Janaya and Geoff had their wedding the week before Christmas in Bethel. Christmastime weddings always seem especially romantic-sparkly-cozy and this one was no exception. The ceremony was at the congregational church and the reception was just a few hundred yards away at the lovely Bethel Inn.

Instead of trying to choose just a few photos to post, here's a link to the coffeetable book I just designed for them using their favorite photos. I'll let the photos tell the story...

http://www.lastingimagephoto.net/williams/

Amy and Mike were married on a beautiful Fall day. But before that, I'll show you a few photos from their engagement session. They have 2 wonderful dogs and they wanted to include them in the wedding but decided against it, as they didnt think the guests would enjoy all the doggie excitement and licking, so I suggested they include them in their engagement photos. So they brought the boys, Kodak and Harley, to their engagement session. And what handsome boys they are.


On the wedding day, Amy and the girls got ready right at the church, St. Catherine of Sienna, in Norway. I was worried, as I always am, about getting the girls photos done on schedule so I could start with the guys. I needn't have worried about that, because I finished the girls and the groom was no where to be found. The ushers had arrived on time, but there was no sign of the groom or the best man. The church filled up with guests and the ceremony time rolled around, and still no groom or best man. The bride was remarkably calm; we knew Mike didnt have cold feet. Turned out he and the best man had car trouble.
The ceremony was supposed to start at 2:00 and the groom and best man finally made it to the church at 2:15. The ceremony got underway at 2:20.

The bride wore red shoes! Love it!

The rest of the day went as planned, though the photos afterward ran quite a bit late as we had a lot of photos to make up from before.
The flowergirl and ringbearer were super cute...

On the way to the reception at Tuscany Hall, we took a slight detour and made a stop at Paris Hill.

The building Mike is leaning against in the above photo is the old Oxford County jail --

The windows all still have bars on them. It's so cool and strange to imagine the town's old 'criminals' being kept there. Now it's the Hamlin Library and Museum. (Paris Hill was the birthplace of former Vice President Hannibal Hamlin).
There's also a beautiful park-like area --

When we got to the reception, Amy and Mike told the guests that since the guests had been kept waiting by them today, they (Amy, Mike and the rest of the wedding party) were going to have the guests go through the buffet first and the wedding party would eat last. While the guests were eating, the bridesmaids and groomsmen volunteered to go from table to table and keep all the guests water glasses full. It was a novel idea and it was really nice and well-received.

(The wedding guests signed on a signature mat.) 

Finally getting to cut the cake!
The reception went very smoothly and apparently Mike is late for everything. I heard from several people that it wouldnt have been Amy and Mike's wedding if Mike hadn't been late. I've been to several weddings where the bride has been very late, but this is my first where the groom was the culprit. But it all worked out and they have a wedding story that their guests will never forget.
Congratulations, Amy and Mike!

  Michelle and Isaac were married on a rainy day this fall. Seems like there were a lot of rainy wedding days in 2009! Michelle and the girls got ready at the Poland Spring Inn. Michelle told me she had tried to find a hotel in Auburn-Lewiston but they were ALL sold out that weekend because it was the weekend of the Patrick Dempsey Challenge charity bike race. So future fall brides, take note.

The bridesmaids were in a palette of fall colors, all different. Michelle's dress, accessories and hair all exuded classic, elegant beauty. 

It was pouring at Poland Spring, but had slowed to a light drizzle by the time I got to East Auburn Baptist Church to do photos of the guys. So the guys got to do outdoor photos.

Instead of a limo, Isaac had rented a bright yellow Camaro...cool!

I love this photo of Michelle and her dad...

I have not done a wedding at East Auburn Baptist since they moved to their new location. The new building's interior is very industrial looking. Lots of concrete and mod lighting. During the ceremony there was a slideshow on the 2 big screens to remember Isaac's father who passed away. The slideshow played while a cousin sang. It was a lovely memorial.

