Trina & Dennis are one of my favorite couples from this past year. I started the day with Dennis in his hotel suite, photographing him in black and white film. Then I went to photograph Trina getting ready with her daughter. I even made a makeshift background for Trina’s portraits. I found an amazing spot right outside their hotel, where the morning light was just dying, that was perfect for their first look. We then drove over to Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton, NJ for their ceremony and reception.
Before the ceremony, we walked around Grounds for Sculpture for some beautiful portraits. Grounds for Sculpture in the springtime is amazing because everything is in bloom. All the pinks, purples and red-colored flowers popping up everywhere is stunning. Trina chose lavender for her flowers and the detail for the groom’s boutonniere. She also added it to the details on the cake and all-around Rats restaurant, where we created the rest of their Grounds for Sculpture wedding photos. There’ll be more from this wedding coming soon, including the reception and lots more fun.
Trina and Dennis did an incredible job with the planning for their Grounds for Sculpture Rats wedding photos. They have clean and simple but impeccable style, which you can see in their details. They had their ceremony outdoors at Grounds for Sculpture at “The Nine Muses” by Carlos Dorrien. We then photographed their family formals and a couple more portraits of the bride and groom before they started their reception at Rat’s Restaurant. After the reception, we walked around a little bit more to photograph with Trina and Dennis and found some amazing photobombs with random strangers. We had an incredible day.
Trina and Dennis have a gorgeous album from their wedding that told the story of the day, as well as some beautiful wall art to display in their home. I had a great time with them and I wish them nothing but the best in the future.
About Grounds for Sculpture and Rat’s Restaurant
Grounds for Sculpture is a 42 acre sculpture park in Hamilton, New Jersey, founded in 1992 by Seward Johnson on the former site of the New Jersey State Fairgrounds. Rat’s Restaurant, the on-site bistro Trina and Dennis chose for their reception, was modeled after the Giverny garden of Claude Monet and named after the Rat character from The Wind in the Willows. That detail matters for a wedding photographer because it means the reception space is built into the landscape rather than dropped on top of it. You walk from the ceremony at “The Nine Muses” pavilion through a series of Seward Johnson tableaux to dinner at Rat’s, which is unusual for a New Jersey venue and the reason this property keeps showing up on national wedding venue lists.
Why we book Grounds for Sculpture in spring
The spring window at Grounds for Sculpture opens around mid-April and closes when the heat hits in early June, and Trina and Dennis hit it perfectly. The cherry blossoms, magnolias, and tulip beds are all blooming at once, which gives a lavender wedding palette like theirs a backdrop you cannot stage anywhere else. We worked the Carlos Dorrien sculpture pavilion for ceremony, the bench at “Pondering the Benefits of Exercise” for a quiet portrait, and the bridge near Rat’s for the closing frames. If you are planning a Grounds for Sculpture wedding, the spring shoulder season is the move. The fall version of this venue is beautiful too, but spring is when the property does the work for you.
Ceremony & Reception: Grounds for Sculpture – Rat’s Restaurant
DJ/ Band: Sound Choice
“Baruch Ashem” by Robert Ressler
“Leucantha” by Philip Grausman
“The Nine Muses” by Carlos Dorrien
“Pondering the Benefits of Exercise” by Seward Johnson
Photo bombed with some random tourist!
The photobomb frame
Trina and Dennis got one of my favorite frames of the year on accident. We were doing a quick portrait next to the Seward Johnson piece called “Were You Invited?” when a tourist wandered into the shot. Instead of waiting it out we leaned into it, and the picture of Trina laughing while a stranger pretends to crash their wedding ended up in their album. That is what shooting at a public sculpture park looks like on a Saturday afternoon. The venue is open to museum visitors during weddings, which sounds like a problem until you realize it is also why the photographs feel different from a closed country club gallery.
“Were You Invited?” by Seward Johnson
Vendor recap, Trina and Dennis at Rat’s
Ceremony: “The Nine Muses” pavilion by Carlos Dorrien. Reception: Rat’s Restaurant at Grounds for Sculpture. DJ: Sound Choice. Florals featured lavender for both the bouquet and the boutonnieres, with the same color carried into the cake detail and table accents.
More Grounds for Sculpture wedding stories
- Grounds for Sculpture Wedding, Kate & Trevor
- Grounds for Sculpture Wedding, Amanda & Jason
- The 12 Best Philadelphia Wedding Venues
Planning your own Grounds for Sculpture wedding? Check out our Grounds for Sculpture Wedding Guide for everything you need to know about this incredible venue.
Considering Grounds for Sculpture for your wedding? See my complete Grounds for Sculpture Wedding Guide for ceremony spots, photo locations, and timing tips.