Not totally sure where to begin, but let's just say Jesse is a master of his craft, and is simply an amazing photographer. I found out about Jesse after one of my friends posted her engagement photos - they were breathtaking. Then I also noticed his photos were on a comedian's Instagram whom I follow - John Mulaney. I knew he was our guy before even meeting him. I reached out to him to strictly do our engagement shoot first, and it was perfect. We wanted a winter, snowy shoot and he worked us on the timing and location. He made it so easy! Jesse's style is effortless and he makes you feel extremely comfortable in front of the camera. We had an amazing session and after getting our photos back (he doesn't hold any photo back, FYI - they are all yours) we told him we wanted to book him for our wedding and as soon as we had the date, we secured him. For nearly a year and a half, we had him booked because we didn't want to lose him! Over that time, we communicated on timelines of the day, recommendations on various things, and technical details. He didn't leave any thought unsaid and it made for a day that flowed and provided us everything we would ever want! On our wedding day, Jesse was as professional as they come. You barely knew he was there when we were getting ready, and worked well with all the different personality types in our bridal party. We adventured through town and found some incredible places to shoot! And through our ceremony and reception, he was there for all the right moments, showed discretion where necessary, and blended right in to the fold. Without a doubt, Jesse was by far our golden snitch of vendors, and we are so fortunate to have had the chance to work with him and recommend him to all! read more

Golden Hour Studios - The Roundhouse - Amanda + Jake 10.28.17 - Event Photography Near Me

I found Jesse while researching wedding venues and discovered the photos he shot of John Mulaney and Annamarie Tendler's wedding through Onteora Mountain House's website. I thought they were absolutely stunning and that his work managed to capture the tender moments of such a special day so effortlessly and beautifully. We didn't end up booking Onteora, but I knew we had to book Jesse! When I showed my now-husband Jesse's work, we felt like we were there with the couples and the families - we could feel the magic of the beautiful occasion in a way we just could not with a lot of other wedding photographers. We also loved the way that he paired these couples with the gorgeous landscapes of the natural elements around them. From reading other online reviews about him, we really liked that many people said they felt that they almost didn't know he was there, but that they were left with photographs that perfectly captured their love. We were pretty much sold on Jesse before we even got on the phone with him -- yet, somehow things got better and better from there! Jesse's a breath of fresh air; just a really, really great guy. He managed to take two people who aren't too great at being the center of attention, and somehow make them feel relaxed and comfortable about being in front of the camera for an entire day. After we got off the phone with Jesse, my now-husband and I looked at each other and just knew he was the guy. Our engagement session was amazing -- just my then-fiancé, me and Jesse out in the middle of the Pine Barrens. I left the session feeling so excited about our choice in photographer. And when the photos came?! INCREDIBLE. Jesse made the wedding planning process a breeze. We booked him well in advance (about a year and a half before our wedding date), but Jesse maintained the conversation with us by email and on social media the entire time. He is professional, punctual and organized, and had us feeling well-prepared the few days before our wedding (which is hard to do during such a stressful time!). We trusted him to make it great! The big day was absolutely magical. Jesse shot our wedding solo, and somehow managed to be everywhere at once the entire day! He was warm and friendly to all of our family and friends; his great personality and sense of humor had everyone at ease from getting ready, to the first look, to family photos, to the ceremony, cocktail hour and reception, all night long. Our family couldn't stop telling us throughout the day what a great guy Jesse is, and how comfortable he made them feel. It rained the morning of our wedding day, and I'll be forever thankful to Jesse for convincing us to take the tent down when the sun started peeking out right before our ceremony. (Aside from my own husband, I've never trusted a guy more!) Jesse got the photos to us amazingly fast, and we decided to have a little "viewing party" with our immediate family. Even though we knew he'd be fantastic, his work just BLEW US AWAY. The photos took us on an emotional journey, telling the story of our wedding in the most beautiful way. As we were going through the photos, there was laughter, there were tears, there were exclamations of "how did he get that shot?" and "wow, I didn't even know he was there!" -- and there were sequences where we just sat there in complete silence, in utter awe at what we were viewing on the screen. These photos are truly works of art, treasures of captured memories to cherish forever. There are no words to describe how grateful we are to Golden Hour Studios for making our wedding day nothing less than absolutely perfect. read more

