A photographer is arguably the most important person at your wedding because all you will have left when it's over are the photographs. I can't imagine anyone who is better in the business than Philip Gabriel Photography. From the first meeting with Gabriel Fredericks, it was evident that he was not only personable, and thoughtful, but that he was the consummate professional. He was gracious both in his manner and in his time, carefully explaining the various packages and accommodating some of our requests and allowing us to custom make a package that suited our needs. My daughter currently lives in DC, and I had some medical issues at the time, but Gabe was boundless in his time and patience in order to work with our complicated schedules. He also spent time interviewing the bride and groom to gain insight into their personalities, and used this insight to provide them with the photos they wanted and felt comfortable taking. I would be remiss if I did not mention that my daughter and I often called upon Gabe to mediate between us during the usual pre-wedding fears and conflicts associated with this wonderful but occasionally stressful event. His wisdom and experience helped us get through a couple of rough patches.
On the day of the wedding, once again Gabe proved to be the photographer extraordinaire. He captured everything we wanted with astounding expertise, creativity, and artistry. He took a range of photographs from the beginning to the end of the wedding, from the application of my daughter's make up to the last dance. And it is impossible to narrow our choices for the album because the old "process of elimination" is too daunting. Every photo is a "keeper." Both the candids and the posed photos are outstanding. His staff is also terrific, all of whom maintain unstinting patience given the necessity to capture everyone and everything in such a limited time span. All of this done, miraculously, without producing photographs which appear either corny or contrived.
Most of all, we really, really like Gabe. In addition to being a superb photographer, he also is the nicest, most sincere, and most wonderful guy. One final thought: my daughter says the most common post wedding complaint among her friends is that their photographer neglected to get any number of critical shots. We did not ever feel that way. Gabe got it all, and he got it perfectly. read more