From sunrise to sunset: real weddings at VIP Country Club

A summer evening celebration and a spring morning wedding show two very different sides of the same property on the Long Island Sound.

VIP Country Club sits right on the harbor in New Rochelle. The two weddings I documented there over the past year could not have looked more different, even with the same water views, the same mansion backdrop, and the same patio ceremony space. Molly and Matt filled the venue with a black tie celebration and two hundred guests on the last day of August. Brittany and Joe, traveling in from Tennessee, kept their March wedding small and early, with a ceremony that started before noon and a wedding party of two. Both couples celebrated their wedding days at VIP in uniquely personal ways.

Photo by Matthew Rigby Photography

Getting ready on two very different mornings

Molly’s morning started at her family home in nearby Rye Brook, where she had grown up with her twin brother and younger brother. Both of her parents were present while she got ready with her bridesmaids. After hair and makeup were finished, we took the group out to the pool for a relaxed, playful set of photos that became some of my favorites from the day. Her groom-to-be, Matt, got ready at a hotel in White Plains, where his best man and his mother helped him with his suit in the beautiful window light before driving to New Rochelle.

After Molly arrived at VIP we used some of the empty space in her ballroom to take portraits in front of the large windows looking over the harbor. She shared moments with her friends and family, while sailboats scuttered across the water behind her. It’s important to plan your prep when getting married at VIP: the getting ready suites work well, but the venue’s flexibility with the additional spaces can open up unexpected options for these moments.

Brittany’s morning was quieter by design. She and Joe wanted their wedding party small, so they only had a maid of honor and a best man, and Brittany’s prep reflected that same intimacy. She got ready at a nearby hotel with her mother and sister present, which felt calm and unhurried. Joe, meanwhile, met my second photographer at VIP and took some getting ready photos there. That was more practical for him, considering his early call time.

Photos by Matthew Rigby Photography

First look on the Long Island Sound

Both couples chose the same spot for their first look: the grassy area near VIP’s abandoned mansion, a striking but unused building the venue allows full exterior access to. Just past the mansion is a lawn and a sea wall, which overlook the quiet harbor. This spot is, without question, the location I would suggest to any couple for their first look at VIP Country Club.

Molly and Matt saw each other there in the mid-afternoon, with bright August sun still high enough to keep the light clean and direct. Brittany and Joe used the same spot in the late morning, which showed the difference immediately. Morning light off the water has a softer, more reflective quality, and it gave their portraits a gentler, quieter feel than the crisper light Molly and Matt had a few hours later in the day.

After their first looks both couples took portraits along the sea wall with the water in the background, then made the short trip back up to the venue for their wedding party and family portraits.

Photos by Matthew Rigby Photography

Wedding party and family photos

In August Molly and Matt had eleven attendants standing on each side, which meant that we had to plan carefully around both available space and shade on their hot, bright day. The lower patio near VIP’s water features and fire pits turned out to be the only spot with real shade that early in the afternoon, and it became the setting for some of the most creative wedding party images from the day, framed between the trees and the fountains.

In comparison, Brittany and Joe’s photo list moved quickly. With only a maid of honor and a best man, plus a flower girl and ring bearer, family and wedding party portraits wrapped well ahead of schedule. They also had the property entirely to themselves that morning with no other event to navigate around, so they had more freedom to relax and spend quality time with their families.

The staff of VIP, led by the day of coordinator Vinny, was good to work with on both days. On both occasions we had a table set for us inside the ballroom, something that is not always offered but which allowed us to keep track of the events because we were within close proximity. The food was good, and the staff handled early guest arrivals thoughtfully. On Brittany and Joe’s morning, VIP had welcome drinks and food ready for guests who arrived ahead of the ceremony, a detail that reflects how intentional this venue is about the overall guest experience.

Photos by Matthew Rigby Photography

Ceremonies with a view of the harbor

VIP’s back patio ceremony space looks straight out over the water. Both ceremonies made use of that view, although in different light.

Molly and Matt’s ceremony began at six in the evening, so the sun was still bright, but it had transitioned into a warmer golden light by the time it finished. Molly’s twin brother officiated, offering remarks that only someone who had known her that long could give. Their ceremony also included a unity candle and the breaking of a glass.

Brittany and Joe’s ceremony started at half past eleven in the morning, under soft, even daylight with none of the golden hour warmth. It gave the whole ceremony a clean, quiet brightness that suited the smaller, more private feeling of their day. A best friend officiated and told heartfelt stories of the two of them.

Photo by Matthew Rigby Photography

Cocktail hour and reception

Molly and Matt wanted to spend their cocktail hour with their guests, which they did until a brief ballroom reveal near the end. Their reception ran into the evening with a full grand entrance and a dance floor that stayed full for hours. Off camera flash let us document that energy clearly. Some of my favorite photos were with Molly’s parents, who were in the middle of the dance floor for most of the evening.

Brittany and Joe’s reception was a shorter midday celebration built around family time rather than a long night out. It started at one in the afternoon and wrapped by five. During that time their DJ balanced dancing with quieter stretches more conducive to conversation. The couple’s first dance, which they had spent weeks choreographing, became a film I was glad to deliver afterward so they could relive it beyond the photographs.

Film by Matthew Rigby Photography

End of night photos

Both days closed at the front fountain. For Molly and Matt, that meant night portraits after dark. For Brittany and Joe, the fountain’s mist caught the early afternoon sun and threw a faint rainbow behind them.

Photos by Matthew Rigby Photography

Coordinating an afternoon wedding versus a morning wedding

The two timelines tell the story of how differently a day at VIP can unfold.

Here is an excerpt from Molly and Matt’s day:

• 1:30 PM: Molly leaves for VIP Country Club
• 2:45 PM: First look
• 6:00 PM: Ceremony
• 7:30 PM: Reception start
• 11:30 PM: After party start 

And here is a sample from Brittany and Joe’s day:

• 8:30 AM: Brittany leaves for VIP
• 9:30 AM: First look
• 11:30 AM: Ceremony
• 1:00 PM: Reception start
• 5:00 PM: Reception end

An afternoon and evening wedding like Molly and Matt’s is usually built around sunset, with cocktail hour and portrait time calculated backward from that golden hour window. A morning wedding like Brittany and Joe’s flips that logic. Everything happens in daylight, the whole day wraps by mid-afternoon, and there is no golden hour to plan around. That is in itself its own kind of gift for a couple who wants to spend quality time with their guests and finish their celebration while there is still plenty of daylight left.

Photos by Matthew Rigby Photography

Vendor credits

• Venue: VIP Country Club, New Rochelle, NY
• Photography: Matthew Rigby Photography
• Florals (both weddings): Arcadia Floral Co.
• Hair and makeup (both weddings): Elle B Makeup
• Molly and Matt’s wedding:
• Videography: Miotti Studio
• DJ: Elegant Music Group 
• Brittany and Joe’s wedding:
• DJ: Kaos Productions

If you’re considering VIP Country Club

If you’re planning a wedding at VIP Country Club and want to talk about what photography could look like for you, reach out.

Full wedding galleries from VIP Country Club