Wildflowers in the barn. Sculpture over the bar. Red lights at midnight.
There are weekends that feel complete from start to finish. Not just a wedding day but a whole world built for two days, each part of it distinct and intentional and connected to the next. Stephanie and Tony's Hamptons weekend was that kind of thing.
Abby and Lisa both shot the full weekend, from the rehearsal dinner at Topping Rose House in Bridgehampton through the wedding day and after party at The Bridge Golf Club. This post is as much about what it looks like when two lead photographers share a day as it is about the wedding itself.
The rehearsal dinner: linen canopies and wildflowers at Topping Rose House
Shannon Leahy handled planning, design, and florals across both days, and the rehearsal dinner at Topping Rose was a perfect expression of her aesthetic: tactile, natural, quietly beautiful. The historic Barn on the property was draped in airy linen canopies that caught the light and moved gently through the evening. Wildflower-inspired arrangements sat low on rustic wood tables. The whole room felt like it belonged there, like someone had opened the barn doors one summer evening and found it looking exactly like this.
Topping Rose House is one of the best rehearsal dinner venues in the Hamptons. The property itself, a restored 19th century mansion set on a working farm in Bridgehampton, does something to the atmosphere that other venues just can't replicate. The barn in particular has a warmth and texture that's genuinely extraordinary to photograph.
The wedding day: coastal sculpture and a tent at The Bridge Golf Club, Bridgehampton
The Bridge Golf Club sits on 500 acres in Bridgehampton, with sweeping views of Long Island Sound and Peconic Bay. As a wedding venue it offers something rare in the Hamptons: genuine scale, both in the landscape and in the sense of possibility. Shannon Leahy designed the day around the coastal setting, building a visual language from sea, sand, and sky without ever making it literal.
The installation over the bar was the centerpiece of that vision: sculptural, architectural, airy, alive with movement. Shannon described it as drawing directly from the coastal view, and photographically it held its own from every angle. Working within a minimalist palette meant every form decision carried weight, every texture had to earn its place. The result was design that felt considered rather than restrained.
Social Supply Design handled production on the ground. Skyline Tent Company built the structure. Quest Events brought the draping. Technical Event lit it. The infrastructure of a day like this is invisible when it works, and here it worked completely.
Hank Lane Music played the reception. The room moved.
Then the after party happened.
This is the chapter we wait for. And we mean that.
There's a version of wedding photography that ends at the last toast, and there's a version that stays for what comes after: when the lights go red, the DJ steps in, the mirrored dance floor comes alive, and the whole room tips into something electric. The ceremony and the portraits matter. The design and the styling matter. But the after party is where everyone stops performing and simply feels. It's where you see the couple and their people as they actually are, unguarded and present and genuinely having the time of their lives.
Abby and Lisa were both there for it. And those images tell a story that the first dance alone never could.
What it looks like when two lead photographers share a day
On most of our weddings, one of us leads and a second shooter supports. Stephanie and Tony's weekend was something different: Abby and Lisa co-shooting as two full leads, each bringing their own eye and instinct to the same day.
That matters for the couple in a specific way. Two lead photographers means two distinct points of view operating simultaneously. When Abby is with the couple during portraits, Lisa is in the room watching the energy of the guests. When Lisa is on the dance floor reading the crowd, Abby is finding the quieter moments at the edges. The coverage is more complete, but more than that, the storytelling is richer. You're not getting one narrative of the day, you're getting two perspectives woven together into something neither could have produced alone.
We tailor this to the couple's priorities. For Stephanie and Tony, a big, celebratory, two-day weekend event with an after party that mattered as much as the ceremony, having two full leads meant nothing was missed and nothing was thin. Every chapter of the day was fully covered because it deserved to be.
That's always the question we start with: what does this particular couple's story actually need? What are the moments that matter most to them? What would they regret not having? The photography approach follows the answer, not the other way around. And sometimes the answer is two leads, full coverage, all the way through midnight.
Rehearsal Dinner
Planning, Design and Floral: Shannon Leahy Events Photography: Abby Jiu Photography (Abby Jiu, Lisa Ziesing) Venue and Catering: Topping Rose House Drape: Quest Events Lighting: Technical Event Rentals: Kadeem Rentals Bar Wrap: Go to Shout Videography: Aaron Novak Films Candy Cart: Bon Bon NYC DJ: The Mark Wolf Stylist: The Stylish Bride Stationery: Emily Baird Design
Wedding Day
Planning, Design and Floral: Shannon Leahy Events Photography: Abby Jiu Photography (Abby Jiu, Lisa Ziesing) Catering: Creative Edge Parties Tent: Skyline Tent Company Production: Social Supply Design Drape: Quest Events Lighting: Technical Event Linens: Nuage Designs, BBJ La Tavola, Something Vintage Rentals Rentals: Kadeem Rentals, Taylor Creative Inc., Casa de Perrin, Party Rental Ltd Dancefloor: Go to Shout Band: Hank Lane Music Beauty: Facetime Beauty, Lauren Stein Makeup Stylist: The Stylish Bride Oysters: Oysters XO Videography: Aaron Novak Films Content Creation: La Fave Media Stationery: Emily Baird Design