jackie is my favorite kind of bride. she wears shiny red shoes under her wedding gown and goes with a simple bouquet using just red. guess what color her trolley was. yep, you guessed it, red. the wine? red. actually mike ditka kick ass red wine. okay, okay you get the picture. though the jackie and mike did a “first look,” because of the limited amount of daylight at this time of year, after the church ceremony at saint alphonsus, it got dark outside very quickly. having to do creative wedding photos outdoors at night can sometimes have some advantages, such as having a sparkling array of city lights as a backdrop. i am really happy with the results.
from the bride:
“i’ve been so excited to see the photos, thank you sooo much for all your hard work on our wedding day. we had a blast and i’m glad we can now remember more of the moments through our photos. we love the pics. there’s so many that are truly amazing and totally capture the feeling behind the day. they were well worth the wait. i love a lot of the details shots of the flowers, the wine bottles, the table settings, the people signing the guestbook, the tiny flowers on the cake, etc. the outdoor shots after the wedding turned out fabulous! there’s nothing we appreciate more about living in the city is when we’re downtown and see all the city lights and the skyline and know that we live here…truly beautiful and those shots are my favorites!”
Vendors:
Ceremony: St. Alphonsus Church 1429 W. Wellington Avenue, Chicago, IL (773) 525-0709
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learn about photography:
bokeh happens when a photo is taken under certain lens conditions and creates certain aesthetic qualities in out of focus backgrounds. the reason i do this is to limit distractions and emphasize the important subject in a photograph. the two lenses i use that produce a nice amount of bokeh are my canon 85mm f/1.2 and my canon 35mm f/1.4. to the average consumer, these lenses are pricey, but you can get a similar effect with a 50mm f/1.8. both canon and nikon offer these little lenses commonly known as nifty fifties (or shifty fifties!) for around $85 dollars. its hands-down the number one starter lens for anyone picking up a digital SLR. if you happen to get a DSLR camera for the holidays, promptly toss the kit lens in the bin and pick yourself up a faster lens. fun fact: i won’t date anyone who uses a kit lens, and if need be, i will go buy a 50mm f/1.8. i still have my nifty fifty and have no plans on getting rid of it!
what about film? i love film. i have more film cameras than i do digital. film is cozy and familiar. i learned photography using film. i used a camera for five years that didn’t even take a battery. if you have a film camera tinkering around, i strongly recommend picking it up and reading up on some photography 101. when you shoot digital, you will have a better grasp on understanding manual photography. when i shoot film, i shoot less. it forces me to shoot for quality versus shooting for quantity. for me, its a needed exercise and good discipline for reminding myself to shoot for quality. the film cameras i use are medium format and take medium format film which means i get between 12 and 15 shots on one roll. its expensive, tedious, and rewarding all at the same time. when i was hired to do resort photography recently in jamaica, i took along one of my film cameras, my hasselblad 503cx. though the V-system cameras have been produced since WWII, my camera might be about 25 years old. old, but not ancient. i like the simplicity of it. during that particular architectural shoot, while i waited for the clouds to make way for sun, i sat down to clean my camera and lens. the employees of the resort watched as i took the camera apart in three easy steps. i took the film holder off, i removed the viewfinder, and finally removed the lens. “so basically its just a box?” one onlooker said? yes!
p.s. if i don’t update the blog before christmas, happy holidays! i worked on this wedding until the wee hours and plan to get through as many weddings as possible in the next few days!
the above photo was my one of my top wedding photos from this shoot. during this wedding, i saw some amazing light and snuck the bride and groom outside and were able to get some great shots right around sunset and the magic hour.
mary and steve hired me last year for their recent duxbury wedding. the couple met at boston college and while she grew up in florida, they decided to get married near boston since they both live and work in the area. the town they chose to get married is duxbury. it is often a choice as a destination wedding location because it is a charming new england seaside town rich with historic details and filled with so many natural elements including bumpus park, a wild life preserves and a quaint harbor. mary got ready at a rented cottage with the help of her mother, and twin sisters caroline and kathleen. at first, i didn’t realize there were twins and because they were already in their bridesmaid dresses, i momentarily was a bit confused how one person could be in so many places at so many times. i am bad at telling twins apart i guess.
before driving over to the church, i was lucky that mary allocated some time for some photos. there was a gorgeous backdrop of autumn leaves. new england is the perfect place for taking in fantastic views of foliage. this november 6th wedding got the tail end of the vibrant colors and we were lucky for such amazing backgrounds to work with.
