Christopher Duggan Photography

Christopher Duggan

Christopher Duggan is principal photographer of Christopher Duggan Photography, a New York City-based wedding and dance photography studio. Christopher and his team cover Manhattan's finest wedding venues, the Metropolitan, Tri-State areas and the Berkshires, and frequently travels to destination weddings. The company's mission is straightforward and heartfelt - create timeless, memorable images of brides, grooms, their families and friends, and capture special moments of shared love, laughter and joy.

Christopher has been the Festival Photographer for Jacob’s Pillow Dance since 2006. In this capacity, and as a respected New York-based dance photographer, he has worked with renowned choreographers and performers of international acclaim as well as upstarts in the city’s diverse performance scene. He has photographed WestFest at Cunningham Studios, Dance From the Heart for Dancers Responding to Aids, The Gotham Dance Festival at The Joyce Theater, and assisted Nel Shelby Productions in filming Vail International Dance Festival.

Duggan often teams up with his talented wife and Pillow videographer Nel Shelby. A New York City-based husband and wife dance documentation team, they are equipped to document performances, create and edit marketing videos and choreography reels, and much more.

He is a regular contributor to 4dancers.org and the Culture section of Huffington Post and his photographs appear in The New York Times, Destination I Do, Photo District News, Boston Globe, Financial Times, Dance Magazine, Munaluchi Bridal, and Bride & Bloom, among other esteemed publications and popular wedding blogs. One of his images of Bruce Springsteen was added to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's celebrated photography collection in 2010. His company has been selected for inclusion in “The Listings” in New York Weddings magazine. Christopher's images from Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival's Inside/Out have been chosen by the National Museum of Dance for a year-long photographic exhibition beginning this May.

Monday, May 13, 2013

Gibney Dance | Studio Shoot at Gibney Dance Center

I recently did a studio photo shoot with Gibney Dance in Gina Gibney’s Gibney Dance Center. It’s always so exciting to see what a hub of activity it is at Gibney.

Gibney Dance studio photo shoot at Gibney Dance Center, New York

Dancer Casey Loomis

Certainly, it’s a popular place to make and present work in my corner of the dance world – when I was photography Gibney Dance, I ran into so many other familiar faces. It’s such a great resource for dancers. A great place to be, and a good vibe to it.

Zachary Leigh Denison & Amy Miller

It was fun to photograph Gina Gibney’s dance company there. It was my first time working creatively with Gina, and she was getting ready to head off to Turkey with the company. These images were made to promote the show they were performing abroad, and she was able to use them right away.

Javiar Baca & Zachary Leigh Denison

It was a good exercise for all of us in coming up with ideas and creating something together in the studio. Now that Gina’s company is back in action, I look forward to seeing what they’re up to!

Tags: Gibney Dance,Gibney Dance Center,Gina Gibney,New York

Thursday, May 2, 2013

LeeSaar Dance Company | MASS MoCA in the Berkshires

Welcome to the bizarre and brilliant world of LeeSaar Dance Company.

Not only are these some of the most physically fit and expressive dancers I know, the company is really smart when it comes to documentation and creating media for marketing their work. I photographed the first showing of this dance, “Grass and Jackals,” at Jacob’s Pillow last summer. LeeSaar performed it for the camera then, with a select audience, and when I photographed it again at MASS MoCA it was performed strictly for the camera as well.

LeeSaar performing for the camera at MASS MoCA

Nel Shelby Productions filmed the performance with 2-cameras as well: Nel and I drove up and back the same day and brought Nel’s videographer Jessica along. It’s so worth it to make the trip when you work with talented and grateful artists like Lee & Saar. (See Nel’s footage – with Saar’s editing – on their Kickstarter page.)

It will premiere for audiences at American Dance Festival in summer 2013.

Their agent Harold Norris commended the dance company on the lengths they are willing to go to to document this piece and create media for grant-writing, promotion, getting it out to presenters, and more in order to bring this dance to life. More dance companies should follow their lead on this!