Golden Hour Studios - Wedding Ceremony at Buttermilk Falls Inn & Spa in Milton, NY. - Event Photography Near Me

It was amazing to work with Jesse on our wedding day. The whole process felt very smooth and natural. He has an uncanny ability to make amazing compositions out of simple candid moments. Looking through our gallery, it feels like we have a perfect encapsulation to help remember our day. We will definitely be reaching out to Jesse for future events. Don't think twice. Go with Jesse! read more

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I'll start with this: I keep looking back at my wedding photos and thinking, "How am I this lucky? How are these photos even real? And how is it possible that they're MINE?" You may think it's impossible to remember every moment from your wedding. You may feel like you'll never be back there ever again feeling the emotions, reliving the moments exactly as they were, smiling and tearing up just as you did when it all happened. But I'm telling you that through Jesse's photos, not only is it possible, but it WILL happen. You'll remember things that you thought you had forgotten, or that you may have missed. You'll remember your favorite, most special, rawest moments, because he will capture it all. The day we got our photos back may have been the SECOND best day of our lives. We laughed and cried, reliving every minute of our wedding as if it were happening all over again. It was incredible. Aside from his obvious talent as a photographer, Jesse was an absolute pleasure to be around on our wedding day. He is the type of person you WANT following you around for 8-10 hours on the most important day of your life. He is so genuine and positive. He'll calm your nerves. He'll reassure you. He'll help you build and follow a timeline that makes sense, and he'll have you feeling natural and free in front of the camera in no time. He may even dance while he shoots. In the months leading up to your wedding, he's communicative, savvy, never pushy. He just gets it. If you're looking for cheesy, staged photos (we've all seen them - the groomsmen peeking out from behind trees, the bridesmaids all jumping in the air at the same time, etc.) he's not your guy. But if you're interested in remembering, REALLY remembering your day as it actually happened, he's the one. Hire him, trust him, be willing to adventure a bit, and you'll end up with the greatest gift - being able to re-live your wedding over and over again, for the rest of your life. read more

Jesse photographed our engagement session (highly recommended) and our wedding and there honestly isn't enough space in this review for me to write down how wonderful Jesse is and how happy we are that we chose him as our photographer. It almost goes without saying, but our pictures came out absolutely beautiful. Every moment, every smile, and every tear is captured in a photograph for us to cherish forever. Jesse is so talented and passionate about what he does that you just know your pictures are going to be stunning, even as he's taking them. In addition to being a fantastic photographer, Jesse is the most wonderful person to work with. He understood our vision and what we wanted. He made us feel instantly comfortable in front of the camera. He made the entire process easy. Jesse loves what he does and you can feel it the second you sit down with him. I wish I had more events to plan so I could hire Jesse to photograph every single one of them. Hire him as your photographer, just do it. read more

Jesse captured the best and most unforgettable moments from our wedding in the most beautiful and emotional shots. His work exceeded our expectations especially with the weather complications we experienced with terential downpours. Note our ceremony was supposed to be outdoors. We were utterly enamored by his ability to make a dreary day look absolutely captivating by capturing the elements at their best. Many of our friends and family commented on how uniquely he capture the environment and the emotions in every photo. Beyond the photography, we were extremely impressed with Jesse's professional nature, humor and flexibility. If you are looking for a photographer that knows how to bring a moments to life, Jesse is definitely the photographer for you. Every shot felt natural and incorporated the surrounding environment perfectly. read more

It is really hard to put into words how fantastic Jesse is - as a person + as a photographer. When choosing my wedding photographer, my goal was to find someone who was a pleasure to be around at all of our wedding events (we had 3 major events), since photographers are really with you throughout the entire process. When I had my first meeting with Jesse, I could tell immediately that he would put us at ease the day of our wedding, all the while taking beautiful photos. He really made an effort to know us as a couple, and instantly recognized what poses worked based on our personalities / interactions. I had no doubt that our photos would turn out phenomenally - and they did! I cannot recommend Jesse highly enough (I would need more "STARS" in the rating). Can't wait to work with him again. read more

