Buttermilk Falls Wedding : Alex & Erik : Milton, NY

Alex & Erik : Buttermilk Falls Inn & Spa : Milton, NY

I photographed Alex and Erik's engagement session in Brooklyn last year — one of those fall afternoons where the light just cooperates from start to finish. So I wasn't entirely surprised when their wedding day turned out the same way. Some couples just have that kind of luck with weather. Late September, crystalline sunshine, and the drive up the Hudson River to Milton feeling exactly like it should this time of year.

Buttermilk Falls Inn sits on 75 acres on the Hudson River, dating back to 1680, and the grounds are immaculately kept — richly green in a way that photographs almost don't do justice. Exquisitely landscaped gardens, flowering terraces, winding brooks, a pond. It's the kind of property where you could wander for an hour and still find a new corner worth shooting.

The ceremony took place by the pond, quiet and intimate, the water catching the afternoon light behind them. For portraits we worked our way around the weeping tree — one of the most genuinely stunning natural features I've encountered at any venue — its long draped branches creating a canopy that felt almost cinematic. The light through those branches had a jewel-like quality I keep returning to when I look back at these images.

The reception tent overlooked the Hudson River, and the design of the day leaned into the blue and white palette with warm wood farm tables, blue glass stemware, and loose garden florals from Wild Blooms Bridal that felt perfectly at home in this setting. Catering by Henry's at the Farm — the inn's own farm-to-table restaurant — kept everything grounded and seasonal in the best way. As the sun went down and the tent began to glow against the river, it was one of those venues-at-dusk moments that I genuinely never get tired of.

Alex changed into a sleek second dress before the sparkler exit — a sharp contrast to the ballgown, and just right for running out into the night hand in hand.

A fantastic team made the day what it was. Planning and design by Virtually Perfect Events, florals by Wild Blooms Bridal, hair and makeup by CEO Beauty, Alex's gown by Wona Bridal, Erik's suit by Watson Ellis, cake by The Pastry Garden Bakery, rings by Sackowitz Jewelers and Jangmi Jewelry, music by Planet Mercury Band, and video by Orange Films.

Congratulations Alex and Erik.