Real wedding · Windham Manor · Windham, New York
Windham Manor Wedding Photography & Films
Windham Manor is a Victorian estate in the northern Catskills, in Windham, New York, with a Manor House, a timber Barn, a ceremony site in the pines called the Enchanted Forest and a lawn that looks out over the mountains. This page follows one October wedding we photographed and filmed there, Charissa and Andrew’s, with their full wedding film and our planning notes.
Charissa & Andrew · Wedding photography · Windham Manor
A fall wedding in the Catskills.
Charissa and Andrew were married at Windham Manor on October 26, and BlackTie Brothers covered their day with photography and film. It never left the estate: getting ready and exchanging letters in the Manor House, a ceremony in the Enchanted Forest, golden hour on the Barn balcony and a reception under the beams of the Barn.
The photographs below are a selection from their wedding. Tap any of them to see it larger. A complete gallery from a Windham Manor wedding is available on request.
The Manor House and the Barn
A Victorian house for getting ready, a timber barn for the party, and forty-five acres of Catskills in between.
Getting ready, and the letters
Everyone got ready in the Manor House. Charissa wrote Andrew a letter; he read it before the ceremony, and it went about how you would hope.
A ceremony in the Enchanted Forest
A short path into the woods, wooden benches, a brook and pines in every direction.
Golden hour across the property
The Barn balcony with the mountains behind, then a vintage truck that happened to be exactly the right color.
The reception in the Barn
Autumn flowers on farm tables, toasts at the sweetheart table and a stone fireplace with a neon sign above it.
Ask us for a complete Windham Manor wedding gallery and we will send it over.
Charissa & Andrew · Wedding film · Windham Manor
The whole day, on film.
Their wedding film runs seven minutes and eleven seconds, from the letters in the Manor House and the vows in the forest to the strings, the speeches and the last dances in the Barn.
Charissa & Andrew’s Wedding Film
Charissa & Andrew’s Wedding Film · Windham Manor, Windham, New York · 7 min 11 s. The player loads only when you press play; press play again in the player to start the film.
Venue & planning · Windham, Catskills
A house, a forest and a barn,
and how to plan around them.
From the venue. Windham Manor describes itself as a Victorian mansion on 45 acres with views of the Catskill Mountains. It lists twelve guest suites in the Manor House, for twenty-eight or more guests, and a wraparound porch. The Barn was built to hold more than 300 guests, with posts and beams, a grand stone fireplace, an outdoor balcony and a heated outdoor patio. For ceremonies it names the Enchanted Forest, a short path into the woods with wooden benches, a brook and pines, and the Lawn, which overlooks the mountains and a pond with a fountain. The venue puts it about two and a half hours’ drive from New York City and an hour from Albany. Packages, capacities and policies are the venue’s to explain.
What we saw. At Charissa and Andrew’s wedding, the Manor House gave everyone room to get ready in soft window light, and the porch steps held the whole wedding party. The walk to the Enchanted Forest is short and lovely in the afternoon. The Barn balcony was our golden-hour spot, with the lawn, the pond and the mountains behind, and inside, the timber and the stone fireplace kept the reception warm in color long after dark.
Our coverage here. Photography and film for Charissa and Andrew.
Our recommendations, drawn from the wedding on this page. Access, timing and policies belong to the venue, so where something is theirs to decide we have written it as a question to ask them.
Get ready where the window light is.
The House has tall windows and pale walls, which is a photographer's idea of a good morning. We keep the gown, the details and any letters by the glass, and ask the wedding party to keep one room tidy for photographs. One room. Not every room.
Beautiful pines, patchy light.
Tall trees make shade, and shade in the afternoon means bright patches of sky between darker trunks. We expose for faces, place the officiant slightly off-centre so the kiss is clear, and walk the path before guests do, so we know where the light falls.
Give every move ten extra minutes.
The House, the Forest, the Lawn and the Barn sit on one estate, but a full wedding party on gravel and grass in formal shoes does not move like two people. We build a margin into each move and ask one person on each side to round up the group.
Ten minutes on the balcony.
In the fall the sun drops behind the Catskills early. We look up the sunset for your date, protect ten minutes near it for the two of you, and use the Barn balcony, with the lawn, the pond and the mountains beyond, as the frame. If clouds win, the timber inside the Barn is the backup.
Timber, stone and warm low light.
