Kristin Chalmers Photography

Brittany and Josh - The weekend engagement session!

2012-01-20T23:08:00.002-05:00

The last time I saw my cousin Brittany (cousin by marriage, she is my stepmother's niece) she was probably 4 years old, tops! Many years later we were reunited at a funeral, of all places, when I realized that, not only has too much time passed, but we had missed out on our whole entire lives. So we talked during dinner and the second I got home, we hooked up on Facebook. A few months later, she posted that she was engaged to her most excellent boyfriend, Josh. I basically demanded that she allow me to photograph their wedding and thank God she did, because I feel like we are making up for lost time. It's a crash course for sure. And it's been so worth it.

She and Josh came up to Boston and stayed with us for an entire weekend for their engagement session. Their wedding isn't until December of 2012 and I don't think I can wait that long to see them again. So for now, I will just look at their pictures and think about how cool their wedding at the Chelsea Hotel in Atlantic City will be. And we always have Skype!

My biggest fan - Karmella and David get married!

2012-01-20T22:30:00.000-05:00

Yeah yeah, I know, I said I'd blog more, I know I know...Well I'm doing it now. So here we go.

Karmella found me in my earlier days of shooting weddings. I have no idea how she found me. I think she said "The Knot", but I'm not sure. She booked me out months and months in advance. And what I do know is that this amazing lady has been pimping out on that site now for a good long while. She follows my Facebook Fan page religiously and makes me feel like a million bucks when she posts comments. I love her so!

She and David met online (lots of my couples do and I think it's so great!) Karmella and David both stressed that they loved "funky kick ass colors" and so I tried my hardest to honor that request. I have to say, that their wedding day was pretty wild, being that it was the day before hurricane Irene hit, and I swear, it rained and rained and rained that day. And hot!!!!! Humid!!!! Oy! But Karmella didn't care one bit. She was just thrilled to be marrying her beloved David, rain or shine! So here's to you lady Karm and your awesome postman, David.


So this is Karmella's dad! He is super groovy!

What is love? The wedding of Rene and Daniece

2011-12-29T20:58:00.002-05:00

I have seen a lot. My parents raised me not to pay attention to the race of people or their sexual orientation. Being a dancer for over 20 years, helped mold me into the open minded person that I am today. I went to Creative and Performing Arts High School in Philly where the school could not get funding unless the student population was 50% African American and 50% everything else. I lived in Amsterdam on and off for 3 years with two gay men and loved every second of it! So yes, I'm an open minded kind of lady.

When I made the leap to weddings from editorial (which paid crap and was really cut throat) and families, I made a promise to myself that I would really commit to seeking out same sex couples who wanted to get married! I was so excited that I was actually FINALLY living in a state that did NOT support marriage discrimination. All my gay and lesbian friends living in Los Angeles, Philadelphia and beyond still did not have that right, and it drove me nuts.

That being said, all my support, cheerleading and such didn't prepare me for what feelings would overcome me when I actually FINALLY booked my first same sex wedding. Now...I have been to commitment ceremonies. I even crashed my dear friend Myra's ceremony to her beloved Madison. It was great. It was legit in my eyes, but not in the state of Pennsylvania. They couldn't enjoy the same benefits that I have being married to the opposite sex, or living in my new home of Massachusetts. But I digress. (I do that a lot...sorry)

Fast forward to March of 2011 and I get the email I have been waiting for. Two fantastic, smart, funny and beautiful women were courting me to photograph their wedding that coming September and I really REALLY wanted to be a part of it. It was a big deal for me because I was finally going to experience the legality of it all. I thought it wasn't going to feel any different for me than Myra and Madison's wedding, but it did! It REALLY REALLY DID!

It was a wedding. A big one! With a minister! With a big wedding party, at an amazing location called The Barn at Gibbet Hill. It was the whole shebang! Flowers, favors, dancing, drinking, laughing, family, and LEGITIMACY in the eyes of the state they call home. Legitimacy in the eyes of their families and friends. It was a wedding, plain and simple. It was everything Rene and Daniece strive to be today and in their future. They plan on having children, just like everyone else. They want to grow old together, just like everyone else. So I ask you, how is that different? IT ISN'T!

Love is love...THE END!

Ok, seriously, the cake they had was to DIE FOR!

I loved that Daniece and Rene wanted to jump the broom!

Their place settings were GENIUS! Those are library "book check out" stamps with their wedding date and the table number beneath the guest name! The favors were used books, which were scattered all over the reception for anyone to take home with them!

Here is Daniece looking over Rene's schedule that she had made for all of us. We were all kind of baffled by it, Daniece included!

