I have one afternoon class on Thursdays for this quarter. I spent the morning answering phone calls, checking in with my photography clients, and cleaning my kitchen. Then it’s off to the Metra train I go!

Doing some reading for my investments class. It’s so sleep-inducing

The 35mm range is a beauty – it’s just wide enough for really great photojournalistic/story-telling shots, but not so wide that it distorts. Let me try a self-portrait… oops mis-focused

This is on my way to school. Really showing the beauty that is f/1.4 (for those of you who don’t know photography terms – the f-stop number, the 1.4, refers to aperture, which is how much a lens can open up.. and yeah, the more expensive the lens. This lens retails for about $1,800. Anyway, the lower the number, the wider it opens up, the faster the lens performs in low light, and shallower depth of field aka “blurry background”)

First up, a workshop with Nielsen to learn about their products for market insights. Definitely not applicable to photography, but still great getting a background to a company with so much legacy

let’s be honest, we come to these things because there’s free lunch

Investments class…

Our classes are 3 hours long so we have a break in the middle. Oh hey I run into one of my favs, Dan. I love the natural light in our building’s main atrium

This is a shot of our roof, shooting almost straight up. See how there is very little distortion

After investments class, I had a one-hour study group meeting for our project. I don’t usually dress this formal for school, I just got a little tired of wearing sweaters all the time. Oh gosh why isn’t it summer yet??

Got to catch the train again! But not before I do more awesome f/1.4 shots

That “tree” on the right is actually a sculpture our school recently acquired. I still think it’s super creepy

More train. More investments reading

(yeah I’m not one of those business school students who gets to party all the time)

I LOVE coming back to a clean apartment. It’s so tranquil. And my valentines =) Thank you

Look at them, they’re too sweet!

I love those flowers she’s holding!

I love the quality of the background in this one

I love silly jump shots!

Yum, sun flares!

They wrote their wedding date in chalk

A GORGEOUS tree on the Esplanade (this might be my boyfriend’s favorite climbing tree, but I’m not sure)

Goooorgeous, btw, I think they coordinated their outfits really well

Watching the sunset

Congrats you two! Thank you for such a fun photo session! It was my very first official sunset session, but definitely not my last one!

I like it when couples naturally laugh at each other

Love the intimacy here

Ruuuuun!!

Heehee, this photo cracks me up

This background is very painting-like.. Alex found it!

Love this park. It has so many beautiful places, and is a lot less crowded than the Public Garden!

I can’t wait for your wedding guys!

What I usually carry:

2 Nikon D700 cameras
Nikon 50mm f/1.8 D lens
Nikon 85mm f/1.8 D lens
Nikon 24mm-70mm f/2.8 lens
Nikon 60mm f/2.8D lens
SB-900 flashes
Radiopopper PX transmitters

Wish list:

Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 lens
Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 lens
Nikon 50mm f/1.4 lens

Want more advice on what equipment to get? Check out this post.

Kicking it off with some details! Emily was incredibly prepared with baskets of emergency supplies lying around in the bridal suite and in the restrooms

I love this image of Emily getting ready

Right after she put her dress on

Coming down the stairs for the First Look..

Portraits outside

Being silly!

Group portraits

Right as Jesse began his vows… the handkerchief came out

Every dinner table was named after “Love” in a different language

A very fabulous first dance!

I laughed so hard during all of the toasts. What a funny crowd!

A little back story to the cardboard cutout in this photo – one of the cousins could not attend, and so he sent along a cardboard cutout of himself that people could pose with during the wedding. He ended up crowd surfing the dance floor

Emily and Jesse, thank you so much for including me as part of your day. I couldn’t help but dance with the rest of you!

Vendor love!

Venue: Contact Jay at Union Club of Boston
Music: Jumpstreet Band
Violinist: Birdy Chou
Dance Floor: Boston Party Rental
Florist: Valerie Miller
Hair and Make-up: Mia Lisa Salon
Host Hotel: Sonesta Boston
Officiant: Jean Ellis La-Bossiere
Desserts: Modern Pastry
Rings: Peter Jon Studios

I am biased towards doing photos before, but I’ll try to weigh both sides. When planning your day, remember to allocate time towards what you value. For some, it is photography, for others, it is spending more time with their friends at the reception, for others, it may be a very long and lavish, tradition-filled ceremony.

