Boston Engagement Pictures in the North End :: Gabi + Albert

When a couple hires me as their wedding photographer, it's always an honor to be trusted with the big responsibility of documenting their day. When one half of the couple has managed huge weddings and events, chaired various wedding industry groups and met/worked with probably half of the photographers in Boston and then hires me, well, I'm almost blushing!

I first met Gabi maybe 6 or 7 years ago when she managed all of the weddings at The Colonnade Hotel (one of my favorite wedding venues in Boston), over the years I've joked "When you get married, you'd better call me!?" and so I was delighted to hear that she was engaged to Albert AND they wanted me to be their photographer! We met at the Bristol Lounge in the Four Seasons for a pre-shoot beverage. I have a strict "no drinking for Leah" rule at your wedding but we can break the rules a little for an engagement shoot! 

Albert first met Gabi when a mutual friend Catherine insisted they just had to meet. The first date flew by with great conversation, so much in common and led to a second date and since then Gabi and Albert have been pretty much inseparable.


A romantic proposal in Rhode Island was next and Gabi said yes!


It was a rather chilly day but we had a little wander around the Public Gardens to catch the last of the fall foliage before making our way over to the North End where Gabi & Albert used to spend a lot of time.


I realized it's time for me to get a new winter hat! #hatcrush.


 Gabi & Albert will be married at the Boston Harbor Hotel next year (you can just see the iconic arch in the background) and I can't wait to be their photographer! I hope you like these few favorites! 

Next up: Claire & Kevin's Wychmere wedding, Meaghan & Christian's Red Lion Inn wedding, Stephanie & Rob's Rosecliff wedding and more....

Engagement Pictures in the South End, Boston, MA :: Stephanie + Rob

I recently spent a lovely evening with Stephanie and Rob walking around the South End for their engagement pictures. We started with a glass of wine at Barcelona (if you haven't eaten the tapas and small plates there, run don't walk!), strolling along the streets, stopping at Coppa (another excellent dining location) and even making a stop to pick up Stella the dog for a picture.


Stephanie and Rob were working at the same hospital. They both remember the first time they saw each other; the attraction was immediate. There was much conversation and maybe just a little flirting. During a particularly tough shift, Stephanie announced that she'd definitely need a glass of wine at the end of the day. When she finished, Rob was waiting (despite his shift being over hours earlier) to take her for that glass of wine. They'll get married at Rosecliff in Newport, RI later this year and I can't wait!

Stephanie and Rob, I hope you like this handful of favorites! Super excited for September!

Engagement Pictures in the Boston Public Library :: Katie + Zirui

Katie was a student at Harvard and Zirui had just graduated from Harvard when they were introduced at a dinner.


The conversation didn't stop that night as Katie and Zirui had so much in common. 

Over the next year, a friendship was struck up and Katie and Zirui got to know each other much better. 

After a year of an ever-deepening friendship, Zirui asked Katie out for dinner. A real date. And boom! They've been together ever since. 

We met up to do a little mini shoot before all the leaves fell off the trees and I'm super excited to photograph Katie & Zirui again in the spring and at their Castleton wedding next summer! 

Engagement Pictures in the Boston Public Library :: Katie + Zirui

Katie was a student at Harvard and Zirui had just graduated from Harvard when they were introduced at a dinner.


The conversation didn't stop that night as Katie and Zirui had so much in common. 

Over the next year, a friendship was struck up and Katie and Zirui got to know each other much better. 

After a year of an ever-deepening friendship, Zirui asked Katie out for dinner. A real date. And boom! They've been together ever since. 

We met up to do a little mini shoot before all the leaves fell off the trees and I'm super excited to photograph Katie & Zirui again in the spring and at their Castleton wedding next summer! 

Bar Harbor + Cadillac Mountain Engagement Pictures in Maine :: Kaylee + Casey

It's like engagement-session-palooza over here on the blog today. We're all the way up in Bar Harbor with Kaylee + Casey for this post. 

