“The ship is safest in the port. But that’s not what ships were made for.”

— Paulo Coelho

More and more, Bar and Bat Mitzvahs are becoming my favorite events to shoot, and it's because of incredible young adults like Jordan. I met him a couple months ago when we began the planning stages of his big party and thought he was incredibly polite and had a sweet 12 year old excitement in him, (he's a huge baseball fan). Similarly when I met up with him a few weeks ago for his baseball portraits I thought he was adorable and super fun.

The transformation that happens in the last few weeks of Bar and Bat Mitzvah training, however, never ceases to amaze me. The stress of memorizing so much Hebrew, the pressure to fully understand a passage of scripture and make it relatable to your family and peers and to actually stand up in front of them with confidence that all the hard work put in made a difference - it changes them.

They're only thirteen of course, so they still have a liveliness about them and ability to play and enjoy the world, but they're also somehow much wiser than they were at twelve. Listening to Jordan practice his Torah Portion during the rehearsal I almost choked up. He made it relevant to his love of baseball, and connected the dangers of favoritism in a simple school sport with the greater dangers facing world today in a growing racially divided world. His maturity both on and off stage this weekend was awesome.

Additionally, you will not find a more awesome family. Their love for each other pours out in everything they do, Jeff and Jodi have set such an incredible example of what it means to love each other fiercely and make life an epic party. Their extended family attests to that as well, they poured in from all over the country to celebrate this weekend. And I've said it before but nothing makes me happier than a great sibling relationship; Rachel and Jordan are the very best of friends, they pick on each other relentlessly and always have time for a huge bear hug. Love them.

I'm so glad I got to participate in your huge day Jordan! SO proud of you!

(The three of us *might* have agreed not to tell mom that he jumped off a train before entering the party lol. I mean, who am I to deny a teen two of my favorite things: risk and adventure) :)

The Vendors who made the weekend possible:

Photographer: Cynthia Viola Photography

Synagogue: Beth Meyer

Rabbi: Eric Solomon

Tutor: Cathy Kaplan

Reception Venue: Traine

Flowers: Fallon's Flowers

Catering: Catering Works

DJ: Damien Maass

Photobooth: ZimZoom

Vendor Series - The DJ & Videographer - Damien Maass

February 1, 2017Wedding Photography, VendorsCynthia Viola

“What I love most about this crazy life is the adventure of it.”

— Juliette Binoche

As a way to better serve our couples, over the next few months I will be highlighting and interviewing a few of our favorite wedding vendors as well as others in the community who directly impact the new life of the young couple. I want to ask them why they love what they do, some tips for couples navigating this new territory and pitfalls that can be avoided.

This week I want to highlight one of my favorite humans on the planet. Damien and I met at a Bat Mitzvah two years ago and it's been quite the adventure ever since. He is one of the most genuine, kind, and cheerful people I've ever had the pleasure of working with. He never has a harsh word for another vendor or a client, he's easy to work with; if I want to try something a little crazy he's totally down whether he's DJing or holding the camera. He has the same mission I do...to work well together so we can serve the clients better.

Patrick and Madi are part of his video team and are equally amazing to work with. Professional, lighthearted and so very talented.

Once, we were doing a Bar Mitzvah together and one of my off camera flash batteries died right as Damien was getting ready to start the Hora dance... he and I locked eyes and he saw the panic in mine. Without a second's hesitation he backtracked and announced it would actually start in just a second then asked me what I needed. He gave me time to swap the batteries out and get back in place so they were able to get the best photos. Being a videographer too he is so knowledgable about everything the photographer needs and goes out of his way to accommodate, which only helps to serve our clients better. I would have him at every wedding I shoot if I could.

Here are just a few of the questions I asked about how he works and what couples need to know, he is always ready and willing to answer any and every question you may have though, just contact him on his website here.

Q: How do you manage to DJ and Video at the same time at a wedding? What do you delegate to your team and what do you do yourself?

A: A lot of planning goes into a wedding as you know and when we are providing both DJ & Video services great teamwork is essential alongside all the planning. There are three main parts to the wedding day when we provide both services; Bridal Party prep, Ceremony and the Reception. I will shoot for the first part of the day before transitioning into a DJ and my two other videographers will take over full time from that point. It is very seamless and I am lucky to have an amazing team in place. Two of our team members are also FAA licensed drone pilots for our aerial videography. We work at our craft constantly to ensure things happen, as they should on the wedding day.

Q: Why is it important for a couple to have a cinematographer capture their wedding when they already have a photographer?

