The Happiest Bride! A Riverview affair.

I recently had the pleasure of shooting Laura and Dan's wedding.  Our day started in a Glastonbury, CT hotel room, then off to a very cool small church in the same town.  We stopped at the great sycamore tree for some formals, then it was off to the Riverview for the reception. 

One of the highlights of the day was Laura and Dan ringing the church bell.  It was great to watch too as the bridal party each took a turn, really fun stuff!  I was also quite impressed (as I think the band was as well) when Dan sat in with the band and did a great job drumming for "Ants Marching."  Though I wasn't surprised by this fact as both Laura and Dan teach music!

It really was a great day and I don't think I've ever worked with a bride that was so giddy all day! Laura was a smiling bubble of happiness throughout the day and was even a champ as things cooled off with the setting of the sun while we did some formals at the state capitol.  Thanks so much guys for a fun filled day of image making!  Thanks too to Liss Flint for coming along!

Postponing my post from Laura and Dan's Riverview wedding.

I had a teaser post ready to go this evening but I'm holding off due to the events that transpired today in Boston.  I'm posting one simple picture.  It's a picture taken at the wedding I shot this weekend.  It's of my wonderful bride and groom Laura and Dan, me and now husband and wife, Brian and Michelle.  I'm still working on editing Laura and Dan's wedding day images and I had forgotten this picture was taken.  When I came across it I smiled.  They aren't just clients and folks I don't ever think about.  They're great couples that invited me into the biggest day of their lives (thus far ;).  Both couples are a special connection to me as are all the couples I am so proud to have worked with/for and still maintain contact.  I've been blessed to be able to photograph couples' new little bundles of joy and their families as well.  It's all about the connections we make.  Cherish them.  My heart goes out to all those touched by the senselessness that transpired today.  Here's a pic of me with some great connections ;)

Me with four great people.

My Lord Thomson Manor Wedding Bride and Groom

I had the pleasure of meeting with Lisa and Bryan today to deliver their wedding day images.  They were married at Lord Thompson Manor in Thompson, CT at the end of November.  Their Disney themed wedding was really well done, right down to the finest of details.  The reason for this post isn't the usual, "look at all these wedding pictures!" It's more to say thanks to them.  They specifically requested that we meet in person to deliver their images.  We talked about the wedding, answered a lot of questions about things that happened and why they happened (which is always fun to find out!).  But I also got to hear first hand, what their honeymoon to South Africa was like.  To be sure, from what they told me it was an epic trip from the beauty of the country to the hardships that area endures on a daily basis.  I'm so glad this fantastic couple chose me to be their wedding photographer!  Lisa handed me an envelope at our meeting.  I didn't open it there.  We were too busy catching up!  I opened it when I got home.  There was a little "somethin' somethin'" in the envelope which is always nice.  But this is the part that I liked the best:

Lord Thompson wedding thanks.

Thanks Lisa and Bryan.  Best wedding to end the year on :)

A walk on the beach...

Wedding season is over. I shot my last one new year's eve.  I even got to be there for the countdown.  This weekend, I took my camera out to shoot with no real agenda other than, make something that I like, for me.  So I did that.  I got in the car and headed to one of my favorite places to shoot...

I made my way down to coastal Rhode Island to visit one of my favorite winter retreats.  Misquamicut beach is such a great place to visit in winter.  when the weather is 40 degrees or above, my kids generally end up running around coatless and wondering why I wont let them get wet.  It’s a great place to simply walk.  Just pick a direction and walk to that halfway point you pick at any moment you wish.  I’ve gone to the beach because I’m happy, because I’m sad, and even because the kids begged to go :)  one thing I love about the area is the potential energy stored in the air around the countless brightly colored buildings.  (Colors so bright that most zoning regulations probably wouldn't allow them to be used in such a high traffic area, but at the beach, they fit.)  I swear if you just stop, look around and listen you can almost hear the conversations that were, and the ones that will be.  Often times, as I make the drive in to the area, Don Henley’s "the boys of summer" will spool up in the back of my mind.  

Hurricane Sandy devastated the area.  Thousands upon thousands of cubic yards of the beach were moved inland by the swell of the storm.  That massive volume of sand and water moved huge structures, destroyed buildings and left the area a shambles, some areas under feet of sand.  Pylons that once held structures protrude from the sand, defeated by the storm; they are tattered and will need to be removed.  

I wanted to see what the storm had done.  It was terrible what sandy did to the eastern seaboard.  I’m hopeful that the voices that still hang in the air from last year and those that will be realized this summer, are inspiration enough for the folks that run those great businesses.    

Lisa and Bryan's Lord Thompson Manor Wedding...

this blog post is going to be epic in terms of the fact that it's a ton more images than i usually post!  this being my last wedding of the year and christmas day, it just feels right.  lisa and bryan told me early on that they were going to have a disney themed wedding (i'll let you figure out which movie for yourself ;). they had their wedding at lord thompson manor in thompson, ct.  a storybook venue in its own right but lisa and bryan took the theme all the way and transformed the mansion into a scene right out of the movie!  lisa and the girls got ready down the street at the manor's wonderful spa.  the chilly november day was perfect for her horse and carriage ride down to the manor.   

i had a fantastic time shooting their wedding.  brad smith was along to help capture the day and we both agreed; great wedding!

so from strawberry road, merry christmas and to all, a happy life!

as always, click on an image to view it larger :)