Boston July 4th, 2011 Fireworks by Kayak
I decided to see the Boston fireworks in person this year and did a 10 mile round trip kayak expedition on the Charles River for the show. The effort was more than worth it as I had an amazing up close view. When kayaking to the event, one can get as close as a couple hundred yards from the launch barge. It’s amazing to see the city skyline unobstructed from the water, hearing the sounds of the Boston Pops playing on the Esplanade, seeing the dense crowds packed along the waterfront for a view, yet for myself on the water, having plenty of room to move. Light sticks, LEDs and headlamps marked the presence of fellow paddlers.
Since I was on a boat that was rocking with the movement of the water, a tripod wouldn’t have helped steady the camera, so I had to select brighter fireworks to capture the scene. That’s the trade off for a better view in this case. I also zoomed in and changed the focus during time exposures so that I could capture a few abstract images as well. Upon checking the Boston Globe online the next day, I found that one of their photographs captured a scene from the Cambridge side- I’m the kayaker in the left of center, bottom part of the frame, which you can see here.
Yoga Redefined New Business Photographs
I spent an afternoon recently at the newly opened Yoga Redefined studio at 55 Lake St. in Nashua to photograph a class as well as owner Dena Carbone and fellow instructor Deb Balise for their marketing and website use. The Lake St. location is in a mill building that is being renovated with brand new, bright and beautiful studios, a great addition to the city of Nashua. If you are into yoga or would like to try it out, be sure to check out their schedule online here.
Kevin & Elin’s Stonehedge Inn Wedding
On Saturday March 19, I photographed the daytime wedding of Kevin and Elin at Stonehedge Inn in Tyngsboro, MA. It was a small, intimate event which meant I could photograph the happy couple extensively in addition to lots of family members. I captured a photograph of Elin’s dad in a random group hug with his granddaughters, who spontaneously surrounded him, resulting in a great look of joy on his face!
Venue and Vendors:
Ceremony and Reception: Stonehedge Inn & Spa, Tyngsboro, MA
Musicians: Anime Trio
Flowers: Lavender, Groton, MA
Cake: Jacques Fine European Pastries, Suncook, NH
Magazine Feature!
In the last month or so, Kevin Jacobus Photography has been featured in numerous wedding industry blogs, boston.com and New Hampshire Magazine’s Bride! We’re already a preferred vendor at Weber Restaurant Group and recently the Tewksbury Country Club featured some of my photographs in their gallery as well. Here’s the links:
New Hampshire Magazine’s BRIDE: An article quoting Kevin Jacobus featuring post wedding “rock the dress” portraits.
The Charity Wedding: Awedding industry blog that featured some of my trash the dress photography.
Boston.com: A photo gallery of recent weddings and engagements features a photograph from a wedding we worked last summer.
Examiner.com: An article on finding a second use for your wedding gown.
The Oceanside Bride: Another wedding industry blog featuring our beach bridal portraits.
Tewksbury Country Club: A venue that recently posted my photographs to their gallery.
Jeni & Tyler’s Tewksbury Country Club Wedding
Kicked off the 2011 wedding season with Jeni and Tyler’s wedding February 26. The couple had a Catholic ceremony at St. Michael Parish in North Andover, Massachusetts. I captured a photograph of Tyler and Reverend Hogan minutes before the ceremony and I’m amazed how relaxed Tyler looked. In years of weddings, most grooms are nervous and serious and he was surprisingly calm. Seems to run the family as his brothers were his best men and their toasts at the reception didn’t require any notes. The reception was held at Tewksbury Country Club, which is a great spot for a winter wedding. They have a nice stone bridge very close to the building so that outdoor photos can be taken and then bridesmaids can hustle back inside where it is warm. There’s a bridal suite, a nice staircase, piano, a balcony over the ballroom and finally a huge fireplace that can be used for portraits. In deference to Jeni’s Jewish roots, guests conducted a Horah circle dance, hoisting the couple in chairs to the traditional Jewish folk song, Hava Nagila.