Guest just waiting for the brides to arrive. It was an amazing day all around, but the weather was beyond perfect!

I was thrilled when the ladies told me they wanted to do a first look.

Everyone, I mean EVERYONE knew how to salsa there! And the line dancing going on...well can you say I'm now obsessed with the song "Cupid Shuffle". I have yet to hear it at another wedding.

I loved getting everyone together for this one.

This is a test

2011-11-30T22:18:00.001-05:00

As I make list after list of what I need to pack for my first, of hopefully many trips to Camp Hill Special School this week, I decided to give the app for my blog a try. So this is basically a test.

If you are wondering what I'm doing at Camp Hill Special School, I will be photographing fine art portraits and documenting the daily lives of students living at this amazing school and working farm. I really don't have a plan of attack, so to speak, in terms of how to approach this new phase in my work. But I think blogging while I'm there will be a good thing.

So let's see how this blog app works. Here is a post with a few photos from some weddings I did this year. No rhyme or reason to them. Just some samples as a testing 1,2,3 kinda thing.

Actually, I don't believe I have ever blogged this Goof Booth™ before. This one is from the wedding of Carly and Brian and all I have to say is, they really took full advantage of their Goof Booth™!

Dream on! Forty six senior high school students and me!

2011-11-16T22:18:00.000-05:00

This is a quickie but I had to blog it! A few weeks ago I was approached to photograph 46 senior high school students for Chapel Hill Chauncy Hall Boarding School in Waltham Massachusetts. Of course I said yes, because I LOVE teens! Here are a few samples from the shoot. I swear it was basically an assembly line of kids. They sent me one every 15 minutes for two days straight. Every time I had a new subject they asked me, “So what do you want me to do?” I answered the same thing every time. The response was something like this…
“Well, here’s the deal. These photos are for YOU! Your parents will like them because they are images of you! My question to you is, what do YOU WANT? Because it’s not your parents that are going to be posting these all over Facebook or whatever social media thing is happening in 15 or 20 years, you are. So what do you want?” That question led to a plethora of answers. But that’s between the students and me.

Ladies and Gentlemen: Chapel Hill Chauncy Hall’s class of 2012!

Renny and Gloria tying knots!

2011-11-01T22:46:00.001-04:00

Renny and Gloria were not what I expected when I first met them. Our initial interview was pretty formal. But once I did their engagement shoot, that was not the case. They were fun, daring, silly and far from formal! They met online and I have to add, perfect for one another.

They were married on August 20th at the most insanely beautiful church on the Glavin Chapel on Babson College Campus. From there we were whisked off to the Harvard Club in downtown Boston to dance the night away. (my second shooter and I did actually get up and dance with them)

I swear, there are so many fantastic images from this wedding I had no idea where to start! You can tell when the couple and their friends are really having fun because they start to forget that I'm there! My job is the BEST when that starts to happen.

I had the most amazing time getting to know them and I am looking forward to hanging out with them again soon! I miss them so already.

Nancy and Nathan's engagement - the teaser to an epic wedding

2011-10-26T23:26:00.000-04:00

I'm dying to blog these photos but I just haven't had the time to really write much about Nancy and Nate as of yet. Except that I met Nancy at Sofra. She was listening in to a conversation I was having a friend named Laura Kimberly, who is on my preferred vendor list. (Yes, I'm pimping her and I'll pimp Nancy too in the next post, she has a virtual assistant business called Yurva!) Anyway, long story short, Nancy asked me for my card and months later reached out. Her wedding to the amazing Nathan will be taking place next year. It will be crazy! In a good way. They hired me for an all out epic weekend extravaganza in the Berkshires. I felt like their wedding was going to be so epic and their story is pretty monumental, that I offered to do two engagement sessions. This is the first one. The next will be in the snow! Stay tuned.

The Ice Cream Elopement that started it all! Mark and Angela

2011-10-21T22:59:00.000-04:00

The Ice Cream Elopement that got it all started for me! When people see the shots of this couple in front of the truck, almost everyone tells me that’s when they knew they wanted us to work together. So here’s how it happened.

Angela is a friend of mine. I think she is the bee’s knees. (I know that sounds super corny but that’s really the only way I know how to describe her) She works at Oleana, probably my all time favorite restaurant in Boston. Believe it or not, I actually ate there in active labor with my 2nd kid, because we had reservations and I didn’t want to miss it. Yes, that’s how good it is.

Anyway, Oleana and their sister café/bakery Sofra are one of my clients. I have photographed food their and Angela seems to manage all that stuff. (I think that’s what she does there. I don’t know but whatever she does there, it’s important.) I’m rambling! Sorry.

