If you woke after 7am, you missed it-but us early risers caught every moment of it’s wonder!
Hannah, our Malamute, loved it the most!
Nicolena, Dave and I met very early in the morning at the Mirror Lake Inn in Lake Placid for their engagement shoot. I am extreemly certain that they are not used to getting up that early, but I really wanted to take advantage of the sunrise over the lake and for them to experience it. Anyone who has spent any time in Lake Placid knows what I am talking about. The water is beautiful in the morning, the sky is red and there is usually a layer of light fog hanging in the air. I watched the weather religiously and knowing that sun was in the forecast headed out the door at 4:30 a.m. to meet them in the high peaks. We started shooting before sunrise and the result was some moody, amazing images…
We headed off to starbucks for a coffee to wait for the sun, which took it’s sweet time to arrive, but was more than worth the wait! These images are some of my favorite engagement session images yet!
As the sun rose higher we headed up the hill to shoot on the grounds of the Inn – check out the view of Mirror Lake and the High Peaks…
Last few of Nicolena and Dave…
There were so many images I loved from this session that it was hard to narrow it down to just a few. I’m going to post a few more of them on facebook and I can’t wait for Nicolena and Dave to see the rest.
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Thanks Ayami, I love them too!
Love that last shot of the two of you on the ground.. And the one on the stairs.. The shots by the lake.. Love them all! What a beautiful couple!
Two weeks ago my mother-in-law, Joan, passed away after a long and courageous battle with ovarian cancer (read her obituary here). Two months before our wedding, four years ago, Rob and I received a call at 5am from her – she had been having pains in her stomach and was in the emergency room. We immediately drove to the hospital and by the time we arrived she had learned that she had a tumor. That was the first of many calls we would receive from her at in the middle of the night. Over the next 4 years she endured every option the doctors provided to prolong her life, no matter how ill they made her. And when the cancer or the treatment made her so ill she needed to be hospitalized she frequently waited until 5am to call us to bring her to the ER, allowing us to get a good night’s sleep. Her passing was not a surprise to any of us, and we have had over four years to adjust to the reality that she would not be with us soon, nevertheless her final days came upon us quickly and the loss has left a gaping hole in our hearts. The past few years, and this past summer especially, have been extreemly difficult for us. Knowing that your time with a loved one is limited it is difficult to find a balance between all of the various aspects of your life, and spending time with that one person. My husband’s father passed away some years ago and knowing he would soon lose his mother as well was truly life changing. Joan’s cancer was diagnosed as stage four and her life expectancy was short. We are truly blessed to have received so many years with her, something we did not expect, and we are very thankful for that gift. My productiving has suffered this last month and I am very grateful to my wonderful clients for their patience. Joan loved her family immensly and enjoyed nothing more than spending time with them. We were all able to be with her during every moment of her last days and to surround her with love and to care for her in her home – where she felt the most comfortable. These next few months will be a time of adjustment for us, as she has been such a large part of our daily lives, but images such as these keep her love and memory alive in our hearts and remind us of all she has taught us…
These first few images are from our wedding, four years ago – just a few months after Joan was diagnosed – she was scared, self conscious of her wig and not feeling well – but what I remember most was how happy she was for us…these were taken by our photographer, Rae Barnes..
I especially love this first image, taken just as Joan and Rob began the mother-son dance…
I also love these old images of her we found…
These last two were taken last Thanksgiving…
I love that last image the most – the way that she is looking at my husband. Out of all the images we have of her this one may be my favorite. It perfectly depicts her love for him, how grateful she was for him, and how safe he made her feel.
The studio is back open and I have lots of new images to share starting tomorrow. See you then-
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Thank you, Rae. We have felt the love and prayers offered by everyone and we are slowly starting to get back to our daily lives. Peace is coming more and more every day.
Such a sweet post… I know it is bittersweet to lose a family member that is suffering, but what a blessing to have such love amongst you all! Our prayers are continually with you.
