Beacon Hill Engagement Pictures :: Laura + Charles

Is it me or does it feel like summer is finally on the way? Sunshine and warmer weather means it's time for wedding and engagement season to start!

I met up with Laura and Charles in Beacon Hill for engagement pictures before their June wedding at Glen Magna Farms. Laura and Charles used to live in Beacon Hill so we took a little nostalgic stroll through the historic Boston area.


Laura and Charles met when they were both at the same law firm for the summer (along with their good friend Donny who'll actually marry them next month). A friendship slowly transitioned into a relationship after a first date at Fugakyu (a seriously good sushi restaurant in Chestnut Hill that you should totally check out if you haven't been).

After that summer, Laura and Charles had a period of long-distance romance with Laura finishing up school in Nashville and Charles sitting for the bar in Colorado.  As they explained, if you have to do long-distance, having Nashville and Colorado as your bases makes everything a lot more fun! 

Laura and Charles came back to make their home in Beacon Hill, enjoying summers on Nantucket and winters in Vermont. 

We totally lucked out with the weather and beautiful light, we could have probably spent the whole hour on Acorn Street (incidentally the most photographed street in Boston)

Work took Laura and Charles to Washington, DC but they knew they wanted to get married in New England and incorporate lots of Boston/Colorado small touches to their wedding plans. 

We finished up the afternoon in the Parish Cafe which was always a favorite with Laura and Charles due to their extensive selection of local and craft beers. Charles was mid-way to achieving his own beer mug but the challenge had to be postponed with the move to DC. The sacrifices we make for love :) 

Laura & Charlie - it was a pleasure to finally meet you both. Thank you for being so much fun to hang out with for the afternoon, I can't wait to be your Glen Magna Wedding Photographer! See you next month!

Beacon Hill Engagement Pictures :: Jen + Chris

Happy Tuesday! What's happening with you? I'm a busy bee in the office after having a great few weeks with my parents and in-laws visiting from the UK. I thought I'd get back into the blogging saddle with a pretty awesome Beacon Hill engagement session.

Cast your mind back to one week ago today, it was one of those uncomfortably sticky, muggy, humid days with crazy intermittent rainstorms. We probably would have postponed the shoot in normal circumstances but Jen and Chris live in San Francisco so we decided to forge ahead!

Growing up and through school Jen and Chris had a bunch of mutual friends. There were SO many near misses (think Sliding Doors but without the cheating!) when Jen and Chris were in the same places, nearly at the same events but their paths never crossed. At one point Jen was living in Pennsylvania studying at UPenn when her good friend Brian mentioned that his good friend Chris had a travel layover in Pennsylvania and maybe he could stay with her. Jen agreed but the travel plans changed and so Jen and Chris didn't meet. 

After the almost-meeting in Pennsylvania, Chris admits that he had a quick look for Jen on facebook, he thought she was cute but their lives carried on and neither gave the other one a thought

A few years later Jen and Chris would both be on Nantucket at the same time. Jen grew up spending July 4th on Nantucket with her family, this particular July 4th her family weren't there so she made plans with friends. Said friends and Jen partied a little too hard on July 3rd and as they made their way to the beach for July 4th Jen was feeling a little fragile. Jen and Chris were finally introduced in person but Jen admits she was feeling kind of miserable and not the best of company so she was surprised when Chris made an effort to talk to her.

After Nantucket, Jen and Chris would meet again! This time at an annual get-together at a friend's barn in NH. Jen was secretly a little excited about seeing Chris again. Chris was feeling the same. At one point in the evening Chris asked Jen if she'd help him find something he'd misplaced but it was all part of his master plan and as they walked towards the barn he kissed her.

Although they were only in NH for a few days Chris asked Jen if he could take her out for a date, Jen said yes but in the back of her mind was the fact that she was about to leave for Australia for a year as part of her nursing career. Even worse Jen came down with the flu and against the advice of her Mom insisted on going on the date with Chris. Despite feeling horribly sick, Jen and Chris had a great evening at trivia and when Chris dropped Jen back home to her parent's house they both wished they could have more time together.

The next day Jen was literally about to click on "book my flight" when her phone rang. It was her dream job offer from Children's Hospital in Boston. Unbeknownst to Jen, her manager had entered her for consideration for a program there. Jen accepted the job but didn't get back in touch with Chris. She says "I didn't want to presume that he'd want to see me again!" Jen might be a little nuts!

