in Princeton. And their kids had a blast during the reception. Between the two of them, they now have 11 kids!
Kai and Erika got married in Japan and came to the U.S. for the honeymoon, to visit Kai’s sister in New York. They brought their wedding clothes. We love the expression on Kai’s face in the shot above, taken on Candlewood Lake in Connecticut.
Seiko and Toshihide are another Japanese couple who came to NYC for a wedding photo shoot. Kyo followed them all over the city: the Plaza Hotel, Grand Central, Park Avenue, the subway, the Brooklyn Bridge, etc. The photo at left is at the iconic Bethesda Terrace in Central Park.The picture above could have been taken anywhere. It’s all about the light and the expressions on their faces.
Taking in a view of lower Manhattan from the docks near the Brooklyn Bridge. Seiko’s gorgeous wedding gown is by Vera Wang.
Cara and Drew are an awesome couple with an extremely excellent sense of humor. I love this shot of Cara laughing during their ceremony — Drew’s doubling over in the foreground, too. To the right is a photograph of one of their younger guests with his dad. He’s pointing to a little koala bear pin on his collar. Cara and Drew gave all their guests koala bear pins (because one of Drew’s nicknames for Cara is “Koala Bear”).
When we first met Cara and Drew before their wedding, somehow we started talking about wedding cake. “I don’t like cake,” Drew said definitively. Cara agreed. “Yeah, I’m not a big cake fan myself, either.” We asked what they were going to do at their wedding. “Well, I do like chocolate chip cookies...” Drew mused. So here’s the shot of them cutting the chocolate chip cookie cake they convinced a local baker to create for them.
Erin and Omar had a beautiful Muslim wedding ceremony at Omar’s parents’ house in Queens. Erin is one of the sweetest people and she couldn’t help crying during the ceremony. Omar is the perfect guy for her. He just smiled and squeezed her hand.
This was a great moment. Erin’s two “men of honor” attempting to bustle her wedding dress. They did a pretty good job!
An intimate moment right after Erin and Omar’s wedding ceremony overlooking the Hudson River. Kyo took the photo of the moon over the NYC skyline during their reception at Chart House in Weehawken, New Jersey.
These two photos are from an editorial photo shoot at the Nassau Inn in Princeton. Both wedding dresses are from BHLDN. The photo shoot was styled by Kristin Rockhill.
Two classic moments: the bride descending the staircase at Jasna Polana, Princeton, and the groomsmen approaching the groom on the lawn outside.
A glimpse of Jordan and David through the foliage at Jasna Polana, a spectacular estate on the outskirts of Princeton.
Andrea and Ehren used a school bus to transport their wedding party from the hotel to their portrait location on the boardwalk in Asbury Park. I love this shot of them taking a selfie with the best man inside the bus.
Andrea and Ehren are framed by the bridesmaids during their wedding ceremony on the beach.
Koichi took a business trip from Tokyo to New York City, and his fiancĂŠe Yoko tagged along. They had a blast during their NYC engagement session.
If there’s one trend we noticed during 2016, it was Very Fancy Manicures.
A steamy moment at Princeton University.
Two of our favorite photo spots in Princeton: the bronze heads by Ai Weiwei outside the Woodrow Wilson School of Foreign Studies, and the exquisite flower garden at Prospect House.
Marina and Julia had their “first look” at Washington Pier, an amazing, tiny park in an industrial neighborhood on the edge of the Schuykill River in Philadelphia. It’s hard not to compare Marina’s fabulous red hair to Merida from the Pixar movie Brave.
You had to run a gauntlet of high-fives to get to Marina and Julia’s ceremony on Race Street Pier in Philadelphia.
A tender moment between Marina and her dad on the left. On the right, a tiny golden stegosaurus marches toward the Euonymus bush. When Marina and Julia told their friends that they were getting married, people kept asking them, “What’s your wedding theme? What are your wedding colors?” Marina and Julia didn’t have the faintest idea what their wedding theme or wedding colors were, and one day they got tired of saying “We have no idea,” and exclaimed, “Our wedding theme is tiny golden dinosaurs!” So that’s what happened.