mary and her groom steve chose to see each other before their wedding in order to make some time for photos. they are part of an ever increasing amount of newlyweds who choose to do a first look. first looks are basically a moment set aside to see each other on the wedding day, before the walk down the aisle. the first look is done alone, not in front of your wedding guests, and it is documented with photos. historically, seeing each other before the wedding has been a hot topic, but i am noticing more and more couples want to get photos done beforehand rather than skip out on guests midway during their wedding day. even though the first time you lay eyes on each other as bride and groom will not be in front of those close to you, the benefit of doing this is that before your wedding ceremony, you can budget time for photos and still have time to mingle with friends and family during cocktail hour later. having a first look during late autumn weddings and early spring weddings is something important to think about. this time of year, days are shorter and with less sunlight, the possibility for outdoor photos for afternoon weddings is sometimes slim.
mary’s aunt created all the floral arrangements for her wedding including this arrangement called the bells of ireland. this is popular in ireland and in the boston area due to the large irish american population. i have a lot of brides asking for information about incorporating irish traditions in their wedding so below is a photo of the flower arrangement. while this one was used at the church, i have seen these also used as centerpieces for tables at wedding receptions.
the wedding ceremony was at Holy Family Church at 601 Tremont St. Duxbury, MA 02332 (781) 934-5055
steve stands before his groomsmen, awaiting patiently as mary walks down the aisle.
mary’s sisters watch as she gets married during a full catholic mass
a bagpiper awaited for the newlyweds to exit the church. he played during the receiving line.
the wedding reception was held nearby at duxbury bay maritime school located at 457 Washington Street
Duxbury, MA 02332 (781) 934-7555
before the wedding, mary had sent me snapshots of the wedding reception venue as it was just being built. the smith building at the duxbury bay maritime school is part of a state of the art facility directly on the water. it made for picturesque views of colorful trees in the distance, while sailboats dotted the bay under the blazing sunset. if you are looking for a unique location outside of boston, or are considering a destination wedding but don’t want to deal with traffic in the cape cod canal tunnel or want to go far for a nantucket or martha’s vineyard island wedding, duxbury is a perfect option.
with the bay as a backdrop, mary and steve braved the brisk seaside breeze and the result was an memorable set of seaside wedding photos.
after cocktail hour, the newlyweds enlisted silent chef for a french style dinner service. with all the weddings i have photographed over the years, this was my first wedding i shot that was served in this manner. french style dinner service offers waiters that bring a large presentation dish of the food (whether soup, salad or entree) to the guests. often, the waiters continue to refill the large dish until the guest indicates they are done.
silent chef is located at 113 Front Street Scituate, MA 02066 and their phone number is (781) 545-6665.
mary and steve thanks for selecting me as your wedding photographer! both jim and i had so much fun shooting your wedding!
wedding vendors that were used include:
wedding dj: beat train productions: ari with beat train is one of my favorite dj’s in boston. i will be photographing a wedding at the oceancliff hotel in newport, ri this summer where ari will be dj’ing. check him out at zu zu’s in cambridge, ma. beat train productions is listed in the little black book put out by style me pretty wedding blog. wedding photographer: heather parker photography: available to shoot weddings in boston, chicago, and destination weddings including negril jamaica. wedding caterer: silent chef: 113 Front Street Scituate, MA 02066 and their phone number is (781) 545-6665 wedding cermony venue:Holy Family Church at 601 Tremont St. Duxbury, MA 02332 (781) 934-5055 south shore boston wedding reception venue: duxbury bay maritime school 457 Washington Street Duxbury, MA 02332 (781) 934-7555. a newly designed, modern, loft-like feel for the interior, and historically inspired white cedar exterior that sits directly on duxbury bay.
