Stephanie and Pete are truly on the same wavelength. Shortly after meeting the couple and Pete was out of earshot taking a phone call, Stephanie leaned over to me and said, “Can you believe this man?! HOW LUCKY AM I??? I have no idea how I landed this AMAZING guy!” I agreed that Pete was quite a catch, but assured her that he was lucky to have her as well.
Apparently, Pete felt exactly the same way. The two of them had written their own vows. During Pete’s heartfelt and moving vows, he spoke about how lucky he was to have found this unbelievable woman, who is so strong, and makes him a better man. His vows had Stephanie and pretty much the whole church in tears. Speaking of luck, it was lucky I had my new 135L lens, so I was able to capture the emotion on Stephanie’s face without getting in the middle of that incredible moment. I think the L in the canon L series is for Love, because I sure LOVE that lens! The officiant also had the flower girl kiss the rings for good luck for the couple with future children. I thought this was a great way to incorporate the flower girl into the service.
I was second shooting again with 71 west for this wedding with the wonderful Rachel Austin who had just given birth to a beautiful baby boy just 2 weeks prior. She is definitely my inspiration for when I get pregnant some day. Major kudos go out to her for jumping back in the photography saddle so quickly! Rachel took care of the getting ready shots with Stephanie, and I got to cover the guys getting ready. Guys definitely have it so much easier than girls on their wedding day. Shave, throw in some pomade, and put on a suit, take a swig of 5 hour energy and bam, the groom is ready! With girls, the process is MUCH longer, but man is it worth it. Check out this stunning shot of Stephanie.
After the ceremony we went to the lighthouse for the formal photos. Pete being the incredible gentleman that he is, carried Stephanie across the rocks to the shoot site. Once everything was done there the bridal party went just down the road to the conveniently located Barker Tavern. Judy was the on-site coordinator we worked with and she was fantastic. She always kept me privy to when the next big moment would be, be it the entrances or the cake cutting or parent dances. Having an on-site coordinator work hand-in-hand with me like that is beneficial to me and the couple, who end up with much better photos as a result.
Photography notes:
At first Pete was a bit uncomfy in front of the camera, but then I said, give me your best James Bond look. It worked like a charm. Money Penny would have swooned, “Oh Pete!” If you are ever uncomfortable with what you are doing with a photographer, let them know, and hopefully they can come up with a way to accommodate you and make the process better and — more importantly — more fun for you.
It was July 4th weekend and the wedding was in Scituate so I found a house with some local character and an American flag in the window to use as our backdrop for shots of the guys. This location provided some much needed shade on a very sunny day. Not only does sun over heat a bunch of guys in suits, it also makes people squint and gives them terrible hot spots of light on top of their heads. If you can avoid taking pictures in very bright sunshine, do it. Your eyes both during and after will thank you for it!
