Stars Collide

Oh By The Way...NEW WEBSITE NEW WEBSITE!!

2012-03-08T10:28:00.000-05:00

Can you tell I'm excited? After two months of long hours and colorful language I finally finished our new website. We left our old host and migrated to Showit sites, which are pretty fantastic! They allow you to build websites by literally dragging and dropping photos, text and widgets wherever you want. We love it!

We'll also be able to give our couples their own "plus sites" for their weddings or sessions with us that they can share with friends. It also integrates into Facebook! I'll have a sample one up soon on the blog, I'm still figuring that part out!

So if you haven't checked it out already, do so! http://altaredvisions.com

Guest Blogging Over at Wedding Lovely!

2012-03-08T10:18:00.003-05:00

One of my goals this year was to guest blog (and blog in general) more and often and Wedding Lovely was kind enough to allow me my second go!

http://weddinglovely.com/blog/what-to-expect-from-your-photographer-on-your-wedding-day

Never visited Wedding Lovely? It's a fantastic wedding planning site founded by Tracy Osborn, who contacted us last year about being listed on her new website. That website is now full of vendor directories and an insane amount of information for planning everything from wedding invitations to selecting a wedding photographer. There are sister sites for every realm of wedding coordination, it's a great resource for the engaged couple in the midst of the whirlwind that is planning a wedding. Here's our listing on the photography sister site, Wedding Photo Love and our interview with them last year.

More Photobooth Fun!

2012-02-27T10:25:00.002-05:00

Over the weekend we shot a baby shower for our beautiful friend, Katya. They went ALL OUT, like...carnival tent all out! They set up a photobooth and as it is now tradition...here you go!

This week we'll be working on those photos as well as figuring out how in the hell we launch our newly finished website. Stay tuned!

We'd also like to formally welcome our newest couple, Michelle and Shaun! Their save the date pretty much reserved them a place in my heavy metal heart forever. Welcome to the AV family guys! NOW YOU CAN NEVER LEAVE! <3

[Rockstar Couple] Jessica & John's MBTA / Museum of Fine Arts Engagement Session (Boston, MA)

2012-02-21T11:00:00.000-05:00

There's this thing about John...he's crazy for trolleys and our subterranean travel methods in general. When he pitched the idea of a subway session for his and Jess' engagement session, I got a little thrill like I was 16 years old again and breaking MBTA rules, kinda like this with better hair. Because I'm a lousy outlaw these days, I sent a couple of emails to the MBTA asking what the rules were, but received no response. I've had the Orwellian experience of being asked, over the intercom of a moving red line train, to stop taking photographs so I fully expected to be stopped before I could even utter the word "speedlight".

But as it turns out, John is actually some sort of Jedi Knight.and whenever a badge approached us they were smiling and walking away within a minute...even after he and Jess crossed the tracks to pose.

We finally got ourselves a new flash to replace the fallen LumoPro we lost while shooting my family photos last fall and with it, a Strobies 24x24 soft box which is responsible for the pretty light in the dark subway. How cute is Jessica? I mean seriously.

Originally we were planning to go to the Boston Public Library, but they keep odd Sunday hours so we decided to wing it...which is sometimes the absolute best way to do an engagement session. This theory was proved when we ended up going the wrong direction on the trolley and found ourselves at the Museum of Fine Arts, who quoted us a million dollar insurance plan and a long list of legalities when I inquired about shooting there, because John and Jessica actually got engaged there. We decided to get some photos in front of the museum on the stairs. Jess was really brave shrugging off her Northface jacket to brave the cold in her cute little dress. And it was COLD.

Once again, Jedi John started to work his magic with the staff at the MFA. A quick photo here, another just inside on the stairs, a flash of their MFA membership card and we were checking our bags and heading in to shoot before we knew it!

This place is absolutely amazing, if you've never been you are really missing out. I hadn't been in a couple of years, and James had never been so it was an extra sweet day at work! We know, our job is so terrible!

Jessica and John love the MFA, they showed us all their favorite spots and told us about the backgrounds of several amazing pieces.

This is my favorite room...

Shooting without flash in such a dark place was definitely a challenge but I learned how to stop breathing a while ago from shooting in churches.

Here's where John popped the question, in front of Jess' favorite Rembrandt (Portrait of a Man Wearing a Black Hat at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.)

We had such a great time with Jessica and John and it goes without saying that we're excited to shoot their wedding at the Larz Anderson Auto Museum !

Especially since they've got a great sense of humor. ;)

The Engagment Session: More Than Just Photographs!

2012-02-20T09:00:00.000-05:00

The Benefits of Choose an Engagement/Wedding Day Package

If you’ve shopped for wedding photography at all in the pastfive years, you’ve probably heard at least one photographer try to sell you onthe engagement session. Initially you might think “eh…I don’t really need anengagement session; I’m not putting an announcement in the paper.” Maybe you’llbrush it off as your photographer trying to squeeze more money out of you. WellI am here to tell you the real reasons why photographers love engagementsessions and why you will love them, too! I am here to grab you by theshoulders, and (lovingly) shake you until you see the beauty of the engagementsession!

Why We Love Them: Getting To Know You!

Not surprisingly, people photographers love people. You haveto love them, or at least be fascinated by them, to be happy in this niche ofphotography. Part of having the desire to document people is the desire to tellsomeone’s story. A street photographer may encounter a homeless man erecting alean-to under a bridge and effectively tell his story without ever speaking tohim. That kind of hands-off approach doesn’t work well in wedding photography,however. We need to know a little bit about you and what’s important to you.

James and I always include engagement sessions in our collections. This isn’t just to entice potential clients,it’s to make sure we walk into a wedding with a clear idea of who our coupleis. It is so important to know something about the subject you are documenting.During an engagement session, you’ll likely spend anywhere from an hour to anentire evening with your photographer(s) and a good photographer (read: one whocares about you and your story) will spend that time not only getting you usedto weirdness of being photographed, but also getting to know you!

John and Jessica got engaged in this very spot, in front of Rembrandt's Portrait of a Man Wearing a Black Hat at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Let’s use our imagination for a moment: Say you spent monthsplanning your wedding down to the smallest detail. You met your fiancé onsafari in Africa and to commemorate this, you buy your fiancé a pair of goldbinoculars from Tiffany’s and arrange to have it left on his hotel pillow. Heloves his gift of course, he will tell you so later, but when the weddingphotos come back there’s only a singular photo of the gift opening and youcan’t really see your fiancé’s face. Yourealize your photographer didn’t get the significance of the binoculars andmissed a moment you wanted to see, but couldn’t. Now imagine this samesituation, but at your engagement session you told your photographers all abouthow you met…maybe you even pulled them aside and told them about yoursurprise. You get back a beautiful photoof the package, the signature blue box, the ribbon being pulled off, yourfiancé’s ear-to-ear grin, his teary eyes as memories wash over him…exactly,people. This is good stuff, right? You can make this photographic magic happen!

Why You’ll Love Them: The Photos!

Wedding days are absolutely crazy. They’re also amazingly fun and the photos youget will show you and your fiancé on an absolutely crazy day. The best partabout engagement sessions photographs of you and the person you love on aregular day. Just you, your love and your favorite outfits. There’s a relaxed feel to an engagementsession that you just can’t get on a wedding day and the pictures that relaxed atmosphere enables you to get arevaluable in their own special way. Whenyou look back on those photos, you’ll remember just how you felt that day, inthe days before you married your best friend, maybe before you had children orbefore you moved to France…whatever you do, you’ll remember that amazing yearleading up to your wedding day.

I would go a step further (and naturally, I have a biashere!) and challenge you to a yearly anniversary shoot with a photographer! Weall change so much and time goes by in the blink of an eye…photography isimportant for documentation, memories and family stories. Value it and seizethe opportunity to tell your story, you won’t be sorry!

Insta.awesome: My love affair with Instagram

2012-02-19T16:42:00.000-05:00

If I had known how obsessed I was going to become with my iPhone's camera I would have sacrificed my Blackberry Storm to the cellphone gods a lot sooner! When I finally upgraded my phone I was introduced to this amazingly simple camera and sharing app called Instagram. It works kinda like a Twitter, but with photos. I can follow people and in turn be followed. I can also link my Instagram straight to Facebook and Twitter. It also has some pretty sweet photo manipulation effects including a Lensbaby-like blur effect.

The Love Affair begins!

I was unprepared for how amazing the camera was going to be on the iPhone and how often I was going to use it! Through Instagram and my powerhouse portable camera, I no longer had to feel guilty about not carting my DSLR around with me and missing so many beautiful images and gave me the ability to share what I saw with everyone else too.

My very Red haired Nephew

On my Vacation back home to Arizona

One of my favorite things about using Instagram are the monthly challenges like #febphotoaday or #febphotoskill which I discovered through Zack Arias @zarias on instagram. They're monthly photo challenges with a different theme everyday of the month. I feel like it helps me to be constantly challenging myself. Ive had trouble attempting 365's in the past and never make it out of the first month so these are perfect! haha.

When Pam and I were on our engagement shoot in Boston I took one of her for #febphotoskill's Silhouette challenge in front of the Boston Public library.

#febphotoaday Inside your closet

#febphotoskill Negative Space

#febphotoskill High Contrast

The other thing that I completely love about instagram is that for Altared Visions, I now can share awesome pictures straight to our twitter and facebook! Especially when there are some amazing details and awesome locations.

Also when I'm in another state and our couple are complete Rock Stars...

For me personally, the camera and Instagram on the iPhone alone made this one of my best purchases ever.. Yes. EVER!! (Nothing against Android users) Not even counting everything else the iPhone can do and all the apps available for it. I've learned to embrace iPhotography and its made me a stronger photographer because of it.

For all the current instagramers in the Altared Visions universe give us a follow at @altaredvisions and follow me personally @barron262 (And Pam soon, she gets her iPhone tomorrow!)

A "Vow Renewal" Engagement in AZ

2012-02-10T16:00:00.006-05:00

This last week I decided to take a much needed vacation back to Arizona to get my Mexican food fix and see my friends. Its been a little over two years since I've been and was missing it, so I told Pam to hold the fort down and did some jet setting. I had a blast while I was there, I probably ate about 5 pounds of food, did some desert hiking and a whole lot of *coughs* partying.

I get to be lucky enough to fly back out to Arizona in April to shoot two of my friends, Chris and Kelli's 10 year vow renewal wedding. (stay tuned) Ive known both since high school and I cant think of a single time since they've been married that they weren't laughing or smiling. Kelli happens to be an amazing photographer too and had a great idea to do an engagement session while I was down. How could I pass up such a great opportunity to shoot them before April? So we packed up their kids and headed to Tempe.

I knew that since Chris and Kelli were already rock stars these pictures were going to be a lot of fun!

See ROCKSTARS! They even brought some sweet beach cruisers with them.

Their kids behaved amazingly and we were able to walk around and explore shooting as we went.

