Shang Chen Photography, jetsetting wedding photographer of dynamic couples » Boston engagement photography

Lisa and Dan, Engaged! | A Harvard Love Story

Shang — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 15:36:36 +0000

It began with a letter. He was the outgoing president of the Harvard-Radcliffe Chinese Students Association, and she was his successor. She was not to open it until she was on the plane for winter break. “All I really want for Christmas is you,” he wrote, and thus begins their love story. Lisa and Dan, one of my youngest clients for 2012, are full of energy, laughter, and natural love for each other. Sure, it doesn’t hurt that I know Lisa through a sisterhood we both belonged to in college, or that Dan actually had attended my high school as well (but we just missed each other). We all met up in Boston – they came up from New York, and I was in town for a wedding. We explored Harvard, where it all began.

These two seemed a little sleepy at first (it was an early morning shoot)

But they got cute. Very cute

Man, I love the trees at Harvard

Just outside of Winthrop House – where Dan lived his upperclass years

Red door + ivy = perfect

Paying homage to the organization that brought them together

This is a new spot I discovered (I know, you’d think after so many years I’d know my college campus inside out)… love the lighting, the background, everything

I can’t wait for their wedding next summer! Gracie Lou Events has been super awesome in making sure the planning of it has been stress-free so far for this busy New York power couple. I can’t recommend them enough

Oct 22 – 28 – Barcelona, Spain
November 4 – 6 – Boston
Winter holidays – Indiana
January 12 – 15 – Boston

Shang is a wedding photographer known for imagery that pops with color, personality, and energy. Shang’s guilty late-night snack binge during her undergrad years was an order of crab rangoon and scallion pancakes from The Kong
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Lynn and Chris, Engaged! | Arnold Arboretum Engagement Session

Shang — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 12:00:45 +0000

And as quickly as I left, I fly back to Boston today to shoot a wedding on the most popular wedding date of the year – 9/10/11! I’m crossing my fingers, hands, and arms that it will be beautiful weather. Oh if only the kind of light we saw in Lynn and Chris’s engagement session could happen every day! As fall approaches I look at my last remaining summer shoots with so much fondness – summer (in Boston) really is my favorite! The warm temperature, the light, the colors, everything. One of the things I really like about this session is its natural sense of style – soft pastel clothing, pops of color, cute little details like pockets in Lynn’s dress. It definitely reflects two people who are very comfortable being together (they are, after all, high school sweethearts)

Lynn and Chris were visibly nervous at the start of our session, they’re not used to having the spotlight be on them, being the super laid-back couple that they are. My best tip for those first-time professional photo jitters? Talk to me! I will talk a mile a minute and I hope you do the same, it helps take the attention off of the fact that you are being photographed

I LOVED the props that Lynn and Chris brought. First, sunflowers that they picked from Waltham Fields Community Farm. They are part of the CSA there

Many of my 2012 couples are lovers of good food. Yum!

I believe in photographs that show motion and emotion

And sometimes we add more traditional portraits too, because hey, you don’t get professionally photographed often! Lynn’s makeup was done by one of my favorites, Danielle Ross of Advanced On-Site Artistry, and her hair was styled by her hairdresser Laurel at Creative Expressions – I just love the flower clips in her hair. Unless you are quite the expert at hair and makeup, all my brides should invest in professional hair and makeup for their day of

Lynn and Chris are complimentary in their personalities. I giggled at the following facts they revealed to me: Lynn hates carrying the laundry up, Chris hates carrying it down. Lynn likes loading, and Chris likes unloading the dishwasher.

I really, really have a soft spot for nerdy things. Like these super-cute buttons from etsy that are all about science. Lynn works at a microbiology lab and Chris is pursuing a Doctorate in Physical Therapy

Sun flaaaaare!

Usually, your best photos from your session happen towards the end, by that time you’re so relaxed and forget about me, these photos just come naturally

We’re making a canvas out of this one!

Thank you two so much for your time – and isn’t the weather we got awesome! I will see you guys next year!

Sept 8 – 12 – Boston
Sept 23 – 25 – Boston
Oct 8 – 10 – San Francisco / Bay Area
Oct 22 – 28 – Barcelona, Spain
November 4 – 6 – Boston

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Lisa and Seth, engaged! | Harvard Engagement Photography

Shang — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 12:00:37 +0000

Lisa and Seth took a vacation for themselves and came up to Boston to continue wedding planning, and we were able to fit in their engagement session as well! I’ve known Lisa since we were undergrads at Harvard. I’d never met Seth until this session – Lisa started dating him after I graduated. After years of long distance, they finally were together in New York City. Lisa and Seth are huge foodies – and you’ll see that influence in their shoot. On the night of their engagement, they were lucky enough to get a dinner spot at Per Se, arguably one of the best restaurants in the city, if not the country.

