Susannah Gill Blog

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Kimberly Collins - May 18, 2012 - 9:52 pm

Beautiful pictures. Beautiful day. Beautiful people. And truly amazing photographers!

Melanie - May 18, 2012 - 2:22 pm

Amazing pictures of an amazing day! Congrats Shannon and Dave!

Melanie Worob - May 18, 2012 - 11:50 am

I love this! The pictures capture so many amazing moments. The wedding was beautiful that day and these photos truly reflect the magic that we experienced.

Kathy - May 18, 2012 - 10:19 am

Awesome Wedding! We were so happy to be able to share your special day!!!

Lana Nagy - May 18, 2012 - 9:56 am

Dave and Shannon’s wedding was one of the most fun wedding’s I’ve ever been to! The best had to have been the “Okay, Time out” by Shannon at the beginning of the ceremony! If anyone can call a time out during the ceremony, it’s the bride! These pictures are AMAZING!

Shannon - May 18, 2012 - 8:42 am

Susannah & Greg, you did an amazing job of capturing such great moments of all the fun we had on our wedding day, you guys ROCK!!

Curtis Morgan - May 17, 2012 - 11:12 pm

Excellent photos! Great Day!

May 15 2012

Life with Jax! Month #12

How do you express in words the most incredible year of your life? How do I describe the feelings in my heart when I look at my son? Whether he is smiling up at me, furrowing his brow trying to figure out a new toy or sleeping like a little angel – my heart overflows with love for him multiple times a day.

Each month I have written about our life with Jax. Most months the words came easy and the ideas would flow. A few months were tough and I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to highlight but none of them have given me the writer’s block like month #12. I decided not to rush it and really use some time to reflect. In that reflection I realized one thing and it puts a huge smile on my face and a sappy tear in my eye to say it: Jax is the best teacher I have ever had.

Even though he only weighs in at about 23 lbs and doesn’t quite speak English yet, Jax has taught me more about the world in 365 days than any other person. He has taught me how to truly feel and reciprocate unconditional love. He has taught me to appreciate the little things and to really understand what’s important in everyday life. He has taught me the benefits of patience, being flexible and open minded. The funny thing is, if you had asked me over a year ago if I understood the above, I would have said yes. I now know that I was just scratching the surface. It took Jax and raising him from a helpless newborn to a rough and tumble little boy to truly begin to understand. For the lessons Jax has taught me, I am truly grateful.

So Jax is now one. It all started so slowly with sleep deprivation and a new world of worry but this roller coaster ride has come whipping around the corner and suddenly we find ourselves with a one year old. An amazing, joyful, loving, sometimes stubborn and difficult but always adorable one year old.

Here are some photographs of our 12th month together.

At the start of this month we headed to Aptos California to visit my sister and her family. Jax loves his cousins!!!

And playing in the grass!! My sister has a hill so this little daredevil found it particularly exciting to crawl downhill very quickly!!

Is there anything better that free falling?

Is there anything more peaceful than a sleeping baby in your arms?

Greg joins the boys for cartoons! Easy babysitting here!

Jax got such a kick out of pushing his cousins on their scooter!

Even though the territory was not as familiar as home, Jax did some Frankenstein-like walking!!

Easter arrived- Jax had 2 Easters in his first year of life! My sister had set up an Easter Egg hunt which Jax slept completely through! But when he woke we set up some eggs and he had his own little hunt!

After a week of some of the most incredible weather, the rain finally came. At our NYC apartment Jax can only see out of the window if someone is holding him. He was fascinated by watching the rain come down through my sister’s glass door.

Back in NYC, Jax carried on his his exploration of EVERYTHING! One of the funny things about Jax is that he loves to have something in his hands at all times. That day it was a block, another day it might be his car, I never know what might be Jax’s object of the day.

Ummm, learning to feed himself. On a side note- would you look at his eye lashes!! In good light you can see that at the base they are a copper color and then they turn to black! I’m so jealous, I’d love to have those luscious lashes!

Since the beginning, our little man has crossed his ankles when he eats- whether he is being held or sitting in his high chair!

The feet make him look so civilized while eating, the face, not so much!

One of the best times we had this month was hanging out with my photography/mama/text messaging buddy Kristen of Kristen Burke Photography and her husband Pat and their daughter. Their daughter Caroline is a few weeks younger than Jax and it was Kristen’s texts during those long and odd hours of the night feeding Jax that kept me sane and laughing! We hung out one late afternoon at their house and before we headed home (with Jax entering major meltdown city) Kristen braved a photo shoot! FAMILY PICTURES WITH ALL 3 OF US!!! A rarity around here! We will forever cherish these images- thank you Kristen!!