See always laughing

I was in love with the architecture of this bridge and all the lines!

Kelli came up with a great idea for Chris to dip her and it turned out being one of my favorite shots from the day.

Thanks again guys, I'm honored to be included in your renewing of love for each other and cant wait to see you again in April. Better Alert all the Mexican restaurants and tell them to re-stock cause ill be back!

Altared Visions in Arizona!

2012-02-09T18:11:00.001-05:00

Our very own James, bi-coastal engagement photographer (more on that tomorrow!) AND impromptu off-camera lighting instructor! If you follow us on Facebook, you may have read that both James and I were venturing out of state this winter for different adventures. I went to New Hampshire for the weekend with my fella for some retail and mountain therapy and James went back home to Arizona...and people who follow our blog and facebook that AREN'T our Mothers! Woah!

Photo by Kelli Linn Photography

See James turning on some lighting newbies with the magic of speedlight-hurled photons on a group shoot he and his friends Mario Fontes and Kelli Linn Martinez put together! So awesome! Congrats on a fun vacation and a little taste of our future dream! Read Kelli's blog post on the group shoot here!

[Featured] Oh, You Fancy?

2012-01-20T12:00:00.000-05:00

We've gotten a couple of blog features this month and wanted to ~~brag~~ share!

First, our second feature on the amazing Offbeat Bride went live last week. Robyn & Matt have now been made "blog famous"! Check out the feature here and the original blog post here. As always, thanks OBB!

Second, one of Pam's photos of the beautiful and talented Lolli Hoops (of Boston Hoop Troop fame) performing at Robyn & Matt's wedding (See? Blog famous!)is up as Hooping.org's photo of the day! Yay! Thanks for featuring our work!

[Round-Up] Best of 2011, James' Picks

2012-01-19T16:00:00.001-05:00

I couldn't agree more with Pam in saying that 2011 was an amazing year for us! We really started shaping Altared Visions with a clear vision and loved all of our clients. 2012 is going to be huge and we have made some big changes and put together some really great ideas.. Shh you'll have to wait for the Blog post to find out ;)

There were so many great photos and trying to go through and pick just one from each wedding was so HARD. So Pam and I collectively decided to do a slideshow of our favorites and then showcase the top ten.

Slideshow:

Top ten! Again these are also in no particular order, trying to choose is impossible!

I would have to say, if I were to pick my absolute favorite image from 2011.. Its this one!

[Round-Up] Best of 2011, Pam's Picks

2012-01-18T12:00:00.000-05:00

2011 was an amazing year for Altared Visions. It was our second year in business together and the first year we were really shooting AV clients instead of those grandfathered in from my solo work. It was the year we got registered with city and official-ized with a real bank account and everything. It was the year we knew we made the right choice!

It was also a year we learned a lot of hard lessons and got a first-hand look at all the things we need and want to improve on. We've got so much in store for 2012, but that is another blog post! For now, I've put together some of my favorite photographs from this past year's weddings and portrait sessions in a top 10 and a slideshow with ALL the favorites!

Which one is your favorite? I'd love to hear in the comments!

Slideshow:

TOP 10! This was hard, these in NO PARTICULAR ORDER...that was just TOO hard.

And while mostly this is not order, I won't lie...this is my favorite image from 2011...

2011 Resolution: Refresh Your Wall Space!

2012-01-17T17:31:00.001-05:00

In this digital age we are living in, not enough photos make it from the computer screen to the wall display! This year, make a resolution to show off your photographic memories. I plan to replace a lot of my already hanged photos and add a lot more! One thing helping in a huge way is Pinterest. If you haven't gotten on Pinterest yet, probably better that you don't, lest you lose yourself to hours and hours of obsessive pinning.

For more on Pinterest, click here. Need an invite? Let me know!

I have a "Hang Those Photos" board on Pinterest where I keep all kinds of amazing gallery wall examples and tips on hanging photos hassle-free (or as close as you're getting to it, anyway.) Here's some of my favorite finds!

Amazing tips for hanging photos using wax paper and awesome layouts for gallery walls from
roost-home.blogspot.com

Here's another amazingly helpful post with another method and awesome ideas from Simcoe Street.

Love these gallery walls...

Your photo? Please email me so I can add a link. Found via Pinterest.

From Pottery Barn, found via Pinterest

From Remodelista

Want to see more? I've got a brazillion links on my Hang Those Photos pin board.

For more Altared Visions pins, follow our AV board!

[Rockstar Wedding] Sarah & Joe's Harry Potter/Autumn Themed Wedding [Westport, MA]

2012-01-12T21:06:00.000-05:00

Sarah and Joe met James and I at Panera Bread (our favorite portable office) one cold February evening in 2010. Over an hour later we were all full of coffee and still talking about books, knitting, movie adaptions of books (let's just say Hunger Games casting opinions were voiced) and having babies. (Sarah had recently had Joey, their adorable son).

They told us about how they met, with the same almost embarrassed face that all couples who met at a bar have before admitting "YES, I totally dated the bartender!" It's really common, allow me to assure you bar-made couples out there of this!

Seems like that was months ago and here we were waiting to start shooting their wedding! Crazy!

Sarah, who'd make a divine art director with her location eye, took us to Westport Rivers Vineyard & Winery for the first look and formals on the big day. Sarah arrived as the sun was setting and skillfully picked her way down the path, to her awaiting groom hanging around in the vines with his brothers.

Joe said her dress wasn't what he pictured she'd choose, but I think it might have been better by his expression.

These are my favorite of my first look shots...how cute are they?

I'm also in love with this photo...what a beautiful family in a beautiful setting.

We had a great time shooting at the Westport Rivers Vineyard. They allow brides to pay a fee and use their beautiful land for wedding formals and engagement sessions. They gave Sarah and Joe a yummy looking bottle of bubbly, too! I'd love to shoot there again.

This is where I out Sarah and Joe (Mainly Joe) as gigantic Harry Potter nerds. We grabbed a quick shot of the wedding party rocking their not-at-all-forcibly-given Hogwarts scarves.

Then it was off to the yarn store. Yes. The yarn store. Lauren was a knitter and so is Sarah! Love it!

We invaded (after asking, of course) Sisters of the Wool in Westport, MA just before they closed for the evening. The staff there was wonderful and let us roam the store being silly.

Altared Visions: We MAY ask you to model for our own immature delight. You've been warned.

oooooo soft!

The flower girl was a cutie pie.

The reception details were fabulous and all the products of Sarah's talented, crafty hands! Check out the Harry Potter book flowers and table cards. So cute!

Did I mention she made the cake? Yeah...she made the cake.
It was a full moon on 11.11.11, it looked beautiful rising behind our detail shots!

The ceremony was short and sweet, upstairs in the lofts of Bittersweet Farms. The venue is beautiful, this was third time shooting there but the first time at night. It's quite dark, photographers...be warned!

Joey wasn't having any part of not being included in the ceremony and helped the officiant read her script.

I see you James!

The glow sticks came out at the reception and were a hit!

Aside from the Harry Potter theme, this is Joe's other contribution to the wedding!

Momma dancing with Joey.

Joey was ready for bed, can you tell?

Love wedding kids...

Congratulations Sarah & Joe! Here's to many more happy years for the knitter and the bartender. :)

VENUE: (First Look)Westport Rivers Vineyard & Winery Westport, MA
VENUE: (Ceremony/Reception) Bittersweet Farms Wesport, MA
DRESS: Anjolique Bridal
SHRUG: Fabulous Furs Sarah says "Best(!) faux fur site I found in my searching after falling in love with a real fur in a Martha Stewart mag that was $5k!"
HAIR & MAKEUP: Nuance Salon
Sarah says "This is my friend, Jen Oliveira's, salon - she uses Bare Minerals.
DJ: DJ Wyatt Kelley
FLOWERS: Jayne's Flowers
Sarah Says "She doesn't have a website, she has a small kiosk on the corner of Federal & Milk in Boston [and] she does weddings through word-of-mouth only."
CAKE: Sarah made it, as well as the pumpkin butter favors!
GAME TRUCK: Games2U Mobile Entertainment
Sarah says: "So much fun!"

[Rockstar Wedding] Lauren & Ben's Rustic Rhode Island Wedding [East Providence, RI]

2012-01-03T21:53:00.001-05:00

VENUE: http://www.squantumassociation.com/
BAND: Sweet Tooth and the Sugar Babies...http://www.sugarbabiesband.com
DATE: November 5th, 2011

Lauren & Ben have a long history. Their wedding was filled with photographs and stories of Lauren & Ben as kids, then as a couple, then as exes and right back to a couple again...this time, for realsies.

We started our day with Lauren and her family and friends, fastening hand-knit (be still this knitter's heart) shawls around the shoulders of the wedding party and slipping into one beautiful dress with proud parents beaming in the background.

Lauren was lookin' pretty fabulous, yes?

All the pretty maids...

Meanwhile back at The Biltmore in Providence, RI, one nervous fella was looking over his vows.

Coolest gift ever...a framed ticket from Lauren and Ben's first date. How is that for a classic 90s first date?

Back with the ladies, our chariots arrive.

I love this photo. You can read a lot from that expression.

We arrived at the BEAUTIFUL Squantum Association in Providence, RI and got ready to do the first look. Here's Lauren beforehand on the beautiful staircase inside the wedding hall.

GO TIME! This was probably my favorite first look of the season, there was so much joy and a sneaky audience hiding on the balcony.

Ben waits.

Look at those smiles! Damn, I love my job.

From James' angle

Right about here they heard squeals from above...

Sometimes I make weddings even more fun by betting with myself on which uncle will have his tie off and dancing first and whether or not a groom will cry. I so had Ben pegged.

The wedding party before the ceremony.

I like to call this one "Holy shit, I'm getting married!".

Go team!

Ceremony time! Lauren and Ben were wed by their friend, Christoper and serenaded by friends Greg and Erik. The wedding party entered to a Bon Iver song (Re: Stacks) and the bride was escorted by her rather dashing father, Alan to "Forever" by Ben Harper.

After the ceremony, I headed to the balcony to get the group shot of EVERYONE! This venue was great for this!
ATTENTION COUPLES! We *love* doing shots of all your guests. Never be afraid to ask!

Reception time! There were great details!

Signature cocktails are my favorite wedding trend this year. So cool.

Cupcakes!

The band was fabulous, they're called Sweet Tooth and the Sugar Babies and they're a Berkley band. They were fabulous!

Thanks for having us Lauren and Ben!! We had a blast! We wish you a lifetime of happiness and big giant smiles like this.

Here's a Few We Missed! Kayla & John's Renaissance Engagement!

2012-01-03T21:52:00.001-05:00

I admit it. I am not the best blogger on the internet. NO...NO...it's OK guys, I can admit it.

Alright, so I am a mostly terrible blogger. At least in my head, a good blogger blogs every day or at least three times a week and me? Well...I don't do that. So here I am, at the beginning of 2012. It's Altared Visions' third year in business and I am DETERMINED to integrate regular blogging into my schedule with the ease and enthusiasm of my other daily habits. Habits like making lists I will never, could never, complete and refreshing Pinterest in between actual work.

