Southern Mansion Wedding | Cape May, NJ | Valentina & Jonah

October 10, 2018

Last weekend, I photographed Valentina and Jonah’s beautiful Southern Mansion Wedding in Cape May, NJ.

Valentina and Jonah first met at a holiday work party. A few months later her desk was moved and she ended up sitting near him so they started seeing a lot more of one other. For their first date, they went to a little Italian restaurant and Valentina was so nervous! They chatted all night over pasta and wine and they couldn’t wait to see each other again. Valentina knew Jonah was the one when they were at a party together with all of their friends, they were having such a good time and it’s then that she realized she had never been happier. Last Fall, I photographed their Cape May engagement session and saw first hand how sweet these two were together.

Engaged on 06/23/2017, the proposal from Valentina: “We decided spur of the moment to take a half day on Friday and go down to the shore for the weekend. We went to dinner at That’s Amore in Cape May, and during dinner Jonah saw the carriage rides going by. I mentioned I had always wanted to go for a ride but had never gotten to. He suggested we call and see if they had any availability and sure enough they did. During the ride I was so fascinated by Cape May’s history that I was asking a bunch of questions, but Jonah was unusually quiet which I thought was strange. At the end of the ride he asked the lady who runs the carriage rides if she could take our picture and when she said “smile” he pulled out the ring and proposed! We have tons of pictures in the moment which makes it even more special!”

I have never looked forward to photographing at a venue as I did for Valentina and Jonah’s Southern Mansion wedding. In the Spring of 2016, I was married at the same venue and the whole day was like deja vu! I very much enjoyed photographing my bride the morning of her wedding. When I arrived, I grabbed all her beautiful details (Hello Kate Spade – we clearly have very similar taste!) and found a spot with the perfect amount of natural light. Once Valentina was dressed, it was time for the first look on the porch of the Victorian Mansion. Once these two saw each other, we hopped on a trolley and continued portraits at the Cape May Winery. Their ceremony took place on the lawn of the Mansion and once the short and sweet ceremony that was officiated by their friend was over, it was time for food and drinks! Once the sweet speeches were made and dinner was over, all the guests moved downstairs for dancing! Valentina and Jonah entered their reception to Lady Gaga and they didn’t stop dancing. I had so much fun capturing these two at their Southern Mansion wedding!

Now that Valentina and Jonah have finished planning their romantic and elegant Southern Mansion wedding, they like to go out to eat and go to the movies, but most of all they love their animals! Now that they are married, they plan on having a child and traveling as much as possible. They also hope to be as in love, if not more, 50+ years from now.