The first time Kaylee and Casey met one another was in English class at their first year of school. Fast forward to senior year and Casey spots Kaylee across the room at a party, he says he was thinking "Wow, that's Kaylee from English class and she looks amazing!" as he made his way over to talk to her. 

Kaylee and Casey started dating but graduation was fast approaching and Kaylee figured maybe they should break up as it would be difficult to maintain a relationship once they graduated and found jobs in different locations. 

Casey thought this was a stupid idea. He knew that they could make it work. So one evening he found Kaylee on the track where she was doing a sponsored walk, he walked alongside her for 25 laps before she'd even talk about their relationship. Luckily Casey was pretty convincing and Kaylee agreed to try to make it work. 

And work it did! Last fall, Kaylee and Casey took a little vacation up in Bar Harbor, Maine and despite a big night out involving not-so-great calamari, they woke super early to watch the sun rise at the summit of Cadillac Mountain. They'd underestimated the freezing temperatures and biting wind and kept jumping back in the car to warm up. 

As soon as the sun came up, Kaylee was all "Quick! Let's get out of here!" but Casey had other plans. He dropped to his knee and asked Kaylee to marry him. Kaylee said yes!

Kaylee & Casey - I can't wait for your Belle Mer Wedding next year! Thanks for braving the wind and cold on Cadillac Mountain (again!). 

Boston Engagement Pictures :: Sarah + Paul

Paul and Sarah belonged to the same Crossfit gym. I've never attempted Crossfit but it sounds like a friendly kind of atmosphere where everyone gets to know each other while they're burpeeing and woding. 

Sarah was initially dating someone else so Paul was just a Crossfit friend. There were all sorts of events and get togethers for members and they enjoyed hanging out. Paul may have been just a tiny bit happy to hear through the grapevine that Sarah was now single. 

There just so happened to be another Crossfit get together and Paul asked Sarah if she'd be able to help him bring some stuff to the party. He admits he could have absolutely handled everything himself but figured it would be a good way to spent more time with Sarah. 

The plan worked! Sarah and Paul started dating and it wasn't long before Sarah introduced Paul to the other love of her life...Sandy Island! This 112-year old camp in the middle of Lake Winnipesaukee has been home to all of Sarah's family vacations for the last 25 years.


While Sarah vacationed at Sandy Island, Paul spent parallel summers at Lake Morey in Vermont. Their love of spending time on the lake meant that Sandy Island was an easy choice for their wedding next fall.


We spent a most enjoyable afternoon puttering around Beacon Hill and then Sarah and Paul introduced me to Castle Island with it's fort and beaches and park right next to South Boston. 

We wrapped up with a restorative beverage at The Beehive in the South End. I can't wait to be Sarah & Paul's Sandy Island Wedding Photographer next fall! 

Boston Engagement Pictures in the Public Garden :: Claire + Kevin

Before we start today's blog post, I have a couple of definitions for you. As I went to school in the UK, we don't have the Greek system, I thought there might be others out there unfamiliar with the terms "Big" and "Little" but they're kind of critical to this romantic story so here you go:

“Big” A term assigned to the elders of a Greek organization. Becoming a “big brother” or “big sister” in a Greek organization denotes that you get to become a role model to a “New Member” or “Pledge”. As a big, you essentially become their advisor throughout initiation and during their time in college. The bond between big and little is very special, and often times a lifetime bond is forged.

“Little” In order to become a “big brother” or “big sister,” you have to become a “little brother” or “little sister” first, and pledge to join a fraternity or sorority. While this position isn’t an enviable one, especially when rushing, you get an older friend who can help you navigate the entire process of pledging.

Are you all caught up? OK, then let us begin. Once upon a time, at the University of Pennsylvania, there was a girl named Allie. Allie's Big was Claire. Allie was dating a boy named Bobby. Allie kept hinting about Bobby's Big to Claire:
- Oh, I think you'd really like Bobby's Big....
- Guess what? Bobby's Big looked you up on facebook and really liked what he saw!
At the same time, Allie was talking to Bobby's Big, Kevin:
- You should really meet my Big, I think you'd really get along
- My Big has a crush on you!
- Why don't you ask my Big to the formal dance?