Tags: American Dance Festival,Berkshires,Harold Norris,Jacob's Pillow,LeeSaar Dance Company,MASS MoCA

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Kimberlie & Andrew | The Rockleigh Country Club, New Jersey

Weddings at The Rockleigh

Kimberlie & Andrew were married this month at The Rockleigh in New Jersey, and I can’t wait to make more and more wedding photos at this beautiful venue with two more weddings there this year. I met Kimberlie & Andrew through Yael & Adam, whose wedding I photographed last year at The Rockleigh, too.

There’s a great garden at The Rockleigh, so we made time to make photographs near the pretty trellises. At sunset, we ventured over to some beautifully lit fountains on The Rockleigh grounds.

The bride and her grandma

I have Yael & Adam to thank for introducing me and recommending my wedding photography to so many of their friends. My business continues to grow through the heartfelt referrals of my past clients, and it feels wonderful to have such enthusiastic support.

Wedding Collaborators

Ceremony & Reception: The Rockleigh
Wedding Dress: James Clifford Collection

Bridesmaid Dresses: Jim Hjelm Couture

Bride’s Shoes: Jimmy Choo

Wedding Cake: La Petite Gateau

Floral Designer: S&K Floral Expressions

Hair & Make-Up: Ten Hair & Make-Up

DJ: The Next Faze

Invitations: Yes I do, Hoboken

Tags: Kimberlie & Andrew,New Jersey,The Rockleigh

2 comments

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celia milton - May 4, 2013 - 8:05 am

And who was the officiant?

Christopher - May 7, 2013 - 1:40 pm

I’m not sure, Celia – I unfortunately didn’t get his information. Do you know? I’d love to include it!

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Vilcek Foundation Prize 2012 | Joyce SoHo, New York City

If I win the Powerball someday, I think I’ll create a foundation to cultivate dance in America, and that’s partly inspired by the Vilcek Foundation. In 2012, Vilcek awarded several dance artists, like Mikhail Baryshnikov and Michel Kouakou.

Prize finalists Fanny Ara (France), Thang Dao (Vietnam), Alice Gosti (Italy) and Pontus Lidberg (Sweden) and winner Michel Kouakou (Africa) got to perform work here at Joyce SoHo in New York City.

Kouakou was the prize-winner for “promise in dance.” I would love to be able to personally assist artists at this level as articulated by Cathy Eilers at The Joyce. The choreographer at this level generally is the marketing person, the bus driver, the press person, the costume designer, the technical staff, everything. To be able to support these artists is something near and dear to my heart.

Tags: Alice Gosti,Cathy Eilers,Fanny Ara,Joyce SoHo,Michel Kouakou,Mikhail Baryshnikov,Pontus Lidberg,Thang Dao,Vilcek Foundation

Thursday, April 18, 2013

Wendy Whelan’s “Restless Creature” | Guggenheim Works & Process, NYC

Nel and I are in rehearsals this week and next with longtime New York City Ballet dancer and international ballet superstar Wendy Whelan as she creates work with choreographers Alejandro Cerrudo (Hubbard Street Dance Chicago) and Joshua Beamish (MOVE: the company). We’ve already filmed and photographed behind-the-scenes creation and process moments with choreographers Brian Brooks (Brian Brooks Moving Company) and Kyle Abraham (Abraham.In.Motion), and we’re over the moon about being a part of these amazing collaborations in the dance world.

Wendy Whelan & Brian Brooks

Obviously, Nel and I believe in the power of great dance documentation with photography & video, but nothing compares to seeing Wendy perform live. She is captivating, enthralling, alluring. I just can’t describe how I feel when I watch her dance. It’s simply incredible.

When the artists showed what they’ve been working on to an audience at the Guggenheim’s Works & Process performance series this week, I was photographing and Nel was filming. When the show came to a close, I looked over at Nel and she was crying.

There’s just something about Wendy.