One day I receive an email from Angela, kinda out of the blue. Here’s how the conversation went once we spoke on the phone.
Angela – Hey how’s it going?
Me – Great what’s going on?
Angela – I need to ask you favor, are you ready?
Me – Sure…what’s up?
Angela – I’m getting married. Actually, I’m eloping…like NEXT WEEK! Can you shoot it? And NOT TELL ANYONE AT ALL! I MEAN NO ONE, not my boss, no one!
Me – NO WAY! That is so cool. I would love to. Who’s gonna be there?
Angela – You, the justice of the peace, and Mark of course. That’s it!

So now I’m totally blown away that I am literally the ONLY person that is going to witness this fantastic thing! I was beyond honored that Angela and Mark even thought of me. So I cleared my schedule, lined up sitters for the kiddos and met her on Newbury Street a week later!

We met at the hair salon, where her great friend Theresa showed up to help her get her flowers and surprise Angela with a wedding gift. The gift was ME! Theresa took care of my fee, which I thought was the sweetest thing ever.

From the salon we drove down to the Public Garden where Mark and the JP meet us.

They picked their choice of ceremony on the spot and that was it! And I have to say; it was the most intimate moment of any wedding I have ever been to. It almost made me wish I had eloped!

After the ceremony, which lasted all of 10 minutes, (my kind of ceremony, short and to the point) we did a few formals and ran around for a bit.

But then…they got hungry.

Angela kept teasing Mark because he was dying for a hot dog. So we ran to the Frosty Truck on Arlington and Boylston, (in the Back Bay) where they grabbed a dog and lemonade.

These shots were not set up AT ALL! Not for one sec. They are really eating. I didn’t say much, just kept snapping away. I couldn’t have posed this if I tried. I always say that photograph is part skill and luck. Luck that you have great chemistry with your subjects. Luck that the weather is good. Luck that you get those in-between shots when no one is looking. Maybe it’s not luck as much as it’s a happy accident.

Couples ask me if they can do a “shot like the ice cream truck…you know the one on your site”. And I tell them, “well, if you want to elope, not tell anyone, find perfect weather and get hungry for a dog, maybe. But sorry, I can’t promise. That shot was meant for Angela and Mark”

Haiti in da house! Tatiana and Ralph marry!

2011-10-19T19:21:00.000-04:00

There is nothing like shooting a wedding where you just KNOW that everyone is gonna be posing their booties off! Tatiana and Ralph for sure run with a crowd that really likes to be seen and I LIVE FOR THAT.

I met Tatiana and Ralph last year and we spent an entire day during their engagement session, which I might add, was really fun. We snuck my camera into the actual museum at the DeCordova sculpture garden and found this amazing white wall within the museum. It was directly in front of a 15-foot high window. We got some great stuff at that shoot so I knew that their wedding would be just as special.

I loved that Tatiana chose to wear pink and I have to say that everyone was sporting color from every angle when it came to attire. (A photographer’s dream). Many guests came from as far as Haiti! Their wedding was back in July and I’ve only just had a second to really share it. They were married at the Ryder Country Club in East Bridgewater. Take a peek at a few of my favorites!

It's senior portrait time!

2011-10-11T21:01:00.001-04:00

I'm a doofus! I photographed this senior last year but never posted it except to my Facebook page! So in in lieu of being hired this year as the senior portrait photographer for Chapel Hill Chauncy Hall School, I figured I better blog this one so they have a frame of reference!

Shanice is the bestest, brightest, hottest lady I know. And I’m not just saying that cause her mom, Danielle is the coolest, hardest working personal trainer out there! I mean it. Shanice attended Tabor Academy on a full scholarship and after 4 years of busting her butt playing B-ball, she received a college scholarship to University of Hartford!

Here are a few images we shot last spring on a Sunday morning. She was a little shy at first, but after having a little chat about some personal stuff, she was all mine! I love this kid!

Monica and Chris - A Cape Crazy Time

2011-10-09T22:57:00.000-04:00

Most folks don't believe it when I tell them I have never been to the Cape. Well, that is until this year. I guess that's not totally true, I did spend a week in Woods Hole with my best friend many years ago. But I always thought that Woods Hole was kinda like Purgatory for the Vineyard and Nantucket. So when this wedding fell into my lap, I jumped at the chance. But I almost didn’t get this one…

Chris is one of my husband’s best friends. No one thought he would EVER get married. But then he met this fantastic girl named Monica, and that was it.