Anyway, because I was such a lousy blogger in 2011...we didn't get a chance to blog a few sessions we did!

One of which was shot on location at a popular Renaissance Faire you New Englanders may recognize but I don't think I'm supposed to tell you or the King Who Shall Be Unnamed will surely have your head on a pike. In front of his castle. Which may or may not be in Carver, MA.

Kayla was looking sassy.

Her betrothed, John.

Meet me at the tourney field!

I had to do this one. +1 for Kayla's skill at bending in that corset!

Kayla and John's wedding is also Renaissance themed (they met while working the Faire together...awwww) and we can't wait to shoot it!

Newborn: Nolan and his sleepy little face! [Quincy, MA]

2012-01-03T21:00:00.003-05:00

GRATUITOUS ADORABLE BABY CONTENT AHEAD!!!

Meet Nolan. Gush over him. Adore him.

This is Momma, Tracey...just a few month before on Wollaston Beach, all pretty and incubating. I realized while looking for photos from this session that I never blogged it! I'm batting a thousand with this blogging thing, aren't I?

FEETS!

As you might have guessed by his name, his daddy is a pretty big baseball fan. (The baseball might have given it away, too.) One of the best things about being a photographer is the opportunity to work with friends, in this case, ending up photographing a high school friend's baby. A high school friend who married my daughter's auntie! That makes Nolan my...well, not at all related to me but whatever, that isn't the point. He's cute and unlike the strangers at the mall, his mom lets me touch him. That is the point.
I like to call this one "What The Hell Are You Doing to Me?"

This is NOT gas. He smiled because I'm awesome and I'll hear nothing more on the subject.

Thanks for having us, Tracey and Brendan...and of course, Nolan!

Rockstar Couple: Laura and Ian tied the knot! [Swansea, MA]

2011-12-07T12:00:00.000-05:00

As you know, the blog really suffered as we got unexpectedly buried over our heads this Fall...so timewarp back to late summer with us and watch Laura and Ian go from this:

To this!

You might remember Laura and Ian as our carnival engagement shoot during the Bristol, RI Fourth of July celebration.
They tied the knot a few months later, on August 20th at the First Unitarian Church in New Bedford, MA (web) with their reception at the Venus in Swansea, MA. Here's some of our favorite shots!

Ian and his super cool Dad...
Heading to the church!

First peek at Laura...

The First Unitarian was really beautiful and accommodating, they let us shoot from the balcony...not all churches do that!
Can't complain about that light, either!

UMASS, represent!

We headed into downtown New Bedford for some sassy city shots before the reception. I love shooting there!
One of my favorite shots from James this year...

At the reception, Laura unveiled (oh see what I did there?) her "more ME" wedding gown! And the shoes...oh, the shoes...
I would have wagered on these two being cake smashers!

Congrats, Laura and Ian! We hope your first New Year married is magical!

Family Session: The Forinas, round two! [Boston, MA]

2011-12-06T12:00:00.000-05:00

You may remember that cute face from our shoot with the Forina family last Fall.

Delia was just a wee baby! A year later she's on the move!

We all chased little Delia all over Piers Park in Boston, not far from where Anthony grew up in Winthrop. The place was beautiful, and home to our first "Do you have a permit" encounter with Boston's finest. I think that's some sort of rite of passage for location photographers!

Delia was our art director for the day, and she demanded swing shots!

Thanks Kat and Anthony for letting us capture your beautiful family again!

Rockstar Couple: Meg & JC's vintage, crafty wedding. [Gloucester, MA]

2011-12-05T12:00:00.000-05:00

Meg and JC hired us to shoot just a few hours for their ceremony in Gloucester, MA. It was such a beautiful day and Meg looked...wowzers...

Check out these bouquets...they were amazing!

Best.Ring.Transportation.Ever.

Pink Shoes!

Handsome Fellas

Beautiful Ladies

CUTE BEBEHS!

We did the First Look on the lawn of the Church.

And of course, they had a beautiful ceremony, lots of smiles, tons of love...Thanks Megan and JC! Happy New Year together!

The Negri Family...all ten thousand of them! [Dartmouth, MA]

2011-12-04T16:00:00.000-05:00

Alright, maybe not ten thousand but this was definitely our biggest family yet! You may see some familiar faces if you read our blog or facebook, we just did Kate and Tom's 5th Anniversary photos this past summer.

James and I also did her brother James' senior photos, and you'll see him again as James and I both have shot him since! Kate jokes about us being her family photographer, which is fine with me because they made these two little cuties and I could photograph them forever. :) (From this session last Spring)

We went out on a blustery day in October and had a great time rearranging everyone into groups...the older siblings, the younger, the ones off to college, the sisters...we even took a sequence with each "kid" jumping into the shots in order of birth.
Right to left we've got The Burkes, Norah, Tom, Finn and Kate and then Pete (seated), Joe, Mom Sue, Dad John, Jon, Mary and James

Sisters.

Brothers.

Proud parents/grandparents.

We had a good time...

Mary demonstrates the duck face.

How cute is Mary?

Grabbed a quick shot of Joe and his beautiful girlfriend, Tina. Couldja die for that red hair or what?

Meanwhile...Pete, in a tree.

A DREADFULLY boring family, obviously...

Thanks for letting us photograph your amazing family again, Kate! xo <3

Girl Meets Cow: Carley's senior session [Dighton, MA]

2011-12-03T19:00:00.000-05:00

Carley is a cow whisperer.

We met Carley, her folks and her cow Peanut on a beautiful October day at Bristol County Agricultural School in Dighton, Ma. The school grounds are really cool, we'd never been there before. The light, the weather and the subject...all gorgeous!

Peanut was a little camera shy and Carley's cow-handling skills we on point!

Cows and kids...can't keep them out of their nose!

Carley raised Peanut, by the way...she won an award at Bristol Aggie's annual show for making Peanut "sit pretty". I don't know how a cow sits pretty but my mind is blown nonetheless.

I love the light in this one, it's James' shot.

Congratulations Carley! In case you're wondering if Carley is off to continue her work with cows...she's not! Psychology is on her list of "maybes". Go get it, girlie.

November? Did November Happen?

2011-12-03T16:41:00.001-05:00

We've had a bit of a blog hiatus while we worked through a slew of wedding processing...you get cocky when your weddings are a few weeks apart and you can keep up no problemo. Then you get six weddings in a few weekends and say goodbye to friends and family for a month! We hope you had a great Thanksgiving!
We've got a bunch of work to show and couples to show off! In the meantime check out our second interview (the first was here), this time with the new wedding planning blog Wedding Lovely, and their sister site Wedding Photographer Love. Here's the interview and here's our listing. If you've worked with us and can spare a moment, consider leaving us a review on our listing page so we can keep finding rockin' clients like you!
Coming up (starting tonight!):

Yes, that's us! James and I got some new pics to use for the blog and twitter while hanging out with our little photo gang from The Hideout (the forum James and I met on). We'll show you the rest, you guys can tell us which one you like best and laugh amongst yourselves knowing we squirm on the other side of the camera.

Families! Another family shoot with the Forinas, starring the increasingly adorable Delia and her parents, Kat and Anthony. Also our first time being asked for a permit while shooting in a park. I feel like a REAL photographer now! ;) We also had our biggest family sesh yet with The Negri family! You'll see some familiar faces there.
(some Burkes in there, too!)

Babies! A tiny, tiny baby named Nolan!

Weddings! We've got Megan and JC, Laura and Ian (of carnival e-session fame), Yvonne and Randy and in a week or two, Crystal and Tommy, Lauren and Ben, and Sarah and Joe!

Engagements! When two Ren Faire employees collide...Kayla and John rocked it in the woods of Carver!

And even a senior! Carley took us around her school, Bristol Aggie, and introduced us to her Cow...Peanut. We've had our first cow, people.
2011 round ups! I like to make lists, so count on at least a couple "Best Shots" lists from James and I with our favorite shots of the season from all of our sessions. :)As always, if you like what you see on our blog, please pass it along via the social networking buttons below! Your continued assistance in global domination is appreciated! :-D

Why We Do What We Do

2011-10-31T13:07:00.000-04:00

Simple Tips For Looking Great in Photographs!

2011-09-29T12:00:00.000-04:00

We hear it all the time... "Ugh! I hate the way I look in photographs!" or "Make sure I don't have a double chin!" Well, allow me to tell you that firstly, you probably don't look nearly as bad as you think. We are our own worst critics, afterall. Go ahead, try and point a camera at me and watch how uncomfortable I get...actually don't.
But there's certain things you can do when facing down the business end of a camera lens to look your best, so I've rounded up tips I've read and some advice that I give clients while I direct them and here's what I've got:

Chin Up! Not just optimistic advice from a singing spider but a solid modeling technique. A lot of people have heard this advice and will end up pointing their chins to the heavens...this isn't good either as you may have hidden that double chin but now we're all looking up your nose. As the ever-fabulous Tyra says (yes I love that crazy ass woman), push your chin forward slightly and up...slightly. I think the phrase I say most while shooting is "chin down just a bit" so don't overdo it! Another chin-hider is as simple as getting the camera up higher, a lot of times I like to shoot group shots from above my subjects, that way everyone looks great without much directing!

To The Side! If you've ever seen photographs of celebrities on the red carpet, you'll notice a trend in how they stand. There's a reason for that! Most women are self-conscious about their waist/hip areas (and if you're not, tell me how you did that?). A great way to keep from looking wider than you are is to turn your whole body slightly to the side and then rotate your torso toward the camera. This minimizes the waist and gives your body better lines. Us photographers LOVE good lines.

On the subject of camera-adds-pounds-prevention, remember this golden rule: anything closer to the camera lens will appear larger. So while you're doing your red carpet twisty pose above, resist the urge to push your hip out TOWARD the lens...but instead push it the other way! Boom! Instant va-va-voom.

Arms! If you're a woman...regardless of your size...you know the dreaded jiggle jiggle of arm flab. I have chicken arms and those things will wave long after my hand has ceased movement...what a crock of shit that is. Unless of course, you are Linda Hamilton circa Terminator 2, but most of us aren't. The simple solution is to keep from pressing your upper arm against your body. Brides especially go straight to the arms-at-sides bouquet grip because that's what they think they're supposed to do. I always say "keep is casual, ladies" and encourage anything but that pose! Put hands to hips for the easiest work-around. Also try to avoid putting your bicep parallel to the lens, just like standing straight-on to a camera widens the hips so will the arm if placed broad side to lens.