p.s. – subscribe to my blog* for an upcoming post of this january’s cohasset, ma wedding at Second Congregational Church with a classic, New England church complete with white steeple with a reception at the colonial style red lion inn at 71 South Main Street Cohasset, MA
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people often speak of having a storybook wedding. well, this wedding comes literally straight from teh storybooks of alice in wonderland. shortly after photographing sam & hezzie’s wedding at gallery 1028, i was hired for sam’s sister liza’s wedding. i am picky when it comes to photographing on holidays, so if i was going to forfeit halloween, it had to be for a fun shoot. they convinced me right away when i was informed that the wedding was going to be themed as a mad hatter tea party. i met liza at her brother’s wedding, and at the time, i had no idea i would get to work with her again. liza plays by her own rules, she is an offbeat bride. heck she even made her own blue wedding dress! with the help of her mother deborah who owns norton’s usa (a unique all-american general store), the wedding would go down in the books as being one of the most memorable for everyone in attendance. they merged a mad hatter tea party theme with elements of autumn. the wedding was held at home, in a strikingly beautiful, yet mysterious house. during the ceremony, the bride emerged from a secret bookcase door, surprising guests. the groom, richard, is from manchester, uk.
it was a real pleasure photographing this wedding, as there was such great scenery and carefully thought out decorations to work with. liza’s family has two amazing horses, and a barn full of teeny kittens!
from the mother of the bride:
Hi Heather!!! They are wonderful! Glad you had fun! We all looked with Sam’s computer yesterday and we’re thrilled. Thank you so much for coming and shooting Liza & Richards wedding.
“I didn’t get to see all of Sam and Hezi’s pics but what I did see are fabulous! You really are so very talented!
Thank you from the bottomof my heart
Deborah”
i always love having opportunity of shooting cultural weddings. i met with charlotte last year and was so excited to be hired to photograph her and mike’s wedding. earlier this year i photographed charlotte and mike’s engagement shoot, and since charlotte and mike travel frequently for work, we did a lot of communication via email regarding the details of the wedding day and her photography plans and ideas. in addition to wedding-related chatter, charlotte, being a foodie, she gave me some great tips on where to find true Québécois poutine made with real cheese curds.
charlotte is from singapore and her family spoke mandarin, while mike’s family spoke cantonese. i love being able to document cultural and family traditions, and this wedding in particular had some especially fun parts to photograph. i witnessed some hilarious games and a pretty tea ceremony which happened before the traditional style wedding ceremony that i am used to. before tea, the groom was quizzed by bride’s friends and family and had to partake in humorous demands before the mother of the bride released her daughter to the groom.
i asked charlotte about some of the details of her wedding day and she said:
The Chinese tea ceremony was requested by my mom. Basically it is a way for us to thank our families for raising us. The groom comes to the bride’s house to collect the bride. But the bride’s friends and family will try and block the groom and his men. The groom will have to go a series of games to prove his love for the bride. At the end, the girls will negotiate a price for the bride. Usually the number ends in 99. So $299, $399, etc.
When the groom claims the bride, they are supposed to go to the groom’s family to do the tea ceremony. Then they return to the bride’s family to do the tea ceremony. We did it all in the same room to save time!
Mike and I are so laid back, so we wanted fun pictures. Mike requested the lakefront shots and I like indoor shots and vintage looking locales, so Union Station was awesome! I love the look and feel of your photos! Very different from the others I have seen and very imaginative! That was ultimately the reason why we picked you!
after their wedding, the bride and groom headed to Curaçao for their honeymoon where they went to explore the island’s shores via scuba diving.
婚礼摄影师在芝加哥
中文和粤语的新娘和新郎
charlotte purchased adorable containers for the wedding rings which were enscribed with to have and to hold.the bride’s mother watched over over the groom during some lighthearted gamesthe groom answered questions regarding his new bridemike and char were a very easy-going couple – they joked around a lot and had a blast all day!two families came together during a tea ceremony overlooking famous michigan avenue. they had one of the best hotel suites i have ever photographed in.charlotte takes tea to present to the families.i heard someone mutter that some of the tea had some wasabi in it!the groom leaves the room before the bride changes into a white wedding gown.simple bouquet of flowers to match a simple elegant dress.the groom waits in the hotel lobby for a scheduled “first look” as the bride descended down a grand glowing staircase.we took a limo to museum campus and played a little game of trust over lake michigan.the chicago skyline is in the distance as the groom holds on tight to his bride.charlotte forgot the disposable adhesive heating pads in her hotel room to keep her bridesmaids warm for outdoor photos so we went to union station after museum campus. she had prepared for inclement weather by buying a photo permit in advance for union station so that we would have no issues if we needed to use the location as a setting for her wedding photos.the groom looked dapper don’t you think?the groom looked dapper, don’t you think?we wrapped up our 90 minute photo shoot by heading back to michigan ave and the bride and groom were cuffed by a chicago cop (all in good fun of course!).the newlyweds had beautiful rings which i photographed on the stem of a tulip.cocktail hour…what a cute nephew and a proud father!here are some of the wedding reception details including favors, cupcake centerpieces, and an overall theme of red – the color of happiness.and a toast…and a cake cutting and a cake smoosh followed by a smooch.guests seemed to be having a great timecharlotte’s matron of honor was just as fun as she, and raised the bar on the dancefloor getting everyone going!the bride and groom were a very fun laid-back couple to work with, and definitely know how to throw a party!
