Surya Garigipati Photography & Films photographs Indian weddings across Long Island, in Nassau and Suffolk counties, as part of a regular New York season. Since 2013 Surya has photographed more than 400 South Asian celebrations, with photography and film from one in-house team, and the studio is rated 4.9 on Google by 38 families. Our studio is in Flemington, New Jersey, and travel to Long Island is included in every collection.
Long Island weddings, from a New Jersey studio
Long Island has a large South Asian community, from the Indian shops and restaurants along Broadway in Hicksville to the North Shore and the Suffolk suburbs, and its weddings look a lot like New York's: big guest lists, ballrooms built for a stage entrance and a dance floor, and the haldi at home the morning before. What the Island adds is space — lawns, gardens and water that a Manhattan venue cannot offer — and the photographs are planned to use it.
We cross from New Jersey for these weddings through the year. A Long Island timeline needs the same discipline as a city one — a buffer on every move, and a portrait location close to the venue rather than a car ride away — and our guide to editorial and documentary wedding photography explains how the posed and the unposed sit together in one gallery.
Venues across Nassau and Suffolk
- Leonard's Palazzo, Great Neck — just over the city line, marble and chandeliers built for a grand entrance, and a house that expects a mandap on Saturday and a reception on Sunday. Outdoor portraits use the grounds; the interiors want our light, which we set before the guests arrive.
- Oheka Castle, Huntington — a Gold Coast mansion with formal gardens, one of the grandest settings on the North Shore.
- The Garden City Hotel — a classic hotel ballroom in the middle of Nassau County, with rooms upstairs for the families.
- The Bourne Mansion, Oakdale — a South Shore estate whose grounds give the portraits room to breathe.
- Sand Castle, Franklin Square — a Nassau County banquet hall for a large reception close to Queens.
- Russo's on the Bay and Terrace on the Park — just over the line in Queens: the bay and gardens at Howard Beach, and the tower in Flushing Meadows that has run South Asian weddings for decades.
Our guide to Indian wedding venues in New York City covers the Queens and Manhattan rooms in more detail, and our Indian wedding photographer in NYC page covers the rest of the city.
Temples and gurdwaras
Long Island families hold the religious ceremony in different ways: at the venue with their own priest, at a community temple close to home, or at the Ganesh Temple in Flushing, just over the Queens line, where ceremonies have taken us. Sikh couples hold the Anand Karaj at a gurdwara near home, with the reception at a ballroom that evening; in the darbar hall we work without flash, heads covered, from the side and the back. Every temple has its own rules on flash, positions and dress, and we confirm them before the day. Our guide to photographing an Anand Karaj explains how the morning runs.
Where we take portraits on Long Island
- Old Westbury Gardens — formal gardens around a historic mansion, ticketed, with its own rules and fees for portrait sessions.
- Planting Fields Arboretum, Oyster Bay — a state historic park of greenhouses, lawns and specimen trees.
- Jones Beach and the South Shore — the beaches face the ocean to the south, so at sunrise and sunset the light runs along the shoreline rather than into your eyes.
- The estate's own grounds — at a Gold Coast mansion, the gardens and the façade are usually the best frames of the day.
- The Long Island City waterfront — on the way in, for the Midtown skyline as the lights come on.
Many parks, gardens and campuses require a permit or a fee for professional photography, some do not allow it at all, and the rules change from year to year — we check every location and arrange the permit before the day, so nobody is asked to leave in the middle of golden hour.
What we cover at a Long Island wedding
| Event | Where it usually happens | Typical coverage |
|---|---|---|
| Haldi or pithi | At home in Nassau or Suffolk | One photographer, natural light, the turmeric and the laughter |
| Mehndi and sangeet | A hotel function room or a banquet room | Photographer and cinematographer, the dance floor lit properly |
| Baraat | The venue's drive or forecourt | Two photographers — one ahead facing back, one inside the procession |
| Ceremony | A lawn mandap, the ballroom or a temple | Lead and second photographer, cinematographer, drone where the venue allows |
| Portraits | The estate grounds, Old Westbury Gardens or the beach | Timed to the light |
| Reception | Leonard's Palazzo, Oheka Castle, The Garden City Hotel | Two photographers and film, the speeches in full |
Collections are built around your real event list — see the investment page.
Travel from New Jersey
Long Island is a longer drive for us than Manhattan — over Staten Island and the Verrazzano, or through the city — so we plan the morning around traffic rather than the map and build a buffer into every call time. Travel within the five boroughs, Long Island and Westchester is included in every collection, so there is no travel charge for a Long Island wedding.
Photographs and film from one team
Most of our New York couples book both. Our cinematographers work alongside the photographers from one shot list and deliver a four-to-six-minute highlight film, the full ceremony and speeches, and a same-day edit if you want one. Watch real weddings on the films page, and read how we film in the city in Indian wedding videography in New York City.
What couples wrote on Google
Every review below is a public Google review, published under the family's own account. The rest are on the reviews page.
"My Fiance and I could not be more happy with the dedication, creativity and kindness of Surya. We are going to be using him for all of our events and future weddings in the family!" — J S
"Right from pre wedding shoot to the wedding, Surya made sure to capture every frame in the best way… Even during a foggy day for the pre wedding…" — Aishwarya Chandrasekaran
"We had Surya Garigipati & company do photography for our son’s wedding. Very impressive and honest work. They are very punctual, professional and courteous." — L Narayana Gajula
Questions Long Island couples ask us
Do you photograph Indian weddings on Long Island?
Yes. Long Island is part of our regular New York season, across Nassau and Suffolk — estates on the North Shore, ballrooms across Nassau and the South Shore. Our studio is in Flemington, New Jersey, and travel here is included in every collection.
Is there a travel fee for a Long Island wedding?
No. Travel within the five boroughs, Long Island and Westchester is included in every collection. We plan the drive into the timeline so the team is in place before the first call time.
Where can we take portraits on Long Island?
Usually on the venue's own grounds, which on the North Shore are often the best frames of the day. Old Westbury Gardens, Planting Fields Arboretum and the South Shore beaches are beautiful too, but most require a permit or a fee for professional photography, so we arrange it in advance.
Do you know the big Long Island ballrooms?
Leonard's Palazzo in Great Neck, and Russo's on the Bay and Terrace on the Park just over the line in Queens, all host South Asian weddings regularly. Whatever the room, we light the ceremony before the guests arrive and plan the portraits outside.
How far ahead do Long Island dates book?
Spring and autumn Saturdays are usually reserved twelve to fifteen months out; Friday, Sunday and winter dates come free closer in. Send us your date and we will tell you honestly within a day.
Your Long Island wedding
Tell us your dates and your venue — we reply within a day with availability and a collection built for your weekend.
Check Your Date