Shoulders make or break a photo, and you can think of them just like hips. Turning them slightly angled to the camera or breaking up monotony just by giving them some diagonal lines can do wonders. Pushing your shoulders out will create magic collarbones, just don't overdo it! Here's some great shoulders:
This is Kate...notice the arms too...away from the body!
Feets! I know...you're thinking "now I have to worry about my FEET?" Yes and no! Flip through a Vogue sometime and note the way the models place their feet...they might be pidgeon-toed or in a one-foot-forward pose. This puts some separation in the legs, keeps the knees from locking (and looking weird) and gives your hips a nice, sexy UNF factor.

Hands! The last thing you think of and the first thing to look weird in a photo! The best thing to remember with hands is to keep them soft and elegant looking. Relax them and keep from doing the stiff as a board plank hand. This is photography, not a military formation! Another good tip for women is when you're holding fabric (like a wedding dress), hold it with your thumb and middle finger. It's like sticking your pinkie up when you drink!

Lip Service! Smiling is easy...if you're faking it, it's going to look fake. Now I hate my smile and don't take my own advice but I am the one with the camera so that is irrelevant here. To get real joy in your face, you should be feeling some real joy. How, you ask? Think of something...anything that makes you happy. A funny memory, the one you love (and quickly push away the "that bastard left toothpaste in the sink this morning" type thoughts...or better yet, think of puppies. Fuzzy fuzzy puppies.) As a photographer, it's my job to bring this sort of thing out of you, but this is a great technique for when you're not in the hands of a professional who also happens to be HILARIOUS.

Do your homework! Big day coming fast? Heading to a reunion or other photographically threatening event? Flip through bridal and fashion magazines/blogs and instead of looking at the clothes, look at the pose! It really helps!
Happy posing!

Doing Business Like a Rockstar...AKA Cheap, Fast and Easy!

2011-09-27T12:00:00.000-04:00

Since I'm finally managing to time-manage better, I'm finally able to do some non-photo blogs! I know, I know...you came for the wedding eye-candy, but stay for other tidbits of useful/less information!

Today's post is all about the apps, websites and other tools that James and I cannot live without. When we decided we were done working for "The Man", we had absolutely NO idea what we were doing. It's been two years and I can say that now. Sorry, early-on couples...we may have looked confident but we were as green as grass! However, I think we learn fast and adapt well and while we are still sort of stumbling through this CEO business, I think we've hit a decent stride and these tools have been invaluable to us, both for business and inspiration/motivation.

GMAIL. (Free!) You know it, you love it, you use it...unless you're one of those weirdos that still uses AOL or Hotmail. (Before you write me, it's a joke! Mostly!) The labeling is amazing (tax related? WHOOSH! into 2011 Tax label) and Gmail's searchability has saved me so much time! James and I have our business email through gmail rather than our host company. Why? Well, because we know we'll change hosts over the years and because we are absolutely reliant on ...
GOOGLE CALENDAR. (Free!) How I ever lived before the Google Calendar, I do not know. I have one tied to Altared Visions' gmail and one to my own personal email and shared them with each other for easy viewing of work and personal commitments. I've even shared the calendars with my ex husband and we use them to schedule all our kid-related activities. I am an idiot...and before you tisk-tisk me, I really am. I'm book smart but I am the kind of airhead who walks into glass doors, so Google Calendar (which syncs to my Android when said Android works) keeps me from forgetting all my appointments, bills and client meetings as well as shoots. You can even find cool calendars online and add them to your calendar. For example, our print store host Pictage (see below) has a calendar you can add with all their webinars and toggle it visible or not at your leisure. Which brings us to...
GOOGLE READER. All our favorite sagely photogs, fashion sources and the less fun business stuff are all nestled into one readable place that devours untold hours of our lives...
PICTAGE. (Prices Vary) I.love.Pictage. The difference it has made in our clients and our lives is priceless. Marketers will tell you to never use online print sales because you can't pressure the client in-person to buy! buy! buy! Pshaw. I will do what I want! Pictage has freed me from the tedious and harrowing task of entering in hundreds of file numbers for each wedding to fulfill a pre-paid and predetermined print package. Our clients get a full gallery (removing the extra wait to receive their discs!) that is taggable for Facebook, a slideshow and easy ordering for everything from 4x6 prints to leatherbound (professionally designed for FREE) albums. Pictage has amazing administrative features including the ability to simply print out everything we need to do our taxes! Awesome! We love them for giving us hours of our lives back and providing our clients with a great product.
POE Hosting. (Plans start at $5.00/mo) I know I've mentioned them many times before, but I love POE. I've hosted my Lucid Light blog (my personal photography blog) with them years and every annoying support email I bludgeon poor Patrick with comes back within the hour, cheerfully explained, answered or fixed already. We've since moved our main website to Portfoliositez (LL remains with POE for lyfe, yo), because we outgrew our Wordpress blog but should we need hosting for AV again, that's where I'm going!
DROPBOX. (Free!) If you haven't checked out Dropbox yet, click here and get started. Dropbox has been an absolute dream for James and I since we signed up a few months ago. It works by placing a folder on your computer where you can click and drag anything you want to be able to access anywhere or share with someone. I often need photos from James when we're working at our respective pods and all he has to do now is drag them into my dropbox and bam! They're on my computer! I also keep business forms and info in mine so I can access them anywhere. I love technology!
FLICKR PRO. ($25.00/year) Chances are you're familiar with Flickr but it must be on The List! We use Flickr to share our images in sets and host them for our blogs. I've been purchasing Flickr Pro for about 3 or 4 years now and I've never regretted it. Endless space, a beautiful layout, great organization, geotagging and social media one-click share integration? YES PLEASE! You can see our Flickr here.
PINTEREST. (Free!) Pinterest is one of those websites I recommend avoiding entirely if you can because it is so addicting and wonderful that you will hate me later for telling you about it. Pinterest is a social bookmarking site that allows you to "pin" photos and ideas to a virtual inspiration board. As you might have guessed, this is GREAT for wedding planning and thusly, great for people in the wedding industry to see what brides (and grooms!) are pinning for their inspiration. Endless DIY ideas, beautiful and quirky gowns and the most amazing shoes you'll ever see...yep, welcome to Pinterest. If you'd like an invitation, simply ask in the comments! Make sure to include your email so I can send you one!
LAST.FM. (Free!) Streaming radio for the masses! Last.fm "scrobbles" my itunes and ipod plays, adds in the bands I search for, favorite and add and creates the ultimate mix radio that I cannot live without for long hours in the digital darkroom. Trust me brides, without this you'd never see your photos. (Again, mostly kidding!)
COMPLETE SUN & MOON DATA. This is imperative for scheduling photoshoots! We like to shoot in the hour or so before sunset and this website lets you plug in your city or town and a date to get the sunrise/set and civil twilight times. Simple thing, majorly appreciated!
COFFEE. Because this list could never be complete without that which animates us. :)

What are you addicted to?

The Nielson Family at Buttonwood Park, New Bedford MA

2011-09-25T11:00:00.003-04:00

Here's some favorites from the Nielson family's fun park family shoot this past month! How cute is this baby!? This career is not good for my NO MORE BABIES plan.

Nose picking photos go right into the FUTURE GIRLFRIEND GOODIES box.

[MORE PHOTOS...]

TEASER: Robyn & Matt's Gloucester, MA carnival themed wedding!

2011-09-22T10:00:00.003-04:00

Do I even need to say more? CARNIVAL WEDDING. Carnival. Wedding.

There was a beautiful bride

who wed a dashing groom

We did a "First Look" on the rocks across from the Elks on Bass Rocks.

Robyn was backed by a troupe of sassy bridesmaids

Amazing details

A signature drink! (The Tipsy Mermaid, I believe?)

Performers such a Dezrah The Strange and Lolli Hoops (and yours truly is a hooper...I could have wept from joy getting to see her at WORK) roller girls and a former couple of mine (from before AV was born!), Mara and David. You may have seen my photos of Mara on her aerial silks! This is a fun crowd!

Mara & David

And there was a flash mob. Yep. To Beyonce.

aaaand I may have a video. :)

Our job has many grueling hours and computer related eye-aches but damn, it is awesome. Choke on that, high school guidance counselor.

TEASER: Liz & Jon's Rustic Herb Garden Wedding in Barre, MA

2011-09-20T13:08:00.002-04:00

James and I had such an amazing year so far and the last few months have been CRAZY! We're adjusting to our business growing...albeit not smoothly...but we're getting there! Right now we're burning the midnight oil trying to get all our weddings edited and shown off to the world, so here's another teaser!

Liz & Jon are self-proclaimed nerds and you don't need to be around them long to see how absolutely smitten they are with each other. They came to us via Jon's sister, Sara, a friend of mine from Ravelry and mother to the adorable Michael, one of my most favorite tiny people to photograph:

Can you stand it? He hurts my ovaries. I love getting to photograph for families regularly!

Anyway, Liz and Jon went to college together and their quirky similarities were in every detail down to the beaker favors and lots of "good chemistry" puns and personal tokens like Liz's grandmothers jewelry and shoes below. They had their ceremony and reception at the beautiful Hartman's Herb Farm in Barre, MA and they did a wonderful job taking care of the couple AND James and I. We had a great time! Here's some of our favorites:

More to come! Congrats Liz & Jon!!

TEASER: Melissa & Marc's Gloucester, MA wedding

2011-09-05T12:00:00.001-04:00

Melissa and Marc were referred to us by one of our other rock star brides, Kat, so we were very excited to meet them, because Kat and Rick are a blast so we knew Melissa and Marc would be, too. We met up in Onset, Massachusetts to do engagement photos on a steamy July evening. I was informed by Pam that the best Pizza on the south coast was in Onset at Marc Anthony's, so this had me acting like a ten year old the night before Christmas. It was a hot day, but since when do Pam and I let a little heat scare us? I found a building that I really wanted to shoot against, when we got over there we saw that it was the Parks bathroom...

Does that look like a Bathroom to you?

They also brought along their adorable son and you will see this crushingly cute face again a little further down and again at their wedding!

Pam happened to notice some really great light coming through the trees so we had to take advantage of that.

After the engagement session and chatting with Melissa and Marc, we knew the wedding was going to be a blast! Fast forward a few weeks and we're hearing wedding bells and it's time for Melissa and Marc's big day. They married at the Brookside Country club which is were we photographed Amy and Ryan's wedding the same time last July. While putting our gear away in the reception hall we noticed that they were having a candy bar!! We've been seeing these a lot this year!

Um Yum!

Pam hung out with the ladies while I tagged along with the guys

See I told you, you would be seeing that cute face again :)

The ceremony was a scorcher, I believe the term the weather man used was apocalyptic blaze of heat? Or that could of just been what I heard ;) Melissa however handled it like a champ, while looking fierce at the same time.

During the reception Pam and I happened to glance out the window and spied this really awesome vintage car. I said to her, "I would love to shoot in that!" Later, as luck would have it when we were out shooting some final portraits as the sun went down a lady came out of the country club and asked if we wanted to use that car... Did the wedding gods answer my call? Yes please! It's proud owner, a very nice gentleman, brought it around for us a few minutes later.

Melissa was nailing the vogue poses!