Heart melting! I’m so glad he was smiling as I kissed him!

AMAZING Kristen!!! Thank you!!!! Check out her latest work on her blog here!

The very last picture taken of Jax during his first year. This picture was taken on his birthday and it was the only image taken. Yes you read that correctly.

Due to leap year Jax’s first birthday landed on a Saturday. As photographers that shoot weddings we knew that a wedding might come in and when it did we hemmed and hawed. The business side of me said one thing, the emotional mother of a one year old said another. It was a tough decision but as we all know babies are expensive so we decided to book the wedding. The wedding was a day wedding a few hours away so we left at 6 a.m. and crept out while Jax was still sleeping. My heart was heavy thinking about Jax waking up on his birthday without his parents but we flew in Nanny so we knew he was in good company. When the wedding was done we drove home as quickly as we could and luckily did not hit traffic. We arrived home late but our little 1 year was still up!!!!!!! Yay!!! At least we were able to play with him and then put him to bed on his first birthday!

This picture was taken the next day when we celebrated his birthday with Nanny and also Greg’s mother, his “GG”. I spent all morning baking, building and frosting this ridiculous tiered cake!! What I was expecting was that when we blew out the candles Jax would smash it and eat and I would be able to get those super cute pictures of a baby with cake on his face. WRONG. Jax loved the candles, but lit! As soon as we blew them out he cried. Then he crawled away from the cake! I tried several times to get him to have some cake but without any luck. Next year!

Thank you so much for all the support, comments and love for Jax on this blog and also on Facebook! It’s been wonderful sharing the adventure with you through stories and photographs of Jax! Thanks for joining us on the ride!

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Kathy Hannigan - May 16, 2012 - 9:02 am

Welcome to Aptos! I so enjoyed the photos of your family, amazing. It must be a major transition to move from NY to our little Aptos….I hope it will be a smooth,lucky to have your sweet sis Andrea and family near by.

Andrea Garvey - May 15, 2012 - 4:05 pm

Amazing photos. An extra bonus to see my boys as well (and the kitchen didn’t look too dirty!!)I love your story telling – you are such an inspiration to me. I am so blessed to have you as my neighbor now.

Apr 25 2012

Where the Lemons are the size of Softballs ~ Aptos California here we come!

After years of dreaming and wishing then planning and preparing, one of our goals of running a bi- coastal photography business is becoming a reality. This Monday we will journey with our 2 cats and our little boy Jax to California! We are beyond thrilled to be able to expand our work and to raise our son in a community such as Aptos, California. In addition to that we are so excited to be within 5 minutes from my sister Andrea, her husband and their 3 boys!

NYC has been good to us and we love our friends, clients and family here too! There is nothing like a NYC spring or fall and by no means are we abandoning all that we cherish here. We are still accepting tri-state weddings and look forward to coming back for years to come for weddings and portraits!

So this is not even a real good bye but more like a see you soon as this year alone we will already be back 8 times and we have several 2013 weddings booked too!!

If you are ever in Aptos, California please be sure to say hello!!

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Apr 16 2012

Life with Jax! Month #11

As we are approaching the end of Jax’s first year we are so amazed by the transformations of a baby in those first 12 months. Will there ever be another year of his life where his growth, capabilities, and personality evolves so dramatically? Its hard to imagine that at the start of this year he was a 7 lb fragile newborn and now he is a 24 lb little boy that loves cars and always seems to have a bruise, scrape or a cut from all his rough playing!

The other day we were at the airport and a woman traveling alone with a 2 month old was being given the run down by the airport security. The baby was crying and they wanted her to take off her baby carrier. I walked over and offered to hold the baby which she allowed me to do. Jax was in the stroller right next to me and as I held the little baby in my arms it was hard for me to recall Jax that size. Was Jax really once this small? Just a little cuddly blob that could not crawl, stand or walk? Could not push cars or chase the cats? We have written a journal, not religiously but on occasion, we have this blog and our photography projects of Jax but still there is this growing panicking feeling inside of us that as time marches by so do some of our memories of Jax. Will we remember how adorable it is when Jax shows his affection by giving us what we call “head butts”? Will we remember how he loves to use his finger to turn his lips into a musical instrument- that he will then lean over and use that same slobbery little finger to make music on our lips?

