A moment ago, I stumbled onto my wedding wire profile and read a review from Robert. He and his wife Meghan were the first couple I worked with in 2010. Their amazing New York wedding story began at the W Hotel in Union Square and was followed by a celebration at The Manhattan Penthouse. Surprisingly, I’d not seen this testimonial before?!? His words so clearly reflect a complete wedding experience (before, during and after the celebration). I wanted to share them…

One of the clichéd warnings married people issue to the newly engaged is that weddings go quickly, very quickly, for those actually tying the knot. Having recently married, I can now echo those sentiments, and do so honestly. I promise you, the party will arrive and conclude in an instant, even if you’re not quite ready to let it go.

Perhaps for most, but certainly my wife and me, the arrival of the wedding day is simply the culmination of months, even years, of planning. With so much effort poured into every detail, we all try to pause and appreciate every second of what will turn out to be a once-in-a-lifetime event. But that’s impossible. If you slow down too much, you’ll miss the point, which is to have fun with those closest to you…. all 100 of them. Being pulled in every direction isn’t necessarily a bad thing; just the opposite, it’s maybe the closest you’ll come to celebrity in your life and it’s part of what makes your wedding such a great time.

The downside is that you can’t spend enough time with everyone. And, you certainly can’t witness every moment. There’s just too much going on. In the end, you’ll be left with whatever memories Jack Daniels leaves you along with whatever’s captured by your photographer. So, here’s my point: your photographer just might be the most important consideration you have while planning your wedding. Despite whatever other factors enter into your wedding equation, two are paramount: surrounding yourself with people who care about you and preserving the memory of your celebration.

Photography shouldn’t simply document the items of your wedding, the staged portraits of attendees and the sterile landscapes/skylines that serve as their backdrop. The difference between a good wedding photo and a bad one is a matter of context. The bad ones don’t have any, aside from what they themselves reveal. They are pictures among a hundred others, loosely tethered by a common setting. They can be beautiful and even convey some emotion and excitement, but they don’t tell a story. In contrast, good wedding photos are parts of a larger picture. Like the pages of a book, they reveal the story of your wedding, bit by bit.

Parris’s photos have that storyline quality. And, for my wife and me, this is why we’re so thankful that Paris agreed to photograph our wedding. I could write about what a great guy he is or how accommodating and professional he was when working with us, but it wouldn’t highlight what is truly special about his work. Nor would it serve any good to gush over how beautiful his pictures are – the proof is there on his website, What really separates Parris from his contemporaries is his genuine interest in telling and preserving a wedding’s story.

In looking through the prints for the first time, I was amazed at all the things I’d missed. Despite having been absent in some instances, I knew exactly what was going on. I knew that someone had just cracked a joke or that so-and-so was anxious or too embarrassed to dance. I felt as though I’d been in ten places at once.

Fifty years from now, when my wife and I are looking through our wedding photos, we won’t care so much about how beautiful the flowers were or what the view was like thirty floors above Union Square. What we will want to remember are the people we celebrated with and how much fun we had. Fortunately, we won’t have too much trouble with that. Thanks, Parris.

At your leisure, I invite you to explore the original New York wedding story that I posted about Meghan and Jonathan.

If You’re Engaged: Please read this short article about How to Choose the Ideal Photographer for Your Wedding.