Stick with me whilst I explain quite how awesome this is. Obviously when you book a photographer you are saying that you want that person to document your wedding. Ideally you hire your photographer based on their portfolio and style but then occasionally those wedding magazines or blogs get to you and you start thinking about whether you need one of those "500 must have pictures" kind of lists.
I'm all for lists of things that I wouldn't necessarily be aware of - some examples from recent weddings:
- My brooch belonged to my great-grandmother
- The assisting priest is my cousin and he'll be saying a blessing at dinner
- My Mom handmade the basket for giftcards
Examples of lists/picture requests that aren't so great:
- 92 different family combination pictures to be taken in 15 minutes (because it's a physical impossibility to take so many pictures in such a short time)
- A picture of my parents looking lovingly at us during the ceremony (because the priest bans limits photography and videography to the back of the church and we're unable to see the parents)
- A picture of us with a dramatic sunset behind us (because it's a rainy day and the ceremony doesn't take place until after dark ;)
Anyway, Kathleen and Joel were all kinds of awesome with no silly lists, just a simple (and welcome) list of some family pictures they'd like to get and then Kathleen reiterated that they trusted me implicitly to document their day. Hoorah. Shall I stop rambling and just start posting pictures? Yup. Going to do that right now.
This was the sky at 6am when I left my house to head to Vermont:
And this is Kathleen enjoying a little coffee as a whole team of people work on her fabulous hair:
Beautiful rustic flowers:
More details and getting ready pictures. Kathleen's dress was just perfect and she informs me it was Claire Pettibone Bridal from Bella Bridal in Amesbury, MA
This image is in my top three of the day:
The restaurant at Simon Pearce is a beautiful venue for an intimate Vermont wedding.
Joel having his boutonniere pinned on by Stepmom Mimi:
You might be wondering what I was doing up in Vermont. I generally cover weddings from Boston up to Maine and everywhere in between. But Kathleen is the sister of Lauren whose wedding to Aladin I photographed last year and I love "sibling weddings", it's so awesome to see lots of familiar faces again. Here's honorary Miller sister Audrey and Lauren as Kathleen's bridesmaids:
Kathleen walked down the aisle to Joel to "Nothing Else Matters" a Metallica song by Apocalypta which if you're not familiar with is well worth listening to **here** (in fact, open it in a new window and then come back and read the rest of the blog post with it playing). The ceremony officiated by Aunt Beverly was short, incredibly personal (the first time I've heard Doctor Who referenced in the wedding vows!) and really moving:
Fun fact: this was a 11.11.11 wedding and after the wedding Kathleen and Joel wondered out loud what was happening at exactly 11.11am - thanks to the metadata in the camera I can report the picture of the ring exchange above was at 11.11.11 11:11am and 50 seconds :)
Happy newlyweds:
This was a beautifully intimate daytime wedding so it was time for mingling with friends and family and some apple cider along with surprise gifts of toasting glasses and the cutest little mice cake toppers from Lauren and Audrey:
NH maple syrup wedding favors:
Wedding party:
Time to sit down for a most delicious lunch and fun toasts. The Simon Pearce team were beyond fabulous and I enjoyed probably the best Vermont cheddar soup I've ever eaten in my life:
The original plan had been to take pictures on the covered bridge but Hurricane Irene had made her presence felt over the summer :(
Not to worry, after lunch we hopped into cars and headed to Woodstock, VT:
I feel this next picture is very "Kathleen and Joel" - one part goofy/geeky, one part silly and a whole lot of laughter.
A stop by the Woodstock Inn had us warm our toes by the fire and even a quick chess game ;)
A super short and unexpected snow flurry made for some fabulous winter wedding pictures:
Snowflakes in hair!
Every couple should laugh this much on their wedding day...
Bye bye Kathleen and Joel! Thank you to you both and your awesome families. I couldn't think of a better way to spend 11.11.11 than photographing your wedding day. I believe it was Steven Spielberg who said "The world would be a poorer place without Doctor Who." and in that vein I will say "My 2011 was made all the better by finishing the season with your wedding."
And here's the sky as I got back in my car to drive home from Vermont:
Oh Leah... Thank you SO much! These are gorgeous, and I can't wait to see the album design. You are truly awesome, and definitely well-deserving of our trust. You captured the all the love and laughter.
ReplyDeleteGreat pics!
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