A Wedding at Red Maple Vineyard
A ceremony at the top of a hill over the Hudson River, and everything we have learned about photographing a day here.
Two things at Red Maple Vineyard stay with people long after the wedding: where you say your vows, and what happens in the hour right after.
The ceremony is at the top of the hill
Your guests walk up, they sit down, and the Hudson River is right there behind you for the whole thing.
We have photographed a lot of ceremonies in this valley. This one is hard to beat, because the view is not something you go and visit for portraits afterwards — it is behind you while you are saying the words. Every wide frame we make during your ceremony has the river in it. So does every photograph your guests take on the way up the hill.
Where to do your first look
The willow tree on the hilltop is where we start. It is close to where the ceremony will be, it is separate from everything else, and the tree gives you a bit of shelter so it feels private even out in the open.
But Red Maple is a property with more than one right answer. The rows of vines, the slope of the hill, the quieter corners near the buildings — there is no single best spot here, and that is a good problem. We would rather walk it with you on the day and pick together than promise you one spot months in advance.
Get ready at the hotel, not at the vineyard
We will be honest with you, because it is the kind of thing we would want to know before booking: the getting-ready space is the weakest part of this venue.
The good news is that there is a very nice hotel close by, and that solves it completely. Start your morning there, in a room with real light and enough space for your people, and arrive at the vineyard already dressed. It costs you nothing, and it turns the first two hours of your photographs from a compromise into some of the best frames of the day.
Nobody else will tell you this. We would rather you hear it from us and plan around it.
If it rains
The main room sets up beautifully for a ceremony. There is real space in it, and — the part that matters to us — a lot of natural light.
Most indoor rain plans are dark. You end up with flash on everything and a room that looks nothing like the day you pictured. That is not the case here. A rainy ceremony at Red Maple still photographs well, which means you can stop watching the forecast two weeks out. The weather does not decide your photos.
Cocktail hour is the best one we photograph
This is a working vineyard, and cocktail hour is where that pays off.
Your guests can go down into the wine cellar and taste what the place actually makes. For everyone who is not a wine person, there is a canoe packed with ice and beer. It is a strange, wonderful detail and people love it.
What it means for us is an hour where nobody is standing around waiting for the next thing. They are underground with a glass in hand, or out by the canoe laughing. Cocktail hour photographs are usually the weakest part of a wedding gallery. Here they are some of the strongest.
And you get the vines
You have access to the vineyard itself for photographs. That sounds obvious at a place called a vineyard, and it is not — plenty of venues keep you on the lawn.
The rows do something no lawn can. They pull the eye straight back into the distance, they change color completely between June and October, and standing in them puts something around you rather than just behind you. Ten minutes in the vines will give you frames you cannot get anywhere else on the property.
Jess & Justin
A July wedding. Their first look was under the willow tree at the top of the hill, they were married with the river behind them, and cocktail hour went down into the cellar. Their full gallery is below.
Questions We Get About Red Maple
Where is the ceremony?
At the top of the hill, looking out over the Hudson River. It is the reason to book this venue. Your guests walk up, sit down, and the river is right there behind you for the whole ceremony.
Where should we do our first look?
The willow tree on the hilltop is our first suggestion. But Red Maple is a property with more than one right answer — the vineyard rows, the hill, the quieter corners near the buildings all work, and we usually decide with you on the day.
Where do we get ready?
Honestly, we would get ready off site. The getting-ready space at the vineyard is the weakest part of the property, and there is a very good hotel nearby. Start your morning there in a room with real light, then arrive at the vineyard ready to go. It costs you nothing and it improves the first two hours of your photos.
What happens if it rains?
The main room sets up beautifully for a ceremony — a lot of space and a lot of natural light, which is not something we can say about most indoor backup plans. A rainy ceremony here still photographs well.
What is cocktail hour like?
The best cocktail hour we photograph. Guests can go down into the wine cellar and taste the wines, and there is a canoe packed with ice and beer for everyone else. If you or your people care about wine, this part of the day sells the venue on its own.
See a Full Wedding Here
Jess and Justin’s July day at Red Maple Vineyard, from the willow tree to the last dance.