Michala & Brandyn’s Quidnessett Country Club Wedding
Last wedding of 2010! On Thanksgiving weekend I headed down to North Kingstown, Rhode Island to photograph Michala and Brandyn’s wedding at the Quidnessett Country Club. Brandyn is a Marine as are his groomsmen. All of them have served overseas and Brandyn has served in both Iraq and Afghanistan. He finishes up his military service in February, safe and sound for a life ahead with Michala and their daughter Lylah-Anne. They had a cigar roller from Sir Winston’s Tobacco Emporium hand rolling cigars for guests during the cocktail hour. The ladies braved the frigid cold for some portraits outside since it was sunny and then we hustled back inside to get the party started, and as you would expect from Marines, they celebrated to full effect!
Catherine & Joshua’s Wedding at Larz Anderson Auto Museum
Intern Christine and I were treated to a steampunk theme wedding October 30th. We headed down to Brookline, Massachusetts to the Larz Anderson Auto Museum for Catherine and Joshua’s wedding. We broke out the Honl grid to light some portraits of the couple for added drama. Not that there wasn’t plenty of visual interest already- they put quite extensive effort into their outfits and accessories for the wedding. I almost didn’t recognize them from when we first met! A bird cage veil for Catherine and top hats for the guys, very eye-catching detail.
Venue and Vendors:
Ceremony and Reception: Larz Anderson Auto Museum
Caterer: Cuisine Chez Vous
DJ: MCO Productions
Dress Shop: Modern Bride & Formal
Officiant: Elin Flashman, a friend
Decorations/Flowers/Hair/Makeup: Catherine and her bridesmaids
Colin & Ida’s Butternut Farm Golf Club Wedding Reception
A trio from the Kevin Jacobus Photography crew got to work for Colin and Ida’s wedding Oct. 23. I was joined by intern Christine and associate videographer Dan for the couple’s ceremony at Corpus Christi Parish in Lawrence, MA followed by a wedding reception at Butternut Farm Golf Club in Stow. I had previously photographed Colin and Ida’s engagement session at Half Moon Beach in Gloucester.
Butternut Farm Golf Club is tucked away on a side road in Stow, but it has great picture possibilities for which the staff is glad to assist with golf carts to transport a newly married couple as needed. There’s a pond with a fountain and a pedestrian covered bridge in keeping with the country setting.
Not unlike some of our other clients, they had liked the idea of an oceanfront wedding, but logistics prevented that. Their beach engagement session earlier in the year coupled with stones inked with names of beaches they’ve visited on display at their card table helped bring a seaside theme to a landlocked wedding.
Colin surprised Ida with a serenade accompanied by his brother on guitar. We incorporated that into their video highlights as it was a great moment in their wedding.
Alison & Gavin’s Wedding Reception at the Omni Parker House
Would you run a 1/2 marathon on your wedding day? Alison and Gavin did October 10! That certainly adds to the thrill of the day, if not a “tiny” bit of fatigue too! To top it off, the couple was interviewed by Boston television station WHDH 7News after running the Boston Athletic Association Half Marathon. I had Peter Clayman of NH Images there as my second photographer for the day. It’s a great idea to have a second photographer any time the budget allows and in this case I’d say it was necessary. We had different getting ready locations for each of them, followed by a wedding ceremony at the Swedenborg Chapel in Cambridge, MA. After the ceremony and a few family portraits, I headed to the Boston Public Gardens with the bridal party for portraits while Pete headed over to the Omni Parker House in Boston where their reception was taking place to get photographs of the tables and centerpieces before guests arrived. Normally we can hustle and get those detail photos before formal portraits at a reception venue, but in this case that was impossible since we were doing formal photographs elsewhere. Pete grabbed some photographs of their table number placards, which were among the most clever and creative I’ve seen: jersey bib numbers from races they’ve run. This wedding culminates a year and a half of portrait sessions and their wedding and it has been a memorable one. Thank you Alison and Gavin for having us be a part of your wedding!