We were invited to their wedding and then a few months before the big day, we get a call from them saying they weren’t crazy about the photographer they were planning on booking and felt funny about asking me, but really wanted me at the same time. They were concerned because they wanted me to be a guest, not have to work, and enjoy the party while hanging with my husband. But here’s the thing; I’m not from my husband’s hometown. Hell, I’m not even from Massachusetts. And I have to tell ya, I have NEVER seen folks booze it up like people in Massachusetts! I just can’t compete, not by a long shot. So I can be kinda boring at events like that. And the last thing I wanted to do was to have my husband constantly asking me, “Are you having a good time honey?” What a drag for him to deal with that! So I explained to them it was probably a better idea for me to actually WORK and watch my husband have fun. Not to mention he and all of his friend acted as the best party wranglers EVER!

Their wedding was in Dennisport MA, at the Pelham House right on the ocean. It was just beautiful. The weather was crappy and cold, but no one seemed to care in the least. Monica did every single detail herself, with the help of friends and family. I was majorly impressed. And talk about a happy ending (not that kind silly…you dirty thinking folks), they are expecting their first baby next year! Chris, you outdid yourself. Monica is truly the BEST! And Chris, so are you. ☺

Marc and Kristen's Engagement

2011-10-08T21:48:00.000-04:00

So, I'm finally on a roll and I'm going to blog my booty off this week. Now that I bought myself an app called BLOGSTOMP, I can kick out stuff like a madwoman, if I can find the time to just sit for a sec! The goal, two blogs to night! Three by the end of the week...BUT DON'T HOLD ME TO THAT! :-)

Marc and Kristen...how did we meet? Oh yeah, they found me on the Willowdale Estate's Facebook page. I'm tellin' ya, that social networking thing is amazing! Love love love. And when I met them...love love love! They are getting married at the Willowdale in December and I have already prepped them that their formals WILL be in that bathtub! They seemed down for anything! Can't wait until the 16th.

The Maine Point....Carly and Brian sunny wedding day!

2011-10-06T21:53:00.000-04:00

Just when I get a chance to come up for air, I realized that I haven’t blogged in what seems like forever. So I have to go way back…. to the summer and start looking at what I have created with my amazing couples. I will start off with Carly and Brian. I met them early on in my “ok, I’m gonna open up the biz to weddings” days. They took a chance and boy was I happy. We did their engagement session in the early spring and I got to know them. They warned me that they love to have a good time and that the wedding would be “nuts”. Right they were…in a great way. Singing, dancing and even a Goof Booth™, which I blog in the next entry. They were married at the York Harbor Inn in York Maine, which I must add is a fantastic location for sure.

I have to say, the best part of the day was Carly’s laid back attitude about the weather. It was really nasty out but she believed that it would all work out, and it did. During their first look it was misty but by the time we headed over to the bluff where the ceremony was to take place, the sun came out! It shone down on them for just enough time to get through the formals and as we walked back into the venue for the festivities, the clouds returned and the rain started up again. The angels must be watching out for them. And believe me, if you knew them, you would believe that too!

Jenna, Filipe and the insane thing I did to book this wedding!

2011-07-21T22:31:00.002-04:00

Ah…. Jenna and Filipe. What can I say? A LOT! Here’s how it all happened.

Last year, I was scouting a location for a wedding at Tuppor Manor, for a wedding I was to shoot that coming weekend. As I wondered around I noticed a pretty blue eyed young woman and her friend scoping out the place. A woman met them at the front and began to give them a tour. I figured out that right then and there that she was checking out the place for her own wedding. So I did what any insane person would do, I stalked her. I mean, what the hell? What did I have to lose? So I waited out front, for what seemed like FOREVER! But it was a 70-degree day in November and just worked on my tan while I waited. When she emerged from the building I pretty much accosted her. Gave her my card, told her what I did and that she had to hire me. I never thought I would hear from her. I was pretty sure she thought to herself, “OK, what was that and who was that insane person?” Lucky for me, she didn’t think that and she actually called! And, actually hired me!

I say lucky for me because Jenna and Filipe are possibly the funniest couple I have worked with yet. Their friends and family were equally as funny and laid back as them, which makes my job not only fun, but super easy. When I asked the couple how inappropriate I could be when shooting the formals to get reactions from people, Filipe proceeded to tell me that since his family is from Brazil they really didn’t speak much English. But he added that one word that his parents DID know was the word “f_ck” and they though it was a really funny word.

Well that works for me!

Jenna and Filipe were into doing anything and were so silly that I decided to capitalize on the moment with these....

The dancing was NON STOP and actually was initiated by Jenna and her cousin having a serious model walk off a la Zoolander.