I know that not all of life is meant to be remembered nor does it need to be but never before have I so wished it could be.

Here are some images from our 11th month together.

Oh Jax! Trying to get the baby proofing socket plugs out is a big past time. And that look! So determined – so aware that he is not suppose to but he is going to try anyway. This month has been a big revile of the more stubborn sides of of Jax’s personality.

He crawls, he scoots like a primate, cruises along furniture and also takes a few daring steps. No matter what he has to do to be on the move he will do it!

One of Jax’s favorite pastimes is pulling all of his clothes out of his drawers! With expressions like that it is hard to want him to stop!

Endless curiosity.

Mid-March we were missing Nanny, my mother, so we headed up to Buffalo for a visit. We always love going since all 3 of us get spoiled with home cooked meals and freshly baked pies! We have lazy mornings in PJs and Jax is able to watch Nanny’s morning shows!

Nanny has this really cool little table that is red and covered in glass- it made for some interesting reflection shots.

Probably the most important thing that happened on this trip is that Jax became officially British. Every morning Nanny gave him the last few sips of her tea. Proudly she would exclaim “He LOVES it!!”

And well you can’t have tea without a biscuit…

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Heather Dambmann - April 16, 2012 - 5:47 pm

Love the photos, and now you are moving further than 3 hrs from Nanny!

Sissy - April 16, 2012 - 4:04 pm

I can’t take that hair! Too cute!
How lucky are you to only be 3 hrs away from Nanny!

Mar 31 2012

Elizabeth & Dan’s Bridgewaters Wedding!

After a week of the most unusually beautiful March weather that had all of NYC out and about and the birds confused, the rain icons that loomed over March 24th seemed like a cruel trick by Mother Nature. We watched all week and by Thursday decided to make plan B, the dreaded rain plan. We did this with a heavy heart- kicking off the first wedding of the 2012 season in rain was not our idea of good luck! Still Elizabeth and Dan had chosen the gorgeous Andaz Hotel in lower Manhattan to get ready and if there had to be a plan B, this was the place to have it! But don’t feel too sorry for all involved yet, keep reading to see what happened!

Even with her wedding day forecast looking like this, Elizabeth was all smiles and could honestly care less about the rain! She was keeping her eye on the prize, marrying Dan- cooperating weather was an afterthought for Elizabeth!!

The bridal suite had show-stopping modern windows, a great place to showcase her stunning Pronovias gown.

This image was taken of Elizabeth with her mother and sister as she got dressed. It was shot through a cool shower window!

This prayer book belonged to Elizabeth’s maternal Grandmother. Elizabeth opened the book and there was an image inside of when her Grandmother married her Grandfather on August 31, 1940 here in NYC. I love when family heirlooms are added to wedding days to incorporate the family’s history.

Before Elizabeth left to meet Dan, her father arrived to see his stunning daughter!

A few floors down the handsome groom is all smiles!

I loved Dan’s boutonniere created by Kerri Silvestri of Allow Me Events! Keep reading to see more remarkable work by this talented woman!

Dan does the finishing touches to get ready to meet Elizabeth.

Elizabeth and Dan decided to have a first look since their wedding ceremony was not until after sunset. It’s always so exhilarating to do a first look. We made a plan and Greg and Dan got into position at the top of a beautiful staircase. Elizabeth and I were hiding down below. Then with a few hand gestures between Greg and I, we set Elizabeth off to go see Dan. I love the look of pure joy as Elizabeth approaches Dan and the look on Dan’s face as he admires his bride!!

The handsome groom and the beautiful bride kissing at the top of a gorgeous modern staircase! Perfect!

BUT nothing could be more perfect than one thing: the weatherman was WRONG! The rain never came and even the sun was peaking out so we ditched the rain plan and joyously walked the 4 blocks from the hotel to the reception! Look at those smiles!! They weren’t the only ones smiling- after a week of moaning about having our first 2012 wedding be a rainy one, this girl was smiling so hard that later my cheeks were hurting!!!

Ahhh, I love a good New York moment!

One of the highlights of walking to the reception venue was being able to take a picture on Yuyu Yang’s sculpture “East West Gate.” It’s a fascinating sculpture made out of stainless steel. Yuyu Yang was commission by the great I.M. Pei to create this piece. Yang wanted his sculptures to have interactions with people and referred to his sculptures as “lifescapes”. I think he would have appreciated this wedding portrait done on his lifescape!

