I remember exactly how I felt when I received the email letting me know my wedding photographs were ready.  Pure excitement bubbled up inside me as I flipped open my laptop and clicked on the link to my personal gallery as fast as humanly possible!  As I poured over the hundreds of images from my wedding, a huge smile spread across my face as I relived all the beautiful and emotional moments from the day I married my best friend.  I knew right then that I wanted to pull the photographs off the screen and put them into a story book that I could proudly show to all of my family and friends.  Thank goodness I had purchased a wedding album!

I remember loving SO MANY of my wedding pictures and wondering how I would ever narrow down my favorites for such an important heirloom!  I believe a lot of my couples feel the same way as this is one of the most frequently asked questions after their wedding day .  To help with this important process, I have created a blueprint on HOW TO DESIGN YOUR WEDDING ALBUM!

THE DESIGN BLUEPRINT

Step 1: Choose Your Cover Color

The color of your album is the first thing you will decide!  Do you want to go with a traditional brown or black, or choose one of the fun colors from your wedding, like bright teal or soft lilac!  There is no right or wrong, just make sure to pick something that represents YOU!

Step 2: Choose Your Cover Photo

The cover photo should be your favorite portrait of you and your sweetheart on your wedding day.  🙂

Step 3: Choose Your Design Path

Path 1: Photographer’s Choice- A Fresh + Clean Look

I loooove designing albums!  In fact, I photograph the details and portraits on your wedding day with your album in mind, looking for consistent colors and light.  If you like, I can choose the photographs for your album, picking images that will tell the story of your wedding in the most beautiful way.  To make sure your favorites are included, I will ask you to pick out your top 10 images, selecting only couple portraits and family portraits.  This ensures the most important photos are included, while leaving me the artistic freedom to tell the story of your gorgeous day with a fresh, clean design.

Path 2: Couples Choice- All Your Memories

You know your favorite photographs from your wedding and can’t wait to see them in your album.  GREAT!  From your personal gallery, please star 60-80 of your favorite photographs.  I will design a pretty album with the pictures you have chosen, telling your story in a cohesive way.  Remember, you will want to include images from ALL the important moments on your day.  Need some suggestions?  This is a great guideline to follow when selecting your images:

PHOTO PICKING GUIDELINE

Step 4: Review Your Album

Whether you choose path one or path two, you will have the final approval on your album design!  Once your design is ready, I will send you a slideshow of your pretty pages.  Review your wedding album together, and make sure you both COMPLETELY LOVE IT!  If you want to change out any of the photographs, this is the time to do it before going to print.

Step 5: Final Approval

You LOVE everything about your album!  Send me an email letting me know it receives your stamp of approval and I will send it off to be printed.  Once your album is ordered, no additional changes can be made.  The only thing left to do…jump up and down when your pretty package arrives at your front door!

I hope these album design suggestions have helped!  If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me through email at amy@amyrizzutophotography.com, or leave your comment in the box below.  Have a wonderful day!

“Why do you love me?”  The questions escapes my lips more times than I crave chocolate in a single day.  I know it is silly, but sometimes I just want to know why my hubby cares for me, even if he has already said it a million times.  This week, I am reminded that love is shown through actions, not through words. It is revealed through all the little things you do to make me smile like…

…kissing me softly on the forehead before leaving the room

…driving me to my client meetings so I have that extra 30 minutes to prepare

…watching my favorite movie with me, even though you have already seen it a million times

…going out of the way to pick up the exact kind of soup and ice cream I am craving

…recording the football games to spend an entire Sunday with me in the city

…taking me back to check out a house you have already seen, just to show me all your favorite parts

…giving me a big bear hug before leaving for work in the morning

…jumping up and down with me when a sweet couple’s kind words pop up in my inbox

…calling me in the middle of the day, just to see how I am feeling

…assuring me there is no place you would rather be on a Saturday night than snuggled under our cozy blanket, watching out favorite shows together.

It is the small things you do to show me you love me that mean the most.  Thank you Matt, for making me feel special everyday.

Abby woke up early on January 19, 2013.  It was 5:30 a.m. and her alarm hadn’t even gone off yet.  Excitement bubbled up in her heart as she realized the day was finally here, the day she would marry Max.

Max waited for his bride at the end of the aisle in uniform.  A recent graduate from West Point University, Max was so ready to marry Abby.  For the last few years, she had always been by his side, always supported him.  Max’s heart was filled with so much love for Abby, and he couldn’t wait to see her walk down the aisle on their wedding day.

Warm, golden light streamed through the stained glass doors as they swung open.  Standing at the church entrance was Abby, lit from head to toe by a soft halo from the sun.  With a gorgeous lace dress and unforgettable look of hope and excitement on her face, Abby walked down the aisle towards her future husband.  Max’s eyes lit up when he saw her.  In all their years together, he had never seen Abby look so beautiful.  Max reached out his hand for hers, whispering a silent “I love you” to his bride.  Blinking away tiny tears of happiness, Abby whispered it back.  Feeling completely overwhelmed, she realized the moment was here, the moment she could finally say “I do” to the man of her dreams.

Abby and Max, I am so honored you chose me to be a part of your incredible wedding day!  Witnessing your joy and sincere love for each other brought me more happiness than I can explain.  I hope you are having a great time on your honeymoon!  If you get a chance between relaxing on the beach and dining in style at sunset, check out a few of my favorites from your wedding day below!

