Amanda & Kevin: Monmouth/Harpswell, Maine Wedding

Who: Amanda & Kevin
What: A casual and connective lively lobster luncheon and loungearound on the Maine coast for 120
Where: Ceremony at the bride's childhood church -the United Church of Monmouth- and tented luncheon on the water at Wildwood, a private oceanside cottage in Harpswell
When: June 13, 2009
How: Flowers by Winthrop florist Pat Foss (phone #377-2661) and delicious catering by Laura Chabot of Waldoboro.

Why: Both working in the land development field, Amanda and Kevin met five years ago working for their respective employers on a project in downtown Rockland. But it wasn't until two years ago, when Kevin returned from getting his graduate degree in urban planning at Harvard that the two even thought of moving from colleagues to couple. But after a single date, and some emotionally evasive emailing (you don't want to appear too interested of course!), they suddenly just knew. As Amanda told me, "We both confirmed we were 'done looking' within several months of dating. Our love for each other feels very complete, perhaps because we have each had life experience that lead us to recognize early on we found what we were looking for and knew how to hold onto it."

But while their hearts knew their love was real and right (oh boy, did they know!), it was more important to Amanda and Kevin that Kevin's beloved young daughter, Alex, felt there was room in her heart and her home to accept Amanda. And Alex, engaging and excited and graceful (both in mind and movement) in a way that belies her six short years, did so with an openness and love that made Amanda adore her even more, and admire Kevin. As a father. As a man. As a husband. And it was that realization and that powerful process of two plus one becoming one family that led to this day, where what everyone was feeling was finally formalized.

I love the reverence with which I found Amanda looking up at her dress with as she got ready in her parent's Monmouth home.


A most beautiful bride.


Just down the street from her childhood home, the Monmouth church where Amanda and Kevin were married was also where her parents once wed. I love these two images of the bride's father lifting her veil and giving her away as her little sister (the maid-of-honor) looks on adoringly.




Taking it all in...


And holding back tears. Tears of joy. Of hope. Of respect, of honor to tradition and of understanding for the magnitude of this moment.


I love all of the story lines told in this single image, but it is little Alex delicately dabbing her eyes with a tissue that makes it so poignant a picture for me.


The bride and groom greeted their guests on the lawn of the church. In this image, they are actually hugging the mother and stepfather of one of my 2008 grooms, who recently became a father. Thanks for the referral Katie and Courtney, and welcome to the world little William!


Family.


When I first learned that the church ceremony was to be in Monmouth and then the reception more than an hour drive away in Harpswell, I couldn't imagine why. But when I learned of the meaning of the Monmouth church to Amanda and her family, and then arrived at this classic cottage on the ocean's edge in Harpswell that was lent to the couple for the weekend by a close friend of the groom's, I knew it was worth the distance!


Given how stunning the site already was, Amanda and Kevin let the view take centerstage, and brought some green under the tent with cute little pots of herbs that doubled as decorations and favors. Simple, yet so fitting for a springtime lobster luncheon.


An elegant cake topped with yellow and green flowers complimented the color scheme, and was delicious. (I've made a vow to myself to try to taste more of my couples' cakes. Really, it's my professional duty!)


Though there was a brief best man's toast and a cake-cutting, Amanda and Kevin choose to keep the afternoon casual. Guests lingered on the lawn, enjoying one of June's rare bluebird days while the children chased each other with fistfuls of seaweed and blew pinwheels thoughtfully picked out and purchased by Alex and Amanda. I came around the back of the house to find Amanda applying sunscreen on her sister and capture this snap of a very sweet and smart moment.


I bet there were but a few weddings in June where sunglasses were a necessity. I caught Amanda's reflection in her father's when they were catching up on the lawn.


Given that the luncheon was just a few short hours and I felt it was important for Amanda and Kevin to get the most of their time with their guests, we opted to do the pictures of the two of them later in the day after many of their friends had gone home. I took some time while the guests were in line for lobster to do a walk-around of the site, scoping out some of the most scenic spots for us to shoot in so that when the bride and groom were ready, we could be most efficient with their time. As a result, we got such a nice variety of images that I know will soon bring color and joy to the walls of the couple's new home.

This small woodshed flanked by tall pines provided a sweet starting place.








We then worked our way across this lawn to this blooming bay of rhododendrons. It's important to remember that I do not pose my couples. I work so thoughtfully from the moment we first connect to make them feel comfortable with me and themselves around me and then I simply bring them to the place, and let them interact in a way that is most reflective of their relationship. Some couples prefer to be playful, while others like Amanda and Kevin take this calm moment during a somewhat chaotic day to be very tender with each other. While it's certainly cool for a client to look like a model in a magazine in their images, it's more important to me that my brides and grooms see themselves, and no one else in their wedding imagery.








Black and white treatments give the images a totally different tone.






Framing with flowers...


I had seen a couple cuddling on this bench during lunch, and knew we had to get Amanda and Kevin there. They are so intimate and connected to each other and the moment that you would never guess both their families are standing just a few feet away. I can almost see them sitting here in 50 years with their grandchildren playing on the lawn.








And we ended down by the water.


Amanda and Kevin, congratulations on such a meaningful and memorable day. Hope you had the most fabulous time exploring Italy and are settling delightfully into your new home.

And be sure to watch their slideshow here.

