Elise and Ryan's wedding day will probably stick out in my memories of the 2016 wedding season for breaking two records: longest distance traveled and hottest wedding day of the year. Now, I realize those might sound like complaints, but to the contrary! It was beautiful day for a drive to Hancock, where one can find The River Run Restaurant at the West Branch Resort, nestled between route 17 and the Pennsylvania border. While intense storms caused power outages in the Syracuse area on August 13, we were far enough south to avoid the storms -- allowing Elise and Ryan to get married outside under clear blue skies, surrounded by the westernmost fringe of the Catskill Mountains.
Knowing the weather forecast could be dicey, Elise and Ryan wisely had a backup plan -- on the opposite end of the lawn where they got married, a party tent with its own seating was on standby, just in case rain ruined the original ceremony plans.
Outdoor system to cover ceremony and cocktail hour. Click for full-size image.
From the "technical DJ stuff" standpoint, this wedding required two sound systems. My primary system was set-up inside along the dance floor, along with my dance floor lighting. My second system was set-up outside, on a covered porch adjacent to the building, facing the ceremony site. Although the ceremony music was performed live by a couple of relatives, I had a wireless mic on the officiant, which also picked up the vows of the bride and groom. After the ceremony (and the live musicians) finished, this system provided music for the cocktail hour, held on the deck.
Music for guests who enjoyed cocktail hour from the porch (Click for full-size image.)
Now, I mentioned that it was a pretty hot day -- with temperatures well into the 90s. Although the cocktail hour was supposed to happen entirely outside, it was no surprise that the temperatures drove most guests back inside to enjoy the air conditioning. Having my music and playlist synchronized on both of my laptops paid-off, as I was able to play the same cocktail hour music on both systems, virtually in-sync with each other, so it would be difficult to spot any differences when passing back and forth between the two areas.
Advance preparation also came in handy for the wedding party introductions and first dance. Originally planned to take place on the lawn (with guests watching from the deck above), we had a slightly-different "rain plan" ready, in case the intros and dance had to be moved indoors. Even though it didn't rain, we enacted the backup plan anyway, so neither the wedding party nor the guests would have to stand outside in the heat anymore.
Before we get to the rest of the photos, as usual, I like to share what each couple selected for the key moments of their wedding day... so here are Elise and Ryan's picks!
- Parent Intros: Alan Parsons Project / Sirius
- Wedding Party Intros: DMX / X Gon' Give It To Ya (Instrumental)
- Bride and Groom Entrance: Johnny Maestro & The Brooklyn Bridge / Hooked on a Feeling
- First Dance: ortoPilot / Grow Old With You
- Bride / Father Dance: Bob Carlisle / Butterfly Kisses
- Groom / Mother Dance: Green Day / Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)
- Last Dance of the Night for Everyone: Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats / S.O.B.
And now, some photos from Elise and Ryan's wedding ceremony and reception... check out how happy Ryan was in the second photo, to see Elise make her entrance for the ceremony!
Click any photo below for a larger version.
Elise posted the following 5-star review on WeddingWire afterwards:
Peter was exactly what we were looking for in a DJ! He was incredibly professional, accommodating to our many crazy requests, and super organized. Everything flowed smoothly, he kept the crowd dancing and even snapped a few of our favorite photos of our guests dancing, long after the photographers had left for the evening! Thank you, Peter, for the long drive and everything you did to help coordinate our day!
Thanks again to Elise and Ryan for selecting me as their wedding DJ! I was thrilled to see that the crowd had such a great time, the staff of the River Run was very friendly and professional to work with, and the food was wonderful. I'm looking forward to seeing more photos on the website of Boyko Photography, the Binghamton-based husband and wife team who were the official photographers for the day.
