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
* if you do not know how to use RSS readers and would like my blog updates to go straight to your gmail, check out how to do this easily with this quick step by step guide to using webclips. this only works if you use gmail.
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!
