The one thing I tell the ladies before their e-shoot is to wear comfortable shoes, we do a lot of walking during an engagement shoot, often over cobblestones. Being that Laura lives in Texas and is never seen without her heels, she decided to ignore my advice completely, and good for her! Her heels were adorable, and she wouldn’t have felt like herself without them. Sometimes you need to be yourself so that your photos reflect not what your photographer wants, but who you really are.

I’ll be seeing Laura and Blair again this fall out on Peaks Island for their wedding at The Inn. I can’t wait!

Gwen and Andy love two things most; sailing on their vintage sailboat, and their little rescue pup Aiden. Since their boat isn’t in the water now, we made due with Aiden and a waterfront shoot in Portland’s Old Port. Aiden is a country-dog so he was a bit excited by all the sights and smells in the city; this made for some hilarious moments and photos. I love when couples bring their dogs along to their engagement shoot, it helps everyone feel more comfortable, plus, I’m a huge dog lover at heart and love to meet the ever-important four-legged family members.

Gwen and Andy have chosen the Spruce Point Inn for their wedding, and since they’ll have their boat moored in Boothbay Harbor for the summer, I’m really looking forward to taking some beautiful shots onboard. There is nothing more  classically ’Maine’ than a boat on the water and a gorgeous couple of newlyweds!

His timing was great; he arrived two months before the first wedding of the season; giving all of us in the house plenty of time to get settled and into a new routine. Of course, the child of a photographer is going to be subjected to several photo shoots a week, so here’s a selection of images from his first two weeks at home. I hope you enjoy them, as much as we do him.

Thanks go out to my clients both past, and present, for trusting me to document their wedding days. Now I can’t wait to see what 2012 has in store!

It may be December now, but it has been unusually warm so far this winter, so rather than a snowy shoot, we had a day that felt much more autumn-like. Even down at the beach it wasn’t too windy or cold. We really lucked out as the beach can be positively brutal in December. Jay is a Mainer himself, so having the shoot here at the beach fit right in with his upbringing, and coincidentally his best-man happens to live in Saco, so Erica and Jay made a weekend around our shoot. I’m such a huge proponent of engagement shoots that I really appreciate when couples also make the shoot a priority despite distance and weather.

At their wedding I’ll get to reunite with Nikki and Adam whose wedding I shot on Peaks Island in 2010,  it’s so much fun when I get to stay in touch with ‘my couples’ as the years pass, and I’m always very touched when they pass my name onto their friends.

I’ll see you two again next fall! Enjoy the holidays everyone!

Kennebunport was also chosen for their fall engagement shoot since we thought it would be a nice quiet location, boy were we wrong! On this lovely fall day, Kennebunkport was positively hopping with people. Like most of my couples, Julie and Patrick pushed their nerves aside, and despite the mobs of people we proceeded as if we were the only people in town.

I can’t wait to reunite with the whole Morris family next summer at their nuptials!

Pam is a graphic designer, so it goes without saying that the colors, details, and paper goods were all well thought out and very complimentary. They were also a reflection of Pam and Sean’s fun loving attitude towards not only their wedding, but life in general. Just take a second to read the text on the their reply card, and you’ll know what I’m talking about.

Pam and Sean know how to enjoy themselves and not take life too seriously. The figurines climbing up their wedding cake were made by a friend and are a reenactment of their first meeting at the Maine Rock Gym. And did you notice the reappearance of the cowboy boots? Or Sean’s orange socks? I just adore all the warm colors and thoughtful details.

The day had one small hiccup though, Pam had a ‘wardrobe malfunction’ and had to literally be sewn into her dress by her mom! The sash that had been added totally messed up the zipper and caused it to bust open just before the ceremony!  Pam and her mom took it all in stride, and thankfully the stitching held all night!

The day would have been perfect had I not had a hiccup of my own. After so many weddings on Peaks Island over the years, I’ve practically memorized the car ferry schedule, so I rarely consult it anymore. Well, apparently I should have, since I didn’t notice that the it had gone over to the fall schedule and thus the late car ferries had been eliminated! Oops! So, my car got to overnight on Peaks, and I got to come back for lunch on Sunday. Since it was over 80 again on Sunday it was a nice trip nonetheless.

Congrats Pam and Sean, and all my 2011 wedding couples, it was a great year and I truly enjoyed every single wedding!

-alex

I love a couple (and wedding party, too) that is able to roll with what comes their way without getting upset about what they cannot control, and they’re just this sort of couple. Bridget came prepared for the weather with an adorable pair of lime green polka dot galoshes, and I even got the whole wedding party to traipse across the golf course, but that came to an end quickly when several of them ended up ankle deep in water!

The wedding itself was held at St. John’the Baptist Catholic Church in Brunswick, and if you’ve never been there before take my word for it, it’s gorgeous! It’s the type of church that a fish-eye lens is made for, so grand.

I could go on and on about the fun little details they incorporated into their reception;  from the Super Mario Brothers cake topper (from Etsy), to little to-go boxes that allowed guests to take home a cupcake to be enjoyed later on. Thanks for sharing your wedding day with me Bridget and Matt, I hope you’re enjoying Greece!