Sunday was yet another wacky weather day here in Ohio but luckily the rain stayed south so that my session with Stephanie and Mark was able to go off without a hitch! We didn’t quite get the sunset we were hoping for but it was close enough for us. For the entire session these two kept me laughing and were so darn fun to photograph. They are naturally adorable together and they made my job easy. They were absolute troopers and never once complained about the bug invasion that was apparently taking over the beach and smiled throughout. I am so sad it will be another 4 months until I get to see them again but I know that for these two the time will be certainly flying by! Look for these lovebirds back on the blog in September!
Last week Chris and I went to Maine, just for fun, for a few days. I had a small break before the “stretch” starts this year (weeks without breaks in weddings) so I thought it’d be fun to take a quick trip somewhere that I loved and wanted to share with my husband that didn’t get to go last time I was in Maine. I fell in love with the state quickly and have been eager to return since then. Good timing and a sale on The Cottages at Cabot Cove on Jetsetter convinced me it was time to go again.
Our flight out though was pure hell. I am usually pretty hard to anger during travel but it always seems that US Airways is the one to make me loose my shit when it is lost. Long story short, they closed the gate to our flight about 15 minutes early (instead of the standard 10) and when trying to get on the next flight out the CS person was ANYTHING but nice (and I was still being nice at this point). I forgot how absolutely horrid their service is and it will be a long, long time before I fly with them again. We finally made it out of Philly after 7 hours of a layover… it was a long day. Thankfully going back it wasn’t quite as bad but there were still a lot of snafus. This is why when I travel for weddings I always have at least a day buffer because things go wrong when flying and I never want to be late for an important event because of it.
For the next few days though we traveled along the coast and I took dozens of pictures of lighthouses. Of course, we were fogged out one day but it is what it is! It was still a nice relaxing trip and I look forward to seeing the state again in the fall when a couple friends and I head off to PEI (I am RIDICULOUSLY excited) in October.
Does this lighthouse look familiar?
Think for a moment… if you are mentally saying “run Forrest run!” in your head, you get a cupcake. This lighthouse was one of the “ends” of the US that Forrest runs to in Forrest Gump.
The name is Marshall Point Lighthouse and it’s in Port Clyde, Maine.
Yes, the fog was this insane… ALL DAY! There ended up being two lighthouses that were just off the coast that we couldn’t see due to the fog that hugged the coast allllll day. It was insane. There is ocean right at this lighthouse but we couldn’t even SEE it!
Does this lighthouse look familiar? It should if you’ve ever got a Maine quarter in the past – it’s the lighthouse featured on the state’s quarter!
Doubling Point lighthouse in Arrowsic, Maine. There’s no reason most people should know this lighthouse!
This is the front range lighthouse of the Doubling Point Range Lights in Arrowsic, Maine.
This is the path to the rear range light. The “range” lights line up so that shops can be guided into the harbor without hitting rocks. They are quite popular in Prince Edward Island but not as much here in the states.
I’ve been here before but since it’s one of my favorite lighthouse views I drug the hubs back to see it again.
I handed the camera over to Chris and got another picture at this lighthouse of myself I do not hate! Score!
Portsmouth Harbor Light was an unexpected gorgeous light! It wasn’t easy to get photographs of this one as it’s located on Coast Guard property and you are only allowed in Fort Constitution but I climbed out on some rocks in the water and was able to get this lovely shot.
One of the lovely things about Fort Constitution is that there are views of another lighthouse nearby, Whaleback Light. It’s hard to imagine being a keeper here in the 1800′s and living on this little bit of rock!
Isn’t this gate to the fort amazing?!
On the way back to the cottage we drove by the beaches of Kennebunkport and the rain was just starting to move in and the skies were amazing!
This was our “home” for the week – the “Float In” cottage at The Cottages at Cabot Cove. Loved!
This lighthouse I just barely missed seeing last year and I’m so glad this year Portland Head Light was able to be added to the “seen” list!
Another lighthouse that can be distantly seen from another’s location, here is Ram Island Ledge Light.
I loved this view of Portland from the next lighthouse, so gorgeous!
This lighthouse is adorable and the grecian columns remind me so much of what you see in plantations! It’s a shame some jerk decided to spray paint it. :(
I took a photo of Spring Point Ledge Light on the last trip but it was in the dark so I figured I’d stop by to get a daylight shot of it!
Saturday was the much talked about Super Moon. Sadly here in NE Ohio (we were in Willoughby when it rose) there was a lot of clouds so we weren’t able to see the moon unless it peeked through a break in the clouds. When we got home we drove out of most of the clouds but the moon was mostly still hidden. I was able to nab a few pictures before it went into hiding again when it was at it’s zenith at around 11:40PM.
It’s so strange how life is sometimes.
Cassie and Jeff are getting married Memorial Day weekend and love Cleveland. They really wanted to incorporate downtown into their engagement session as they grew up here and are living downtown. However, recently thieves are targeting photographers and are stealing gear at knife and gun point during shoots in Cleveland. It’s happened in the past but according to the police, it’s been happening pretty frequently lately – even in places you would last expect this to happen (Voinovich Park). My gear is insured but the last thing I want to do is put my clients in danger so I talked with them about moving their session somewhere else because of the crimes. They agreed and we decided to move the session to Brecksville Metro Parks. My husband followed up about the location (he was really concerned about me shooting downtown) and I told him about the move telling him that I’d be totally safe in the park.
Ha.
