elegant, romantic 

Love Stories

Central Park Wedding Photos Stairs

NYC Elopement | Karen & Didier

Sessions

Karen and Didier held their NYC elopement atop a hill near the Dene Summerhouse in Central park. COVID had changed their wedding plans and forced them to push their wedding back. That didn’t stop them from getting married anyway! Here is the story in photographs:

A view of the lake at central park from bethesda terrace and fountain.The groom wearing the black Tux prepares for the first look during his NYC eleopement.The groom wearing the black tux sees his bride wearing a white runway dress for the first time.The groom holds hands with the bride and gives her a look of love at Bethesda Terrace and fountain moments after their first look. Moments after their first look, the bride and groom share an intimate moment together during their NYC elopement.The groom wearing the black tux escorts his bride wearing a white runway dress down the steps at bethesda terrace and fountain in central park on the morning of their NYC elopement. The bride looks down holding her bouquet of flowers made by posies in NYC. A portrait of the bride wearing a white runway dress with flowers by posies as she stands on the bow bridge the morning of her NYC elopement. The bride wearing a white runway dress with flower by posies holds hands with her groom in the black tux as they walk together in bethesda terrance and fountain in central park the morning of their NYC elopement. The ceremony location A sign welcoming guests to their NYC elopement A harpist plays debussy's Claire de Lune as the bride walks down the aisle. The bride being escorted by her father for her NYC elopement. The groom sees his bride during their wedding ceremony. A wide angle view of the ceremony location of the dene summerhouse in central park. The bride and groom hold hands atop a hill at the dene summerhouse in central park for their NYC elopement. The bride gives her groom a look of love. The groom reads his wedding vows. The first kiss—the bride and groom are officially married! The bride and groom hold hands as they walk away from their family and friends at the dene summerhouse in central park during their NYC elopement. Family photos of the brides side. Family photos of the grooms side.A socially distanced group photo of everyone who attended their NYC elopement. The bride wearing a white runway dress with flower by posies embraces her groom wearing the black tux as they hold an umbrella to block the sun during their NYC elopement. The bride wearing a white runway dress with flower by posies and groom in the black tux pose for a picture atop a hill at the dene summerhouse in central park during their NYC elopement. The bride and groom go in for an almost kiss. Look of love from the bride to her groom. A selfie of the bride and groom taken with tom schelling photography during their NYC elopement.

A quick little wedding day selfie!

 

How The Couple Met

Karen met Didier while they were working at NYU Langone Medical Center as nurse anesthesiologists in 2015.

“I was drawn to his confidence, laid-back personality and the way Didier made me feel like I was the only one in the room.”  Didier loved how kind, genuine and sincere Karen was. “She was simply the real deal,” he says.

A few years later, Didier planned a very special proposal.

“The Nuyorican Poetry Cafe in lower Manhattan was where Karen and I had our second official date,” he says. “That night was pure magic! Each poet on stage captured the collective consciousness of the masses of people present and left an indelible impression on us, prompting us to vow to someday return.

That someday would be four years later and that occasion would mark the beginning of a new chapter in our lives. I’ve written poetry in the past, but I’ve never taken the stage to share something so personal and intimate like this. After auditioning and being chosen to do a segment on stage, the surprise was officially underway. The evening was passed off as a couple’s date night, and at approximately 11:55 p.m. on Oct. 11, 2019, I took the stage to perform my piece and ask the love of my life to marry me. In front of a crowd of over 200 people, I knelt down and asked Karen to spend the rest of her life with me!”

How They Decided on a NYC Elopement

The couple originally planned to get married in September in Montauk, but pushed it back to 2021 due to COVID.

Karen & Didier still wanted to get married in 2020, year, so they planned a small, intimate ceremony, just with close family and friends, on a hill in Central Park on a sunny day in June.

“Getting married in Central Park was an obvious choice for us,” she says. “We shared countless moments together there when we first started dating, from morning runs around the Jackie Kennedy Onassis Reservoir to afternoon stair workouts at Bethesda Terrace and picnics in Sheep Meadow. Didier and I spent a Friday morning biking through the park to choose our ceremony location, and we settled on a beautiful grassy clearing next to Dene Summerhouse on the Upper East Side.”

As a harpist played, Karen walked up the rose-petal strewn hillside with her dad. She and Didier exchanged vows while the afternoon sunshine glinted off of skyscrapers in the background.

“The most memorable moment of the day was standing atop the hill across from Didier and realizing that he was my husband,” she says.

NYC Elopement Wedding Vendors

Photographer: Tom Schelling Photography
Venue: Dene Summerhouse in Central Park

Florals: Posies NYC

Bride’s Dress: White Runway
Groom’s Suit: The Black Tux

Bride’s Shoes: Jeffry Campbell
Rings: Ultimate Diamond NYC

See more NYC Elopement photos in these galleries:

Jenni & Matt’s Rooftop Wedding in Little Italy

Mabel & Troy’s Central Park Wedding Session

Ankita & Dhruv in Central Park

 

Looking for more NYC Elopement inspiration? Check out these boards on Pinterest!

Learn more about

WORKING TOGETHER

Capturing the magic of your wedding day starts here.