We had a blast and can't thank Melissa and Marc enough for having us!

Rockstar Family: The Lynch Family's Gooseberry Island Shoot

2011-09-03T12:00:00.000-04:00

I know Lisa, like Kate, from Ravelry.com. I was stoked when she asked me to photograph her family this summer! Firstly, Lisa is also a photographer and when another photographer trusts you with their important photos, it's an honor. And secondly...

how cute are these kids, seriously?

Here's the whole family.

It was a beautiful early evening on Gooseberry Island in Westport, MA. I love shooting just before sunset and we got a gorgeous day.

Lisa's girls Gibson (elder) and Matilda (younger) have personality in spades, they were so fun to work with and gave me some of my favorite portraits of the year. They both posed like they'd won Project Runway Preschool Edition.

Gibson: girl is FIERCE.

Matilda: child personification of joy.

Lisa's nephew Jackson did GQ like a pro.

Beautiful and glowing niece Sarah.

Photographic evidence that I can make a teenager smile. Nephew Patrick cracking a handsome grin because, obviously, I am hilarious. Or he felt bad for me...one or the other.

Gorgeous family is gorgeous. Gorgeous light was also gorgeous.

More munchable Matilda

Our final shot...I love this one. Matilda, Lisa, Dave and Gibson.

<3

Rockstar Couple: Kate & Tom's 5-Year Anniversary Shoot

2011-09-01T21:55:00.001-04:00

Kate and I met through our mutual love for knitting via Ravelry.com years ago. I first photographed her and her family when she pregnant with her son, Finn. Over the years she's become a great friend as well her husband Tom and adorable kids, Finn & Norah. So when Kate asked us to do her anniversary photos I was over the moon.

Kate and Tom met watching a Bruins game with mutual friends. Tom says he knew the night he met Kate that they'd have a future together. Kate told me once "[Tom] found me when I was so broken and felt unloveable. He has made me feel like the prettiest girl in the world ever since the day I met him." She said she was "really proud" that they made it five years and through two children and "still really dig each other." She should be, Kate and Tom have what every couple wants for themselves...true love. You can't help but smile around them and that made our job pretty damn easy. ;)

Our itinerary for the shoot? Wine and cheese on the beach, sunset portraits, dinner and beers at No Problemo's in New Bedford and some fun city shots. I know, my job is just awful, isn't it? ;)

I think making each other laugh is the secret...

Kate & Tom two photos: go!

Downtown New Bedford is beautiful at night, we had a great time walking around and shooting.

Happy Anniversary guys, we love you both...keep up the laughing. <3

Ah, Etsy!

2011-07-19T19:43:00.000-04:00

Today I am lucky enough to do my blog writing from the comforts of Panera Bread, sometimes I have to pinch myself that this is my job. So, with my coffee securely in hand and my belly full of delicious things, it's time for a little link love.

Now almost everyone has heard of Etsy.com, I love Etsy. It's an amazing place for small business owners and artists to get together and sell their products. It's also an amazing place for busy brides who want the DIY look but unfortunately don't have the time to DIY.

Que Etsy, it is an amazing site for wedding ideas and products. One of my favorite things I saw on there this week was this wooden guest book with a tree on it. I mean, how cool is that? I know Pam would love this because she loves trees, haha! I almost want to buy this just to have it, maybe as a photo prop or a gift I could give away later.

I have also been seeing different styles of wedding bands with wood inlays on Etsy and on Pinterest, I really like this style of wedding ring. Not sure how it stands up to the test of time but it's awesome none the less.

It's probably a good thing I don't have an endless supply of time and money because I probably would become an Etsy junkie using the rationale that I was helping the economy (such a patriot) all the while collecting a borderline hoarder amount of Art/ decor/ vintage/ custom clothing ahhhhh. But for you it's a great idea! Even if you're not shopping for wedding ideas check it out, but be prepared to lose the next few hours of your life, because I promise it will happen :)

Rockstar Couple: Laura & Ian's Carnival Engagement [Bristol, RI]

2011-07-13T14:22:00.000-04:00

It is safe to say our lull in work here at Altared Visions is over, over, over! June was a nice break but we were anxious to get back behind the lens and Laura & Ian's engagement session at the Bristol, RI 4th of July carnival was the perfect was to kick off a very busy July!

We try and invite our couples to do something fun for their e-sessions and when Laura and Ian jumped at the carnival idea, we were thrilled! Color! Lights! Rides! We had a great time! Here are some favorites from the day.

James does not do ferris wheels. He did a great job of keeping us safe with mind control, however.

LOVE Laura's ring.

We had so much fun shooting these! And of course it goes without saying that James and I gorged ourselves on fried dough and deep fried oreos afterward! ;)

Coming soon: More from Erin & Cody's wedding, Melissa & Marc's Onset, MA engagement and Kate & Tom's 5-year anniversary shoot in Westport/New Bedford.

Link Love

2011-07-12T14:42:00.000-04:00

I like to spend my morning coffee doing "research." I put it in quotations because my research consists of blog cruising and surfing the internet, hard job I know, but there are some amazing resources out there to help with planning a killer wedding. So as I come across great DIY ideas and information, I thought I would share it with all of our amazing readers, friends & clients.

Ill start by sharing my Pintrest link
http://pinterest.com/barron262/altared-visions/

And if you don't have Pams link for Pintrest yet, here you go :)
http://pinterest.com/lickmysticks/altared-visions/

Offbeat Bride is a great blog for DIY details and they always feature some really neat weddings, including one of our very own you can see here. I came across this really cool idea for wedding invitations I haven't seen before and knew I had to share it. The idea was for pop-up invitations (I know right!) After reading, it seemed really easy, too!

Another one of my favorite Blogs that is chock full of ideas is Green Wedding Shoes, I read a post on how to make Vintage Spoons for your wedding that can be used as table numbers, guest seating arrangements or just really cool props. It's such a unique thing to do, I loved it!

I'll finish off today's link love with the Style Me Pretty Blog, for all the summer brides out there here is an amazing idea as party favors for your guest. DIY Ice Cream in a Jar! How excited would you be to get homemade ice cream as a favor on a hot day? I know I would be stoked!

I hope I was able to help get the creative juices flowing for you, I'll post weekly link round ups with cool ideas I find for all of our Rock Star couples.

Happy planning,
James

Sneak Peek: Getting Ready Shots - Erin & Cody's Plimoth Plantation Wedding [Plymouth, MA]

2011-07-08T17:52:00.001-04:00

Hello! James and I are both burning the midnight oil to clear out our edits before all our sessions this month! We've got weddings, anniversary portraits and e-sessions on the horizon and we're really excited to jump into the next few months (aka "the busy season" aka "friends? what are those? time").

So here's some peeks from the "getting ready" portion of Erin and Cody's wedding, both to give the bride something to look at and to make me feel like I've accomplished something.

What's getting dressed up without sporadic dancing? The answer is NOTHING.

Jacky's reaction to Erin in her dress was pretty great.

As was mom's...

James shot these later in the day...

He calls this one "The Erins". Erin and her maid of honor...Erin!

More to come!

The First Look : A new twist on tradition!

2011-06-30T12:00:00.001-04:00

We love all our weddings, but we get just a little extra jazzed when couples put their own twist on tradition. Many couples still opt to do their big reveal to each other coming down the aisle but a new trend is emerging to really add some bang to that incredible moment...it's called "the first look". I'm not sure who started it, but I'd credit Jasmine Star.

So what is it? The first look happens in a private or semi-private space before the ceremony. We'll often grab one half of the couple and have them turn their back to the entrance. The betrothed will sneak in and turn them around and...well...see for yourself!

The First Look is a great option for a few reasons. Firstly, the photos are amazing (yes, I'm biased and putting that first)...the emotion, the smiles...perfection! Secondly, this enables you and your photographers to get all the formal shots you can out of the way before the ceremony when you're freshly beautified and no one's raided the open bar yet. Lastly, cocktail hour, anyone? Why does the couple always have to miss their cocktail hour!?

First Looks are just another way the modern wedding is breaking the mold of tradition and we're excited to offer them to our couples. If you'd like more info on doing a First Look at your wedding, just drop us a line!

Rockstar Couple: Kat & Rick's Nautical Cruise Ship Wedding (Boston, MA)

2011-06-28T12:00:00.024-04:00

We've been to more weddings with Kat and Rick than we have with anyone in our own families! We saw them at Nicole and Keith's New Year's wedding and again at Melissa & Matt's wedding and that was just this year!

So when it was finally their turn, we were excited to put the spotlight on them! They got married on The Odyssey in Boston, MA on a blustery(!) May afternoon that sure didn't feel like Spring, but that's par for the course in New England, isn't it?

Oh and did I mention Rick managed to break his hand mere days before the wedding? He never did tell us what happened but I can only imagine he sustained his injuries while wrestling a crocodile or thwarting bank robbers and saving an orphanage full of toddlers.

Is this a wedding party for the magazines, or what?

Mother of the bride...

Kat was really knocking the tears out of everyone!

Her gown was gorgeous.

Father of the bride...

And our dashing groom!

Heading to the Odyssey

The ceremony... Rick must have said "wow" five times before Kat reached him.

I love a wedding party with a little bit'o'swagger.

Too cute, can't take it.

We walked around for the formals, Boston is full of great spots...I could have shot them all day but eventually someone from the ship tracked us down and hauled us back!

We got back to the ship and into the waiting room where the wedding party was rummaging through bags for props like life jackets and flippy floppies and I thought "please be announced to 'I'm on a Boat'...please." BTW that link is totally not safe for work or anyone who didn't grow up in a foul-mouthed Irish family like myself.

Here's Kat's brother makin' it rain.

The details...

Their reception was wild, right up there with Melissa and Matt's! And it featured one of my all-time favorite wedding grandparents! Nicole (of Nicole & Keith's New Year's Eve wedding) has the best grandmother ever.

She's so awesome Keith can't contain his amazement.

BEST!

Nicole and Keith AND Michelle and Matt were there, I think three Rockstar Couples is a record for one wedding!

Kat and Rick had no intentions of stopping the party by dinnertime when their time on The Odyssey was up, so they rented out part of The Times bar across the street for a karaoke afterparty! Needless to say, it was a great time! James and I did Billy Idol's White Wedding. ;)

Melissa rocking out!

I wrote down the karaoke DJ's name but seem to have lost it in the depths of my camera bag...Kat? Anyone?

We had such a good time with Kat, Rick and their great family and friends. Congratulations guys!! See you at a wedding soon? haha

More pics here.

Rockstar Couple: Melissa & Matt (Gloucester, MA)

2011-06-26T14:09:00.001-04:00

Melissa & Matt were married April 15th in Gloucester MA at The Cruiseport with a huge wedding party cheering them on. And I mean huge! Here's some of our favorite photos from their day!

The first look...

The reception was wild, lots of dancing and one very hilarious, completely deadpan ring bearer.