Julia and Marina had a block party wedding reception with about 300 guests (and who knows, maybe some passers-by, too). The music at their reception was AWESOME. It was the West Phildelphia Orchestra, a Balkan brass band that describes themselves quite accurately as “a sweaty dance explosion.�
Lauren and her best friend. I don’t think we need to say anything else.
Annalize and Oliver. Sometimes a close-up says it all.
Annalize and Oliver got married on Governors Island. On the ferry ride back to Manhattan, one of their wedding guests posed with Lady Liberty. Yeah, baby!
Catherine and Dan’s wedding on Wall Street was a last hurrah for their life in NYC — right after the wedding, they moved to Texas. When we originally Skyped with them before their wedding and asked what they like to do together, Catherine exclaimed, “We love coffee!” She wasn’t kidding. We ended up chatting for ten minutes about their favorite coffee shops in NYC, and they gave us numerous tips on places to try. Needless to say, Kyo had to take a wedding day portrait of them with a cup of good coffee.
Grandma on the dance floor!
Jennifer got ready for her wedding at the St. Regis in Midtown. The shot at right reminds me of a film still for a 1940s comedy. Above, her sister-in-law-to-be gets her makeup done.
Jennifer and Michael’s wedding was at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine on the Upper West Side. There are peacocks who live on the grounds of the Cathedral. The albino peacock in the photo at right is named Phil.
A tender moment as Michael’s sister offers a toast.
This wedding cake was a Baroque masterpiece! The artist who created it is one of the most famous cake bakers in the world: Ron Ben-Israel. Unfortunately, wedding cakes are ephemeral. Witness the cake cutting... Michael looks pretty enthusiastic about slicing into that cake.
Mai and Mitsuo got married at the River Cafe in Brooklyn and Kyo took their portraits on the Brooklyn waterfront. Mitsuo loves to make Mai laugh. There were so many great pictures of him cracking one-liners and Mai dissolving in laughter.
A view of Manhattan from across the East River during Mai and Mitsuo’s wedding reception.
Simone couldn’t help being overwhelmed by emotion as she walked down the aisle. Then her close friend Masha, who officiated the ceremony, burst into tears during the portrait session.
A not-so-formal group portrait.
Not sure what was happening on the dance floor at this moment, but it was fun.
Sometimes it takes a platoon of bridesmaids to get the wedding dress in order.
Lucy and Nick started celebrating even before the reception began. At their portrait session, Nick ordered his groomsmen to join him in a round of push-ups. They obliged. It looked strenous.
The ring bearer loved Lucy’s wedding dress. He wanted to play hide-and-seek under her ruffles.
It rained during Emily and DJ’s engagement session. The rain diffused the light and the results were magical. Sometimes rain during a photo shoot is not a bad thing.
Two things that make us happy: a perfect silhouette, and a huge, happy smile.
The bridesmaid “reelin’ in” the bride on the dance floor at Judy and Dave’s wedding — which song is playing?
Alex and Ethan in their favorite place: Prospect Park in Brooklyn.
Claire and Steven at Terhune Orchards in Princeton. Love the tippy-toes.
Greg and Jeremy were glowing on their wedding day.
A few scenes from the ebullient party at Greg and Jeremy’s wedding. The bobble-head dolls they used as cake toppers attracted a lot of attention.
Lilian and Mauricio got married at Manhattan City Hall. Here they are flanked by paparazzi (a.k.a, relatives) as they sign their papers.
It looks like Lilian is gazing out at their future.
The expression on Liz’s mom’s face is just priceless. Liz and Jacob timed their portrait session perfectly: it was during the “golden hour.” Photographers love that time of day.
Two happy iPhone moments during Liz and Jacob’s wedding.
Rachel and Babak’s engagement session was on a very cold winter day in Central Park. They didn’t seem to notice the weather, only each other.
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