The Barn has posts and beams, a grand stone fireplace and, according to the venue, a catwalk around the room. We photograph the room before guests walk in, light the dance floor so faces stay natural against the warm wood, and ask the venue about access to the upper level for the wide view.
One timeline, two crafts, clean audio.
When you book photography and film together, one team plans the day and splits up only when two things happen at once. For the vows in the forest and the toasts in the Barn we record from our own microphones and, whenever the DJ or band allows it, a feed from the board, so the film does not depend on the wind or the room.
Questions worth asking Windham Manor
- Which spaces are included for our ceremony, cocktail hour and reception, and what is the plan if it rains?
- Where can we and our wedding party get ready, and from what time?
- Can our photographer and videographer use the Barn balcony, the Lawn and the pond for portraits, and at what times?
- Is the Barn's upper level open to our photographer and videographer for a wide view of the room?
- When will the Barn be fully set, so it can be photographed before guests come in?
- Can our DJ or band give the videographer an audio feed for the toasts?
- Is drone flight allowed over the property, and is notice required?
- Where do cars or a shuttle stop for arrivals and departures?
Nothing on this page is a venue policy. Timelines are agreed with each couple privately, and access to the House, the Barn, the Enchanted Forest, the Lawn and the rest of the property is arranged by Windham Manor for each event.
Photography and film
Why coordinated photography and film matter.
Two crafts, one plan. Here is what that looked like at Windham Manor.
Frames that stand on their own.
A photograph has to hold a moment by itself: the letter being read, the kiss under the pines, the doorway at golden hour. Charissa and Andrew's photographs work without a soundtrack.
Voices, movement, atmosphere.
Film keeps what a photograph cannot: the strings, the speeches, the way the Barn moves when everyone gets up to dance. Their wedding film runs seven minutes and eleven seconds.
The same moments, from two sides.
When one team plans both, the photographer and the filmmaker agree where each will stand for the processional, the vows and the first dance, so neither ends up in the other's shot.
One wedding, start to finish.
We covered Charissa and Andrew's whole day here, so we know how the light moves through the House, how long the walk to the forest takes in a gown, and what the Barn looks like after dark.
Windham Manor wedding questions
A few things couples ask.
Have you photographed and filmed a wedding at Windham Manor?
Yes. BlackTie Brothers photographed and filmed Charissa and Andrew's October wedding at Windham Manor, from getting ready in the Manor House to the last dances in the Barn. Every photograph on this page is from their day, and their full wedding film plays on this page.
Can we see a full wedding gallery from Windham Manor?
Yes, on request. The photographs on this page are a selection. Ask us through the contact form and we will share a complete gallery from a Windham Manor wedding, along with other full galleries from weddings like yours.
Where can the ceremony happen at Windham Manor?
The venue names two outdoor settings: the Enchanted Forest, where a short path leads to wooden benches among the pines beside a brook, and the Lawn, which overlooks the mountains and a pond with a fountain. Charissa and Andrew married in the Enchanted Forest. Which spaces are available for your date, and the plan if it rains, are for Windham Manor to confirm.
When should portraits happen at Windham Manor?
It depends on the season and your ceremony time. For a fall wedding like this one, we protect about ten minutes at golden hour for portraits with the Catskills behind you, often from the Barn balcony, and plan an earlier option in case the weather shifts. We look up the sunset for your date and build the timeline around it.
Where do we get ready?
The Manor House is where Charissa, Andrew and their wedding party got ready. The venue lists twelve guest suites there, for twenty-eight or more guests, and describes two private bridal suites in the Barn. Window light in the House is soft and lovely, so we like to photograph the gown, the details and the letters there.
Do you offer both photography and film?
Yes. Charissa and Andrew had both, from one coordinated team. We plan the photography first, then build the film coverage around the same timeline, so the two crafts cover the same moments without getting in each other's way.
How do we check availability?
Send us your date, where the ceremony and reception will happen, and whether you want photography, film or both through our contact form. We reply with availability and a coverage recommendation. Pricing, capacity and packages for the venue itself are Windham Manor's to answer.
Availability
Planning your wedding at
Windham Manor?
Share your wedding date, where the ceremony and reception will happen, and whether you want photography, film or both. We will confirm availability and recommend coverage that fits the day. BlackTie Brothers is a national wedding photography and film company with teams serving Upstate New York, New York City, Long Island and the surrounding area, Florida and Hawaii, and we travel for weddings across the country.