during their engagement shoot, abigail and sam told me about their wedding planning and were excited about having hired a professional lighting design team for their stan mansion wedding. they transformed a space that was a true blank canvas by choosing purple lighting that created an atmosphere for their wedding that guests commented about all night.
i photographed abigail getting ready at her home, and on the wall i noticed a painting by jamie haynes! i immediately recognized she had a connection to my favorite city: new orleans. abigail’s mother lives in new orleans’ garden district and we chatted a bit about second line parades. abigail didn’t grow up in NOLA otherwise i probably would have photographed another bride and groom in new orleans. abigal and sam headed to logan square for a planned meeting where they would have a documented “first look,” followed by some fun photos before the ceremony. after we finished creative photos in the park, sam went to stan mansion and made sure every detail was set perfectly, and gave a thumbs up to begin the ceremony. i wanted to make sure as much purple light was visible in their wedding photos as possible so i used my one of my favorite lenses for most of the night, that enables me to shoot without use of flash. whenever possible, i try to shoot without flash, or with low flash, so that the natural colors, shadows, and true look is preserved. i want my clients to have photos that accurately document their wedding from the little details, to the atmosphere of the room.
i had the opportunity to photograph dora and diego before their wedding for an engagement shoot. they had an atypical wedding and put a lot of thought into the unique details. her good friend happened to be a costume designer and created a wedding dress that was exactly what dora wanted. she enlisted angela from lather to come up with a vintage pinup hairstyle for her wedding day. they wed on a rooftop in the presence of their friends and family and invited their friends inside zed 451 for a private reception where guests visited bountiful harvest tables full of so much food and then had churrasco – a variety of meats brought to each table, served on skewers. the newlyweds had their first dance to madness’ song “it must be love.” the bride said that “the wedding certificate that our guests signed is inspired by a traditional quaker practice. when quakers marry those who are attending the meeting sign a marriage certificate as witnesses to the promises that the couple made before God. ours served as a way to include friends and family in our ceremony and it was also used in lieu of a guest book.”
a review from the bride:
“when heather and i were discussing the final time line for my wedding i had very few things scheduled and not too many “must have” photos to tell her about… when i first looked at our photos i realized that she had managed to capture exactly what i had wanted. we had a smaller wedding so every guest was someone important to us. heather and her assistant were able to capture so many fantastic candid photos of our loved ones. it’s like we now have portraits of all the special people in our lives! she managed to get some gorgeous shots under some challenging lighting conditions and she put a lot of time above and beyond our contract into adjusting the contrast of those photos. i feel really fortunate to have found heather! she’s talented, dedicated, professional and easy to communicate with!
this off-the-boat wedding was off the charts! diana’s family is from colombia, and her husband antonio’s family is from italy – they traveled far to witness a couple who had been dating for over ten years finally come together in marriage. i photographed diana and her bridesmaids getting ready at her mother’s quant home right by the ocean. her sister surprised her with the arrival of a shiny white antique bentley. because diana allocated time for some creative wedding photography before her ceremony, we headed over to the ocean for some fun photos. during the ceremony i could see a lot of people holding back tears. along with their bridal party, diana and antonio made made an unforgettable entrance into their reception.
i met with shawn & tamar for an engagement photography session in downtown chicago, and ever since i had a chance to work with them and tour their gorgeous venue, i have been looking forward to shooting their wedding. tamar works for the intercontinental hotels group and got ready for today’s wedding at the intercontinental hotel on michigan avenue. shawn and tamar chose to have their “first look” in the lobby before heading down the street to get married.
the ceremony and reception were held nearby at the spertus museum with a kosher dinner catered by wolfgang puck. with so many reflective angular surfaces, it is such a fun space to shoot in. architecture aficionados (and green conscious brides!) can see some in-depth images of this sustainable building by visiting architects’ krueck + sexton website.