The heavy rain started again after the ceremony, so we had to do all the family and group photos inside the church. But thanks to the wraparound porch at Martindale Country Club, we were able to get some bride and groom photos outside before the reception started.

And, Michelle and Isaac braved the rain -- with an umbrella -- for some scenic shots...

In this next photo, a friend was actually leaning in and holding the umbrella over Michelle's head, but I removed him and the umbrella in Photoshop (he was standing in front of the big, green shrub)...

Some of the special touches of fall decor...

And cutting the cake...

Congratulations Michelle and Isaac!
 

Allison and Marc had their wedding and reception in September at McLaughlin Gardens in South Paris. The gardens are a serene and beautiful setting for the ceremony and the barn is a perfect spot for a rustic but elegant reception.

Allison got ready at the home of her maid of honor, Becky. The sofa in Becky's livingroom was just begging to be used for photos. Have you ever seen a sofa like this in someone's house? I haven't. The sofa was massive and ornate, and the perfect spot for a few cool bridal portraits...
 
Allison drove herself to the wedding -- my kind of girl!!

Marc, looking very handsome...

This was the 2nd wedding in a row where the groom and groomsment wore brown. It's a good look.

The ceremony...

A picture-perfect, candid moment during the ceremony...

Now THAT's a first kiss --

A quiet moment after the ceremony and formal photos...

The favors (homemade hot sauce and blueberry syrup!) and the first dance...
Allison and Marc had a very small wedding cake that they cut and fed to each other, but they had a wide array of delectable fall desserts for the guests to choose from. Pies...cakes...all kinds of yummies (and this is just a small selection)...

The girls tearing up the floor during the reception...

It was a great day in an enchanting setting. Thanks to Allison and Marc for letting me be a part of it!

I am behind in blogging 4 weddings...I've been so busy I havent had time to sleep, never mind post any photos. I'll try to start catching up on posting this week. 

Katherine and Matt's wedding was on August 29th. You probably dont remember but that was the day of torrential downpours all day. It hindered outside photos, but we made the best of it.

Katherine got ready at the home of her dad and stepmom. I did this photo in the front doorway -- Katherine is inside (while it's raining outside) but we got the 'look' of being outside.

I have actually photographed the weddings of two of Katherine's older sisters, Dawn and Shannon. Dawn's wedding was in the early years of my wedding career. Shannon's was probably five years ago. I've also done Katherine's brother's senior photos. The family is one of the nicest that I've encountered and they always go out of their way to make sure I have what I need.

The color scheme of this wedding was one that I'd never seen before. I dont know what the 'official' color names are, but I would call them bright robin's egg blue and dark red. There's probably a better name for the blue color. The color combo was VERY striking and dramatic. Very bold. Very rich looking.

Besides an unusual color scheme, Katherine and Matt did something a little different in that besides the 'normal' wedding party, their siblings and spouses were all called 'Siblings of Honor' and all wore red. So it was almost like a second wedding party -- the wedding party of friends in the blue color, and the sibling party all in red. It was very unique and made it easy to tell who was immediate family.

The ceremony was held at the Old Town Hall in Freeport, adjacent to the Hilton Garden Inn. They had the town hall decked out in blue and red



The flowers were gorgeous and were from Lady Slipper florists in Gray.

We'd had plans to go to the beach for photos after the ceremony, but the rain squashed those plans. Katherine and Matt were willing to go out in the rain with me. Matt was actually holding an umbrella high over their heads in this photo, and I just removed the handle in Photoshop...

In front of the Old Town Hall...

The reception was decorated in the blue/red color scheme to the max. As I said before, it was very dramatic.



During the cake cutting, Katherine and Matt fed each other nicely...and then (a surprise to me) they smashed the cake in Katherine's brother's face. He was taken completely off guard and luckily I was still looking through the camera. Michael was a very good sport about it. 

This last one was done right at the reception, just behind the bride and groom's table...

Despite the downpour, everything went terrific and I know the bride, groom and guests all had a fabulous time. 
Katherine and Matt and family, thanks for having me! You always make me feel welcome.