The Camphill Special School Project

2011-07-21T11:22:00.001-04:00

I’m so happy to announce that I have been chosen to document and help produce the 50th anniversary book for Camphill Special Schools. I could not be more excited about this project! I’m honored and humbled that the director of the program, Guy Alma, asked me. I’m not gonna lie, I had a small foot in the door because my stepmother, Jennifer Nilsen, has recently joined the board and made the introduction between Guy and myself. I think she was forwarding my work to him on a regular basis, but I’m not sure. All I know is, I went to visit the campus this past weekend on a family trip home to Philly, and was blown away by the entire program, not to mention the amazing students that live there. Guy gave me a small tour and introduced me to the some of the kids.

It would take me many paragraphs to explain what Camphill is, so I’m going to just give you a brief synopsis from their website.

“Camphill Special School is a nonprofit Pennsylvania Approved Private School and Waldorf school accredited by AWSNA and the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools that offers day and residential programs for children and youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities that may include, but are not restricted to, mental retardation (MR), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Pervasive Developmental Disorders (PDD), Down Syndrome, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS), Fragile X Syndrome, Williams Syndrome, and other conditions associated with intellectual disability. Camphill Special School is part of the worldwide Camphill Movement and the only Camphill community in North America for children, as well as the only Waldorf School in the country for children with developmental and intellectual disabilities.”

But if you really want to read an in depth description of how it was founded etc, click here and here

After my tour, Guy allowed me to photograph a few of the students as they did their chores and got ready for lessons. The school has many campuses around the world and many have working farms, cafes, craft stores and even a bakery where you can buy goods made by the students.

Here are some samples. Keep in mind I only shot for about an hour total this day. My plan is to reside there a few times every season for approximately a week. I believe this will go on for a year or two.

Hannah and Rob's 1st look with my pal Meg Belanger.

2011-07-12T23:07:00.000-04:00

I love to second shoot for other photographers. I REALLY love to second shoot for my good friend Meg who owns Margaret Belanger Photography. Actually, we second shoot for each other quite a bit. I love to second shoot because it is all the fun, and none of the pressure. Your job is to get all the details and crazy things; basically you just need to have the main photographer's back. I love shooting for Meg because not only do I learn a lot, but also we have a great time. (She gets really nice clients BTW). I feel that I always have something to learn. A wise dance teacher named Milton Myers once told me when I was a student at Jacob's Pillow, "Girlfriend, the minute you think you don't need to take class anymore or have nothing to learn, you better stop dancing all together." I take that to heart in most things that I do. But I digress.

The main purpose of this entry is to answer the question that a lot of my clients ask me. "Do you think we should do a first look? I kinda wanted to wait until I am walking down the isle before my husband/wife sees me for the first time.” Well to that I say, it’s really a matter of choice and it’s YOUR day. BUT, take a peek and these baby’s! I LOVED doing this shoot. It was at the Omni Parker Hotel in Boston. Meg was with Hannah and I stayed with Rob while he waited to see her. Now, I didn’t see Hannah either, because Meg sent me right downstairs to work with the groomsmen. I set Rob up and had him look at me. I talked with him and I saw Hannah before he did. I watched her walk up to him from behind and then told him to look. I think the images speak for themselves here.

First spring wedding of my season - Kelly and Dan at the Taj

2011-06-02T23:30:00.001-04:00

Please don’t laugh when I tell you that this was the year that I decided to finally DVR the last season of Oprah. What does this entry have to do with Oprah? Not much and everything. During her last episode…no, not the one where it was like night of 1001 stars, the actual final episode where she reads a love letter to her viewers. There was a moment where she talked about finding that ‘thing’ that feeds your soul and doing it. The thing that sparks you and almost gets you high while you are doing it. Never in a million years did I ever think that I would find something that gets me as high as dancing. I made a meager living doing that up until my mid twenties, but then I struggled throughout the rest of my adult life to find something, anything that floated my boat in the same way. Yeah yeah, photography, you know that already. But who would have guessed that it would be wedding photography that did it to me. Whelp that’s what it was. …(My friend Glenn thinks it funny that I still use the word whelp)

So here I am to start blogging about my drug/career of choice, with my first wedding blog of my 2011 season.

Ah…Kelly and Dan. I posted their engagement session a while back and finally the end of April was their actual wedding day. The date: April 30th. The location: The Taj Boston. What a spot! The roof deck is fantastic and that’s where the entire day took place. And who the hell doesn’t love shooting in the public garden? I mean, come on people! Seriously. It’s doesn’t get much better!

