For all of those aspiring photographers out there, Jewish weddings are excellent places to practice your photography skills. But to  get quality shots that are photo album worthy, or at least bragging rights worthy, you’re going to need some skills.

In addition to the obvious technical photography skills, you have to really know when it’s the right time to take the photo. This is where knowledge of the impending events comes in to play. When you know when something important is happening, you can not only capture the moment, but the emotions that going along with that moment.

If you’d like to take some really great photos at the next kosher wedding you attend, here are 6 things you can’t miss during the ceremony– they’re the perfect photo opportunities and a great times to seek out those emotional moments during the ceremony.

Signing the Ketubah- For those unfamiliar with the process, the ketubah is the marriage contract outlining the groom’s various responsibilities and is signed by the groom and witnessed by two people. It’s symbolic of the couple’s commitment to love, honor and respect one another.

Bedekin- Before the ceremony, under the Chuppah, the groom escorted by his father, enters the room where the bride is receiving guests and brings a veil over the bride’s face, symbolizing her new duties as a married woman.

Breaking the Glass- After the Sheva Brachos or Seven Blessings, the couple shared the cup of wine and the groom steps on the glass to the crowd’s joyful “Mazel Tov!”

Continuing with the theme from last week about planning your kosher wedding on a budget, you may want to look into doing certain aspects of the reception yourself. One area that many people choose to take the DIY route with is the wedding meal. By cutting a caterer out of the process you are not only saving money, but are adding a special home-cooked touch to the meal. The traditional jewish wedding meal is the finale of the ceremony and includes food that are found at nearly every Jewish wedding, but also contains items that are specific to the backgrounds of the bride and groom. If you are uncertain about what to serve or how to serve it, here are a few kosher wedding meal planning tips:

1)      Plan for the challah. Cover and bless the bread before the meal begins. At a traditional kosher wedding, the bride and groom distribute pieces of challah to the guests.

2)      Choose a dairy or meat meal, being careful not to choose items that mix the two. It’s best to examine the traditions of your background to get some inspiration on what to serve. Ashkenazi Jews traditionally serve a wedding meal of roast chicken with potatoes and vegetable. Sephardic Jews often have lamb and rice.

3)      Choose your desert. A jewish baker will have plenty of kosher options for your wedding cake. It is also custom for some to have fruit served along with dessert.

4)      Organize a sequence of events which includes prayers in the right times and dancing after the meal. Your rabbi can assist you with the proper sequence.

There’s no one who understands what it takes to make a successful kosher wedding better than a NY Jewish wedding photographer. After all, they’ve seen their share of blissful ceremonies and boisterous receptions. So as a means to assist you brides and grooms who are planning your weddings independently, here are a few tips to make your dream-wedding a reality, and still stay well in your budget:

-If there are things you can make yourself or a more crafty family member/friend can make for you, by all means, take the DIY route. Not only is it more special to have handmade elements in your wedding ceremony/reception, but you can save tons of money that can put towards something like professional Jewish wedding photography.

-Priortize. Like any big event, making priority lists can be a huge help in trimming your budget down and ensuring that your spending on things that you truly need, instead of lavish extras that have become commonplace in modern weddings. If it more important to you to have your reception at the Plaza, or is the Jewish wedding photography something that you’d like to splurge on? Making a list of clearly defined items, by their priority will truly help you stay organized and in budget.

The notion of being “green” has taken the country by storm and people everywhere are doing all they can to reduce their impact on our planet. Although it’s a relatively new concept to the general population, green principles are deeply rooted in Judaism with the idea of Tikkin Olam or “repairing the world”. If you’re planning a kosher wedding, should definitely consider making it as green as possible. No we’re not talking about the color scheme here, we’re talking about little initiatives you can take to have a beautiful kosher wedding that benefits the planet. Here are a few tips:

1)      Consider making your own chuppah out of tallis and found branches or just a quilted chuppah made of special, personal keepsakes.

2)      Give out yarmulkes made of recycled cardboard or recycled tire (yes, they exist!) They just like regular yarmulkes,  so your guest won’t even know the difference.

3)      Rent or buy a used wedding dress.

4)      Ask your caterer to supply the wedding with organic kosher wine.

5)      Register for eco-friendly wedding gifts, or if you have all the home goods you need, ask guests to plant trees in your honor.

