merry christmas!

I hope everyone had a fun and relaxing holiday! Clearly, this blog post is a day late, but yesterday we were busy opening presents, eating delicious food, and enjoying each other's company. Christmas dinner was Cape Cod style - baked stuffed shrimp. Yum. Then we played a fun round of Cranium. My dad's impression of Elvis was awesome! Alissa and our other sister Julie decorated gingerbread houses. They are so pretty- I had to post a few shots of them:

kristina and shawn: engagement shoot in woods hole

Or, another title could be: my most favorite flare shot yet! The sensational flare in this first picture is a perfect expression of the awesome chemistry between Kristina and Shawn. They have so much fun together and they're fun to be around! We walked all around Woods Hole finding great spots and beautiful light, and it's now one of my favorite places to shoot. Watch the slideshow to see a few more from the session and you'll see why!
(p.s. Kristina and Shawn- thank you for being rockstars and climbing a tree!)

little faces full of joy and the cutest wedgie ever

These kids have the life! Growing up on Cape Cod is the best! And they have fun moms that let them play in the ocean on a warm November day. This was such a fun shoot. Alissa and I planned to get together with a few of our friends to get pictures of their gorgeous children for Christmas cards. We figured we would bring everyone together to the same place, sit them down, and take a few quick shots of each family. Well...we did manage to get a couple posed shots, but overall, the kids had other plans, and I'm so glad they did :) Playtime was much more fun, and candids are our favorites anyway.

tammy and greg: wedding in west falmouth

Tammy and Greg had the most beautiful beach wedding and tent reception in West Falmouth. We completely lucked out with the gorgeous weather, not to mention the gorgeous couple! We had so many pictures we wanted to share from this wedding that we created a new gallery on our website, hikephotography.com. Choose Galleries and then select Recent Wedding to view the slideshow for Tammy and Greg's day.



Along with help from family and friends, Tammy and Greg had a great team of professionals who worked hard to see that the day was a success. Jen Halbert of Sweetpics was responsible for all of the fun, personalized details, and Connie of The Perfect Plan made sure everything went off without a hitch. Sean and his crew from Eat Your Heart Out Caterers provided the delicious food.

happy labor day weekend!

So, it's definitely feeling like fall, and I'm not complaining, because I love this weather- it's been beautiful! Perfect for running, sleeping soundly, and shooting weddings and portraits! But I'm hanging on to my favorite parts of summer for just a little while longer...last night we had a big family lobster bake, complete with clams, potatoes, and corn. Yum! I should have taken a few pictures to post, but I was too busy mixing up a pitcher of mojitos to go with dinner, and I might have sampled some too :)

These pictures will be more fun to look at anyway- gorgeous kids on the Cape in the summer. Click play to bring on the adorable!

ericka and jimmy: wedding in falmouth

Ericka and Jimmy were married at the beautiful Spohr Gardens, followed by a fun and slightly rowdy reception (that's the way we like 'em!) at The Flying Bridge Restaurant, right on Falmouth Harbor. Ericka was a stunning bride, and she is one of the nicest people I've ever met. She and Jimmy wanted to share the spotlight a little on their wedding day because two good friends (both in the bridal party) had been married by telecommunications when military assignments had shut down their wedding plans. They never had their official "first dance" as husband and wife until Ericka and Jimmy decided to surprise them with a dedication during the reception. It was an awesome, emotional moment, and I loved that their adorable son joined them for the end of the song. Also, Ericka had asked me ahead of time to pay special attention to them throughout the day so they would have some great pictures together. It wasn't hard because they are so affectionate and into each other. Here's their son enjoying some wedding cake:

who, me? i didn't eat any cake.

okay, you got me, i did!

yum!


Ready for more pictures of this fantastic wedding? Play the slideshow! Check out Ericka's face when she steps out of the limo- no nervousness, just a "let's do this!" happiness about her. Ready to marry the love of her life! And I love how Jimmy holds on so tight while dancing with his two favorite women- first his wife, then his mom. So cute! I couldn't help but put in several pictures of the ring bearer and flower girl. They were adorable and did their jobs perfectly. Thanks so much Ericka and Jimmy- Alissa and I had a blast!

sarah and jake: wedding

What a place for a wedding! I love tent receptions to begin with, but put the tent in a gorgeous setting like this horse farm...total awesomeness. I was enjoying the scenery all night, and feeling so lucky that it was my job to photograph not only the farm, the tent, and all the details that fit together perfectly, but also a beautiful group of people. Sarah, Jake, their family and friends were all so friendly and fun. I was also feeling very fortunate that I had the extremely talented and artistic Kjeld Mahoney of Kjeldm Photography to help me out- Alissa was attending a friend's wedding, so Kjeld shot with me and got amazing images, as he always does. Here are a few of my favorites that he took, followed by a slideshow of some of my own.









To see more of Kjeld's awesome images, check out his blog: kjeldm.com/blog
To see a slideshow of a few of my favorite shots from Sarah and Jake's wedding day, click play below:

tammy and greg: engagement

These two are super hot, and when you put them together, they're smokin' hot!! Awesome chemistry, gorgeous location- Alissa and I loved shooting this engagement session, and we're so psyched for the wedding which will be soon on this very same beach!

elizabeth and kevin: the slideshow

More favorite moments and fabulous details from an awesome wedding at Willowbend Country Club in Mashpee. I love how one of the flower girls walked down the aisle with a stuffed animal covering her face! Something that was very evident throughout the day was how strong the friendships and family relationships are in this group. Kevin and Liz had an incredibly enthusiastic audience for their ceremony, first dance, and especially the cake cutting! Kevin's friends obviously think very highly of his bride, and after she covered his face in frosting, I think they love her even more- check them out cheering in the background!

