We’ve decided that our wedding photos will be taken at the beautiful and historic Sonnenberg Gardens in Canandaigua, right down the street from our reception site, Steamboat Landing. The gardens are unbelievable, plus we’re supporting a good cause. Sonnenberg features nine formal gardens, but we’ve selected three of our favorites for our photos:
The Japanese Garden: a detailed landscape, reminiscent of mountainous Japan, fashioned from a smooth lawn by a Japanese landscape designer and his team of workers. Water flows from a large cascade, passing the Tea House, and underneath 5 bridges.
The Rock Garden, my personal favorite, is Sonnenberg’s largest garden and features an original climbing Hydrangea that winds along the stone stair to the open lookout deck above. Its northern extension, with a winding path that traverses a limestone canyon, was once called the Wild Garden. The former Lily Garden, added last, features a water cascade, fed by geysers and springs, and a series of pools below.
The Italian Garden features over 15,000 red and gold annuals in each of four sunken beds, showcasing an elaborate “carpet bedding” style garden. It’s also home to a 16th-century Italian well-head and the Fountain of Hercules.
