Photography blog of Ned Jackson photography, photographer in the Boston area.

Meghan & Chris’ Vermont Wedding – Day 2

05-02-2013

I think with last week’s sneak peek, you’re probably aware that I’ve got something fun to share. Not sure where to even start with this one. It’s been nearly 2 years that I’ve been waiting to share these images. Meghan and Chris’ beautiful wedding was just recently featured in Martha Stewart Weddings and I think you’ll see why when you see how stunning this day really was. I was more than honored to be able to capture this day. It was a visual Candyland for me, and after three days of shooting (I slept like never before at the end of it), I was extremely proud of the work I did to capture the moments, the feel and the beauty of this gorgeous day. A special thanks to Mark Davidson for his help during the weekend. A few of the images below belong to Mark and I’m grateful for his help! I think you’ll also see that Meghan and Chris made the task pretty easy and I was so fun to see these two happy faces tie the knot.

Without further adieu, I’ve pulled some of my favorite moments and details from the day to give you a feel for everything. I hope you enjoy!

Nothing like red barn in the Vermont sun to set the scene. Invitations below were designed and printed by Gus and Ruby out of Portsmouth, NH.

Girls started their morning with a little slideshow:

The talented Lena, from Hair that Moves, securing Meghan’s hair into place.

Rain and fog greeted the girls in the morning. Here they look over the ceremony site as it literally pours. Grim outlook for the outdoor ceremony under the tall pines.

Meghan never seemed worried for a moment…. although she did watch the rain closely.

Mark hung out with the guys as they got ready. Chris makes some final adjustments to the wardrobe.

I was able to sneak a quick portrait of Chris before the ceremony.

The girls begin getting ready to wait.

Meghan’s preparations:

The beautiful bride:

Stunning flowers by Kate Parker of Kate Parker Designs:

A few details lining the pathway to the ceremony:

A few of my favorite details from the ceremony. Chalkboard by Gus and Ruby.

Meghan and her father make their way down the isle as Chris watches.

Chris’ parents:

A truly magnificent place to be married.

Klaus seems nonplussed to be part of the action.

More ceremony details:

Love this.

All smiles during the ceremony.

The couple is literally being pelted with lavender from the guests! Guests get so hostile with things to throw!

A stolen kiss at the end of the isle.

The couple whisked away in a vintage Austin Healy:

The bridal party’s ride wasn’t too shabby either.

A little bubbly to celebrate the moment.

Just enough room for the whole bunch.

These two made my job pretty easy.

Klaus steals the show:

Meghan and her father:

Love this casual formal of the bridal party.

I had a few moments alone with the couple. I wanted to incorporate the old New England stone walls, trees and the gorgeous light pouring through.

Took the couple up to the hilltop for some shots with the view.

One of my favorites from the day.

The massive tent was provided by Sperry Tents. Printed items by Gus and Ruby and the flowers and lighting by Kate Parker. Not a single detail was overlooked.

Wait till you see this cake spread. This is not your ordinary cake station… this is a cake making bar. That’s right… choose your own adventure. And it was A-MAZ-ING. amazing. Kudos to Erin Gardner from Wild Orchid Baking Company for this concept.

The first dance…. so cute.

Watching these two during the toasts just made you giggle because of how happy they were to be together.

Husband and wife.

Congo line? Yes please. Grandma? Check.

Some pyrotechnics to kick off the party before the rain came.

Dinner.

Despite all the shuffle, they were still together. Love this one.

I feel like this one sums up the whole weekend.

It was a bit of a dream team of vendors that pulled together to help make this day so picturesque, so I figured I’d share some of the list:

Event Design and Flowers: Kate Parker Designs

Catering: Philip Stone Caterers

Stationary: Gus & Ruby Letterpress

Calligraphy: Elizabeth Porcher Jones

Cake: Wild Orchid Bakery Co.