A: It’s funny but I hear it all the time from married couples who chose not to have one that they regret not having a wedding video. There is so much the couple will miss during the day. Photos & video tell the same story but in a different way and both if are done well, they are amazing keepsakes. A great video becomes something that you’ll watch over and over initially and then every anniversary you’ll get to revisit that incredible day in a special way. This isn’t your parent’s wedding video anymore either. We specialize in short-form wedding films, which means we focus on making amazing cinema style productions that you’ll want to watch over and over again. We use only the best possible cameras & lenses along with real storytelling techniques in our editing to make our films unique to whatever event we are filming.

Q: What do you think a couple will regret the most by not having a cinematographer?

A: So much of the wedding day will be a blur especially with everything that is going on so fast and a great wedding video can bring that amazing day back to life. To me there is nothing like capturing the emotion of day with not only video but with the actual audio. To hear the vows, people laughing, to see all the places you couldn’t be, it just brings the entire day to life in a fun, emotional and entertaining way.

Q: What are some of the biggest hurdles couples face when choosing a DJ that fits their unique style?

A: First and foremost: is this someone I want to work with on one of the most important days of my life! Will they listen to my detailed requests, can I choose my own music, do they work well with other vendors, are they professional sounding, do they use top sound equipment, etc. Every couple and wedding day is different and a big part of my job to be really good at listening to what couples want or don’t want. We take into account their venue, guest list, music tastes and what kind of party flow they want. We want to make sure that the reception is a blast with the music they want to hear and done in a style that fits in, without being over the top.

Q: What do you do to ensure that you play music the couple will love as well as the mixed crowd of guests attending?

A: One thing that experience does is give you the ability to read a crowd quickly, use the couple’s requests along with what you know will work to keep the dance floor popping! We have two very helpful online wedding planners that couples can use before the wedding to select music and plan the reception details. We try to stay as organized as we can so things come off as they should. These are things we go over with couple’s beforehand so they are comfortable and can look forward to having a great time. Guests requests are also important; and as long as those songs go with the energy on the floor I am all for it.

Q: What do you do if you get a crowd that just doesn't seem to want to dance?

A: Great question and again this is an area where experience and honing your craft make a big difference. Whether it’s by playing a really familiar fun song, one of the many interactive fun dances, bridal party requests or even a great slow song to get the floor packed. Once you got people up build on it and keep it going!

Q: What brings you the most joy at a wedding and brings you back for more week after week?

A: Its kind of cliché but this is a real passion for me. I hosted a morning show on radio for several years as well as acting, doing voiceovers but there nothing like a live event. And what’s better than being a part of a celebration? Seeing how happy these couples are and how much fun they are having during their wedding day is incredible and I feel so lucky to be doing this for a living. We started providing the wedding video part of the business about 5 years ago and that just opened up a whole new level of excitement and fun. I truly look at each event we do as unique and different. It’s a major reason why I decided to keep the business small so we can give each wedding the attention that it deserves. I love it!

I hope you find this helpful and you see why I give Damien all the stars! He, Madi and Patrick are so great to work with and I know they won't disappoint. I also wanted to include one of his highlights from the most recent wedding we all did together, enjoy!

Ben's Bar Mitzvah at Beth Meyer & Sitti

November 6, 2016Bar/Bat MitzvahCynthia Viola

“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things”

— Henry Miller

As soon as I met Ben's parents, Mara and Jon, I knew I was going to get along well with Ben. Not only are they super relaxed and easy to work with, but you could tell they really enjoyed each other. When the whole family got together, it was effortless for them to laugh and really live in the moment of the day. That is so important in a family.

Ben is on the ultimate frisbee team at his school and he used his love of sports to infuse his studies for his Torah portion. For his service project he served at Miracle League of the Triangle. By helping kids with disabilities play baseball, he said he now appreciates the fact that his body is whole and he's able to play his favorite sports. He's able to empathize with how others cannot.

Ben is quite the life of the party. It seemed as if every moment during his party he was completely engulfed in a crowd of his friends. Not only that, his whole family came to celebrate, from California, Florida, Virginia and more, they all showered him in love.

Sitti is, of course, an amazing venue. The courtyard is perfect and provided an intimate and stylish downtown feel for the celebration. Amy and her team were so easy to work with, I highly recommend them. And well, Damien is forever my favorite DJ. He can keep the party going all night and always seems to know exactly what the crowd needs.

I hope you guys enjoy reliving a few of these favorite moments from the weekend. Congratulations again Ben!