While I was taking a few pictures of the guys, Kevin noticed he had spilled an appetizer on his tie. It didn't take more than two seconds for one of his groomsmen to offer to switch ties with him. So cute! That's when you know you have picked the right people to be in your bridal party.

What a celebration during the reception! There was a ton of dancing going on, and at one point Kevin's new mother-in-law chased the bridesmaids away from her daughter's husband :)
Love it!! Please watch the slideshow to see all this for yourself...

elizabeth and kevin: wedding at willowbend

This gorgeous couple had perfect summer weather, a beautiful setting, an emotional ceremony, enthusiastic family and friends, and a rowdy reception. What more could a photographer ask for? Alissa and I were so happy to be a part of this wedding! Elizabeth and Kevin are the nicest, sweetest couple. The bridesmaids and groomsmen were supportive, entertaining, and fun! There were so many great moments throughout their wedding day- some of which will be posted in a slideshow coming soon. I just had to post a few of my favorites today...

abby

Get ready for some serious cuteness! Abby, her mom and I enjoyed a sunny day in Rhode Island (complete with Del's lemonade- yum!) We hung out by the water, then played at a playground that had a little wooden stage perfect for dancing on. Back at home, waffles were a great thing to use to eat some syrup. When it was time to relax before bedtime, Abby wanted to have a tea party with her buddies. Her monkey nightgown was the perfect outfit for the event!

I can't emphasize enough how beautiful and sparkling Abby's personality is. It is so fun to be around her. She may be two, but there is no trace of "terrible" about her...she is always smiling, singing, dancing, and is super friendly. Every dog we met was greeted with an enthusiastic "hi doggie!", repeated about ten times :)

a few more from brendan and audra's wedding

The wait is over...here they are!

brendan and audra's wedding

The weather was hot and so were the bride and groom! What a gorgeous couple! Brendan and Audra were married in New Bedford and had their reception at The Cultural Center in Fall River. As you will see, it was decked out with stunning details! Audra was the opposite of a bridezilla- such a sweetheart. She also took the time and consideration to pick out some beautiful spots to get pictures of her and her new husband, which made it extra fun for Alissa and me, and gave us the opportunity to get some awesome shots. Brendan was so patient and cheerful during the extended photo session even when he had to stand in the sun wearing a black tux! The pictures we got during that session (while the rest of the bridal party got to go ahead to the cocktail hour- such a nice bride and groom!) deserve their own blog post, which will be coming soon. Until then, here is a little sample of Brendan and Audra's wedding day:

kevin and liz- engagement session

These two were so easygoing, patient with all my posing ideas, and even added in a few of their own! Liz was a little unsure about getting into the rowboat, but trusted Kevin enough to climb in for a minute, and luckily no one ended up in the harbor :)
They have awesome chemistry and I can't wait for their wedding at Willowbend in July!

nate and diana- engagement session

Did we really get this lucky?! I mean, seriously, a RAINBOW during Nate and Diana's engagement session!! We were so excited to see it, and I'm not particularly superstitious but I can't help but think it's a good omen and an awesome blessing for their relationship, upcoming wedding, and their future together. These two are so comfortable with each other and great at making each other laugh. Nate and Diana- I'm looking forward to hanging out with you guys again soon!

happy father's day!!!

This is my dad on Francis Bay Beach during our recent family vacation to St. John. He is the most amazing person- he knows everything (I'm serious, he really does), has a great sense of humor, awesome taste in music, is incredibly generous, loving, compassionate, hardworking, fun to hang out with, and he can fix anything. He has always encouraged my sisters and I to be the best people we can be. The fact that he and my mom are such phenomenal parents are why my sisters and I are so happy, confident, and successful. The world would be a better place if every girl could have a dad like mine. Thank you Dad! I love you!

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there, and a special shout out to father-to-be (very soon!) Kjeld from Kjeldm Photography!

kevin and allee: vow renewal ceremony

While we were in St. John, my cousin Kevin and his wife Allee had a gorgeous, romantic ceremony to renew their wedding vows. The wonderful Anne Marie Porter (stjohnweddings.com) performed the ceremony- she was my wedding officiant last year, so it was great to see her again. I was at Kevin and Allee's wedding ten years ago, and it was beautiful and fun, but I feel like it meant more this time around...simple, heartfelt, and so emotional. They had Francis Beach to themselves besides Anne Marie and I, and what spectacular surroundings!

loving life!

There's been so much going on lately, and I have a ton of stuff to blog...right now I'll back up a few weeks to when my husband and I celebrated our one year anniversary a little early and went back to St. John, USVI, for a week of swimming, snorkeling, kayaking, and enjoying delicious Caribbean food and cocktails. My parents, sisters, brother-in-law, cousin, and my cousin's wife all came along again because they had so much fun last year when they were there for our wedding. It was amazing to be back in St. John! We hit our favorite spots for dinner: Morgan's Mango, Rhumblines, Skinny Legs, and the Maho Campground. We love Miss Lucy's- had to go for both brunch and lunch. Our favorite beaches are Francis and Cinnamon Bay. The house we rented has an incredible view from the huge deck...we spent a lot of time there relaxing, reading, sipping rum punch, and taking silly snorkel gear and dancing pictures :) I will post that slideshow later, but for now, here are a few scenery shots.