New York City Wedding Photographer | Vintage Modern Southern California Wedding Photography » Maggie Harkov is an international modern wedding & lifestyle photographer based in New York City.

Our favorite little bumble bee, who you may also know as Sophie gave us a bit of a scare a few weeks back.  We took her to the vet to have her looked at and learned that she had an abscess that needed to be surgically removed.

Luckily, I’m not a worrywart at all and I didn’t create awful possibilities of disaster in my head while she was in surgery.  I, queen of serenity, princess of peace managed to stay perfectly calm, and totally zen-like.  I am not like some of those crazy dog owners you see crying on the subway while listening to a song like, oh, I don’t know, Angel by Jack Johnson.  I am not one to cry to lyrics like, “She gives me presents with her presence alone…she gives me kisses on the lips just for coming home”  and think of them in reference to a DOG.  I would not then take earphones out from my ears only to find they were chewed into oblivion from her dog and cry even more.  I mean, really, over a dog?  Pfff. No, not me.  I’m one tough cookie.  Obviously.

….Ok, so I’m a bit of a HUGE worrywart.  I know, shocking proclamation, Maggie.  Really, what will she tell me next?  She just keeps me living on the edge.  I mean, wow.  I know, I know, I just keep on surprising you.  But, I can’t help it, friends.  I began to think about all the times I didn’t play with her when she jumped up to see me because I felt bogged down with work.  I thought about how no matter how long Mr. Hallmark and I are away, whether it’s five minutes or five hours, when we come back through our front door, it’s like she hasn’t seen us in 10 years.  She runs to us as if her life depended on it and licks our faces til her tongue is dry.  Her greetings inevitably warm our hearts and make us feel unbelievably special.  She brings so much joy to our lives and imagining life without her broke my heart.

When we picked her up, Sophie looked up at us, furiously wagging her tail,  seemingly unaware of the surgical invasion to her now missing abscess, and I felt immediately put to ease.  For the next week, we held warm compresses to her butt, had her sleep in our room, and struggled to make her wear one of those terrible cones to keep her from  opening up her wound, despite her looking totally and completely miserable in it.  I felt like a sleep deprived mother, up on the hour, every hour checking to make sure she was okay, waking with every turn and clank of her dog tags.  How do real Mothers do it?  Night after night, week after week, month after month?  And this was just for our dog, our little bumble bee, who, to us, brings more love and joy to our lives than we could possibly deserve.

Signed,

One admittedly crazed dog obsessed – I mean, loving owner.

Rain and dark clouds may have filled the October skies with a grey overcast, but nothing but the look of utter bliss cast off the faces of Sharon and Chris on their wedding day.   After 5 years together, Mr. and Mrs. Hidey joined their lives as one before their family and friends at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden and they absolutely glowed.  Looking at them gaze smittenly upon one another, you would have thought they were basking in the sun, literally glowing from its warm golden rays.  But, alas, it wasn’t a bright sunny day, they were and are just that completely in love & unabashedly happy and it was such an honor to document.

Despite the logistical challenges that difficult weather, getting wet, and traffic provide, Sharon & Chris never stopped smiling.   A lot of people would have let such challenges affect their perception or enjoyment of their day, but Mr. and Mrs. Hidey took everything in stride and soaked up (no pun intended) every amazing moment of the day they started their lives together.

And what a beautiful day it was.  Sharon left no detail uncovered.  Everything from her stunningly beautiful Vera Wang gown, to her gold Manolo Blahnik shoes, to the gorgeous floral arrangements by Belle Fleur, to the Groom’s cake, the choreographed dance by bridal party & Mr. & Mrs. Hidey, to the shawls and flip flops for guests, to a prank during the garter toss, to hair and outfit changes, Sharon & Chris did not overlook a single detail and it showed.

When I think back on Sharon & Chris’s wedding day, I will never forget the love that surrounded it.  Rain was not going to reign on their parade or get in the way of celebrating the start of their lives and as a result, it could not have been a more extraordinary day.

Mr. and Mrs. Hidey, may your love for one another always shine as brightly as it did on your wedding day.  It was an absolute privilege to capture your first day as husband and wife.

