Kat & Aaron's Sag Harbor Wedding

(NOTE: This post is a clone of the original post on our new blog at www.blog.thepopes.com. Please visit us there and subscribe for future updates!)

We knew that Kat and Aaron's wedding was going to be incredible from the very first conversation we had with them (via Skype from India!)...they're both fun, fashionable architects who fell in love while working together at their design firm in the Hamptons. Ever since our first "meeting" with them, we had been anxiously awaiting meeting them in person and being a part of their beautiful northeastern coast wedding!

It turns out that Kat and Aaron are two of the sweetest, hospitable, warm, engaging, and fun people we have ever met. Ever. Seriously! Whether it was offering us their guestroom to stay in, special  ordering a lobster for us (thanks Caitlin!), or inviting us back the day after the wedding  for breakfast with the family; they went out of their way to make us  feel at home and make sure we were welcomed as friends. The more time we spent with them, the more we realized that this is just who they are. This is just the way they treat people, and above all else I think that's what makes them so different. Everything they say and do exudes the love they have for the people around them, and it's intoxicating. ~Gerald

Kat & Aaron's wedding touched me in so many ways...I was inspired, moved to tears, and challenged. I was inspired. By the beautiful ocean scenery and the lines created by wooden beams, telephone poles, and bridges. By the bridesmaids' billy ball & succulent bouquets. By Kat's gorgeous Amsale gown. By the sweetness of Kat & Aaron's love for each other. And by the tight-knit community that exists among the people who live in the Hamptons year-round. I cried. During the rehearsal dinner when some bongo drummers came to honor the memory of Kat's brother. When Caitlin loaned a special blue bracelet to Kat. When Kat & her dad were waiting in the hallway getting ready to walk down the aisle. At the end of the weekend when I had to say goodbye to our new, dear friends. I was challenged. To be a better person and to seek ways to help & appreciate those around me. To not take myself too seriously--i.e., grab a glass of champagne & dance! To stretch myself creatively, and to continue to take risks in life & in art. ~Airika

Friends & family, click here to be notified when all of Kat & Aaron’s wedding photos are available online.

I'm not sure why, but for me this image sums up what I think it feels to  see East Hampton from a non-tourist perspective. Far from the crowded  beaches and high-end shopping, this place has beauty and character. The old roads, lined with power lines, only seem to get used by locals heading home, or fishermen looking for a fresh catch of fish or clams to serve up for their family at dinner that evening...



While we were shooting these next few photos on Lily Pond Lane (I think we were blocking Bon Jovi's driveway while we took this photo!), several cars slowed down to ask if it was a real wedding or a fashion shoot. Then, a photographer from the local paper (the East Hampton Star) stopped and grabbed a few photos of us while we worked. She didn't show our faces or mention our name, but at least our backs are now locally famous! ;)



We love the church that Kat & Aaron picked for their ceremony. The Old Whalers' Church, built in 1844, was so iconically northeast with its rows of wooden pews, a proudly displayed American flag, and tall white pillars. The only thing missing was its steeple--which was completely blown off during a hurricane in 1938. Personally, I'm a big fan of the church with no steeple, but rumors are that they have plans to rebuild it. I'm so glad we had a chance to takes photos of it before they do!

Oh-and I love the following series of photos--Kat as she snuck into the church, Aaron's joyful expectation of his bride, and the look that Kat & her dad shared coming down the aisle.



Our walk through downtown Sag Harbor was pretty amazing. I'm pretty sure that everyone in this town knows and loves these two! They could hardly walk down the street without being pulled into another restaurant for free drinks.



Bridal: Amsale Gown, Wedding Salon of Manhasset | Makeup: Bobbie Brown Saks Fifth Avenue | Hair: Vincent Dasilva & Special Effects | Pre-Ceremony Portraits: East Hampton | Photography: The Popes | Flowers: Claire Bean | Ceremony: Old Whalers' Church, Sag Harbor | Reception: B Smith's, Sag Harbor | Cupcakes: Sacred Sweets | Live Band: New Life Crisis

New Brand, New Blog!

It's been a long time in coming, but Airika and I are excited to announce that our new brand and new blog are here!  We'll be retiring this blog, so please change your bookmarks, update your RSS feeds, and head on over to www.blog.thepopes.com.


A huge thank you goes out to the team at Reddoor Creative who have helped us recreate our identity, branding, and logo, and a massive thank you goes out to you, all of our clients, friends and family, who have believed in us and supported us all the way!

Faces of India

If there's one thing I learned about photography on this trip, it's that shooting with a photojournalistic approach is not as easy as you might expect when you stick out like a sore thumb. Everywhere we went in India, we were warmly greeted by friendly faces who were eager to meet us, talk to us, or just get their photo taken. We couldn't exactly be a "fly on the wall" when people kept coming up to us, but we wouldn't trade any of these photos for the world. We met so many incredible people throughout our trip, and even though we didn't always speak the same language, they never failed to show us the joy in they hearts.

Adventures in Vellore

For the first two weeks we were in India, we stayed at the Christian Counseling Center in Vellore. This training Institute not only provides counseling services to the surrounding community, but they have training programs for a wide variety of leaders and students. During our time there, we were privileged to meet a group of students from Hyderabad who were taking a training course for their Master in Psychology program. We made many new friendships and had so much fun hanging out with them.

The first evening we went to an "Exhibition," which is basically like a county fair. We braved the rickety Ferris Wheel--it had no seat belts, low railings, and went way too fast. I would have gladly paid three times the ticket price for them to stop that thing early!

One of the highlights for Airika was when some of the girls offered to do mehndi on her arms and hands. It was a much longer process than we had realized, and it is rather difficult to sleep with henna all over your arms and hands, but the result was quite beautiful.

Swimming with the students in this shallow pool was actually quite entertaining. Apparently it's rare to find water pools deeper than two feet in their part of the country, so for many of them, it was their first time really swimming. Of course no one was prepared for a swim, but once one of them jumped in, that was all it took.

Another Use for Coconuts

One of the highlights of our time in Vellore was a family that we met one evening while walking through the neighborhood. The women in the family were out in front of the house, beating a large pile of coconut husk fibers to separate them. When we stopped to talk to them, we quickly learned that no one in the family spoke any English (and we obviously don’t speak Tamil). Nevertheless, they were quite eager to show us what they were making. They attached a bit of the fiber to a hand-cranked machine and began spinning it into a rope. It's pretty amazing how much work goes into each strand of rope they make. First they collect the husks, then soak them, then separate and dry the fibers, and finally spin them into a rope. Once they finished their demo, they insisted that we take the piece they had made for us, even though we had no money with us to buy it with. It was so wonderful to meet people who were so generous with what they had, and so genuinely interested in sharing a little piece of their lives with us.

I love this photo of their family. After taking it, we went and had it printed, and made a small photo album of the images shown here. Then we gave it to the family. Their reaction was priceless—we actually took an interpreter with us to deliver the photos and the family told us that they could have never afforded photos of themselves and they were so grateful. It was yet another reminder of the impact that a single image can make in a person’s life. I love my job.