Boston barn wedding reception venues are highly sought after. After lea and mark hired me to photograph their New England barn wedding, i met with them for some engagement photos in downtown Chicago around springtime on the lakefront. They brought their black lab to include in some of the shots and we had a blast. since meeting them and working with them, lea has passed my name on to several brides. I am always so appreciative when clients pass my name along to others. Word of mouth is where i get most of my work. before i share some of Lea and Mark’s wedding photos, here are a handful of their engagement photos:
it was really so fun working with them during the engagement shoot, and i couldn’t wait for the wedding. after previously photographing a wedding at the barn at gibbet hill, i found that i really enjoyed non-traditional wedding venues. while i wasn’t contracted to bring a second shooter, i could tell lea was planning a very cool wedding that was going to be taking place at a historic church and a barn, so i decided to bring along another photographer to assist. i had a few phone conversations with lea before her wedding and could tell already that many well thought out details were being put into action for this wedding. when we arrived, lea showed us that barack obama declined her wedding invitation. bummer it would have been cool to get some shots of lea dancing with the president!
during our communication over phone and email before the wedding, lea informed me that she would be wearing the groom’s grandmother’s necklace.
we talked about the couple’s wedding day time line and realized that with a church ceremony running from 4 o’clock until almost 5 o’clock, there would not be much time for any outdoor photos after the ceremony with the sun setting so early in the winter. lea and mark had a “first look” before heading a few blocks down the road to the sea for some creative photos.
its worth being a trooper and making time for outdoor photos even in the winter. this gave the bride and groom some time together during their wedding day before splitting time with all their friends and family.
while the bride and groom live in the chicago area, they brought the groom’s pastor in from nebraska to their new england wedding. while not all churches are flexible to allow use of their space with another officiant, the couple found a great church willing to allow an out of town pastor to perform the ceremony. congregational churches in this area have the sanctuary on the second floor.
when i think of new england, quaint white steepled churches are some of the first things that come to mind.
after the ceremony, everyone headed over to the historic red lion inn for the wedding reception. in a picturesque seaside town, a combination of country french and new england colonial styles provided perfect ambience in a wedding reception venue.
the barn at the red lion inn had an upstairs lofted wrap-around balcony that was used for cocktail hour.
a consistent, navy blue nautical theme was used for wedding. paper goods such as table numbers, menus, and escort cards were designed by the Etsy seller BuddyandBean.
after cocktail hour, the newlyweds descended upon the grand staircase of the barn and immediately began their scheduled first dance.
mamta and nishant had their engagement shoot in downtown chicago so that they could show their friends and family where their “home” was for several years. their upcoming wedding is in mumbai (formerly bombay). we met on an early brisk morning and avoided tourists, hitting many popular locations for photos in chicago. we talked a lot about indian wedding ceremonies such as mehndi and the sangeet/gaun parties, as well as the shaadi and mandap. the reason i really enjoy indian weddings is because of the many ceremonies that happen with a backdrop of such vibrant colors. mamta and nishant will have a five day wedding and hundreds of wedding guests. during our shoot, we talked about holi; i am dying to photograph the festivals.
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!
i am the photographer stacey and steve chose to hire for their 2010 wedding at the garfield park conservatory. we scheduled an 8am shoot and made great use of a park during a relatively desolate time of day. the colors of the leaves were unreal. i like to think of an engagement session as a warm up photography shoot before the wedding day. they had quite the warm up before heading off to work.
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!
yesterday, alexa and andrew welcomed me into their chicago loft apartment for an engagement shoot. their sleek, modern loft is a strong contrast to where i will be shooting their new england wedding in july of 2010 – at the historic, seaside wedding destination known as the Castle Hill on the Crane Estate, which in my opinion is the boston area’s best mansion available for wedding ceremonies and receptions.
i was thrilled to shoot an engagement shoot in a home. there is a true connection couples have to the space that they have created. alexa and andrew had just gotten back from a vacation in the bahamas, and were at ease when i photographed them. for part of the shoot, they wanted me to photograph them cooking. this was such an original, refreshing idea. after prepping some apple cobbler together and having that documented, we headed up to the roof deck, followed by a walk around the neighborhood.
i encourage all couples to think outside the box to create some one-of-a-kind engagement photos. sometimes the greatest photographs can be made at locations closer than many think.
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.
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!”
At a recent wedding I photographed in Downers Grove, a small child just had enough of the church and marched up the aisle to the door, tossing her flowers along the way.
The wedding was on the weekend when all the colors were changing.
From the client:
If you are looking for the perfect photographer for your wedding….look no further!!! Heather Parker is OUTSTANDING!!!! She is everything you should look for in a photographer: Professional, flexible, fun, prompt, creative, spontaneous, and above all takes incredible timeless photos! My husband and I couldn’t be more elated with our wedding photos!!! Heather’s eye for the perfect shot is unmatched! She sent us a few preview shots the morning after our wedding! It was so exciting to have a few photos to see and send out so quickly!! This is just one example of Heather’s work ethic and desire to go above and beyond! We had the rest of our photos within a week. You can’t go wrong choosing Heather to capture your perfect wedding 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!
