Matt & Kristen – July 14, 2007

The Benn Conger Inn, Groton, NY, was the site of the wedding reception for Matt and Kristen. The Inn is a beautifully restored mansion which provided the perfect setting for this wonderful couple to have their wedding reception.

The day was one of the first Saturday’s this wedding season that looked like rain might make an appearance. This caused me a bit of concern since we wanted to have the cocktail hour and Bridal Party Introductions outside. At the last minute, I decided the weather was going to cooperate and setup my equipment under the tent off the conservatory at the back of the Inn.

The Bridal Party arrived at the Inn on board one of the coolest “limos” I’ve ever seen. It was called a “Trolley Bus” but the interior was clad in leather and brass and looked much more like a limo than a bus. It was very cool! After the Bridal Party was introduced, Matt and Kristen had their first dance to the song, “You and I” by Michael Buble.

One thing that I thought was quite amazing was that the Bride has 9 Uncles. NINE UNCLES! That’s amazing. But what was even more amazing was that all 9 of them were at the reception. A great group photo of the 9 Uncles was taken by the photographer and I managed to grab a shot of the Uncles when they were posing…see photo below. It’s really interesting to see the strong facial similarities between them.

Almost on cue, the rain did start towards the end of the dinner. That meant I had to move my equipment into the Inn. It only took a few minutes to transition inside and it actually worked out quite well. The conservatory room is beautiful and provided a great area for dancing the night away. Once I got the guests dancing, they took over and had the most wonderful time. Frank DiMeo was the photographer. Frank is always a blast to work with. The amount of energy that he puts into his work is something to see and the images he captures are priceless.

Thanks to Matt, Kristen and Kristen’s mother Maureen, I was made to feel like “one of the family”. Enjoy a few images from the wedding reception.

Ames & Ashley – July 7, 2007

Today was that day that everyone has been talking about for a couple years. July, 7, 2007… you know… 07-07-07. If seven is your lucky number, then today was your lucky day. Today was supposed to be one of the busiest wedding days ever because of the “importance” of the numbers.

Well, I don’t know about all that numerology stuff, but today was certainly special in many other ways. First of all, it was another beautiful summer day in Ithaca. The wedding between Ames and Ashley took place on the Cornell University Campus in Sage Chapel. Sage is one of the more beautiful chapels I have seen… anywhere in the world. What it may lack in size, it makes up in beauty. It is just breathtaking to walk inside and take in all the details…the stained glass, the dark wood, the pipes of the organ, the tile. It is spectacular.

After the ceremony, the Bride, Groom and guests made their way down to Willard Straight Hall and into the Memorial Room. This is another beautiful room with a beamed, vaulted ceiling that must be at least 50 feet tall; at least. It is such a grand room. The size of this wedding was around 100 which in the Memorial Room enables you to really appreciate how great the room is. Just off the room is a large outdoor patio with a view of Ithaca and the surrounding valley that is awesome.

Such a beautiful setting was perfect for this wedding of two wonderful people, Ames and Ashley.

Alisha Clark was the photographer and she brought along another shooter by the name of Brady Dillsworth. I met Alisha earlier this year and she is just a great person all around. Brady I met last year and he’s another wonderful photographer… put them both together and you’re bound to end up with photos that capture the day about as well as you could ever dream.

There is so much I could say about this wedding but I’ll just let a few photos do most of the talking. One of the highlights of the evening was the slideshow that occurred right at the end of the night. It was put together wonderfully and projected on a giant screen in the Memorial Room. What a treat it was to see all the photos of the bride and groom growing up and then photos of them together as a couple. Just so much fun.

Ames and Ashley, it was a great pleasure to meet you and to be able to share in your wedding day. Enjoy these photos…

Michael Erb on Bridge Street with Rick and Julie

This morning was my second appearance on the program “Bridge Street with Rick and Julie” which is broadcast on 9-WSYR, Syracuse.

My first appearance was back in February 2007, when I talked about unique places to get married in Central New York. This morning I had the pleasure to talk about some “out of the ordinary” places to go for family fun. It was so much fun being able to speak on television about a few of the wonderful opportunities there are in Central New York for entertaining activities.

Here is the list of the unique activities that I discussed on the show…
1. Malabar X, a beautiful schooner that sails on Seneca Lake from Seneca Day Sails in Watkins Glen.
2. Esperanza Rose, is a 65′ wooden cruising vessel that offers sightseeing tours on Keuka Lake.
3. Adirondack Scenic Railway, offers nostalgic train excursions into the Adirondack Park.
4. Harris Hill Soaring Center, offers glider rides and has a Soaring Museum in Elmira, NY.
5. Hoopes Park, has a Tuesday evening, Music and Movie night on the lawn in Auburn, NY

Here is a link to the actual video of the live broadcast.

I’ll be on Bridge Street with Rick and Julie again on July 25, 2007. See you then!

David & Katharine – June 30, 2007

It seems that the summer of 2007 can do no wrong as far as the weather goes. It’s just been one spectacular weekend of weather after another. David and Katharine were blessed not only with a beautiful location for their wedding and ceremony but incredible weather as well.

The Fontainebleau Inn was where David and Katharine choose to have both their wedding and reception. The ceremony took place lakeside and it was just beautiful. After the ceremony, the guests made their way back up the hill for the reception which was catered by Word of Mouth Catering in Trumansburg. I’ve gotten to work with both Kate and Tina from Word of Mouth so many times over the years that they seem like family to me. Great people and great food.

This particular wedding reception was special for me because my nephew, Sean, joined me. Sean had been telling me for a couple years how he wished he could watch me DJ a wedding. He loves music and plays several instruments including Bass, Violin and Piano. Well, today was the day that I invited Sean to join me and help me out. He was very helpful during the setup of my equipment and I “showed him the ropes” of how to get songs ready in the CD players and decide what music to play. He loved every minute of it and more than few of the guests came over to talk to the “guest DJ” and ask him questions. Thanks Sean, you were a great help!

The cocktail hour was enhanced with music from a Barbershop Quartet. They were fantastic… the songs were sung with flair and injected with bits of humor. They were really unique and added a very special flair to this beautiful wedding.

David and Katharine had taken ballroom dance lessons and as a result, their First Dance (Come What May from Moulin Rouge) was phenomenal. It was entertaining to watch and a very well-polished dance. Great job David and Katharine.

It was a great wedding and I want to thank Katharine and David for letting me be a part of it. I hope you guys enjoy these photos.