Tents: Sperry Tents Seacoast

Hair: Hair that Moves

Makeup: DD Nickel

Special thanks again to Mark Davidson for his help during the weekend. Also, a huge thanks to Meghan and Chris and both families for inviting us to take part in this beautiful event! If you’re still hungry for more, check out the slideshow below:

Meghan & Chris – Short Version from Ned Jackson on Vimeo.

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Meghan & Chris’ Vermont Wedding – Day 1

04-25-2013

I’ve been so excited to share this wedding for so long! Believe it or not, Meghan and Chris were married back in the summer of 2011, very close to when the hurricane came up through New England and ripped a path through Vermont. It’s a miracle that all the guests were able to make it to the Waterbury area for what turned out to be a jaw-droppingly beautiful event that was just featured in Martha Stewart Weddings (hence the delay in posting).

I spent three days recording the event (which made for quite the editing task), and I thought I’d share some images from Day 2 to give you a feel for the vibe and the beautiful countryside before sharing the whole wedding. And while I’m not one to usually offer multiple blog posts on a single wedding, I may have to make an exception here – and I think you’ll understand why when you see how beautiful things were. I was joined all weekend by the talented Mark Davidson who helped snap some of these images. The event was organized and designed by the hysterical Kate Parker of Kate Parker Designs. I hope you enjoy the small sample. I’m trying out a little more informal style of posting the images – let me know what you think.
On Saturday morning guests were treated to a few options to tour different parts of the working farm on the property. One of the tours was the cheese house where they make an amazing Tarentaise cheese. Selfishly – as a cheese lover (and an air conditioning lover) – I opted to join guests for the cheese tour. Here’ s few shots from the tour:

Mark ‘opted’ for the hike to tour some of the maple syrup operations. Not a shabby way to spend the morning!

Around lunchtime, guests were invited to a ‘Beer & Cheese’ event complete with lawn games, pool, good tunes (the band was killer) and an abundance of Vermont made microbrews and cheeses. Here’s a few pics just to give you the feel. Meghan and her friends are playing bocce on the right. Tough to beat the views.

However, the main event of the beer and cheese lunch was a ridiculous air show pulled together by Chris’ father, who is flying in one of the helicopters on the left, and in the WWII plane on the right. Pretty cool experience to see these aircraft so close.

BUT….. not as cool as actually getting to RIDE in the helicopters!!! That’s me strapping into the back seat. (and yes… at 6’4″ a spinning rotor is a freaky thing)

We were entertained with some AMAZING views of the valley. When I could close my mouth long enough to think, I snapped a few images of the tent and platform that was constructed by Sperry Tents for the wedding that would take place the next day. In the bottom picture you can actually see the tent off in the distance and the cheese house in the foreground.

As the sun started setting over the valley, guests got gussied up for a barn dance which would take place in the barn right next to the reception tent. A few details from the barn dance:

As the sun was setting I grabbed Meghan and Chris for a few informal portraits on their last night before the wedding. As you can see, they made my job easy.

I tried to keep the post within reason – but it’s hard to sum up so much activity in one post! Stay tuned for the wedding post to follow shortly!

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Jessie & Ned – A Gorgeous New Hampshire ‘Backyard’ Wedding

04-04-2013

Ned is a pretty rare name. As a kid, I had to deal with the shame and disappointment that NO toy store would ever stock a ‘NED’ license plate for my bike. The name’s only quick foray into fame was during the Three Amigos when Little Neddy Neederlander captured so many hearts. But it never caught on in the mainstream, even after its brush with Hollywood. So when I come across another Ned, there’s a bit of an immediate bond from a shared set of experiences. So you can imagine my delight at getting the chance to photograph a ‘Ned’s’ wedding!

In all seriousness, I think you’ll see from these pictures just how absolutely adorable these two are together. They were married on a beautiful property up in New Hampshire and the weather cooperated just in time to deliver a truly stunning location for an outdoor ceremony and tented reception. I feel so lucky to have been there to capture two people so obviously happy to be together. It was also a chance to work with the talented and supremely fun, Linnea Tangorra, who did a beautiful job planning and designing this wedding. It’s always hard to pull a few favorites for the blog, but I did my best. I hope you enjoy the little sampler!