We used Golden Hour Studios for our engagement and wedding photos and couldn't be any happier! Jesse and his second photographer showed up on time, were professional and made the whole experience stress free. They were not intrusive and got every shot we asked for plus more! Our photos captured every emotion we both felt on that day and I'm so happy we chose them. read more

Jesse is such a fantastic photographer, it is an HONOR he does weddings!!!! Him and his team capture every single moment, moments that you would miss if he wasn't watching....Most importantly, he has FUN with it. They also never make your guests uncomfortable. The accommodate every single request you have--like mine--I didn't want to miss my cocktail hour, GUESS WHAT? I didn't! I was there enjoying every moment yet I was confident all my photos were taken care of. You can tell this is his true passion and his teams true passion. They want to be there, making your wedding vision become a reality. Thank you GOLDEN HOUR!! read more

I found Jesse while researching wedding venues in the NYC area. I was really impressed with the blog I found on 100layercake which featured his photojournalism style. After a short Skype session, I didn't really consider any other photographers. We held our engagement photo session in Central Park where he took us off the beaten path in the midst of the concert jungle. The session was so much fun (we may have broken some park rules) and the results surpassed our expectations. Seeing Jesse's work on other weddings in some pretty cool places like New Zealand over the past year made us wonder if our venue was up to par...but we just got our wedding gallery (early might I add) and the first thing my husband called and said to me was "great choice, these pictures are freaking awesome" and I agree. Thanks Jesse! Go 'cuse read more

Do yourself a favor and hire Golden Hour Studios for your wedding! First, the boring (but incredibly important) stuff: From beginning to end, working with Jesse was an entirely stress-free experience. He is a real-deal professional--always gets back to emails/questions right away, was never late for appointments, and had our photos back to us when he said he would. This all probably sounds like common sense, but once you get a little further into wedding planning, you will come to realize that any vendor that doesn't cause you angina at least once during the process is a real rarity. I am so grateful to Jesse for giving me complete confidence that my husband's and my memories would be safely captured and preserved. Now, the exciting (and also quite important) stuff: Jesse takes remarkably beautiful and special pictures. You've probably seen his webpage, and already know this. But maybe you're wondering if all of the photos he is going to give you are of similar quality, and I can tell you "Yes!" For our smallish wedding, Jesse gave my husband and me a ton of pictures, all as beautiful as what you see on his webpage, and nothing redundant--I never get bored looking at my wedding pictures (and I can tell you, a year later, I still look at them at least once a week). On top of that, Jesse knows his way around a wedding--you won't have to provide him with a crazy long list of shots. We gave him a short list of "must-have" pictures (mostly our family portraits), but otherwise his judgement about pictures we'd like to have was spot-on. The locations he suggested for our photos were also great, and he did such an amazing job of capturing not just us, but the nature around us. Finally, the extras that were the icing on top: Jesse is super nice and easy going--I think it is safe to say that most people aren't used to having a professional photographer follow them around for hours, but he made it so easy and awkward-free. He won't ask you to pose most of the time, but when he does, he'll give you clear instructions and he doesn't get frustrated or impatient. It rained all throughout our (outdoor) couple portraits, and he stayed upbeat the whole time and never tried to get us to cut our time short or change our plan and move inside. He was equally nice to our families during the portraits, and made my grandma's day when he complimented her dress. I genuinely feel lucky to have had Golden Hour Studios shoot my wedding, and if I could have a vow renewal every year for the rest of my life, I'd pick Golden Hour again each and every time. read more

Jesse's craft with a camera speaks for itself, and his talent is equally matched by his ability to balance professionalism and personal consideration for every couple. The task of finding a talented, thoughtful, unique wedding photographer can be abysmal; for us, it lead to a bleak Google Image search: "rustic wedding photography"; but the infinite results were worth the dredging -- we found Jesse. He's literally one in millions! The photos couldn't be more sweet and sentimental - as evidenced by each album on his site - and we were delighted to share the day with him. read more