Some of their fun wedding reception features:
-a trolley for transportation
-teddy bears from their childhood on display
-a groom’s cake
-Boston’s famous Citgo sign as a cake topper
-milk shakes and french fries for a dance break snack
-a surprise breakout dance to Thriller by Alison and Gavin
-a photo booth, which was a big hit with the kids
Venue and Vendors:
Ceremony: Swedenborg Chapel
Reception: Omni Parker House
Florist: Tangerine Creations
Make Up: Make Up By Brea
Hair: Safar Coiffure
DJ: Music on the Move
Officiant: Geoff Rowland, a friend of theirs
Dress: Priscilla of Boston
Shoes: Kate Spade
Dance Lessons: Hamby Studios
Danielle and Jay’s Wedding Film
Associate videographer Don headed down to Beverly, Massachusetts September 10th to create Danielle and Jay’s wedding film. After the wedding, Don and I met up with Danielle and Jay to record some audio of their thoughts on the day. They started with a “first look” and some portraits at Misselwood at Endicott College. The couple were married at the Lynch Park Rose Garden in Beverly, MA followed by a reception at the Elks Club at Bass Rocks in Gloucester. We’re especially proud of this video as we feel strongly as experienced journalists that we want to put our storytelling stamp on all of our wedding videos. This means going beyond recording footage and delivering it to our clients. It also means going beyond basic editing to instead weave a narrative, in this case, in the couple’s own words and match it with natural sound and images of the day for what I would describe as a literal moving portrait. We think this is worth watching, even if you don’t know them. Hearing their story and watching Don’s careful scene selection mesh makes for an audiovisual journey unlike anything else found in the wedding industry locally.
Mount Pleasant Country Club Wedding
Every now and then I like to take advantage of an opportunity to shoot as a second photographer for another local photographer to broaden my network and change things up a bit. On Oct. 9, I had the opportunity to work with Erin of Erin Chapman Imagery. She’s a photographer from south of Boston and we split the distance as we met up in central Massachusetts to photograph Marlene and Adam’s wedding at Mount Pleasant Country Club in Boylston, MA. I learned that Erin is a fellow Syracuse University graduate, although she went to the art side of the house while I studied at the S.I. Newhouse School of Communications. Which is why it’s great to work with other photographers: sharing different ideas and experiences. Here’s an image I made below. Be sure to check out her blog post on Marlene and Adam’s wedding for more photographs.
Stephanie & Joel’s Bedford Village Inn Wedding
A short trip up the road on Friday, Oct 1 found me at Stephanie and Joel’s wedding at the Bedford Village Inn along with Fall intern Christine for her first wedding as an assistant. This is a fun crowd that I’ve photographed before-I photographed Stephanie’s brother Derek’s wedding at the Atkinson Country Club last year as well. Rick Flair made a surprise appearance as a courtesy of one of Joel’s groomsmen, and in the spirit of having fun, the groomsmen decided to try to fit themselves into a phone booth in the Milk Room at the inn. Somehow, they managed the feat quite well! With Christine’s help, we lit a stairway portrait of Stephanie as well as a video light portrait with the inn as the background later in the reception.
Ben & Amy’s Gunstock Wedding
Associate photographer Elena and I headed up to Gunstock in Gilford, NH Sept. 18 for Ben and Amy’s wedding. Elena met the women at Misty Harbor Resort Hotel for some portraits on the beach at Lake Winnipesaukee while I photographed the groomsmen. Then we photographed the ceremony together along with the reception. There was an emotional moment during the ceremony as they held a remembrance for Ben’s father who passed a couple years ago. The mother of Ben’s best man Andrew (Holly Noble) officiated. In keeping with having close personal connections also serving as service providers, friends of theirs from the J Biddy Band performed so they had a great party band that connected with guests.
Last but certainly not least, best man Andrew stunned the crowd at the end of his speech with a surprise proposal to his girlfriend who was in attendance. This was my first time witnessing a wedding proposal right as it happened and it was a great moment. Andrew had checked with Ben for permission so as not to steal the show. He did for a little while though. Sort of hard not too with something like that! I was right on it and captured all the action as it unfolded! See it below after the page break.