Here are a few images from their day. Miss you two already. Thanks to my cousin Corrine to hooking me up with them. I have to say, there were so many and it's now so late, I could only get to these. I have to go to bed. I have another wedding tomorrow, and I still have to figure out the getting the kids to school stuff first. :-)

I have so many more and maybe I'll blog another set later on. This was just a taste!

I will I will love you in a bathtub - Mark and Colleen's Willowdale Estate Wedding

2011-04-18T22:43:00.000-04:00

I can't believe I did not blog this wedding sooner! What the hell is wrong with me? Mark and Colleen, Willowdale Estates, a super in love couple, formals in a bathtub, a balcony for dancing? What was I waiting for? I swear, I think I laughed the entire wedding. Colleen had the most unbelievable sense of humor, that I had trouble holding the camera still when shooting the formals because she was cracking me up THE ENTIRE TIME! How lucky am I that I get the funny ones? Here are a few shots from their winter wedding at the Willowdale Estates.

Coffee, tea and chocolate - Renny and Gloria's engagement session

2011-04-18T13:43:00.000-04:00

Wedding season is upon me and I'm a little in over my head this year in a good way. I never imagined in such a short time that I would be booking as many weddings as I have, but I am loving every second of it. Every time I photograph a new couple, get to know them, and witness their love, it brings me great joy. It also reminds me that after 11 years of marriage to my husband, that I still feel the same way about him, after 15 actual years of being together, as these couples do about each other in their 'honeymoon stage'. I consider this a great thing.

Last week I had the pleasure of kicking off my 2011 season with Renny and Gloria. I loved their free spirit energy and was beyond excited that they were will to get silly and laid back at the same time. Their wedding is actually taking place on my wedding anniversary and I can't think of a better way to spend it than with them. (I know that sounds crazy, but I have plenty of time to make it up to my guy at a later date)

Renny and Gloria wanted to start their session by hanging at Athan's in Brookline. It happened to be the location of their first date. From there, we headed over to Beacon Hill to explore the historic hidden alleys and small cobblestone lined streets.

Thanks Renny and Gloria for a really fun day!

I'm playing with slide show videos for my clients. Down below is a little sample of their day.

Untitled from K. Chalmers on Vimeo.

The calm before the storm

2011-04-09T23:06:00.000-04:00

My wedding season is creeping up on me after a few mellow months of praying for warm weather! Good thing I was fortunate enough to get a little jump start by doing a quick family session today. I photographed Katie, when she was a little little thing living in the city. Since then her little brother, Thomas, has joined the family and it was actually my first time meeting him. Thomas was tough, due to molars that were literally erupting in the back of his mouth. ( I was able to catch a peek at them during a very large yawn). Katie decided that a little kettle corn might solve the problem, and as you can see. It eventually did.

Kaithlyn and Jackson

2011-03-31T22:59:00.002-04:00

Finally, time to blog. Between both my boys finally being in school at the same time, (a day I NEVER thought I would see) and just the regular running around, I feel like I can't tell my ass from my toenail. But I'm lucky and blessed to have problems like to this to be honest with ya!

I’ve away a long time in terms of mind and body, but now I’m back and ready to jump into my wedding season feet first. Before I get into what the hell I’ve been doing, I thought I would start with a wedding. I’m trying to learn new ways to post multiple images, so bare with me folks.

Back in January, which seems like an eternity ago, I was able to attend a very special wedding. Emotions were high, the bride was breathtaking, and the groom was beyond classy, in a funky hip sorta way.

Kaithlyn and Jackson were married in Sturbridge at the Publick House. I think this inn must have been over 150 year old, complete with the most amazingly kitschy wallpaper (a dream for me anyway)! Oh, not to mention, hands down, the best turkey dinner EVER! The DJ, Champagne Toast, kept that dance floor packed from start to finish, and I was even lucky enough to have my friend and fellow photographer, Jennifer Star, come up from New Jersey to 2nd shoot the day for me.

Another Goof Booth...Finally

2011-01-26T23:09:00.000-05:00

To be honest, the Goof Booth is something that I borrowed from many other photographers. It's really a mock photo booth, but with TONS of room to pile in folks. But after seeing so many, I really wanted to make my "different". So I added tons of very adult like props, and when I began to edit my first one, I came up with a secret formula in post production to give it a very hard edge. My friend Megan, back in LA, helped me come up with the name (which is being trademarked at this moment) and my Goof Booth was born. But selling it has not been easy. It's A LOT of work, but a TON of fun not only for my clients but for me as well. I feel like anyone can take a photo of someone in front of a backdrop with a strobe, but the goal is really to bring out the "idiot, silly, crazy, nut job" in everyone and get it on film. Especially when they aren't really paying attention. I'm currently running a special through October. Please contact me for more info.

