Nicole is an accountant, Nicole is super organized and when I tell you that she planned every minute of her wedding day…you probably THINK you know what I mean. But you don’t.

Now, normally I frown upon this type of wedding day management, because it usually means there is little room for flexibility and can often lead to a disappointed bride when the unexpected happens…but in this case, I have to admit, Nicole was the perfect balance of the “planner” and the “bride” that really wanted to enjoy every second of her day.

For example, it rained the majority of the day which can really cramp a brides mood, especially when they have a lawn ceremony in the plans…which overlooks the ocean. Not Nicole, she was completely calm, made the absolute most of it and was ready to get wet if she had to in order to get great pictures. The other amazing thing about her schedule (which Eric joked he wanted made into a T-shirt)…she allowed for an insane amount of picture time.

Even Jake, who was 2nd shooting commented on how spoiled Eric and I are by our awesome couples that give us ridiculous amounts of time. What can I say? We are just the luckiest!

Here are a few favorites from Nicole and Roy’s Mystic Seaport Wedding Day.

This is one example of how Eric and Jake made for such an awesome team covering the first look on the docks at Mystic Seaport. While I was helping Nicole with her dress and walking in the rain, Jake and Eric hung out with Roy in the rain and made the decision that Jake would shoot tight with 70-200mm, while Eric shot wide at 24mm to capture the scene with the boat in the background. You can see their alternating shots below and I love how two great photographers can nail both angles to provide a diverse portfolio for our couples, the best part is…I LOVE both. I hope Nicole & Roy do as well!

Jake:

Eric:

Jake:

Eric:

And then onto some romantic, rainy day portraits. Yum!

So much to shoot in Mystic, all day would have been fine by us! We had a gap in the rainy weather and we were all so happy that we were able to take advantage in Historical Mystic Seaport.

This was one of my favorites from the day, Eric was getting some gear “rain ready” in case it started pouring while we had our flashes outside, so Jake and I took advantage of shooting Nicole. You can see through this doorway was another door open on the opposite side, and while I am completely in the zone loving these shots with Nicole, Jake snuck around to the other side….wait till you see what he got!!!

I was floored, his shot completely rocks! I am so happy he saw this opportunity and took it, because this picture…the light wrapping around her shoulders is just stunning. It is sooo editorial worthy…and the light coming through the dress…I mean COME ON.

Gorgeous. Killed this one Jake.

One invaluable lesson we learned this year at Inspire Photo Seminars from the amazingly gifted keynote speaker Amy Deputy, was how a theme often unfolds in the editing process. I guess I had seen that happen before, but had never really thought about it in that way, and now the real gift that we were given is the absolute joy in finding that common thread.

We usually don’t see it while shooting during the day and, one very cute little thing that we picked up throughout this wedding day was Nicole’s Dad and his “thumbs up”.

Maybe it’s something he always does, or that everyone knows about him. Or maybe not, but regardless we thought it was a real reflection of his overflowing joy throughout the day. We have him on camera doing the “thumbs up” throughout the day alongside his ear to ear grin…it was completely contagious.

On a rainy wedding day, you call Sperry Tents. Problem Solved.

Jake was a complete trooper to get this shot, soaked and in the rain…but I would say totally worth it!

And I don’t care what your culture is, every wedding should have the HORA.

IT…IS…so much fun and I think even more fun to photograph.

And worthy of a thumbs up!

And this was just irresistible.

Congratulations guys, thank you so much for allowing us to be a part of your wonderful wedding day. The rain did not affect your pictures in the least! Enjoy, xo!

Tara and Tim had that sweet, quiet, kindness with each other that was absolutely beautiful to watch on their wedding day. He never left her side once they said their vows, and was so considerate of her dress, flowers, and extremely high heels on the rocks at the beach. When you give us an inch, we tend to take a mile. With “could not be more perfect if you tried” wedding day weather and 2 hours for pictures before cocktail hour, we were ready to bust out all the stops.

We started pictures on Hillhouse Avenue, described, according to tradition, by both Charles Dickens and Mark Twain as “the most beautiful street in America,” in New Haven, it is one of our favorite places to take pictures. Then we headed to Guilford, the plan was to shoot at Jacob’s Beach, where we shot awesome pictures in 2010, for Nichole and Andrew’s Guilford Yacht Club Wedding. When we arrived for portraits it was a cloud of dust, heavy equipment scattered about and tarps everywhere. Yikes, Jacob’s Beach was under construction. So, not knowing Guilford entirely well, and with the limo on our tail we chose a spot very close to Jacob’s Beach, Chittenden Park. We had the place to ourselves, and you will see from the images – the scenery was not lacking a thing!
 

I am not sure quite how this happens, but the venues we shoot at tend to be cyclical, Eric swears it is all Google and all SEO that leads us to where we end up shooting weddings, but I am not so sure. But what I am sure of is that I need some more Guilford Yacht Club in my life and definitely some more of Marissa and her amazing staff from Jordan’s Caterers. They make our job a complete pleasure and it is so nice when the venue, caters and photographers can work together as a team to make the Bride and Groom have an exceptional wedding day.

Hugest congratulations to Tara and Tim and we wish you nothing but a lifetime of happiness!