RF Wedding of the Week: Spring Lust and Rebecca Yale's Brooklyn Botanical Garden Shoot

It’s the ides of January and I’ve pretty much had enough of winter, how ’bout you? I need this Brooklyn Botanical Garden wedding shoot held last year by New York photographer Rebecca Yale to remind me: Yes, Jessica, there is such a thing as spring. (And it will come, just give it a couple of months—and hit the gym in the meantime.)

One solution to spring lust is Kelsey and Noah’s glowing color palette of dreamy pink and white, which will have you wanting to book a garden wedding ASAP—and it allowed Yale to work her magic.

All photos © Rebecca Yale

“Kelsey and Noah are the youngest couple I’ve ever worked with [21 and 22, respectively] and they were so clearly in love and even more than that, they were still smitten with each other,” Yale says. “Every stolen glance produced a smile. When Kelsey first emailed me she wrote, ‘We both love the color green, spicy food, and, of course, each other.’ I knew they would be so much fun to work with after reading that!”

Yale used a combination of film and digital to capture the day, toting in her bag:

• 1 Nikon D3S and D300S
• 2 Nikon SB-900 flashes
• 1 Nikon 35mm f/1.4 and Nikon 85mm f/1.4 lens
• 1 Contax 645 with 80mm 2.0 and two backs
• About 25 rolls of Kodak Portra 400 220
• A reflector and Sekonic light meter
• Extra batteries and memory cards
• Sharpies
• A bridal emergency kit
• Gum, mints and a bag of edamame

Gotta love a photographer who respects snacks.

Of course when you photograph in a public park, there’s always the challenge of on-lookers. “I had tourists crowding around taking their own photos, which is always hard on a wedding day!” Yale says. “I love building an intimate environment for my couples to feel comfortable in, but luckily Kelsey and Noah were great in front of the camera and didn’t mind all the spectators.”

Plus: “It’s a gorgeous venue, but a bit of a challenge since the cocktail and reception are in the same room, making it hard to photograph the empty reception room and those details, which are such a big part of my coverage style. I had to be very creative in working the angles to photograph the tables and centerpieces at the most flattering angles while also cutting all the guests out of the photographs.”

To see more of Yale’s beautiful portraiture, visit her website. To submit a Wedding of the Week, email Jessica Gordon.

See past Weddings of the Week here.