With love & appreciation,

Maggie

And a special thank you to Jesse who shot along my side and held an umbrella over my head as best he could!   You were such a help, thanks Jesse! :)

Click HERE to a see SLIDESHOW of more images from Mr. & Mrs. Hidey’s big day!

To see more from their lovely Brooklyn Botanic Garden Wedding click HERE…

It’s a fact.  I pretty much love ANYTHING pumpkin.  Now, I know this is going to be hard to swallow, but I married a man that doesn’t.  Yep, you read that correctly.  No pumpkin for Mr. H…  How can this be, you say?  I ask myself this question on a daily basis, but particularly around fall and when gobble gobble day looms ever so closely.  So, I guess baking this cake for my parents arrival was a somewhat selfish act because I knew Mr. Hallmark probably wouldn’t want to partake in some of the fabulous cake.  But, we might have made a convert out of him, folks, we just might have.  Mr. H ate the cake, and, might I add, he had seconds.  Now they weren’t big slices Grandma Jane, don’t worry, just slivers, but still, this is progress.  MAJOR progress.  We just might be able to have pumpkin pie and pumpkin ice cream and pumpkin everything from this moment on because of this moment in history.  We might just be able to pumpkinize our Harkov household, because really, pumpkin is just that good and life can’t be lived fully without it.  Okay, so I may be overexaggerating just a wee bit, but it’s yummy folks.  If you’re looking for a nice fall pumpkin cake recipe that’s super easy, whip this up and serve it up to those you love most.

A special thanks to Aunt Lenore who helped me indulge my pumpkin obsession by providing me with the recipe.

Yum.  Yum…

THE RECIPE

1 – 18 oz. box yellow cake mix

1 small box instant vanilla pudding mix

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ cup oil

½ cup water

3 eggs

1 cup packed 100% pumpkin

Golden brown sugar to sprinkle on top before baking

Beat all ingredients together with a mixer.  Pour into a greased and floured 9 X 13 pan” or a Bundt pan.  Sprinkle with golden brown sugar. Bake in a 350 oven for 30 – 40 minutes for a 9 X 13 pan or 40 – 45 minutes in a Bundt pan.  Use a toothpick to test if it’s ready – it should come out clean when it’s done.

I added powdered sugar on top after the cake cooled and it was fabulous, but you can try adding pecans, icing or whatever your heart desires as well.

ENJOY!

When I walked into the Plaza, the Hsu family wore big smiles, dark coats and had cups of hot coffee in tow.  They each gave me a hug and we chatted about how chilly and gloomy it was in the city, and the warm sunshine they’d just left behind in Florida for Sharon & Chris’s wedding in the city.  They were so excited to be in New York and have this family photo session together.  Mrs. Hsu even brought her camera along to take photos of all New York City has to offer on the shoot, which cracked me up.  I totally understand where she’s coming from though, there’s a lot to capture here! 

Jesse, Sharon’s cousin, orchestrated the whole thing.  He said it was rare to have his family all in the same place and was excited about having fun portraits of all of them together.  Typically my family sessions are of parents with their young children, so this was a little different for me, but it was so much fun!  The Hsu family is so sweet and was up to everything I asked them to do.  I was impressed!  Jesse is absolutely hilarious.  There’s no way around it.  His expressions are absolutely priceless and he spent the majority of the session making silly faces at the camera and making me laugh the entire time.  Evidently he has this affect on everyone and his family all laughs at the drop of the hat when Jesse is around.

It was such a fun afternoon and I feel lucky to have had some time to get to know this wonderful family.  Here are a few of my favorite shots from their session…

This is the Hsu family’s dear friend, John Krasinski who plays Jim on The Office.  They’re pretty tight.  In fact, when we ran into him at the Plaza and he wasn’t at all thrown and willingly obliged to have his picture taken with the Hsu boys. :)  Thanks John!

These are the kinds of expressions I was talking about…

And this is how we all react…

Thanks so much Hsu family, you were all such a joy to work with!  Happy Thursday!