hezzie and sam live in san francisco and got married in chicago. i had not met them before their wedding date. they had their wedding yesterday, getting ready at the conrad hotel over magnificent views of michicago ave, followed by the ceremony and reception at gallery 1028 in chicago. the gallery space is on goose island, and was my first “island” wedding shoot in chicago. gallery 1028 is one of chicago’s newer wedding spaces and is getting a lot of buzz. owned by calihan catering, the gallery is a huge space with tall ceilings, exposed brick and beams, with a true raw loft space. the gallery is very dark inside and provides the perfect ambience for a modern, contemporary wedding. there is plenty of parking too. gallery 1028 could be a challenge to shoot in since there is very little “white” space for a photographer to bounce a flash off. with the right lenses and extra flashes, the night was a success.
nicole fitzpatrick, the coordinator for the venue and calihan catering was friendly and on top of things. she recently got back from maternity leave and has hit the ground running. i am excited for more fun weddings at gallery 1028 in the future.
as many of my blog readers know, i have shot many weddings around the country. the DJ at last night’s event was by far the best DJ i have ever had the opportunity to work alongside. if you ever have the chance to hire zebo from style matters, you won’t be let down. he is a club DJ and spinning vinyl, and is able to blend songs together seamlessly and had generations of family on the dance floor all night with fun remixes of classic hits. he definitely knew how to read the crowd and had a great selection of indie, old school hip hop, and typical run-of-the-mill wedding requests.
From the client via Yelp Chicago Photographer wedding reviews:
“Heather photographed our September 2009 wedding at Gallery 1028 in Chicago, and she did an amazing job. We wanted artistic photos that would retell the story of our wedding day, and that’s exactly what we got. Heather was professional, creative, and super easy to work with. Our photos are nothing short of stunning, and we are so glad we hired her!”
michelle and tom are one of the nicest couples i have ever worked with. they had a fabulous friday wedding. their ceremony was at saint athanasius church, which restricted the use of flash photography. i was able to conquer that obstacle by using the right lenses and i love the natural lights and shadows that are visible when flash is not used. challenges like this often create the most wonderful, emotional images. thank you michelle and tom for allowing me to document your special day!
update august 26, 2009, from the bride michelle:
“Picking your wedding photographer is so important — and Heather made that decision easy. Heather is not only a very talented photographer who knows her craft expertly, she was also able to capture our wedding day without intruding into it. Heather knew which parts of the day were especially good for “Kodak moments,” offered suggestions when appropriate, and was very easy and relaxed to work with. All while being very professional. My husband and I are camera shy, but Heather made us feel comfortable and has produced pictures that we can’t stop looking at! We couldn’t be more happy with Heather and our pictures!”
charlotte purchased adorable containers for the wedding rings which were enscribed with to have and to hold.
the bride’s mother watched over over the groom during some lighthearted games
the groom answered questions regarding his new bride
mike and char were a very easy-going couple – they joked around a lot and had a blast all day!
two families came together during a tea ceremony overlooking famous michigan avenue. they had one of the best hotel suites i have ever photographed in.
charlotte takes tea to present to the families.
i heard someone mutter that some of the tea had some wasabi in it!
the groom leaves the room before the bride changes into a white wedding gown.
simple bouquet of flowers to match a simple elegant dress.
the groom waits in the hotel lobby for a scheduled “first look” as the bride descended down a grand glowing staircase.
we took a limo to museum campus and played a little game of trust over lake michigan.
the chicago skyline is in the distance as the groom holds on tight to his bride.
charlotte forgot the 
the groom looked dapper don’t you think?
the groom looked dapper, don’t you think?
we wrapped up our 90 minute photo shoot by heading back to michigan ave and the bride and groom were cuffed by a chicago cop (all in good fun of course!).
the newlyweds had beautiful rings which i photographed on the stem of a tulip.
cocktail hour…
what a cute nephew and a proud father!
here are some of the wedding reception details including favors, cupcake centerpieces, and an overall theme of red – the color of happiness.
and a toast…
and a cake cutting and a cake smoosh followed by a smooch.
guests seemed to be having a great time
charlotte’s matron of honor was just as fun as she, and raised the bar on the dancefloor getting everyone going!
the bride and groom were a very fun laid-back couple to work with, and definitely know how to throw a party!