Whether you’re interested in a more photojournalistic or classic approach, our technically skilled, artistic and knowledgeable staff of photographers can work with you to ensure that your big event is captured perfectly.

In addition to a kosher wedding, the bat or bar mitzvah is one of the most important days of a young person’s life. It is something that should be remembered fondly forever, and a key aspect to recalling those memories is the photography. When attempting to capture a big day like a bar or bat mitzvah, you’re going to want to bring in a professional photographer who is adept at portraiture and classic shots, as well as the spur of the moment, candid action shots.

Just take a look at some of the previous work Mendel Meyers has done.

One of my best friends got married a few months ago and I was devastated when I found out I wouldn’t be able to attend the kosher wedding. She’s on the east coast and I’m on the west coast, and to make matters worse, I had no vacation time left to make the trip.

After sulking for a few weeks and keeping in contact with her about every detail, she told me that she hired a really great Jewish wedding photographer who would capture the day and put the photos in a gorgeous customized album.

So last week, my friend came to town to visit me to show off her wedding photos and fill me in on her special day. In addition, she brought along her wedding album and I was amazed! When I heard “wedding album” I thought of something more along the lines of a scrapbook—an amateur collection of photos put together in a regular photo album. I was beyond wrong. This album was unlike any other wedding album I’ve seen. The arrangement of the gorgeous photos captured not only the happenings of the event and what everyone looked like, but it captured the mood of the day as well.

You just don’t get that from a run-of-the-mill photographer—you get it from the best.

Sabbath Candlesticks: Lighting two candles on Sabbath eve is a tradition for every Jewish household. Nice pair of candlesticks and candle holders would be a perfect gift for a kosher wedding.

Art for the home: Every home needs a little wall art to liven the room. Mendel Meyers Studios has very affordable prints of photos that would look gorgeous in a frame and hung on a wall. Plus, they were captured by a professional jewish wedding photographer, making it extra special.

Jewish Cookbook: A jewish cookbook is a creative idea that any couple would welcome with open arms. There are many inexpensive cookbooks at local bookstores or online.

At the same time, a specialist is hard to beat. When you pay for a Jewish wedding photographer, you’re paying for the best, a classical education, years of training and experience. Sure you can have Uncle Danny take the shots, but in the end, the results just won’t be the same. A Jewish wedding photographer who has had years of experience is going to be more prepared for taking the photos that don’t wait around, which are usually the best kind. Plus, his know how of lenses, lighting, and action is of a much deeper merit than that of Uncle Danny (no offense, Uncle Danny, your photos are good, but you’re better at landscapes).

If you want NY Jewish wedding photography that is worthy of being framed, go to a professional for your kosher wedding.

Don’t you want a professional who can capture the uniqueness and singularity of each moment? Someone who has trained rigorously to know when to photograph and how to shoot pictures of your loved ones? Results that you can feel proud to hang on your wall or keep in albums and show your grandchildren? Of course you do, who wouldn’t?

If you’re looking for a Jewish wedding photographer, look no further than Mendel Meyers. With a classical training in photography and years of experience, it’s difficult to find a Jewish wedding photographer with more qualifications, or better results.

A cynical man once said, “Celebrations are for reaching a goal after a period of long, hard work. That’s why a wedding is the least likely time for a party.” Marriage is a difficult road, sure, but a kosher wedding is a celebration of the hard work it took to cultivate the relationship to the point where a wedding with a Jewish wedding photographer is appropriate.

A kosher wedding is about two people recognizing that life is hard work, and that it can be more easily enjoyed with another person. While the choice of the person can complicate a life, Jewish weddings celebrate a love that has begun to grow, and has reached a watershed point. Love is the most powerful feeling a person can experience. Weddings are the celebration of love. But Jewish weddings are not the culmination of love; if it were, that would only mean a decline. The culmination ought to be reached long afterwards, perhaps dozens of years later, perhaps not until death.

Jewish weddings mark both an end and a beginning, as is the case in most important events in life. To capture such a moment is infinitely important, because the mind only remembers what it will. A Jewish wedding photographer does more than commemorate, he captures raw emotion that can never be repeated because the kosher wedding is an instance. It is quite literally, a snapshot of a love beginning to unfold.