Ready for business:

I call this moment: The Lockdown.

Flowers waiting for the action.

It’s always such a treat to have a location with such stunning natural light.

Pretty typical – as the girls are getting their dresses on, the guys are outside playing football.

I was joined by James Federico for the day who spent some time with the guys outside and got this great action shot.

Practicing ‘La Tigre’ while applying deodorant.

Meanwhile back in the house:

Love this one:

Beautiful detail work on Jessie’s veil:

Weddings are fun, especially when you don’t take it too seriously. 5 points to anyone who can correctly guess what was happening here!

More gorgeous florals near the ceremony:

There were NO dry eyes as Jessie made her way down the isle.

This was the best part:

See what I mean about the gorgeous location?

A few favorites from the ceremony:

James caught this moment from the side:

The second kiss as husband and wife, just as butterflies were released over them:

Jessie and Ned made sure to step away and spend a few moments here and there taking in the day and trying to force themselves to remember it. It was pretty adorable to be able to witness that.

Some of the details in and around the property. The place cards were hanging in the barn near the bars, and the sunflowers were spaced throughout the property.

James captured this great overview of the property during the cocktail hour. (I’m probably out in the field beyond the tent)

Oh yeah… this is what I was doing

Some of the gorgeous table settings:

As the sun set, the crowd was ready for the party to begin:

A GREAT first dance!

Some other favorites during the party:

Ned doing a little cameo number for the crowd:

Thank you so much to Jessie and Ned for allowing me to capture such a loving and beautiful wedding! And Kudos to Linnea Tangorra for pulling it all together with seeming ease! Special thanks to James Federico for his help as well! Make sure to check out the slideshow below:

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Emilia Jane - April 4, 2013 - 2:24 pm

Beautiful!!!

Personal Growth – Peter Yang Workshop

03-27-2013

Last week I had the extreme pleasure of taking a workshop with the hilarious, humble and talented Peter Yang (www.peteryang.com). Believe it or not, I’m entering my 10th year of shooting weddings (woot woot)! One thing I’ve learned over the years is that it’s easy to get comfortable and settle into a routine. That gets boring, though. You need to grow as an artist or it stops being fun. Understandably, I needed someone to give me a proverbial kick in the pants. Peter’s workshop appealed to me, not only because he’s a lighting master and photographs insanely interesting people, but because he almost always tells a story with his photographs. At its most base form, that is what I’m doing as a photographer. I see myself as a storyteller. It’s easy to take a portrait of someone to make them look good (and don’t worry – I still want all of my clients to look good), but it’s a lot more challenging to tell a story with that image. Peter pushed us to use all the aspects that make up a photograph (light, posing, gesture, wardrobe, etc.) to tell a story. It was a fully exhausting week that challenged everything I thought I knew about photography, but I definitely came out on the other side with a renewed sense of what it means to make a successful image.

To give you a sense of the flow of the workshop and how these images were made, you’re given an assigned partner, a stack of gear and a model for one hour. You pick a location (while negotiating with other groups) and share the time with your partner who also wants to make a strong image. At times you had as little as five minutes to actually capture a frame. I thought it would be fun to share some of the images from the various days. Some of these were my attempt at trying out a new lighting style, or pushing myself to think more about all the elements of the photo. I hope you enjoy seeing a quick glimpse!

Day 2 (Day 1 was studio work… we don’t need to show those) – Scottish Rite Temple in downtown Santa Fe.

Day 3 – Lamy, NM. (What you can’t see in these pictures is the 15 mph wind blowing all my lights and reflectors over. In the picture on the left, Peter Yang was my assistant!)

Also Day 3 -With this next series I was attempting to shoot a full editorial story as you’d deliver to an editor.

Hope you enjoyed the preview. Feel free to shoot me an email or comment if you have any questions about the workshop.

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