Very little beats the look on little girls’ faces as they see a bride!

Cobblestones and a perfectly blossoming pear tree set the stage for Elizabeth and Dan! If it had rained this shot would not have happened. If NYC had a late Spring this shot would not have happened. This couple’s karma came together perfectly on their wedding day!

Elizabeth and Dan with their parents who are so sweet and kind! I have never seen so much hugging in one day! These 6 have such a beautiful love and appreciation for one another!

LOVE this wedding party! All smiles and they also paid great attention- no hecklers here! Thank you!! But how do you get 12 adults to smile so sincerely???

Meet my crew! How could you not smile at these hard workers!?

Well since child labor laws are pretty strict in the city it couldn’t be all work without some play! The boys started off by showing me their tough guy poses. After a few rounds of that I asked the boys if they wanted to take a sweet picture for their mother. As a mother of a baby boy, what happened next melted my heart!! The older brother without any hesitation stopped being silly and guided his little brother into what he thought would be a “sweet” pose for their mother. I think they nailed it, don’t you agree?

Elizabeth’s bouquet was amazing!

Inside Bridgewaters, the family was gathered in a private area to sign the Ketubah, the marriage contract.

The parents look on with all smiles!

Officially married!!!

On the other side of Bridgewaters, a dramatic wedding scene awaited the guests to arrive.

The Huppa was made out branches of a cherry tree and the aisle was created using cylinder vases of different heights filled with floating candles and flowers.

Dan accompanied by his parents down the aisle.

Meanwhile Elizabeth and her parents wait for their turn allowing Greg a minute to capture her sensational train!

Look at that smile as she sees Dan! Even a “first look” can’t take away from seeing each other at the start of the ceremony!

Elizabeth and Dan circle each other 7 times.

Rabbi Elliot Strom takes a second to have Elizabeth and Dan look back and soak in all the love and support there for them at this momentous occasion!

Elizabeth and Dan beam with happiness as the Rabbi tells their love story to the audience. Once upon a time these two met online and decided to go on a date. They also decided to leave it to just one date. 4 years later they were matched again by a computer but this time their stars were ready for them! These two were destined to be together!

The Rabbi invites the parents to wrap Elizabeth and Dan with a Tallit, a prayer shawl, while the Rabbi blesses them.

Mazel Tov!!!

The ecstatic hugging parents!!!

Off to the cocktail hour where Elizabeth and Dan delighted their guests by serving Asian noodles and spring rolls amongst other favorites!

Let’s face it, very few people like to see the roaming photographers when they are at the cocktail hour eating- especially when the food was this delicious! These 3 were such great sports though I had to add them to the post!

When it was time to enter the main room, the guests were in awe of the magnificently decorated tables and windows!

But it was nothing compared to Elizabeth and Dan as they entered the room rooted on by their family and friends!!!!

The Mr. & The Mrs. share their first dance.

And then the party starts! There is NOTHING like the Hora to kick off a celebration!!!

Awesome!

Everybody joined in!!

Dan’s Uncle Sid said the blessing over the challah bread.

Both sets of parents thanked everyone for coming and said some beautiful remarks about their joy for Elizabeth and Dan!

Elizabeth’s Mom sang and brought tears of joy to everyone’s eyes!

Elizabeth’s sister, the Matron of Honor had her own personal cheering committee for her toast!

The Best Man brought laughter to the room as he told stories of his childhood with Dan.

Elizabeth shares a dance with her father.

And Dan with his mother.

Elizabeth and Dan played it nice, no cake in the face here!

The Moms got a special treat when a cake was brought out for them to celebrate their birthdays!

Now don’t go thinking this night was all touching toasts and sweet songs being sung- this wedding had one of the GREATEST bands we have ever heard and the guests danced like crazy! They are called The Next Faze!

The handsome young man on the left, he had some moves!!!

Future wedding photographer?!

These two little ladies danced their little hearts out til….

…a table filled with Old Fashioned stick candy arrived! Which also just happened to create a fun background to showcase Elizabeth and Dan’s wedding rings!

Elizabeth and Dan, it was such an honor for us to photograph your incredible wedding filled with love, laughter and a whole bunch of hugging!!! We wish you a lifetime of happiness together!!

To see more photographs of this dynamic duo, check out their NYC engagement shoot here!

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