We took a trip down memory lane and began photographs in Harvard Yard. Lisa’s hair and makeup were beautifully done by Carolina of From Hair to Eternity

We originally wanted to go to a farmer’s market as well, but the forecast said possible chance of thunderstorms

Literally seconds after the above photo was taken, I heard a rumble. It was so overcast and humid, I shouted, “open those umbrellas!” The sky opened up right afterwards, so we ran inside to hide from the rain

Looks like we got some lipstick on Seth =)

As the rain was slowing down, we thought it’d be fun to do some photos in the rain while the sun shone behind it

Trying out some reflection shots in puddles!

For some other props, Lisa and Seth brought cooking magazines. I also am head-over-heels in love with Lisa’s sparkly Badgley Mischka pumps

My favorite! It’s no secret I’m a big fan of colored doors. These photographs are taken in the yard of Lisa’s undergrad dorm

We aimlessly walked a little bit. I really like this hug

To think that only an hour before this photo it was pouring buckets. New England weather – super strange =)

I feel so calm looking at this photograph

One… more… reflection! Than you Amy Bao for being on the lookout for these awesome shots

Afterwards, Lisa and Seth treated us to a delicious dinner at Henrietta’s Table, one of my favorite restaurants in Cambridge for locally sourced, wholesome and hearty American meals. Thank you two so much! I really look forward to capturing all the wonderful memories and food you have planned for your Boston Public Library wedding next year!

August 19 – 22 – Jamaica
August 23 – 24 – NYC
August 31 – Return to Chicago
Sept 8 – 12 – Boston
Sept 23 – 25 – Boston
Oct 8 – 10 – San Francisco / Bay Area
Oct 22 – 28 – Barcelona, Spain

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Lisa and Jeff, Engaged! | Boston engagement photography

Shang — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 12:00:47 +0000

First off, can I just how much I’m loving the bright colors that all my clients have been bringing to their engagement shoot? I’m presenting Lisa and Jeff’s photos in a slightly different manner – I’m sprinkling some of the layouts from their engagement guestbook within this blog post. I just sent the guestbook off to print and I love it! They’re a great way to show off you engagement photos and the blank pages allow your guests to write a creative well wish or congratulations, more than just signing their name.

It was such a beautiful day

As summer deepens, I find myself being attracted to more and more green

Lisa and Jeff are laid back. They met online and hit it off right after their first date. They got engaged in Barbados (swoon). They had already talked about getting engaged so Jeff had to be a bit secretive and throw her off here and there! They love traveling – Lisa, like me, had an international childhood and understands Dutch and German.

They love the ocean – hence their wedding will be in the Seaport District as well, and it’s coming up in less than a month. We spent some time exploring parts of the waterfront / Financial District / Seaport District that we won’t be photographing on the wedding day. I love how there’s a mix of water and beautiful gardens

This is possibly my favorite spread in the engagement album. Very cute and classy

Also, thank you to Ami for assisting during this shoot!

July 14 – 17 – Lafayette, Indiana
July 29 – August 4 – San Francisco / Bay Area
August 19 – 22 – Jamaica
August 23 – 25 – NYC
August 31/Sept 1 – Return to Chicago
Sept 8 – 12 – Boston
Sept 23 – 25 – Boston
Oct 8 – 10 – San Francisco / Bay Area

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Joanne and Chris, Engaged! | Boston waterfront engagement photos

Shang — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 19:36:02 +0000

Pitter patter, pitter patter. I dialed Joanne on my phone. I knew she had traveled all the down from Maine, but the rain? It was a miserable day. Luckily for all of us, one week later, Joanne and Chris would be in Boston again to continue their vendor appointments. We got the softest, most gorgeous light for their waterfront engagement photos. Joanne and Chris are a laid back couple – and the session felt equally relaxed like catching up with friends (prior to this, we’d only met on video chat). Every now and then you’d see them burst out in laughter and having a good time, and so did I =)

We began our session at Fanueil Hall, which was a busy and happening place

Like me, Joanne’s fav flavor of ice cream is vanilla! Keeping it classy

Windswept hair: Check. I’m obsessed with her hair

Depending on the couple, sometimes I’m more directive with poses, and sometimes I’m not. Joanne and Chris somehow just *know* how to sit with one another.

