Archive for September, 2010

I met up with some local photographers and had a fun high school senior session in Lowell. Many thanks to Amanda of Mr. Drew Photography for organizing the shoot! I haven’t shot a portrait session in a while, so it was nice to shoot something different for a change since I’m in full engagement and wedding season mode right now. Plus, I’ve actually never done a high school senior session before, and I really enjoyed it!

I absolutely love downtown Lowell, and I’ve always wanted to shoot there. It’s probably one of my favorite cities, but since most of my clients live in Boston, Lowell is kind of a trek for them. Not to mention that it’s considered a suburb: terror strikes on people’s faces at the thought of venturing into the suburbs..or dare I say, the boonies. But Lowell is not just any suburb and does not look like a typical suburb at all. It’s a former mill town, so it is very urban and has lots of converted mills, cobblestone streets, canals, a budding artist community…I could go on and on. Maybe after seeing these pics and the awesome locations, maybe people will change their minds. :)

senior portraits

senior photography

senior portraits in downtown Lowell

senior session in downtown Lowell

senior portrait photography

urban senior session

high school senior session by Lowell canal

high school senior photography

Tomorrow marks the day when I first started this blog! Wow I can’t believe it’s been a year already! I’ve blogged 54 times, which means I’ve exceeded my goal of blogging at least once a week! Yippee! I hope my good habits will continue. Honestly, I could not have done it without the encouragement of my friends, family, and fellow readers. Thanks!! Okay, onto the real reason I’m blogging today…

It was just a few weeks ago when I blogged Emily and Grant’s engagement session, and now they’re married! The weather had cooled down and was just a gorgeous day to get married! I had been looking forward to shooting their wedding ceremony at MIT chapel, which is designed by the famous architect Eero Saarinen who also designed the St. Louis arch (yes I’m a nerd..I like to research all my venues prior to the wedding.). It’s a beautiful church that’s completely circular and windowless except for the large oculus in the ceiling.

MIT chapel

The sun shines down the oculus and hits the metal curtain-like sculpture, producing lots of pretty sparkles.
interior of MIT chapel

Grant getting his boutinniere pinned on by his mom.
groom getting his boutinniere pinned on

Emily looks so happy walking down the aisle..all 4 steps, because the chapel is literally that small!
bride walking down the aisle

I really like wide balcony shots. Many thanks to Karman Lee, my second shooter who caught this beautiful image from the choir loft.
MIT chapel wedding by Boston wedding photographer

Just married!
birde and groom married at Cambridge wedding

A few portraits, then off to the reception.
bride and groom kissing

portraits at MIT chapel

Their car was secretly decorated by family members. So cute!
getaway car

The reception was held at the Harry Parker Boathouse, which is the most modern boat house I’ve ever seen!
harry parker boathouse

Having all their families’ wedding pictures displayed was a really sweet touch.
green centerpieces

pictures of family on their wedding day

toast

Karman was able to get reactions of the guests during the toasts while I focused on the bride and groom.
guest candids

The food was delicious! There were passed hor d’oeuvres and little food stations all around the reception.
reception at henry parker boathouse

henry parker boathouse wedding

first dance

bride during the first dance

feeding the groom cake

cake cutting

Congrats again to you two! I am so happy for you both and loved shooting every minute of your wedding!

More photos on posted on my Facebook page.

This is my longest break from blogging! I have not blogged in a month, and I apologize. I developed tendinitis in my wrists, so I’ve been trying to limit my computer usage once I get home from work. As a result, I am very backed up in editing, but I have amazing clients who have been very patient this last month. Thank you! I am busy packing up my belongings as I’ll be moving to Las Vegas next month!

Liza and Calvin were staying in Hong Kong at the time when they booked me over the phone for their wedding. They were coming back to Boston just a few days before their ceremony, so I didn’t have time to meet them in person before the wedding. All I could think was, “Wow, I hope they like me.” I know this isn’t uncommon in the industry, especially if you are planning a destination wedding, but I feel like there is something missing even if you try to simulate an in person meeting through Skype. It is just not the same. But everything worked out wonderfully (except for the hideous traffic) and I am really excited to show you the wedding!!

The wedding took place a few weeks ago at Wellesley city hall in front of a small, intimate group of friends. When I arrived, I found out that the justice of the peace was willing to hold the ceremony outside. I was extremely excited because city hall has beautiful landscaped yards. It was a sweltering 95 degrees that day but that didn’t phase Liza and Calvin. Since they are from Hong Kong, they are used to the heat and humidity! Thankfully there were some large trees nearby, so we could cool down a little in the shade.

bride and groom at city hall wedding

bride and groom at city hall wedding

They still had their rings in the little Tiffany bags. Cute!
bride and groom exchanging rings

Officially married now!!
just pronounced husband and bride

bride and groom sitting on a bench

We headed over to Wellesley College to take some portraits. It was my first time visiting the college, and it’s probably the prettiest campus I’ve ever been to. I was so happy to find lots of tall grass because I’ve been wanting to shoot in a field for a long time!
bride and groom portraits at Wellesley

When I saw this field, I knew we had to pull over and get some shots with the purple flowers! I know this sounds silly, but I have been dreaming about doing a shoot with a field full of either yellow or purple flowers. When we actually walked into the field, reality set in. The ground was very uneven and the grass was so tall you couldn’t see the holes in the ground. I was afraid someone would twist their ankle but thankfully that didn’t happen. Plus there were lots of bugs eating us alive! It was even more difficult for Liza because I asked her to crouch down, and that is no easy feat in a tightly fitted Chinese qipao dress! We almost got a ticket too because we were parked illegally, but the cop left once he saw us walking back to the car.
bride and groom in a field of purple flowers

Then we headed off to their reception at Blue Ginger, a restaurant run by the celebrity chef Ming Tsai. They had a private room, which seated about a dozen people comfortably.
private room at Blue Ginger

Hands down this is the best wedding food I’ve ever eaten! His signature butterfish dish is ridiculously good. I sat at the table with all of the guests (there was only 1 table anyway), and even though I had only met them that day, we became friends right away and it felt like I had known them for much longer!
dishes at Ming Tsai's blue ginger

bride and groom drinking wine together

wedding at blue ginger restaurant in Wellesley

Unlike other celebrity chefs, Ming Tsai is often at his restaurant. He came over to wish the bride and groom congratulations and presented them with an autographed cookbook.
bride and groom with ming tsai

This is the first time where I’ve seen candles being blown out at a wedding, but I thought it was very cute gesture to make a wish on your wedding day!
blowing out wedding candles

Congratulations Liza and Calvin! Thank you so much for letting me document your day!

More pictures can be found on my Facebook page.