Post Wedding Photo Shoot in Rockport, MA
Laura and Joe got in touch with us again to have my associate Nicolaus photograph their post wedding portrait session at Halibut Point State Park in Rockport, MA. Nicolaus photographed the couple’s engagement session and their wedding as well. We think doing a post wedding photo session is a great idea. These can be the get down and dirty trash the dress sessions, or as in this case, an opportunity to take more time for additional portraits of just the bride and groom than the wedding day normally allows. There are a couple other benefits as well. Bride’s can try a different look too, such as a hairstyle change, and the guys can mix it up with different attire. In Laura’s case, their wedding was in central Massachusetts, and she wanted some portraits by the ocean since her wedding didn’t afford that opportunity. Also, we have so many people who want to incorporate their pets, and often for logistical reasons, they can’t on the wedding day. So, either an engagement session or a “day after” wedding photo shoot can be a good option. Here’s a gallery of some additional photographs from events and portrait sessions Nicolaus has shot for Kevin Jacobus Photography in the last year.
Jay & Lauren’s Danversport Yacht Club Wedding Reception
Sunday, September 5 found me at St. Anne’s in Salem, Massachusetts for Jay and Lauren’s wedding before heading over to the Danversport Yacht Club for their reception. There was a lighter moment during the speeches when Lauren was presented with a rubber chicken, an inside family joke and I was able to capture her reaction! We took a moment to head outside and I used a video light for a portrait of the couple with the midnight blue sky and harbor in the background.
Kelly & Darrell’s Church Landing Wedding at Mill Falls
Dan and I headed up to Meredith, New Hampshire on the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee for Kelly and Darrell’s wedding at Church Landing. I did the photography while Dan shot their video. The couple hired us for their engagement session, wedding photography, wedding video and a photo album! Weddings at Church Landing are very popular as they have a Sperry sailcloth tent for an outdoor wedding ceremony and a large, well decorated ballroom with a fireplace for the reception.
The couple are huge baseball fans, although for rival teams! Darrell is a Yankees fan, Kelly is a card-carrying member of Red Sox nation. She did however, budge a bit for the sake of a happy marriage by surprising Darrell with Yankees tickets- hidden in her garter of course. That got a priceless reaction during the reception!
There were some emotional moments during parent dances–Darrell danced with his sisters as his mom had passed and that brought some tears to a lot of eyes at the reception.
Kim & Richard’s Engagement Session at Nubble Lighthouse
On Sunday August 29, I headed to York, Maine to meet up with Kim and Richard to photograph them for their engagement portraits. We concentrated our efforts around the Nubble Lighthouse on Cape Neddick, which is a popular tourist spot, so it takes a bit of creativity to keep random people out of the frame. But, there’s a tourist information building which has facilities so that they could do an outfit change for some variety. Nice couple, nice day, nice way to spend an afternoon. I headed to the beach afterwards!
Frank & Katy’s Wedding at Moraine Farm
I was glad I had the opportunity to photograph a wedding at the Estate at Moraine Farm again this summer for Frank and Katy on August 28. I’m now a preferred vendor there having photographed a number of events in connection with Fireside Catering which is now the exclusive caterer for Moraine Farm. The venue features an historic estate house with a terrace overlooking Wenham Lake. Guests can enjoy cocktails on the terrace while the bridal party and family are having portraits done on the expansive European gardens and grounds designed by Frederick Law Oldstead. An outdoor ceremony is unique with an elegant tea house as the backdrop. Frank’s father is a drummer and in addition to a DJ emceeing the event, his dad’s band performed during the reception.
Newborn Evie
I headed down to Boston August 26 to photograph newborn baby Evie. She is the daughter of a client referred from her cousin in Nashua who also had her baby as well as maternity sessions with Kevin Jacobus Photography last year. I brought some white umbrellas to bounce my lights into. I love how it makes the skin tones look while Evie’s eyes look brilliant in a couple of the photos. It took a while, but we succeeded in getting some sleepy baby photographs toward the end.
Keyeona & Rhon’s Peabody Marriott Wedding Reception
My associate photographers Chet and Don split the duties at Keyeona and Rhon’s wedding at Emmanuel Baptist Church in Malden, MA and Chet stayed for the duration, making some great portraits and capturing the action at the reception, which was held at the Peabody Marriott. Chet also stitched multiple photos into a panorama of the ballroom at the reception for a really nice, wide shot of the room before guests arrived. We specialize in panorama, HDR and time exposure photographs at weddings in addition to our mostly photojournalism approach.