Luckily good friend Brian once again intervened and told Chris that Jen has stayed in the US. A short while later there was another trip away with a bunch of friends and ever since then Jen & Chris have been together.

Jen is a good friend of one of my favorite 2013 brides Laura who emailed me the night after Chris proposed to Jen on vacation in Hawaii. I was super happy to hear from Jen (gotta love it when couples check on my availability before booking their venue!) and it was so great to finally meet them in person! 

I'll be photographing Jen and Chris again in the spring at the place where it all began - Nantucket - and I can't wait for their fall wedding at Castle Hill Inn in Newport, RI. They've already started assembling a dream team of vendors - Wendy Joblon Events, Long Haul Films, Dani Wagener Beauty, Beantown Band (who just played at a recent Taj wedding and were SO good that I have no words!) - whoop!!!

Boston Beacon Hill and Back Bay Engagement Pictures :: Clara + David

A couple of week ago I had an email from Clara explaining that her wedding to David was coming up in Wyoming but they'd like to take some engagement pictures in Boston:

Their first meeting was at work, Clara was supposed to convince David to take a job at the New York office of the company they were both working with. David decided that he was actually going to move to the San Francisco office so that was that.


The initial meeting was forgotten and a little time later their mutual friend insisted on setting them up. After the three of them went out for a night David confided in the friend,"Thats the kind of girl I want to be with!"

Luckily Clara agreed and they started dating.

On a recent trip to Wyoming - a favorite place of Clara's - David surprised Clara on a hike by asking her to marry him.

Clara said yes and they'll be married later this month! 


I had such a lovely afternoon evening wandering around the Back Bay and the Public Gardens with Clara and David who were supremely easy to photograph as well as being excellent company. 

We even found the time for a chilled beverage:

Clara and David - I'm so happy you got in touch for some last minute engagement pictures in the city which is currently your home! My very best wishes for your wedding! Wishing you both (and Hank the dog) a wonderful life together! 

Beacon Hill Engagement Pictures :: Amara + Chris

I have a beautiful set of Boston engagement pictures for you today!

Amara and Chris initially met when they were both at school - they were part of the same dance group. I'll be completely honest here - as soon as I heard the words "dance group" my head started spinning with first dance anticipation (Chris and Amara can actually do "the lift"!!!). In my Top Ten movie list Dirty Dancing is currently tied at #1 and Crazy Stupid Love takes spot #9 so you can only imagine how excited I am for this wedding. Not to mention Amara and Chris are ridiculously easy to photograph.

The day started out with horrific thick fog, Amara and Chris was super flexible and happily moved to the gardens and Beacon Hill (we'd initially planned the waterfront but you couldn't see more than a few feet in front of you!). As the morning went on the weather actually got pretty great!

I love engagement sessions as I get to know each couple a little better before their wedding. Amara and Chris are planning an elegant wedding at the beautiful Wellesley Country Club next summer so we took a number of elegant engagement portraits. Amara and Chris also have a goofy side so I encouraged them to show me their silly sides too!

A quick outfit change (handy tip - if you plan on changing outfits for your pictures it's best to leave your clothes hanging in the car or tip generously and a local hotel bellman will usually be happy to hold them for you - you don't want to drag around clothing bags!) and we headed to Beacon Hill. Acorn Street is officially the most photographed street in Boston. As I took this shot I had maybe 50 tourists behind me, I'm guessing Amara and Chris will be appearing in people's vacation slideshows soon!

So anyways, back to dance group. Everyone was pretty friendly with each other and sometimes the whole group would go out. Chris admitted he always had his eye on Amara.

Chris decided to formally ask Amara out on a date. He thought they could start with a simple coffee date and they went to one of their now favorite coffee shops. Coffee turned into more dates into a relationship and finally a proposal! Amara knew Chris was still in Beijing on a work trip so when her friends invited her out for drinks she happily accepted. Little did she know that Chris had flown home a day earlier and was waiting for her on the rooftop of Beacon XV armed with an engagement ring and a proposal of marriage!

We had so much fun on this early morning shoot!

As this relationship started in a coffee shop it seemed only appropriate to end our shoot in a coffee shop. I left Amara and Chris happily sipping on coffee, eating pastries and laughing like usual!