Allie was particularly persistent and so Kevin texted Claire and asked her to formal. Claire said she gave in partially to placate Allie.


The morning of the formal, Kevin sent a quick text to Claire suggesting they meet for lunch before the big night out. Claire remembers running home after class to quickly do a little hair and make up and arriving a little flustered to lunch. Kevin just remembers Claire carrying a backpack almost as big as she was.

The "quick lunch" wasn't exactly quick. The Bigs found they had so much in common and the conversation just flowed. Kevin ended up completely missing his study group and Claire arrived late to class all starry-eyed. The formal no longer felt like an obligation and Claire and Kevin were pretty much inseparable after that except for Kevin's time studying abroad in Copenhagen. Visits to Nantucket and even a faux love of hockey (on Claire's behalf) brought them even closer together.


Fast forward to last December. Claire and Kevin were vacationing in Florida with Claire's family. Kevin suggested they take a trip to the beach to have a little time together and to exchange Christmas gifts. Claire had seen the gift box that Kevin had for her and it was far too large to be an engagement ring. The beach was quite the drive away and Kevin had a conference call for work so Claire was all "Let's just skip it and go another time."


What Claire didn't realize...the gift box was a DECOY. It was a deceptively large box holding that tell-tale ring-size box along with a photobook. Claire and Kevin had agreed to only exchange gifts they'd made themselves on this particular holiday and great minds think alike. Claire had made Kevin a scrapbook and Kevin had made the photobook. As Claire flicked through the pictures of them together over the years she said she could barely make out the words on the last page of the book through her tears. After she read, "Claire, will you marry me?" she looked up to find Kevin down on one knee with the ring.





Claire & Kevin, I hope you like this handful of pictures! I'm so excited to be your Wychmere wedding photographer next year!

South End & Boston Waterfront Engagement Pictures :: Katlyn + Ryan

Katlyn and Ryan attended the same high school. Ryan remembers the first time Katlyn spoke to him in Spanish class saying "Hey! I saw you at the Jack Johnson concert!" they got chatting and Ryan said he was wowed by Katlyn's bubbly personality.

Throughout their senior year, Katlyn and Ryan continued their friendship and finally started dating. As you'd expect when you're just nineteen years old, they broke up over something silly and for a while there was radio silence.

So now Katlyn and Ryan are away at different schools and they both found themselves frequently thinking about the other. They had lots of old high-school friends in common and eventually they starting talking again.

Conversation was always easy, they shared the same sense of humor and this led to visits and their friendship was rekindled. Katlyn says that she compared every guy she talked with to Ryan and no one even came close to how she felt about him. Ryan says there was an inexplicable pull that neither of them could resist.

Mid-way through Junior year, Katlyn was scheduled to travel to Australia. The night before she floew out Ryan asked, "Will you be my girlfriend?". Katlyn said yes and they've been together ever since!

Fast forward six years and Katlyn & Ryan are in Miami for their anniversary. Ryan arranged for a corner suite at the Ritz Carlton, dinner reservations at Scarpetta AND there's a diamond ring burning a hole in his pocket. While Katlyn enjoyed an afternoon nap, blissfuly unaware of what would be happening later that night, Ryan sat on the balcony unable to read, unable to concentrate and meticulously planning everything, down to arranging for the tables on either side of their table to be left empty so he'd have room to get down on one knee.

Dinner was perfect and Ryan enlisted the help of their waiter to bring out dessert with "Will you marry me?" written on the plate. Katlyn insisted she was full from dinner and wasn't interested in dessert but luckily Ryan overruled her. 

All of the parents were on tenterhooks all night waiting to get the call! Ryan's parents had been involved in the shopping for the ring and Ryan had asked permission from both Katlyn's father and stepfather. So when the ipad shrilled with the facetime calling sound, Katlyn could barely choke out "Hi Mommmy!" before everyone was crying. Happy tears of course!

Katlyn & Ryan, it was so fun to finally meet you both, I'm super excited to photograph your wedding at Wychmere next summer!