Venue: Boston Marriott Peabody
Dress Shop: Precious Memories, Malden MA
Flowers: Evans Flowers, Peabody MA
Makeup: From Hair to Eternity & Beyond Makeup, Carolina Velasco
DJ: Smooth Bee Entertainment
Steel Band: Pan Loco Steel Band
Officiant: Rev. Wayne A. Gadie, Pastor, Emmanuel Baptist Church
Thomas and Jill’s Wedding at the Castleton
My associate photographer Beth photographed Tom and Jill’s wedding at the Castleton in Windham, NH August 21. Tom is a military service member and was decked out in his dress blues for the occasion. Of course Jill looked stunning and she broke out a fedora for a little extra fun on the dance floor during the reception. He’s based in Texas, so they planned their wedding from afar. We are more than happy to work over e-mail and phone to make sure the wedding day goes off without a hitch.
Brian & Laura’s Wedding Reception at The International
August 21 was another big day for all of us at Kevin Jacobus Photography. I had associate photographers Chet and Don covering a wedding in Peabody, MA while Beth was photographing a wedding at the Castleton in Windham, NH. Meanwhile, I was in Bolton at the International for Laura and Brian’s wedding reception. Their ceremony was held at St. Catherine’s in Westford, Massachusetts. Earlier in the summer I also photographed Brian and Laura for their engagement session at Greeley Park in Nashua, NH.
They had a little ring bearer who was not too happy with his tuxedo. A ride on the limo company’s bus improved his mood though, as he was all smiles upon arriving at the ceremony. Later he had fun playing with a tambourine provided by the wedding band members.
Emily & Casey’s Vermont Wedding
On August 14, I headed up to Woodstock, Vermont to photograph Casey and Emily’s wedding ceremony at the North Universalist Chapel Society, followed by portraits in front of a covered bridge and along the way to the reception, a few photos with the farms of Quechee, VT as backdrops. We had great light and weather thankfully since we planned to use so many of the fantastic Vermont scenes as picture possibilities during the formal photographs. We then headed to the Quechee Country Club for the reception, where I learned that Casey’s brother is quite the funny man, and had everyone roaring with laughter during the toasts.
During the ceremony, their Reverend officiating sprinkled the altar with clovers, which is the Vermont state flower. That was a nice touch and a nice extra little detail. Finally, during the parent dances, Emily and her dad broke out into quite an impressive dance routine as a nice surprise for all the guests in attendance.
Venue and Vendors:
Ceremony: North Universalist Chapel Society
Reception Venue: Quechee Country Club
Florist: Ellen Snyder (see more of my photographs from this wedding on her site in the wedding gallery section)
Dress Seamstress: Bridal Alterations by Anahit
DJ: Evan Foley
Organist: Diane Mellinger
Trumpet Player: Dave Ellis
Hair: Christian Roy Salon
Make-Up: Wendy Kluin
Doug & Marina’s Eagle Mountain House Wedding
I love being a wedding photographer in New England because this year I found myself in historic Newport, Rhode Island, Boston urban environments, the Vermont countryside, and on August 13th, the mountains of New Hampshire photographing Doug and Marina’s wedding in Jackson, NH at the Eagle Mountain House. The views are stunning, everywhere. The outdoor ceremony overlooked the venue’s golf course with the mountains in the background. The road leading up to the Eagle Mountain House has an easy to access, amazing looking waterfall. It can be a photographer’s challenge to get sweeping views with no other people in the photographs besides the bride and groom as it is a popular spot for tourists. The scenery was fantastic, and it doesn’t hurt to have a great looking couple as main photo subjects!
Marina’s daughter sang during the ceremony and there were some touching moments as Doug and Marina spoke messages of dedication to each other and to her daughter. The ceremony ended with a big group circle, with everyone dancing to music playing in the background. That was pretty cool to watch as it unfolded. Nice couple, beautiful, simple wedding.