Amara & Chris - thank you for being so much fun to hang out with! I have TONS more pictures for you to follow and I can't wait for August 2014 to come around! It'll be here before you know it.

Beacon Hill and Boston Public Garden Engagement Pictures :: Laura + Mike

Hello! I'm finishing up LeeAnne & Josh's wedding but I thought you might like something new on the blog in the meantime so here are some of my favorites from a most fun shoot with Laura and Mike.

We started with a cocktail in the Liberty Hotel (if you haven't visited for a drink or dinner you should race over their - it's such an awesome space) and I was quite taken with the escalators on the way out:

Laura and Mike wanted a "classic Boston feel" for this shoot (check out their relaxed beach pictures on Sandy Island last summer **here**) but they were super flexible. The only mandatory stop on our walk around the area was a stop at JP Licks for ice cream. Mike tells me that Laura could eat ice cream for breakfast, lunch and dinner and then if someone said "Hey, want to get ice cream?" Laura would be all, "Of course!"

Cobblestones and gas lamps. Quintessential Beacon Hill.

A short stroll later we were in the Public Gardens

Laura and Mike were somewhat bemused by my interest in a small puddle inhabited by a bunch of little flies, twigs and leaves but I liked the reflection of the almost-twilight sky.

Laura and Mike are getting married on Sandy Island later this year. It's a beautifully rustic camp established over 100 years ago on 66 wooded acres surrounded by the crystal clear waters of Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire. It was on Sandy that Laura and Mike vacationed with their families growing up, where they worked as teenagers in the summer and where they got together :)

How much do you love Laura's dress? Laura found her wedding dress at one of my very favorite stores - Flair Bridesmaid Boutique on Newbury Street. Although Flair specialize in bridesmaid dresses (seriously, you should check them out, they have every style and color imaginable) they also have beautiful wedding dresses and as Laura demonstrates - fabulous cocktail and special occasion dresses!

We hopped in a taxi to head over to the Waterfront area, stopping for a cocktail at the Barking Crab while we waited for the sun to go down :)

Laura wisely wore flats to negotiate the cobblestones of Beacon Hill but the heels came out later...

Laura & Mike - far too much fun for something I'm supposed to call work! You have no idea how excited I am for your epic wedding weekend!!! I hope you like this little handful of pictures - lots more coming your way...

Next up is I have the most beautiful Maine wedding for you...happy Monday!!!

Boston Engagement Pictures in Beacon Hill :: Libby + Blake

Good morning! The third blog post of Boston engagement pictures in as many days! I'm off to NYC for an engagement shoot tomorrow and then another in Newburyport on Wednesday night. I really enjoy engagement sessions - I get to know each couple a little better, they get to see how I work and once they see the pictures they totally relax on the wedding day as they know they're going to look amazing!

Libby and Blake decided to have pictures in Beacon Hill and the Boston waterfront with a little detour via the Boston Public Gardens. They wanted a "Boston" feel to their pictures but they weren't hung up on location which is awesome.

Engagement pictures are very much about the two of you, the backgrounds and locations are definitely secondary. I'm always looking for great light, providing just enough direction so that the couple feel relaxed and then waiting for just the right moment to make the image. In one of our emails back and forth about location Libby said "We totally trust you!" which is possibly the best thing you can say to your photographer :) We started out on Acorn Street - the most photographed street in Boston!

We then proceeded to wander around the area stopping whenever I saw something that interested me - like this little hidden garden:

If I were to name this image it would be "Libby & Blake - upside down in a puddle"

I refer to this shot as the "Mom shot" with my couples (it's always the one that parents and grandparents order to hang on the wall). I'm all about making modern, elegant images where my couples look amazing but I think an old school portrait still has its place :)

The cobbled streets and brownstones of Beacon Hill are quintessential Boston:

With a quick outfit change we then headed over to the Waterfront area, the late evening light was simply perfect. So perfect I thought I'd take a little portrait of Libby and Blake alone:

Libby and Blake are SO much fun and just so great together.

Interesting steps at the ICA:

The sun was setting and that meant our shoot was over but I had to take one more with the city in the background.

Libby & Blake - I hope you like this handful of my favorite pictures! Lots more to follow. I am beyond excited for your wedding at the Colonnade Hotel, Boston (one of my all time favorite venues)!!!