Dripping in gold. Surrounded by a sea of wedding guests dressed in white. Slightly resembling a queer cult, or maybe a particularly fabulous scene from Midsommar.
The sun is setting, the New Orleans-style buffet has wrapped up, and an Ariana Grande impersonator is about to interrupt the party. Twenty-dollar bills are flying around like confetti. Someone may have lost an article of clothing.
Welcome to Zena and Cai's queer Hudson Valley wedding at Letterbox Farm in Hudson, New York. Complete with drag performances, a Romy and Michele dance reenactment, smoke bombs, and fireworks.
Everything I didn't know I desperately needed in my life.
THE QUICK TAKE
Location: Letterbox Farm in Hudson, New York, in the Hudson Valley.
The aesthetic: All-white guest attire, thrifted gold wedding looks, crowns, and a whole lot of personality.
The experience: A handmade chuppah, meaningful cultural traditions, drag performances, and one absolutely unhinged dance floor.
From a Brooklyn Couples Session to a Wedding in Upstate New York
But first, a little backstory.
I originally met Zena at another wedding, where Corey and I were photographing and filming. We hit it off, and before we left town, we ended up photographing an intimate session with her and Cai at the Urban Cowboy in Brooklyn.
The space was incredible, they were half-naked and giggling on the couch, and at one point, a random tenant walked in.
Whatever. We kept shooting.
It was one of those sessions where everything just clicked, and I left knowing these two were my kind of people.
Fast forward, and Zena and Cai were planning a wedding celebration in upstate New York. They invited us to document the whole thing, and I was honored. I still am.
I already knew they were surrounded by an incredible community of people who loved and supported them. What I didn't know was just how hard that community was going to show up.
A Queer Hudson Valley Wedding Dressed in White and Dripping in Gold
The celebration took place at Letterbox Farm in Hudson, New York, with an aesthetic that I still can't get over.
Every guest was asked to wear white.
And not just the typical wedding-guest version of white. We're talking white suits, vintage wedding dresses, bikini tops, and every possible interpretation in between.
Meanwhile, Zena and Cai wore gold.
Multiple looks, all thrifted, styled into something completely their own. Their crowns were the cherry on top. Two golden gods, surrounded by their immaculately dressed community, looking like they were about to lead the most fabulous procession in history.
The contrast was incredible. And as a photographer, getting to document a wedding with this much intention behind the visual experience was a dream.
Then there was Blair Back.
Blair handled their makeup before changing into a blood-covered dress to join the celebration as the MC and entertainment.
Which should tell you everything you need to know about the kind of evening we were heading into.
A Handmade Chuppah, a Custom Ketubah, and a Ceremony Full of Meaning
As the evening light settled over the fields, everyone gathered around a handmade chuppah for the ceremony.
Beneath it, Zena and Cai exchanged their vows, surrounded by the people who knew and loved them best.
Their celebration brought together different parts of their heritage, including Jewish wedding traditions such as their custom ketubah and the chuppah, alongside a money dance and New Orleans-inspired food.
I loved how they made space for those pieces of their history without feeling obligated to follow every other wedding tradition in the book.
After their vows, bubbles filled the air as the newlyweds made their way back through the crowd.
And then the entire group began floating across the field in a sea of white, with Zena and Cai leading the way in gold.
Honestly, it looked like something out of a movie. A very queer, slightly surreal, beautifully dressed movie.
A New Orleans-Inspired Reception With Absolutely No Chill
By the time the party got going, I was pretty sure this wedding couldn't get any better.
And yet.
The New Orleans-style buffet was a nod to family heritage, and the New Orleans side of the family was certainly not holding back when it came to the dance floor.
There was a money dance. There was music. There was champagne. There were twenty-dollar bills flying around with alarming frequency.
Clothing was also making its way off people at a suspiciously similar rate.
And through it all, Blair Back was holding court as the MC, keeping the evening moving and the energy exactly where it belonged.
It was chaotic in the most glorious way.
This is the kind of celebration I wish more people gave themselves permission to have. Not because every wedding needs to turn into a full-blown theatrical production, but because it was so obviously a reflection of the people in the room.
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Wait. Is That Ariana Grande?
And just when you thought things couldn't possibly escalate any further...
The music stopped.
The energy shifted.
A golf-cart came rolling toward the dance floor, headlights blazing, and suddenly everyone was looking in the same direction.
And out came...
ARIANA GRANDE?!
Well, not exactly.
A drag performer in full Ariana Grande glam had arrived to take over the party.
The crowd absolutely lost it.
There were multiple songs, guests singing along, and tips flying toward the performer. It was completely outrageous and I loved every second of it.
As if that weren't enough, the evening also included a Romy and Michele dance scene reenactment, fireworks, and smoke bombs.
I don't even know what to say at this point.
BRAVO, BABES.
What Zena + Cai Got So Right About Their Wedding
I keep coming back to how intentional this entire celebration was.
Because underneath the gold crowns, drag queens, and incredible party, there was something really meaningful happening.
Zena and Cai created a space where their people could show up exactly as they were. They celebrated their different cultures, honored their heritage, and built an experience that was rooted in the community surrounding them.
Even the all-white guest dress code wasn't just about the photographs looking amazing, although damn, they really did. It brought everyone into the visual story of the day.
And they didn't have to abandon their cultural traditions to make room for their personalities.
They simply kept the things that mattered, changed the things that didn't, and made up the rest.
There's something incredibly freeing about that.
A wedding doesn't have to be traditional to be meaningful. And choosing to break from expectations doesn't mean leaving behind your history or the people who helped shape it.
Sometimes it means celebrating all of it, just with a few more drag queens.
The Wedding Vendor Team
Venue: Letterbox Farm
Rentals: Rhinebeck Rentals
Makeup + MC: Blair Back
Crowns: OGsquad
Photo Booth: Silly Snaps Photo Booths
Wedding outfits: Thrifted
Wedding rings: Family heirlooms
✶ Photography by Going Home Co.
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