This is Rick, you'll be seeing him in our next blog post...about his wedding!

Kat & Rick

Here is the aforementioned Junior Groomsman. You cannot touch this kid's deadpan humor.

We did a test run of our same-day slideshow on James' laptop, it went great!

And I will leave you with Melissa, realizing with woe that she can no longer sing along to Beyonce's "All The Single Ladies" with contextual truth.

Congrats to Melissa and Matt, we hope you have a long, wonderful, hilarious life together!

Zach Arias on creativeLive? Weekend Win!

2011-04-30T17:55:00.000-04:00

We spent the day sharpening our skills watching photographer Zack Arias on creativeLIVE.com's online classroom. Viva la internet revolution!

Rockstar Couple: Julie & John's Jazz-cool wedding at The Lyceum [Salem, MA]

2011-04-30T15:29:00.003-04:00

We freakin' love these two. Great sense of humor and as easy-going as they come, Julie and John have some swagger and their classy, jazzy wedding matched that swagger perfectly.

We first met them last summer at their engagement session where The Great Ant Incident happened.

They delighted us by opting for The First Look on their big day (our next blog post will be all about the First Look, for those of you unfamiliar with this new take on tradition) in their room at the adorable Salem Inn.

From there we walked down the road and spotted a garden humorously similar to where we shot their e-session. We had some fun playing in the warm, setting sunlight.

How beautiful did she look? Seriously.

And the shoes...so great...

I took this when we joined the boys to heckle them as John did his GQ thing for James...not a competition-winning composition but I just love her smile.

They held their ceremony and reception in the recently renovated The Lyceum Restaurant in Salem, MA and were married by Julie's adorb friend, Nicole. I took about 20 photos of her because she was so cute and always smiling.

I don't know why but I love the walking-away-officially-married shot, it's so...triumphant. Like YEAH WE DID THIS THING!!

Everything was warm, elegant and decidedly cool...like Sinatra cool. They had a live band, Back Bay Rythmn Makers, who missed no opportunity to grin at my camera and kept the dance floor swinging right up until we left.

The upstairs of the Lyceum is split into two areas, the dark wooded and high-beamed dance room where finger food and dancing gave a very jazz lounge kind of feel and the dining room which was a lighter, more social atmosphere. The latter held more food, a hysterical slideshow of baby photos and cheerful shots of the smiling couple. The real gem in the social room though was the photobooth done by Seemonkey. You might recall us invading the booth.

(guests got to take home copies of their booth photos as favors!)

And then there was the butter thing. Apparently Julie began this tradition with her girlfriends that at each other their weddings, the others would have to knock back one pat of butter in its entirety...making for the greatest wedding triptych ever.

See? Great sense of humor. I love our clients.

Thank you, Julie and John for allowing us to document your marriage and invade your photobook. James and I hope the laughter between you lasts a lifetime.

Woah...did I just time travel or is it almost May?

2011-04-28T23:54:00.001-04:00

I think that I may have lost a month! April was so crazy here at Casa de Visions I find myself stumbling into May gobsmacked at how fast the weeks flew by! We've given ourselves a lot of projects and work this past month and we're finally starting to finish some big tasks. We've got a finished wedding to share, a maternity shoot and another wedding coming soon and we're launching a new website in the next week or so! Don't get used to it though, we're shopping for a sleeker design and new host that will allow us to do some really fun things...we're hoping to unveil the site makeover by Fall.

Anyway, there's been some fun in between the work and I thought I'd say hello to our neglected blog readers and share some photos from a few Spring outings.

James and I took our first official photo cruise of the year, to our favorite spots...except the one we suspect may have been a hallucination as we couldn't locate it again to save our lives. I'm pretty sure it was real last year...glitch in the Tiverton grid of the matrix? I should stop watching movies for a while...it's definitely time for summer!

What was I doing? See this is why I lose entire months of time...onto the photos!

Check out this handsome fella...I should get his number...

I know I'm biased, but my son is pretty damn cute. Just sayin'.

For anyone who has ever wondered why I don't post as many photos of my beautiful daughter as I do my son...it is because my beautiful daughter has been eaten by a far too beautiful tween who makes this face at me when I take her picture.

Can't say she isn't her mother's daughter!

I've got so many photos to share in the next week, lots of blog posts to come including a peek into a new wedding tradition: The First Look!

Altared Visions on Offbeat Bride.com! OMG.

2011-03-30T16:38:00.000-04:00

You guys...we're featured on one of our very most favorite blogs, Offbeat Bride!!! Offbeat Bride is a must-see for all future brides and grooms!! They feature some of the most creative and unique weddings I've seen on the interwebs.

Check it out here!
http://offbeatbride.com/2011/03/living-room-wedding

Thanks to Rich & Michelle for letting us photograph their amazing wedding!

Finn & Norah's Spring Session

2011-03-16T23:04:00.000-04:00

I'm constantly being asked if we do family sessions, the answer is YES! We love family sessions! Newborn, maternity, couples or the whole family, we always have a blast. We have the sessions in homes, parks or anywhere else that is special or beautiful to you and your family.

With the weather finally warming and the dirty piles of streetsnow finally washing away, we're seeing the wedding inquiries slow in favor of family and engagement sessions and the first of those were with Finn & Norah!

Behold the cute!

Because We Cannot Resist A Photobooth...

2011-03-13T13:27:00.003-04:00

From last night's wedding...consider this our official disclaimer that if you have a photobooth, we WILL raid it. You've been warned.

The photobook courtesy of www.seemonkeyphotobooth.com

HUGE Contest & Giveaway!!

2011-03-09T15:53:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone! We've teamed up with our friend Ashley of Lady Luck Boutique for a really fun contest and giveaway! Ashley approached us with the idea and we're really excited. So what's up for grabs?

A complete makeover, courtesy of Ashley who is a licensed beautifying pro and owner of Lady Luck Boutique.
The winner will get to take home ALL the products used for the makeover, customized for your hair and skin types.
A fun photoshoot with James and I to finish off the full rockstar experience! You'll get a high-res disc, too!

Watch Ashley's video for details!

Aiden.

2011-03-02T23:45:00.000-05:00

In a lull between weddings? Check.
New photography gear? Check.
Wickedly cute toddler at my disposal?

Check.

Test Driving the 5D at the Rhode Island Spring Flower Show (Providence, RI)

2011-02-27T12:00:00.001-05:00

Well, I've finally pulled the trigger on my camera upgrade. I'm the proud new owner of a Canon 5D Mark II camera body and I.love.this.thing. James, my daughter Zoe and I ventured out in the rain to get some quality photography time in before Zoe heads back to school tomorrow. Our first stop was Hunt's in Providence, RI to pick up my new camera. Joy!

I'm letting Zoe use my Canon 20D with my 50mm 1.8 attached...a fairly inexpensive but workhorse combo for an 11 year old photographer. She got some great shots, I showed her aperture priority mode and told her to get in close! When she gets home tomorrow I'll upload some of her photos. She took it to the stables where she has riding lessons to photograph her horse this weekend. Gotta encourage the next generation, right? Art is important.

Who knows? Maybe she'll retire me somewhere tropical some day!

Among the beautiful vignettes and garden displays we found Vendor We Love Greenlion Designs, with a beautiful centerpiece display.

Check out the pear, love it! Kim does beautiful work and I encourage all my clients to check her out!

Anyway, the 5D...this baby and my new 50mm 1.4 (that's coming my way this week) are going to make some wedding magic this season! :)

More pics on flickr and more to come!

Rockstar Couple: Rich & Michelle's Providence, RI House Party Wedding!

2011-02-25T14:01:00.003-05:00

You may remember Rich & Michelle from their oh-so-Rich-and-Michelle engagement session last month.

They tied the knot on an arctic January afternoon in Providence, RI at their new apartment. Since they just moved in and lacked furniture, the duplex apartment served as a perfect open (and free!) space for their small, nontraditional, absolutely hilarious wedding.

Rich and Michelle swore they'd never get married, so when they changed their minds they wanted the least possible hassle for the best possible wedding. So what's a couple to do when the courthouse isn't enough, but the thought of a reception with line-dancing sends shivers down the spine? Do what you do every weekend...throw a house party!

But this time...with formal attire and false lashes!

They got ready at home with their family and bundled up to shoot the formals outside in downtown Providence.

(I believe this is Michelle's "holy shit it's cold" face.)

It was cold, and I mean...COLD, but this family were a pack of troopers and tossed their jackets aside and endured while James and I tried to get our shots before hypothermia set in.

We survived this successfully as well as the Hell known informally as Exiting The Providence Place Mall Parking Garage with just enough time for Rich & Michelle to walk down the aisle in their dining room...a bit late. What kinda celebrity couple shows up on time, anyway?

Michelle rocked a vintage gown, they were married by a temporarily ordained friend, sealed with teary vows (Michelle, you softie) and toasted with an immediate and abundant flow of alcohol. Their cake and favors should make the Dr. Who fans out there swoon...

A little touch of tradition...

Told you...

Michelle's toast, thanking everyone for being there and sending a dedication to Rich's Mom, who passed away a few years ago.

The cake cutting ended without injury...

The couple announced there'd be no dancing, just drinking and partying...and took a long sigh of relief that all the "wedding stuff" was done and it was finally time to celebrate. By nights end, guests and family were trailing out, dress shirts were dribbled (in one case soaked...Rich) with beer and everyone was smiling.

...just like a wedding should be. We've shot weddings in mansions, apartments and museums. Regardless of where they're held, what they cost or how they're done, every wedding should be as joyful as this one. Thanks for having us guys! To Archie & Edith of 2011, have a wonderful happy life. <3

Hello Pinterest, Goodbye Life!

2011-02-05T14:43:00.000-05:00

ATTN: Wedding planning couples who dare...there is a new addictive social bookmarking website and it is amazing for wedding planning!

Pinterest is a new website, currently in beta testing, where you can "pin" things you love from the internet to a sort of virtual idea board. I just got my invite yesterday and I've already lost hours of my life to the endless amazing ideas, photos, products and tutorials circulating pinterest.

Here are some screencaps from my boards. I have a board for random stuff I like, apartment decor ideas, photography inspiration, hair & makeup I like, fashion and a board for Altared Visions where I am collecting cool wedding ideas to tell you all about!

Here's my main page with my different pin boards:

And here's my decor board:

Cool right? Because the site is in beta, you have to request an invitation but mine only took about a week. I have a few invites that I will give to clients upon request, first come first serve! Or sign up for an invite here. Enjoy!

More from Nicole & Keith's New Year's Eve wedding (Plymouth/Kingston MA)

2011-02-03T11:00:00.002-05:00

We have been so busy! Engagement season is in full swing and we, like some of you, are buried in new year organizing tasks and tax forms and 2011 is already flying by. James and I are in the process of divorcing our ISP and switching to an admittedly lousier, but less corporately terrifying ISP so we've been unable to upload images and blog as much as usual. We're back in business now though so let's begin the month of romance with more from Nicole & Keith's New Year's Eve wedding in Kingston, MA.