The morning of our shoot I wake up to find out that 5 morons decided that trying to blow up the Brecksville-Northfield High Level Bridge at Brecksville Metro Parks was a good idea. They went as far as placing the bombs at the base of the bridge and trying to detonate the bombs (which thankfully were duds). The FBI got involved and the newswires were on fire. I sat and stared at the news online with my jaw hanging open. Well played Cleveland, well played. I spent the rest of the day trying to ascertain if the park was open (found out 40 minutes before that it was) and then stalking the weather because it was hit and miss all day with rain. Eventually we decided to go for it, bombers and rain be damned!
The weather behaved itself with a few close clouds but what we weren’t expecting was the total influx of news reporters on the park. Cassie was following a list of locations in the park her sister had given her and we had no preconceived ideas of even using the almost-was-bombed bridge at all in the pictures, we were aiming for the cute white walking bridge nearby that just happened to be in the shadows of the big bridge. So while shooting (and incorporating the big bridge into pics because at that point I HAD to) I ended up on TV because they were filming their 6 o’clock segments… live. I’m still laughing. If you look around :30 you’ll see me photographing them on the railroad tracks.
Thankfully the session went off without a single hitch and we had a great day! Cassie and Jeff were crazy awesome and easy going. Sessions are so much fun when people just trust you, even if you lead them to where a snake is residing! Can’t wait to see these guys again in a few weeks!!!
Cassie and Jeff met on this swingset in High School so that was why this location was chosen. Awww right?
This is the image I was shooting on the tracks* when the footage on the news was being filmed.
I wasn’t kidding about the news crews. They were everywhere – there were a few more on site and roaming around.
Right before this they ran into a garter snake in the grass, they persevered though and I love the result!
After we left the park we headed down to Brandywine Falls for a quick wardrobe change and more pictures. I LOVE this image.
Love Cassie’s makeup? You should since my favorite makeup artist Jason Kelly did it! I did a bit of a squee and clap when I heard this news! YAY!!!
*Lately a lot of photographers have been getting hate mail for photographing on railroad tracks because they can be unsafe. I wholeheartedly agree with this as more often than not, people are shooting on tracks without knowing anything about them i.e. things to listen for, knowing that it is in fact illegal and not knowing how long it takes a train to stop. The only reason why I shot these is because a) I wanted to incorporate the bridge due to the events of the day and this was one of the few overlooks that weren’t bogarted by the multiple news crews and b) I know this particular train track schedule. The train that runs here only goes on weekends and for “special events” which I knew there were none of on this date. I also grew up alongside train tracks and photographed trains for about two years so I am familiar with not only the sounds of oncoming trains but I know how to hear & feel the rails to tell if there is one down the tracks. If I didn’t feel 100% safe having them walk this short bit I wouldn’t have done so.
Ironically a train is passing near my house right now. LOL
Last Sunday the weather was so much more amazing than Saturday – it was hard to believe that the day before it was raining, snowing and hailing! Due to the rain we couldn’t get on the ground as much as I normally like to but that was okay – I was just elated that the weather was absolutely beautiful! It also meant that everyone ELSE did too and the Fellows Riverside Garden was PACKED. However it was so beautiful, just as much as it was last fall when I was there! Just tulips this time instead of roses and some scary pumpkins!
Tess is such a sweetie and is turning one this week! She is a bit more serious but eventually after getting used to the crazy lady with the big camera (and getting away from the fountain that completely entranced by) she warmed up with a smile or two. She may not be a giggler but oh my is she a chatterbox. She was telling me all about the park and what she thought we should do for posing. Too bad I don’t speak toddler! I am certain she had some fabulous ideas!
Tess isn’t quite walking or standing on her own yet and since the ground was yucky we decided this would be the best way to photograph her personality.
I know, this pose is here already but she’s too precious not to post!
Favorite!!!!
These flowers were just amazing!!!!
Finally found a dry patch to let her sit down at! Yay!
And so it begins… another year of weddings! Saturday kicked off the season for me and it was at one of my new favorite venues, Landoll’s Mohican Castle! After shooting there last year, I became obsessed with it! However as luck would have it, the weather was pretty terrible so everything was moved indoors because of the cold and rainy weather (it was SNOWING here in North Canton when we left!). Luckily though the rain cleared out and while we were left with some gloomy skies we were able to get outside for the portraits!
Lisa and David have been together for 12 years (!) and opted to have their children as their wedding party which I absolutely adored. Lisa’s oldest son walked her down the aisle and it was such a lovely moment. Lisa was one of the most relaxed brides I’ve had – everything was very go with the flow and no stress at all! I had a lovely afternoon with them as they got ready in their suite at the castle. The whole day was very relaxed and perfect.
Congratulations to you both!
Wedding Vendors
Cake: Maria’s Cakes
DJ: Nyte Flyte
Florist: Tara’s Floral Expressions
Harpist: Martha Minogue
Venue: Landoll’s Mohican Castle
Videographer: Purple Films
I LOVED Lisa’s wedding shoes. These are to DIE for ladies!
Chris captured this hilarious image of Lisa & David’s son NOT being excited about getting dressed.
He was so crazy expressive all day!
He made it down the aisle with this awesome Here Comes the Bride sign Lisa got from Etsy. LOVE!
I can’t decide if this image…
… or this one is my favorite from the day.
I LOVED Lisa’s centerpieces. Her florist did an amazing job with all of the florals. So amazing!
All the kids (minus the 3 year old) gave a group toast to their parents, awww!
This is why the 3 year old wasn’t involved, he probably would have been right in it if not! He had a power nap though that ensured he’d be having a blast the rest of the evening.
Lisa’s (heck and David’s!) ring was STUNNING!
This image makes me smile, I was testing my light for the cake cutting and saw this hilarious capture of the kiddo super excited for the cake afterwards!
<3
This girl had an entire routine to LMFAO’s “I’m Sexy and I Know It” which made me laugh!