Below is a Goof Booth I did last weekend for Kaithlyn and Jackson's wedding. It was a friggin' ball! I laughed the entire time I shot it.

2010-12-08T20:37:00.000-05:00

It’s been forever since I’ve posted and that’s probably because I have started a Facebook fan page. For some reason it has become an easier way for me to post and share images with the people I know. I love it, but the blog is another monster all together. I want to post more stories and personal stuff to but finding the time is next to impossible. So here’s a quickie of what’s been going on.

Let’s start with the wedding world. After years of photographing kids, many folks know that I have ventured into the wedding market. My goal this year was small. Shoot 4 total. That’s all. But with the help of my Facebook page and some loyal clients, I have now booked a total of 13 weddings! HOLY CRAP! How did that happen? Who cares, I couldn’t be happier. Here are a few samples of a wedding I did for my dear friend Blake and his wife Leona. They actually got married in Philly even though the live in Hawaii!

The Blackboard wall - that I don't want to draw on

2010-11-11T23:02:00.002-05:00

I've been talking about doing this forever and now it's done. A chalkboard wall has gone up in my home office. I love it and don't want to write on it. I can do mini sessions in my crib and no one will freeze their booties off. (me included) While it is finished, so to speak, it needs to "cure" and that means, no writing for 3 days. Just in time for my first shoot with it on Sunday. But let me just say, this did not stop my two sons from testing it out. Most of these were shot with just an on camera flash bounced. I love the look

A beautiful family!

2010-11-04T22:08:00.000-04:00

I can't even remember how the Selk family ever found me, but they continue to come back year after year, and now I consider them friends for sure! Sabrina even takes a beating from my trainer. (I know she wants to kill me for that one) Sabrina and Charlie are a beautiful couple that have passed on great genes because take a look at their beautiful children! After photographing them for almost 3 years, the kids are finally getting silly and enjoying their sessions.

Robert rides the school bus

2010-11-04T20:53:00.000-04:00

Time for a more personal post!

Robert, my 6 year old son, who has PDD/NOS, has been shining in Kindergarten! My husband and I could not be happier with his teacher, his school and the progress he is making. (I could go on and on about the Special Education administration in Arlington and how they are screwing up the budgets, mismanaging cases, lying, and pissing us off to no end as we fight for our son’s legal rights. But that’s another post for another time.)

Anyway, Robert’s first field trip was a success! He loved the school bus. “Feels like an airplane mom”, and his amazing teacher allowed him to pick his buddy first, because he was MAJORLY freaking out about the bus ride at first. She’s the best. The entire Kindergarten class did the whole apple picking thing and I brought my camera along for the ride.

Kelly and Dan, deciding to get off the pot!

2010-11-04T13:51:00.000-04:00

The pressure is ON! My husband’s cousin, Corrine, referred me to her best friend! Yikes. And they hired me! So now I gotta really deliver! Not like I wouldn’t deliver but I really want to not only make her friends happy, but I want to make Corrine proud. The good news, is that her best friend Kelly and her fiancé, Dan are the bomb! They are hilarious and really willing to take risks. The better news? When I posted their engagement photos to my Facebook fan page and uploaded the proofs for them, not only was the bride to be “obsessed with them”, but Corrine was beyond happy with them. Whew.

The engagement shoot and dodged the harvest hoot nanny

2010-11-01T15:24:00.000-04:00

Anytime I have to shoot on a weekend, which is almost always, I love it, because it really feels like a vacation from my ‘stay at home during the week mom’ life that I have. Heading up to Sturbridge to photograph Kaithlyn and Jackson was far enough from my house that I may as well have been working in Canada AND on a vacation. Their wedding is set for January and I know I’m going to have to invest in some serious fingerless gloves for this day. It’s gonna be cold!

The day we met for their engagement session, there was some crazy ass fall harvest hoot nanny. We wanted to shoot there but every time we walked up to a booth to shoot …something, anything. The locals wanted to shoot us! So we stuck to nature!

Bently College with a side of home fries

2010-11-01T15:05:00.000-04:00

Thank god for Yelp. Don’t underestimate its powers. That is how Carly and Brian found me. Their wedding isn’t until next year, but we got crackin’ early for the engagement session while the weather was still warm.

They met at Bentley College, so we cruised around there and they told me about their history together. I love that part, but I think my favorite part of the shoot took place at this tiny boxcar diner off campus. We grabbed a bit to eat, and shot the day away. Rocking home fries at this spot. Now if I could only remember the name….