Venue: Indian Pond Country Club

The getting ready shots are always fun for me, there's a lot of chaos and a lot of laughing and it makes great pictures.

It isn't a wedding until the bustle/lace-up panic...

I also love the atmosphere right before the bride and groom get to see each other.

From there on out it's a lot of smiling...

The venue looked amazing with purple uplights and lots of festive sparkle!

Ornament favors...

Nicole and Keith had an amazing first dance.

This one makes me smile...

And the dancing never stopped, from sweet to wild, that dancefloor was packed all night. I need to get the DJ's name from Nicole, he was fantastic.

Congrats Keith and Nicole! We hope you count down many, many, many happy new years together.

Winter Blues Special!! FREE Engagement or Rock the Dress Session!

2011-01-15T11:47:00.001-05:00

Winter Blues Special!! FREE Engagement or Rock the Dress Session!

Winter got you down? Let us give you something good! We're throwing a FREE engagement or rock the dress session in with our wedding photography package! For a short time only, contact us for more info!

Know a future bride? Pass this along!

5 Tips For Excellent Wedding Photos

2011-01-13T15:02:00.000-05:00

"Tips for me? Isn't that your job?"

Yes, it is! But if your photographs are among the most important bits of your big day, there's plenty of things you can do to ensure you get the best out of your photographers.

1. TIME OF DAY
Consider the time of day in relation to the light. Daytime weddings pose the problem of harsh, direct, often overhead sunlight. Just about every day wedding I've done some well-meaning helper will point me into the middle of barren fields and harsh sun and say "is that enough light?" It's too much! If you're looking at a day wedding, inquire about your venue's shady or covered areas for photographs. If you're going for a late afternoon/sunset wedding...congratulations, you've got happy photographers with lots of ambiance to play with!

NOTE: No matter what, a skilled photographer can make magic happen at any time, so if this makes you panic, relax. You won't be the first noontime wedding for an experienced pro! These are taken both in that harsh light, and then in shade later in the day.

2. UPLIGHTING!
Uplighting is my favorite wedding trend right now. Basically, lights are positioned around your wedding reception venue on the floor, splashing light (sometimes colored) up the walls. This transforms a dark hall into a ballroom and it makes the photographers happy because with nice background light, we can capture things without nuking you into next week with our strobes.

3. PLAN AHEAD!
Got a lot of family photos you want? Make a list! Don't worry about things like rings, the kiss, bridal party, etc...I'm talking about the combinations of cousins and uncles and college friends that might slip your mind on such an fast-paced day. It's also very helpful to assign someone who knows the people on your list to assist the photographer in rounding people up or pointing out important people. Your DJ can also call off your list.

4. BREAK TRADITION
Bear with me now...I'm about to blow some minds. What if you saw your future spouse BEFORE you walked down the aisle? In a (mostly) empty room, your future husband or wife is standing nervously with their back turned to you. You creep up and tap them on the shoulder, they turn around and see you...fabulous you...and think "I am the luckiest SOB in town". All the while, your photographers are quietly clicking away, catching the tears and smiles. This is called a "First Look" and it's a personal choice to toss tradition aside like this, but I love the intimacy of it. You don't have to share that first moment with a crowd and the photo potential is off the charts. You can also use this time to get your formal portraits out of the way, while you're fresher. Some couples do all their formals before the wedding so that they can enjoy their cocktail hour. (Hey, you're paying for it!)

For some wonderful info on the first look, check out one of our favorite wedding photographer's blog post about it here.

5. UNCLE BOB
Help us limit the Uncle Bob factor. I'll let you in on a little trade secret many photographers are afraid to bring up. Your dear uncle/aunt/cousin/bff(we call them "Uncle Bobs") who is a photographer is a wonderful person to have at your wedding. Likely they'll give you some fun shots and enjoy themselves in the process. But please...we beg you (we = all wedding photographers), don't be upset if we send them away. Uncle Bobs, next to obtrusive videographers, are most likely to ruin your hired photographer's shot at least a few times during the day. When they follow us through the formal shots, they're not just being an adorable pain...they're distracting the subjects. I can't tell you how many group shots I have bemoaned because one person was looking at Uncle Bob and not me. We know they mean well, and usually they're easy to shoot alongside (like the fellas down below, this picture just makes me laugh) but sometimes they just gotta scoot. Don't worry, we'll be polite!

With that said, Uncle Bobs have trained me well in closely inspecting the eyeballs of all subjects before sending them back to the bar! ;)

I will post more of these as I think of them. I hope you find them helpful, if you do...please share this post!

James' favorite 2010 shots!

2011-01-07T11:00:00.002-05:00

OK so Pam has been pushing me (Like a nurturing wolverine) to finally get my feet wet and do my first Blog entry ever! I decided what better way to do that then with my picked favorites of 2010. Sure it sounds like a good idea at first, until I stare at the screen with sweat dripping down my face. So I apologize before hand if I stumble, get off track or just stop making sense ;)

I created a slide show of my flickr set as well for all of my 2010 favorites. I chose at random ten photos to share with everyone.

We'll start with Adrienne and Eric, We decided it was a gorgeous day out and what better to do than head to the beach cameras in hand. (I do love a random photo shoot)

Next was my first wedding with my new 50mm lens, John and Darlene were great!

We spent the weekend in Provincetown MA for a wedding we were shooting and decided to spend a night out on the town walking around taking pictures.

A shot of Jack Farley aka. Johnny Laundry, during his and Beth's engagement shoot.

One of the pictures I took of my sister got chosen as a finalist on the Pioneer Woman's Blog, which was a huge honor for me.

Now I know what you're thinking, a lot of Black and White have been chosen so far. It seems you're right and I just noticed it myself. My eye always seems to go towards that direction, which is another reason Pam rocks my world because her color photos are amazing. So let me see about pumping up the color if you will.

Sara and Josh's wedding was a lot of fun, it had everything from malfunctioning tiki torches to a butterfly release. Here was a shot I got of her during the formals, I was like a ninja and took it while Pam was shooting (I'm naughty I know)

However the year wasn't all work! There was definitely some play too :) Here are some shots I got while at the Salem Zombie Walk and the Rock and Shock Horror convention.

Rounding off the last one, is probably one of my favorites of the year. Not because of the technical quality, or the lighting, or even the processing. I chose this one of my Sister and her family (which was taken during light testing) because every time I look at it, it makes me smile. It truly shows the dynamic of her and her family. Which, have I mentioned is three boys!

For everyone who made it through my ramblings I congratulate you ;) I truly am a lucky guy and I couldn't ask for a better Girlfriend/ Partner/ Friend, than what I have in Pam. She pushes me in all the right ways and keeps me motivated to be a better person and artist. I look forward to what 2011 brings for both myself, Pam and Altared Visions and hope you enjoy the misadventures that come along as I know we do.

My 2010 Favorite Shots

2011-01-06T16:38:00.000-05:00

It's a new year and I am so ready for it. I've been spending all of 2011 so far purging my apartment (as I usually spend the winter doing the kind of clean-out only months without sunshine can bring forth) and with that comes my annual re-visit of my work. Most photographers would agree this is a weird, sometimes miserable and incredibly enlightening experience. You see where you learned, where you triumphed and where you failed. Then you hit the ground running for a new year.

I've put together a slideshow and set on flickr of my favorite shots from my last year of professional and personal work, you can see that here.

Here's my top 10. In no order because that would be way too hard.

Adrienne on the beach.
This was taken on a random photoshoot, which happened a few times in the summer of photographers/models/make-up artists running together that was 2010. We used only a gold reflector and the high, bright sun.

Ashleypatra
Again, another day of play from the summer...this time with Ashley and a foxy gown we'd been wanting to shoot. But my favorite shot of the day has no dress and no color...just Ashley and her eyes.

Aiden's 2nd Birthday
Far from a technically perfect photo, this made the list for obvious cute factor.

Nicole's Trash The Dress
This photo spent some time in Flickr's Explore and got me the most views of the year. It was a last shot, after we'd started packing...often when I do my best work! "No, I lied...just ONE more."

Beth & Johnny in Little Italy
I love this picture. It's whimsical, it's dramatic and it's of two very awesome people who are expecting the future coolest kid in school this year! Congrats!!

James & I - Newport Self Portrait
It was a beautiful day, we had nothing to do except our favorite activity: hopping in the car and driving somewhere to take photos.

Maria
I took this shot with natural light and a reflector after a chaotic but successful and fun family shoot with James' beautiful sister Maria and her three boys.

Greatness in Dot
Shooting Greg is always fun, and we got some great stuff that day on the dirty trolley tracks in Dorchester, MA. I believe this one made the album cover. When Greg is famous and ballin', he's going to buy me a pony. You heard it here first.

John & Darlene's rehearsal dinner
Upon first impression, wedding photographers are often the source of extreme suspicion to children.

Keila at The Hideout New England's 1st Group Shoot
I chose this because not only is Keila beautiful and the light where I wanted it, but also because this was the first time I got to meet a couple Hideout cronies in person and shoot with them!

Alright! Now it's time for 2011! Bring it on!!

HUGE thanks to all my beautiful brides, models and friends who made 2010 so memorable. It was a tough start, but we all made it through! xox

Rockstar Couple: Nicole & Keith's New Year's Eve Wedding (Plymouth/Kingston MA)

2011-01-01T17:44:00.002-05:00

Happy New Year!!

Nicole & Keith have been waiting forever for their big night. Nicole booked me shortly after she and Keith were engaged, before James and I teamed up, and put that long wait to work in planning one of the most gorgeous, festive and beautiful weddings we've seen. Every detail was perfect and thoughtful,the bride & groom bears Nicole left on their hotel bed, the Christmas ornament favors, New Year's Eve hats and Nicole's FABULOUS shoes with "I DO" and Keith's initials bedazzled on each sole...so sweet. Oh...and the venue, Indian Pond Country Club in Kingston, MA was absolutely amazing. We'd never been there and it was a real treat to photograph.

One of my favorite parts of this wedding was ringing in the New Year doing my dream job, with wonderful James and not one, not two, but three of our couple in attendance. Darlene & Chris from my first year shooting who apparently attend weddings professionally, Nicole & Keith of course, and future Rockstar Couple Kat & Eric whose cruise ship wedding we'll be shooting in May. We get the coolest, best-looking couples ever and I will fight anyone who says otherwise.

(jk...I'm a lover, not a fighter. Usually.)

Nicole and Keith: Thank you for choosing us to shoot your amazing, beautiful celebration! Happy new year, enjoy the honeymoon!

More to come!

Michelle & Rich's Engagment Session (Fall River, MA)

2010-12-26T09:00:00.000-05:00

Rich is a bit of a local celebrity and show promoter amongst the local music scene and the kind of guy that will both make a party both amazing and destined to end in flashing blue lights simultaneously. Michelle is an account executive at AMP Agency and this smiling, laid-back woman who yings Rich's yang perfectly. Michelle moved across the country to be with Rich and the two of them together make an amazingly funny real-life sitcom couple.