Abby had her hair and make-up done with all of her bridesmaids before the wedding!  They had fun getting pampered at the Glen Goldbaum Salon in Red Bank, NJ.

After getting back from the salon, Abby and her girls toasted to a fabulous day with pretty flutes of champagne.

Abby couldn’t help but tear up as she read Max’s heartfelt letter explaining how excited he was to marry her.

Lace from her mother’s wedding dress was wrapped delicately around Abby’s bouquet!

Abby’s bridesmaids cheered with excitement as she brought out her beautiful wedding dress!

SO LOVELY!

While I was with the girls, Mekina was capturing Max placing the final touches on his uniform!

LOVE the engraving inside Max’s wedding band.

Abby’s dad supported his glowing daughter in their walk down the aisle!

This might be my favorite moment of the entire wedding day, when Max saw Abby for the first time!

Abby and Max held a traditional communion during their ceremony.  I really like how the entire wedding party came up to the table to participate first.

Officially husband and wife!

When Abby and Max opened the church door, the most gorgeous sunlight EVER greeted them!

They then proceeded to march through the Arch of the Sabers!

LOVE.

Abby and Max couldn’t have asked for a better wedding party!  Seriously, how fun are they?!

Abby, you are so STUNNING!!!

You might remember this pretty dock from Abby and Max’s engagement photos the week before.

There is just something so romantic about this shot of Abby and Max.  It almost looks like they are running towards their future together!

Before the reception began, Abby and Max enjoyed a private dance under the stars at the Molly Pitcher Inn.

Abby and Max enjoyed their official first dance to “God Gave Me You” by Blake Shelton.

Abby’s father, older sister, and Max’s older brother gave incredible toasts!

Then…the party really began!

A little limbo was involved…

…followed by a few sweet country slow dances.

Abby and Max cut their cake with a saber…

…right before their friends and family lifted them in the air for the infamous wedding song Shout!

At the end of the evening, Abby and Max headed out on the dock for a moment alone, and one last pretty photograph!  Want to see more of  this sweet couple?  Check out their wedding day slideshow on their personal wedding website today!  Or, view their wedding day highlight film below.

Abby & Max | Wedding Highlights | The Molly Pitcher Inn | Red Bank, NJ | 1.19.2013 from Majestic Creative.

Abby and Max, thank you again for everything!  I wish you both immense happiness in the many years to come!

The sun is shining, I am sipping on my favorite gingerbread latte, and even though it is cold outside, this is a FABULOUS morning!  This morning at 8 a.m. I received the most exciting news…EVER.  In my inbox, in all capitals, popped up a sentence that literally had me jumping up and down with joy.  CONGRATULATIONS!  YOU ARE A 2013 WINNER OF THE KNOT BEST OF WEDDINGS!  More exciting than receiving the Best of Weddings is knowing how I earned this highly respected award. Winners are chosen based on the reviews of real brides and grooms in the area, and I am honored to say I have the BEST COUPLES EVER!

To all of my sweet couples who have taken the time to share your experience with me, thank you.  Truly, your love and support means so much.  Thank you for your trust, for being my biggest cheerleaders, and for giving me the opportunity to do what I love everyday.  YOU ARE AWESOME!

To check out my pretty new badge in person, visit my profile on The Knot here.  Have a wonderful day!

Last week was a BIG week!  My parents came to visit me from Tennessee, I booked my 30th wedding for 2013, and I turned 26 years old!  AHHH…TWENTY-SIX!  I feel like I am starting the climb to 30 and this is still something I am getting used to.  Thank goodness for good friends who are getting old too!  On Friday, one of my best friends (and second shooter) Mekina Saylor turned 25!  (Totally kidding about the old thing Mekina 🙂 )  To celebrate our 20’s, we decided to throw a Roaring 1920’s Birthday Soiree on one of Hornblower’s most fabulous yachts!   As we sailed around the New York Harbor with our closest friends, we enjoyed taking in the breathtaking skyline views, letting loose on the dance floor, and dining on one of our favorites, vanilla-vanilla Magnolia cupcakes.  We hired the amazing Falcon Griffith of Falcon Griffith Photography to capture the memories you see below.  ENJOY!

A big thanks again to Falcon Griffith for taking all the photographs and for running the photo booth!  You did an amazing job!  Guests, view your photo booth pictures by clicking here.

 My favorite part of the evening cruise was sailing under the Brooklyn Bridge. It was truly beautiful.

 It was so much fun seeing our friends dancing the night away!  I love these sweet photographs of Caroline and her husband Alex!

 LOVED having so many of our photographer friends and their husbands come out for the evening!  Thanks for making us feel so special.  You guys are AWESOME!

 This might be the closest to the Statue of Liberty I have ever been!  If you haven’t sailed on a Hornblower cruise yet, you should book your experience today!  Brides…they also make a great venue for your WEDDING!

 At the end of the evening, the DJ played the happy birthday song and Mekina and I blew out our candles.

Thanks again to EVERYONE who celebrated with us…1920’s style!  To download your pictures from the photo booth, click here!  Feel free to upload them directly to Facebook by selecting the small “f” icon, or save them to your desktop by clicking on the download arrow.  ENJOY!