LOVE

I haven’t seen a lot of maxi dresses so far this season but I love the fact that they flow when you walk. I think I want one now too

Sun flaaaare… this was the picture I previewed on my Facebook fan page

I’ll be photographing their wedding later this summer at the DeCordova Museum in Lincoln – if you know that sculpture park, you can see the playfulness and whimsy reflected right in their personalities. Can’t wait!

Also, this photo is too fun not to post. Amy had approached me for some photography advice and I ended up having her assist me on this shoot… granted, the assisting thing really isn’t all that glamorous, but she makes it look so cute!

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Charlotte and James, Engaged! | Boston Public Garden Engagement Photos

Shang — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 12:00:54 +0000

Major props should go to Charlotte and James for spending the majority of their relationship long distance. As a result of an entire country separating these two, plus one photographer in the middle, we weren’t able to get their engagement shoot done until last week, and their wedding is this Saturday. So despite a last minute reschedule due to impending rain, I’m so, so, so psyched to present this session because.. well, C&J are just too fun, too cute, and too perfect for each other. And they’re super, super nice too. My clients? They rock

This picture has been one of the most popular sneak previews to date!

I see these flowers in the Public Garden every year around this time – catch them before they’re gone!

Charlotte and James have had some meaningful dates spent at the Public Garden and we were looking for this one bench that meant a lot to them. Unfortunately there was construction work going on, so I chose this bench instead

Charlotte’s makeup was done by a favorite of mine, Danielle Ross!

Fun fact: we had about 30 seconds to do this shot without any kids in it. We wedged ourselves in between two kids and an oncoming busload of schoolchildren

Okay, so it started misting, but I just wanted them to bust out this red umbrella they brought. I LOVE LOVE LOVE it! Seriously colorful umbrellas / boots do make rainy days worth it. But only if they’re SUPER colorful =)

So cute

July 9 – 10 – New Haven
July 29 – August 4 – San Francisco / Bay Area – please email me if you’d like to get in touch
August 19 – 22 – Jamaica
August 23 – 25 – NYC
August 31/Sept 1 – Return to Chicago – taking weekday sessions in Chicago for the month of September
Sept 8 – 12 – Boston
Sept 23 – 25 – Boston

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Alyson and Allan, Engaged! | Quincy Engagement Photos

Shang — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 12:00:12 +0000

From the moment I had my first dinner with Alyson and Allan, I could not stop laughing. Alyson has a dry, British sense of humor that she has inherited from her father. Allan comes from a large and rambunctious Filipino family and you can tell from his big laugh and extremely open personality – I never got to meet or chat with Allan until after Alyson had booked me over video chat. Put them together, and you have a couple who creatively pursue life with so much passion. They met in music school and currently teach music here in the Boston area. They wear many hats. Alyson was in the middle of completing the school year as a choral director. Allan teaches violin and plays violin in many orchestras.

We wanted the engagement session to be really personal. Alyson and Allan lived near the JFK Library and first chose to get some seaside photos. We really, REALLY lucked out on the weather because.. well, I’ll let the photo speak for itself

Every couple of seconds, a plane would pass by

This is just one of the ways they make me laugh

“Allan,I think you have a gray hair, I’m going to pluck it” – Alyson

I found this grassy area just before we were going to take off and said, “Halt!” and grabbed this photo. You never know what cool locations you find when you stop planning for them =)

We then drove to the Blue Hills reservation. Alyson and Allan decided one day that they were going to have a hobby. Which one? Hiking. And so hiking it was, and this is a place where they often hike

I just LOVED the way Alyson’s dress pops off the background

At one point I asked them to walk slowly towards me. They interpreted that as walking in slow-motion, movie-style… I laughed so hard I couldn’t catch the photo so I asked them to do it again

I also learned something new - mosquitoes are vicious this time of year! We only had about 20 minutes for photos in Blue Hills before we all started getting eaten alive. Thank you Alyson and Allan for such a fun afternoon. I can’t wait for their superfun outdoor wedding at the Plymouth Plantation in the middle of this summer!

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Sarah and Ali, Engaged! | Boston Medical Center Engagement Photography

Shang — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 12:00:24 +0000

Sarah and Ali are as sweet as they come, and I think my heart skipped a couple of beats when they opened up their bags to reveal to me their new puppy, Bailey. I love dogs and appreciate any opportunity to photograph furbabies! Sarah and Ali brought a picnic basket for their engagement session because they love wine tasting. I love the brightness of their outfits, it really made this session pop.