When they told us they'd brought props, we knew it would be a fun shoot. The rubberneckers slowing down to see the masked couple and photo lights around the Braga Bridge alley ways really made it that much funnier. Certain things don't happen much around Fall River...rockstar engagement shoots being one of those things.

Most women wouldn't be open to WWE match poses...but Michelle, after initial concern for her role in faking a choke slam, was instructing Rich to fake punch her toward the camera, not away, in no time.

Rich and Michelle are getting hitched in a small ceremony in January...their favors? Personalized Jones soda bottles with this photo on it! Pretty cool, but I'm a bit biased. Congrats guys!

December is for celebration.

2010-12-25T08:00:00.012-05:00

December is always a hectic but fun month here. My brother's birthday, our family Christmas party, my son Aiden's birthday and then Christmas and the New year roll through one after another and I've barely cleaned the cake pan between use. (Alright, my dishwasher has barely cleaned the pan...)

Sometimes I forget to use my camera for me. One of my personal resolutions for the new year is to finally conquer a 365 project. I've gotten my hands on a Canon 20D body I will probably tow around in my purse to help keep me going. James wants to do one as well...we've got a lot of plans!

To practice, I've been using my camera for me all week. It was a good week to start with my family celebrating my daughter Zoe's 11th birthday, the kids decorating the tree and my son in his brand new (gently used, rescued from storage by James) racecar big boy bed. I can hardly wait to wake up to a juice cup being thrust in my face and I will miss him calling "Goooooood Mooooorrrnnning!" from his crib at 7:30am sharp.

Somewhere along the line, my baby became a boy and my little girl became a tween. Woah. Happy Birthday Zoe, please have mercy on me over the next decade. :)

Behind The Scenes: James, Class of 2010

2010-12-24T08:00:00.001-05:00

James is my friend Kate's brother and he was a breeze to shoot. We arrived at his favorite summer hang out on Cape Cod just as the sun way closing in on setting. This is our favorite time to shoot because of how much you can do with a changing sky and directional light.

To get the shot above, we boomed a Canon 430EX in a shoot-through brolly. I was set at f/4 and 1/200th (to obey my sync speed).

There's James being the most attractive lightstand a girl can have.

Just after this shot we moved about 20 feet to the right and shot using the sun as the key light instead of the rim. Here's a couple from that spot to give you a good idea of the variety you can pull out of ten minutes during sunset.

James (the senior, not the sexy lightstand) wanted his photo made in that spot to get the white house in the background...apparently there's an urban legend involving dead bodies...

Good times!

Recent work - Winter Family Sessions

2010-12-23T08:00:00.015-05:00

After a summer full of weddings, we always enjoy fall and winter family sessions because they're a nice change of pace for us...and we actually get to enjoy the outdoors a little ourselves! We watched Tamara Lackey's CreativeLive seminar on family and child portrait photography recently and we're pretty stoked to add family sessions to our regular schedule.

Here's some favorites from our family, senior and baby shoots this fall and winter! Click the photos for full galleries.

We can't wait to meet our 2011 families!

Holy S&*t, it's almost 2011!

2010-12-23T02:04:00.000-05:00

Dear readers, we are enjoying a much-needed break and re-group before 2011 officially starts. Part of our New Year's resolution list commits us to regular blogging of shoots, behind the scenes stuff and anything else we think you might find fun or interesting. We're not waiting for the new year to test out our new goals, so we've got lots of posts coming including some of our unblogged shoot favorites, our best of 2010 round ups and maybe we will even share our resolutions. :)

Until then, we wish you and yours the very best this holiday season, and watch for our live tweeting at our New Year's Eve wedding!

Rockin' The Dress: Nicole & Eddie

2010-11-04T16:32:00.001-04:00

James and I have been dying to start doing some "rock (or trash) the dress" sessions for a while. A rock the dress session is a great way to get some use out of The Dress and give you amazing images that'll outlive your carbonite-encased, perfectly preserved gown.

These are also great for couples who didn't have a lot of time to spend on photos on their wedding day or just want to have another fun day in their rockin' dress! Some brides opt to take this to the next level and trashtheir dress. We've got a couple of those booked...stay tuned!

(Hair & make up by the fabulous duo behind Lady Luck Boutique)

Rockstar Couple: Billy & Christine

2010-10-29T14:01:00.000-04:00

James and I arrived at Christine's "getting ready" location with open jaws. We get to see some really beautiful homes in our line of work and this was definitely one of them. We share a "luxury condo" which sounds really great until you consider what "luxury" means in terms of Fall River rentals. It's more like a nice brick building surrounded by dilapidated urban ruins...a cubic zirconia in the rough, if you will. We were in full swoon over the high ceilings and the oceans of beautiful window light that laid before us in this beautiful Gloucester, MA home.

I found Christine in an upstairs bedroom, smiling nervously as her sister struggled to pin the panels on the back of her gown in place. James was off light peeping around the house and as per usual, the flower girl and I got aquainted. Flower girls are always my favorite kids to shoot. No one does honest expression like a flower girl.

One of my favorite parts of my job is seeing all the unique details put into weddings. Everything is painstakingly selected and you can immediate tell a lot about the couple by the details of their wedding. Christine hand-made these amazing bouquets, I must have taken fifteen shots of them alone.

And her garters matched my camera strap...girl after my own heart.

Christine's father couldn't wipe the grin off his face all day. Look at this guy, this picture makes me teary-eyed. I know, I'm a wuss.

Remember the light I was raving about above?

After a renagade chase to track down the limo we opted to follow that left us at a redlight (now what did we learn?), we pulled into the church and scurried over to catch Christine getting out of the limo with the classic "let's do this!" smile on her face. The moments in the back of the church are some of our favorites because everyone is wearing their anticipation on their sleeve and that's the kinda stuff we photojournalistic shooters live for.

This shot of Billy as he saw Christine in all her bride-ly glory is one of my favorites from James this year.

Christine and Billy wanted to do their formals on the beach and as luck would have it, we had the perfect overcast sky for them! A bright, cloudless day on the beach is the kinda thing we have nightmares about. We did a little light testing and took some of my favorite formals ever.

They chose the beach because way off in the hazy horizon you could see the Boston skyline, where they met. Add that sweet detail to the rocking sailboats, golden light and beautiful rocky coastline and it really was the perfect location, on a very perfect day.

The reception was held at the Gloucester House and full of some of those great details I was talking about up there. There were candles for loved ones who'd passed on over the fireplace, a cupcake cake, a scavenger hunt for the kids to keep them busy and "rap sheet" cards for guests to fill out with memories and info to be combined in a book for Christine and Billy. There was even a spot on the rap sheets to affix the mugshot you could take in their self-assembled photobooth that naturally we had to test out!

The food at The Gloucester House was amazing and their staff was great. The dancefloor got lots of action and the whole place was buzzing all night.

We had a great time with Billy and Christine and wish them a lifetime of happiness together. Thank you to both of them and their wonderful people for treating us so well and allowing us the privilege of being their photographers.

James' photo featured on The Pioneer Woman's photography blog today!

2010-10-02T10:20:00.000-04:00

Today we woke up to find James' beautiful photo of his sister Maria featured in Group 2 of the Pioneer Woman's Your Best Photo challenge! Pretty awesome!!

Rockstar Couple: Mike & Andrea

2010-09-29T23:19:00.000-04:00

Mike and Andrea are the kind of people that you instantly relax around. Our job is an amazing but nerve-wracking gig sometimes and couples like Mike & Andrea make us wonder what we ever worry about...our couples rock!

These two have been together forever...and I mean forever...and they just radiated love and happiness all evening. They almost made me totally forget that just before the bride walked down the aisle, my Canon bit the dust.

See that? That was my last frame...but it is one of my favorites this year. Andrea's face is pure excitement!

One of the many reasons James and I come as a package deal (aside from his obvious decorative qualities) is for situations like this. James didn't miss a step taking over and I became the light technician for the event. We had a great time collaborating on images and I got my camera back a couple of weeks later with a brand new shutter!

Formals were a blast with this crowd.

The sun was high, unfiltered and hot but a little collaboration (possibly a little inner-cursing) and a lot of battery power bent it to our mighty will and gave us this dramatic, almost cinematic light.

Did I mention they were fun?

The reception was wild, Mike and Andrea's friends waited a long time for that wedding and they got a rockstar welcome as the golden sun lit up the entire reception room.

James took this while laying in a spilled drink on the floor. My guy has dedication!

Some couples just have it...and James and I are lucky that they take us along for the ride!

Julie & John's Garden Engagement Session

2010-09-20T19:47:00.000-04:00

Julie & John are tying the knot in style in historic Salem, Massachusetts next March and opted to do their engagement session in a beautiful garden created and kept by John's parents in Barrington, RI. The garden was beautiful and despite the humidity, it was a beautiful day!

James and I rushed from spot to spot in looking for the light while Julie and John patiently waited and John's parents looked on from the window. When we settled on a few places, we abadoned our bags in the grass (you'll see why this is funny later) and went snap-happy with our adorable couple laughing together.

About halfway through our session, I was holding a light boom-style for James and struggling to shuffle all the gear in my hands so I ran over to our backs to put my camera away and ran right back where I came from as our bags were absolutely swarmed in winged and unwinged ants. I'm not talking a dozen ants...I'm talking THOUSANDS of ants.

Luckily, only 50% of our staff are terrified of bugs and James went to work moving the crawling bags of horror over to the pavement in the hopes the tiny beasties would bail. Julie and John joined in moving backs while I squirmed and retched a safe twenty or thirty feet away.

We went on shooting and snapped some beautiful rim-lit and sunflare beauties at the end of our shoot. Julie and John were starting to wilt in the humidity at this point and I wanted to go home and take a shower in boiling hot, ant-murdering water.

Bug horror aside, we had a blast capturing Julie and John's smitten smiles and can't wait for March when we'll spend an evening at the Lyceum Restaurant in Salem, MA for their wedding! Till next time!

For more pics from this session click here and here.

Welcome to the blog!

2010-09-06T13:44:00.000-04:00

James and I are really excited to start a companion blog to our website at http://altaredvisions.com! We plan to use this blog to tell the stories of our clients and their wedding days as well as show off images. We think it's important to get to know us if you want to work with us, so while it may not be a purist's definition of "professional" to put ourselves out there...we don't care.

We adore our clients and typically keep in touch long after the big day while we plan out printing and future sessions and of course as our clients pay us the greatest compliment in the form of referrals to their friends, family and co-workers. Because of this long relationship, we think it's crucial that we mesh and a big part of that is getting to know us as well as we will get to know you!

We're not the couple for every couple, but we might just be perfect for you!

As I write this, I'm fumbling through working a blogger for the first time in a few years so excuse the mess if you've found your way here before this "official" launch!