Photos before the ceremony:
Pros:
- You can allocate more time – usually up to 2 hours – which is especially helpful if you have a large wedding party or you want to travel farther for your photos
- Your hair and makeup will be just finished and perfect
- Help chase away those pre-ceremony jitters by spending quality time with each other
- You can then see your guests at cocktail hour – which is usually a much better way to see them than during a formal reception where you may be confined to your table for most of the night
Cons:
- If you wish to do family photos, they may not all be present by this time
- Seeing bride before wedding? I hope it doesn’t bring bad luck!
- You might also be rushed if your hair and makeup runs over

Photos after the ceremony:
Pros:
- You’ll be all happy and relaxed from having finished the ceremony. It shows in a beautiful glow on your face!
- You can include family members as well if they’re around
- If you have a particularly long cocktail hour, this gives you something to do while your guests relax and explore the area
Cons:
- Time! You may not have planned enough time between the ceremony and the reception, and these photos will end up rushed, you can’t travel as far
- You may need makeup/hair touch-ups
- If your wedding is low on resources, members of your bridal party may be needed to help set up parts of the reception
- You may not be able to spend as much time seeing your guests at cocktail hour

For all my clients, I understand that sometimes it’s best to plan your wedding without someone giving you advice every which way. However, if requested, I’m always happy to help review your schedule, make sure you are not rushing too many things, and make sure you have planned enough buffer time in between to allow for any delays during the day.

Love her pink shoes! This is what I’m talking about in terms of accessories!

These chairs and umbrellas looked very European

Beautiful back lighting!

Does anyone else think she resembles Keira Knightley? I think it’s in the eyes

Yes yes, shoes again

Man, the weather that day was so good

Thank you Rachel for such a fun afternoon! Good luck next year (I’m sure the kids will ADORE you)!

Vicky also brought her graduation robe, or rather, just the mortar board. To be honest, Harvard robes (at least for undergrads) are pretty boring – just black. We don’t even get a colored tassle. You figure for a gouging price of $45 (or whatever it is now) you’d get something better than a polyester potato sack! But this photo is really fun. This was right before commencement so they hung all the banners at Widener Library

Deep down inside, we’re all big nerds.

A Harvard Square look

We crossed the busy crosswalk a couple times to get these action shots. Probably got a couple of stares from others. I LOVE them!

Candid. I’ve walked past that green door probably hundreds of times but it finally spoke to me. Okay I sound crazy

This is near Kirkland

It started raining so we went inside for some laundry room fun!

Vicky, good luck in Hong Kong, please come back and visit sometime!

You know it’s going to be a hilarious session when one of the first photographs is a Blue Steel

I rarely post up a series, mostly because I haven’t quite made the watermarking for that as automatic as I’d like, but this one is too cute.

Javier likens himself to Pepe le Peu, whose relationship with the love of his life – a black and white cat he mistakes for a skunk – can best be summed up with this picture. Everyone say aww!

More textures around North End. By the way, Lisa had her hair run that day and is wearing her wedding day shoes. Tip to my other brides – definitely a great way to do some trial runs on engagement session day!

LOVE this red door!

Okay, Javier and Lisa can DANCE. Look at that move!

I might want to try variations on this in future sessions =)

I can’t wait for their wedding – and it’s coming up soon!

Vendor information:
Venue: Tosca
Tuxes: Men’s Wearhouse
Cake: Maria at Tosca
Floral design: Sue Chasia Design, Scituate, MA
Music: Contact Catherine Bent or Rose Wollman

First off, Rich and Stefan are so, so adorable together

There were many cherry blossoms falling nearby

Their friend Lisa conducted the ceremony, and her shoes were absolutely fabulous

Looks so delicious!

Oh, and their friends are too hilarious! During the dinner a bunch of them went outside, and when I joined them I found them all singing merrily

Congrats again, Rich and Stefan!