Maybe the fact that Sarah dances had a lot to do with how comfortable and natural this couple was in front of my camera. I really didn’t have to say much

Puppy! Bailey is half beagle, half English bulldog, and all love. Look at those sad eyes, don’t you just want to squeeze her to death? She’s already a pound bigger as I write this blog post

Most of this engagement session was taken at the Boston Medical Center – where Sarah and Ali met, they are professionals in the anesthesiology department

I love her glittery pumps – they’re from Joan & David

Cuddling on a picnic blanket

The temperature for some reason kept falling during the session, so we had to keep Sarah (and Bailey) warm. She was a trooper!

I could photograph them forever! Sarah found me 18 months out from her wedding – I can’t wait for the wedding next spring in Boston. Since Ali is Persian, it’s going to be a Persian wedding!

Thank you Ze Liang for assisting!

June 14 – 16 – NYC
July 9 – 10 – New Haven
July 29 – August 4 – San Francisco / Bay Area
August 19 – 22 – Jamaica
August 23 – 25 – NYC
August 31/Sept 1 – Return to Chicago

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Mengmeng and Shawn, Engaged! | MIT engagement photography

Shang — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 12:00:03 +0000

In planning this engagement session, Mengmeng and Shawn told me that they did not have many photos of themselves together. Whenever they traveled, they’d often take photos of each other but few together. This is exactly why I really emphasize engagement photos for a couple – it’s also a great way to get some casual photos together that you normally would not be able to do yourself, and if you’re not used to having photos together, then it’s even more important to see what it feels like prior to the big day. We chose MIT – one of my favorite campuses to photograph – as that’s where Shawn went for grad school. (I was introduced to these two through another MIT couple, Karen and Bryan)

This is a really cool new structure somewhere inside the halls of MIT. It looks like paper but I think is made out of some kind of metal. Can anyone tell me more about this?

I really like the clothing that Mengmeng chose to wear – playful and colorful!

We took these engagement photos while spring was in full bloom in Boston, who knew all these beautiful flowers would be everywhere! I prefer shooting near large flower bushes as opposed to flower gardens because they are tall enough to match the people

They were nervous, but also a super playful couple who are quite at ease with each other

Another favorite spot of mine =)

Yep, it’s the Stata Center!

Their wedding is coming up in July and will be gorgeous outdoors ocean side wedding because they really like the ocean. Hoping that the weather will be just as – if not more spectacular – on that day!

Thank you Ze Liang for assisting!

June 11 – back to Boston
June 14 – 16 – NYC
July 29 – August 4 – San Francisco / Bay Area
August 23 – 25 – NYC
August 31/Sept 1 – Return to Chicago

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Jen and Joel, Engaged! | Boston engagement photographer

Shang — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 11:00:27 +0000

They were in town for 2 days to get their marriage license. I missed them when I went to SF. This time we were going to make it happen, even if it snowed a little – after all, snowy flakes are pretty! I’m so glad I got to create these photos for this super-adorable couple, who will be wed in May. I’d met Jen first and we immediately clicked when we found out that we both love having short hair. This was my first time meeting Joel, who is a little shy, but clearly very in love with Jen and has his own sense of humor. Our engagement session was very short (around 40 minutes) so that I could get them off to the airport, but once we got going it was as if I wasn’t there at all. Thank you two for spending whatever precious time you had in Boston with me!

You can see a little snow in this one!

When Jen posted these shoes on Facebook I liked them immediately. I’m so happy she wore them for the session

I asked them to wear bright accessories because it was going to be cold. Joel mentioned he brought a silly hat. Silly? Of course we had to photograph it!

I really like seeing how people hold hands

By the way, Jen says that this is the longest her hair has been for years

Hugs are beautiful

Super-looking forward to their wedding, which will be coordinated by Pink Orchid Weddings! I just got their wedding invitation in the mail – it is SUPER cool. But I’ll wait until the wedding post to reveal it ;)

Travel Schedule:
Apr 29 – May 1 – Boston
May 13 – 15 – Ann Arbor
May 20 – 22 – Boston
Jun 11 – The long-awaited return to Boston for the summer!
Jun 14 – 16 – New York City – available for shoots

2011 is currently in the process of being closed for weddings. Inquire within this week!
2012 is currently 25% booked for weddings

want to learn more about my photography? inquire!
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