The gift!

2010-11-01T14:46:00.000-04:00

Every once in a while there comes a client that really helps you find your “voice” or vision. When I decided to open my mind and camera and take on weddings, I was pretty intimidated. This is a one shot deal (so to speak). You have to get it on the first try, unlike kids; you can re-shoot if you have to. Also, I have always found that I’m not your typical New England Photographer, my style is more cutting edge, kinda “Rock ‘n Roll”, bring out the crazy, kind of photographer. So when it came to taking on weddings, I felt like I might be geographically challenged. The first few weddings I shot, with the exception of one, were pretty straightforward. And then there was Kristen and Scott.

I posted their engagement session a while back and have yet to post their wedding photos, until now. This couple did something for me. They gave me a gift. They trusted me. They let themselves be vulnerable. They let me in. And they also gave me complete creative freedom. It is because of them, that I have been able to find other clients like them. Or rather, they have found me. Even if these new couples aren’t as cutting edge looking as Kristen and Scott, they most certainly are mentally. The next few posts are just a few examples of these new couples that have allowed me to enter into their lives and my wedding photography takes a life of it’s own.

Here are some shots from Kristen and Scott’s wedding to start!

Hey Grandma! That's an awfully big birthday...TO HAVE.

2010-09-03T22:35:00.001-04:00

My mother has this really great neighbor named Audrey, and she kinda keeps and eye on my mom, since I’m a 6-hour drive from Philly. But I know they get into all kinds of trouble together. Anyway, one day. Audrey asked my mother where she was getting all the photos of her grandkids from, so my mom told her I was a photographer. This did not please Audrey cause she thought my mom was holding out on the goods, meaning me. See, Audrey and her family really like to entertain, and she told my mom that she had been looking for a good photographer for a long time that could capture her family in time, so to speak.

Fast forward a few weeks later, and I get a call from Ms. Audrey. She was super bubbly but extra professional. She informs me that she is having a surprise birthday party for the amazingly fabulous Frances her, soon to be 90-year-old, grandmother. So Audrey and her family arranged for me to come to New York for the weekend and document the party. But she warned me that Grandma did not like to have her photos taken and that she was a tough cookie when it came to that. I told her not to worry and that I would handle her.

So last weekend I had the pleasure of spending a fantastic weekend with Audrey and beautiful extended family, not to mention a crew of Frances' buddies from far and wide. Needless to say, Frances was BEYOND shocked when she came through the door. She brought tears to my eyes, when I saw her reaction.

Here are a few images from her special day.

The location was at this great place called Terrace in the Sky. As you can see the view was amazing!

Here is the lovely Audrey who was most excellent in not only pulling this thing off, but getting Frances's family and friends from all over to meet in one spot.

So the way the family pulled this off was to tell Grandma that she was attending the baby shower of the woman in the photo above. Her shower was really scheduled for the following weekend. So when Frances showed up, it took her about 3 minutes or so to figure out why her girlfriends were at "the shower". As you will see from the next few images.

Her face was beyond priceless!

Here are a few of her buddies laughing and explaining the whole thing.

Apparently Frances hadn't see this woman she is embracing in many many years.

She did figure it out!

How beautiful is she? She doesn't look 90 to me at all!

Here's Frances giving me crap, but I told her to knock it off and let me make her feel like queen for a day. She laughed at me and gave me a big smooch!

Frances' family and friends kind of roasted her gently and called it the "Frances Funnies". She certainly did think it was funny. She was a good sport.

Frances' grandkids where all over the place and they were so beautiful. I couldn't stop taking photos of them.

And her friends were so lovely and they truly loved her!

I think Audrey looks a lot like her grandma in this photo.

Audrey's best friend and her husband came from Delaware. They were the greatest.

So I was told that there will be a 100 year birthday event. Hope I can go to that one!

"Goof Booth" meets the Ramey Posse!

2010-08-09T15:27:00.001-04:00

I was finally able to pull off a "Goof Booth" for a bunch of really fun, slightly drunk and punchy grown ups at a wedding. I believe it was a huge hit. I headed to Boston Costume and spent a small wad but it was sooooo worth it! The props were what got the whole party started .....RIIIEEEGGHT!

Here are some samples of the Goof Booth for the wedding of Scott and Kristen Ramey. They are possibly the most amazingly fun couple I have ever met. And their friends...MAJOR FUN!

If you know of an event that may benefit for something like this, contact me directly and bring the Goof Booth to your next shindig! It's totally worth the cashola!