My fiancé and I knew we wanted a simple, intimate wedding. Despite its simplicity, we also knew we wanted to invest in a good photographer who could capture our love for each other, as well as our love for the outdoors. The trick would be finding someone whose work was amazing, but would also be game to spend a few hours traipsing through the woods with us. I spent days scouring (no, really... I'm picky) the Internet for the perfect person until I found Jesse Pafundi of Golden Hour Studios. I knew right away that he was our guy, and was ecstatic when he agreed to be a part of our day. He was as excited as we were to explore the trails, looking for amazing shots. Jesse's top priority is creating art and I couldn't be happier with our photographs. Every single person that has seen our pictures says, "I can't pick my favorite! They're just all so beautiful." What more could you ask for? I hope to use Jesse to capture any and all important moments in our new life together. read more

We were so lucky to find Jesse. He was incredible. The photos are just beautiful and and the entire experience was amazing. Jesse was so accommodating and he really knows how to capture the spirit of the event. My husband and I had a wonderful time at our wedding, but we both agreed that our favorite part was taking photos all around the little town we were married in before the ceremony. It was so fun and Jesse made the entire experience perfect. I felt like a rock star. Jesse is a stand up guy and one hell of a photographer. read more

Our wedding was January 24, 2015 and we had the pleasure of having Jesse as our photographer. When we first got engaged and started to look for our wedding photographer, my husband and I really didn't want anything to do with those typical cheesy poses that so many people have for their wedding photos. We wanted someone who would make us feel comfortable just being us and someone who would capture every amazing moment that happened on the day of... and Jesse was beyond that! He and his assistant got to our houses an hour and a half before we left for the church. Within that time, I was the most calm, excited and so ready to walk down that aisle, and that was partially due to how awesome Jesse was! We had a wedding of 300 guests which included 13 bridesmaids 13 groomsman 7 kids (just in the bridal party!) and of course our parents.. so at times things got a bit hectic! But throughout the whole day/night, Jesse and his assistant kept everyone's attention and was able to get every different set of photos we wanted (plus more) done before cocktail hour! Also- My husband and I really wanted some photos of us outside... It was raining, snowing and freezing that night but we really didn't care.. neither did these guys! They even brought an umbrella for us to use! After every photo they encouraged us even more... which not only made us feel more comfortable but also made us totally forget that we were in the middle of a snowy golf course in the rain at night! They were so professional yet we felt like they were some of our closest friends! I cannot recommend Golden Hour Studios enough! We got our wedding photo gallery last week and they are more perfect and more amazing than i could imagine!! Jesse also did our engagement session back in May and the photos don't even look real! We now have the most beautiful images I have ever seen.. they are like art! If you want a photographer who will literally go above and beyond to capture the most perfect moments of your special day.. here he is! xox read more

Jesse travelled all the way from the US to the Hawkes Bay, New Zealand to photograph our wedding. He was absolutely fantastic. He arrived the day before the wedding - no sooner had he got off the plane, he was out scouting locations for our couples portraits with us for several hours. This paid off on the day and we had some amazing photos (as well as some memorable adventures with me climbing up the side off hills in my wedding dress and running shoes!) Jesse was extremely professional and non-obtrusive, leaving us free to relax and enjoy our day. One thing that we particularly appreciated was that he was willing to stay for the whole reception and photograph - so we got some great shots at the end of the night, too. The cost of his services was comparable to the local photographers in the Hawkes Bay and I feel that we probably got better value for money too. We were super happy with our whole experience with Golden Hour Studios and would not hesitate to recommend Jesse to any other couples getting married. read more

My husband and I love our pictures :-) Our whole family does. There were so many candid shots that suprised us when we got our gallery and we're so thankful that Jesse and Adriano had eyes and cameras everywhere while we were so busy that day. It was such an overwhelming day and it flew by in the blink of an eye and my husband and I are so grateful for the quiet time that we had with Jesse during our portrait time. Jesse gave us so much encouragement during our portraits that helped calm our nerves in front of the camera. It's obvious by his portfolio that Jesse is extremely talented, but he is also extremely professional. His communication is excellent, always getting back to me quickly and with a thoughtful response. We received our pictures on time and in an easy to use/view format. Jesse was able to capture our day in such a beautiful way and in the style that we wanted. We couldnt be happier with our choice of photographer! read more