Abbie & Paul: Backyard Freeport Maine wedding

Who: Abbie and Paul
What: A backyard groundbreaking ceremony turned tented wedding celebration luncheon for 60 or so
Where: The lawn of the couple's home-to-be in Freeport
When: May 16, 2009
How: Simply elegant flowers from Stephanie at the Yarmouth based Flora Home, luncheon of quiche and salads catered by Joni and her crew from Dinner at Your Door in Freeport, cake from the European Bakery in Falmouth, violin solo from Paul D'Alessio (993-2756), tent from Taylor Rental in Brunswick and ceremony performed by Rev. Peter Panagore (known by you likely for his Daily Devotions segment on Maine's NBC affiliates WCSH6 and WLBZ2 and by me because he performed my dad's wedding ceremony in Belfast four summers ago).

Why: Abbie and Paul weren't even planning a wedding. No, really. They weren't.

They'd both been married before, and were just content to have found each other. Besides, they were about to embark on a massive home construction project on land they'd recently purchased in a farmland field in Freeport. Abbie, a well-known Maine wedding photographer and longtime photography instructor at North Yarmouth Academy, was going to be busy overseeing the process, and Paul, an organization development consultant, had nary a free day with client trips to California, Mexico, France and around New England already scheduled this spring and summer.

They were planning a groundbreaking ceremony -casual of course- for a few close family and friends to celebrate the turning of the earth that would one day soon host their home. Abbie called her beloved daughter, who lived across the country in Seattle, to ask her to attend, but it was Emma's quick response that offered the real invitation: "Why don't you just get married then too, Mom?" she wondered.

And it was exactly what Abbie, whose children Emma and Thatcher are her whole world, wanted to hear, and so with their blessing, she and Paul scurried about for four weeks, and transformed a humble dig-in-the-dirt among friends to a lively and oh-so-lovely luncheon for 60 or so people who could think of being nowhere else on that day, with thoughtful details that spoke perfectly of the couple's passion for the natural world, and the one they'd created together.

I had the honor of getting to know and admire Paul through a non-Samantha Warren Weddings undertaking this spring and when Abbie and I met to discuss their wedding plans, we were fast friends, with lots of photo shop talk as I caught her up on how the industry has changed in the few years since she stopped photographing Maine weddings. I was struck by how thoughtful both she and Paul were when it came to getting married, and specifically the impact it would have on Abbie's children, who happened to be about my age. They curiously and candidly wondered about my experience with my new step-parents, and two parents who had become closer friends since their divorce than they ever were when they were married.

And so when Abbie and Emma, wearing matching cowboy boots, came down the dirt driveway, their arms tight around each other, sprite smiles on their faces, I didn't know whether to giggle with giddiness or weep with joy and hope and a heart heaped with love for love. And throughout the afternoon, I and every other guest blessed to be there, did both and every other emotion in between as we celebrated the union of two people who had found such peace in each other, and as a result, into so many of our lives, if even just for that day. What a wonderful thing to witness!

I love this worn bible used during the ceremony- it has so much character! Only in Maine would duct tape not be considered sacrilege on this most holy of books.


Details like this perfectly-tied ribbon and branches give personality to what might have otherwise been just a plain white tent. And it compliments the bride's shawl.


With the ceremony at high noon, Abbie and Paul opted to have it under the tent so guests wouldn't have to shield their eyes from the sun's glare. It was -shall we say- intimate under there, so this young wedding guest hopped up on his mom's shoulders for a better view of the ring exchange. I later found out Abbie had actually photographed his parent's wedding years before and that she plans to go into the boutique egg business with him.


After the pronouncement, two co-workers of Abbie's from NYA (North Yarmouth Academy) performed a very poignant "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and I like this tight shot of Paul holding Abbie in his arms during that.


Guests linked hands and hearts for a final blessing.


After the marriage ceremony, it was time for a groundbreaking ceremony to kick-off construction at the couple's home-to-be. Guests gathered round what will one day be the front door as Abbie did a reading on the meaning of home in their lives and in all of ours.


I'd photographed groundbreakings before in my newspaper work, but never have I seen one done with such gusto, and in a dress and suit to boot!




Then it was time for a simple spring luncheon under the tent. Here are some of my favorite details from lunchtime. From top right and going clockwise: in lieu of gifts, the couple asked that guests give them seedlings to plant around their new home; the bride wore cowboy boots, as did several other guests; the couple cleverly used their new mailbox as their card box; a basket of bug spray is a must for any Maine wedding; and simple terracotta pots piled with moss and ferns served as the centerpieces.


Though Abbie and Paul strove to make their wedding nontraditional, there were some traditional aspects, like this toast.


And the cake cutting.


Usually a cake-cutting is a more riotous affair, but I think it was during this very traditional moment that the untraditional Abbie truly realized the magnitude of this moment- that she was really a bride just like the hundreds of brides over the years she photographed and was deserving of experiencing the same joy and excitement she so often photographed them feeling. Overcome with emotion, she finds solace in Paul's arms again.


Abbie and Paul trusted me enough that they didn't give me a lot of photographic direction, which is great! But, Abbie had one demand of me- that I convince her son and daughter, who live in Seattle, to move back to Maine. The two are so, so, so important to Abbie that she didn't proceed with the wedding until she had their blessing. Her joy in their company is captured in this series of images, which I had to share because I think it shows the way I shoot portraits- and that's capturing both the group, and the group dynamic.


The bride and groom sitting in their living room. Don't you love Abbie's cowboy boots and Paul's running shoes. Very them!


As with all my couples, I stepped back and let Abbie and Paul revel in each other.










And revel they did! Abbie and Paul...there are no words. I was so grateful to be included in your day and now, in your lives. More than a month later, and I'll still catch myself smiling when I recall one of the seemingly fleeting moments from the day that has had such a lasting impression on my heart. So glad I convinced one of your kids to move back to Maine. I'll work on Emma. Once you build it, maybe she will come!

And don't forget to watch their slideshow here.