DETAILS
The W Loft
Brooklyn, New York
Wedding
Digital and 35mm Film
Super8
From a Facebook SOS to a Friendship
Some of the best things in life begin unexpectedly. For Theresa and Lucky, it was a phone call that brought two strangers together. For me, it was a Facebook message that led to a friendship I genuinely cherish.
Their Brooklyn, New York wedding will always hold a special place in my heart, not just because it was my first Brooklyn wedding, but because of the connection we built long before the wedding day.
Theresa first reached out when she urgently needed a wedding photographer just weeks before her wedding. Her original photographer had stopped responding, leaving her scrambling to find someone new.
What began as a conversation about wedding photography quickly turned into chats about DIYs, Broadway musicals, and our mutual love of good food. By our first video call, Theresa and Lucky were calling me from a ferry, and we ended up chatting for nearly an hour!
It felt less like meeting new clients and more like catching up with old friends.
That's one of the things I love most about being a connection-based wedding photographer. Sometimes, the people you meet through this work become part of your life long after the photographs have been delivered.
A Love Story That Began With a Voice
Theresa and Lucky believe the stars aligned for them to meet. They were complete strangers until they happened to call the same friend at the exact same time. When I asked
them how that happened, Theresa said that she was cleaning her room and saw her friend’s number in a piece of paper. It had been some time so she decided to give him a call.
Little did she know that Lucky was thinking the exact same thing! Their phone calls merged, and they ended up talking for hours. The rest, they say, is history.
As Theresa put it, it wasn't love at first sight, but love at first sound. Their relationship has been shaped by faith, perseverance, and the kind of friendship that makes
two people feel safe being entirely themselves. They describe each other as best friends, each other's biggest supporters, and one another's safe space.
When asked how they wanted to feel looking back at their wedding photographs twenty years from now, they hoped to be transported right back to that moment in time.
That's always my goal with documentary wedding photography: creating images that don't just show you what your wedding looked like, but remind you exactly how it felt.
A Rooftop Brooklyn Wedding Filled With the Things That Matter
Theresa and Lucky gathered around 90 of their closest friends and family to celebrate their marriage in Brooklyn, New York.
As a Vietnamese bride and Taiwanese groom, they wanted to share a mixed cuisine with their guests.
Food is a meaningful part of their relationship, from coffee dates and cooking together to exploring the city in search of something delicious.
I love when couples make room for these personal details. Years from now, photographs of a beautifully set table with family gathered around a meal
can bring back memories just as vividly as the portraits.
Their love for family, especially their grandmothers, and their shared faith are equally important parts of their story.
It's these personal details that make every wedding
unique and every gallery worth revisiting.
a sprinkle of 35mm film magic with documentary feels
Documentary Wedding Photography, From Los Angeles to New York
My approach to wedding photography blends a documentary heart with an editorial eye. I'm drawn to genuine emotion, thoughtful details, and the moments that happen between the big events.
The happy chaos of a reception. A loved one watching from across the room. The laughter around the dinner table. The little gestures that might otherwise go unnoticed.
I want couples to feel comfortable enough to be themselves, knowing they don't have to perform for the camera to have meaningful, beautiful photographs.
Although I'm based in Los Angeles, California, I love traveling for couples whose stories take me somewhere new. Photographing Theresa and Lucky's Brooklyn wedding reminded me that meaningful connections can happen across thousands of miles.
I'd love for it to be the first of many New York weddings, whether in Brooklyn, Manhattan, upstate New York, or at one of the romantic estate and garden venues throughout New Jersey and Rhode Island.
A lil shoutout to the ladies above!Lucky and Theresa not only gave me a surprise birthday present, but they also seated me like their own guest.
These ladies were my cutie table-mates and made the reception even more fun!
Last, but not least…their Super8 film
For everything you’ll wish you could return to…
Theresa and Lucky, thank you for trusting me with your wedding and turning an unexpected Facebook conversation into a friendship I'll always cherish.
I'm still looking forward to future Broadway shows, coffee dates, and sharing all the good food we find in each other's cities.
I hope your photographs bring you back to the people, the laughter, the meals, and all the little moments that made your wedding yours.
Sometimes, the best stories begin with a simple hello. And sometimes, all it takes is one phone call.
For everything you'll wish you could return to.
— Marijo
By Evening Photography · Los Angeles, California & destination weddings