I mentioned a few posts ago that referral business was the second greatest compliment a photographer can receive and it seems that nearly 100% of my business these days if from referrals! Do you remember Bentley and Sara from last year?
Not only was their wedding one of my favorites, but it was also featured in Well Wed magazine and is a featured wedding on their website! A dream come true for Sara - wedding coordinator extraordinaire. Every detail of their day was beautifully planned and hand crafted by Sara herself and when she called me about her brother Kyle’s wedding to his fiance – another Sara, I was thrilled! I knew it was a wedding I had to photograph and the location was perfect for me – Fern Lake in Ausable Forks.
Family camp’s on hidden lakes are one of the best venue’s for an Adirondack wedding and Kyle and Sara were married at Kyle’s family camp - Serendipity.
Despite the dark, rainy weather the location was just beautiful!
Sara was an amazingly georgeous bride… I have no idea how I get such good looking clients! Spa’s are not common here, in the remote mountains, and Sara was lucky enough to have talented friends and family to help her with her hair and make-up…Just beautiful.
The tradition of dressing the bride is one of my favorite moments of the day…Sara’s mom helped her into her dress…
and Kyle’s mom couldn’t hold back the tears when she saw Sara step out of the bedroom in her dress…
Sara was glowing- and I loved her bouquet – wrapped in the most perfect piece of birch bark I had ever seen!
The groom was looking rather handsome as well-
Kyle and Sara opted for a ‘first look’, which I love because it gives my couples the opportunity to spend every moment of their wedding day from the ceremony on with their guests – no stepping away for formal portraits. Your day goes by is such a flurry that it’s a shame to miss even a moment of the festivities. Kyle chose a spot at the end of the boat house’s covered porch, overlooking the lake – away from the sight of family and friends - to share a few private moments with Sara.
One final adjustments before seeing his bride for the first time…
And here comes the bride…
Several of these next shots are similar, but I just couldn’t narrow down my favorite’s…these first few moments together are so full of emotion.
Kyle and Sara asked for this shot for the cover of their album…Love it.
This may be one of my favorite ring shots to date – although I feel like I say that in nearly every post
Off to the ceremony…
The rain didn’t hold off for long and started as the ceremony began, but Kyle and Sara smiled through it…Philapino wedding tradition states that if it rains during the wedding ceremony it means prosperity and happiness for the newlyweds…
Kyle also provided his bride with 13 coins, or arras, as a sign of his dedication to his wife’s well-being and the welfare of their future children.
The rain stopped just long enough for us to grab a few lakeside portraits of the the newlywed’s after the ceremony…
Adirondack chairs are usually a focal point of weddings in this area in some way or another, but people generally don’t look good being photographed in them…I’ve tried tons of variations, but none I like as much as this next image…
I am fond of this moment as well…
I have so many photographs from this wedding to post, and I can’t wait to post all of Sara Bovin’s amazing details – but I wanted to share these pictures of Kyle and Sara first.
Kyle and Sara – thank you dearly for having me there to document your wedding day and for treating me like family. I can’t wait to share all of your amazing photographs with you!
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Thank you – I love to travel – DC it is! Amazing images are easy when the clients are beautiful and someone as talented as you is doing the planning! Can’t wait to share more!
Ann Marie-You’ve done it again! These photos are amazing and now the only question left is…how do we get you to shoot my baby sister’s wedding in DC? Although…I guess she should get a ring first! Still…you’re hired! -Love, Sara and Bentley
Yesturday morning I woke up at 4am to head up to the Mirror Lake Inn in Lake Placid for a 6:30 sunrise engagement session with Nicolena and Dave. They had wanted their engagement session to take place in the mountains and I suggested that they head to Bolton Landing or Lake Placid for a weekend getaway. This morning I woke to the following email from them -
“Hi there,
We just wanted to take a moment tonight to thank you so much for the wonderful session. We can’t wait until the wedding day and we loved, loved, loved all of your ideas today. You helped make this weekend getaway so special!
We’re so excited to put our guest book together with these pictures and pick the save the dates out!
We hope you have a wonderful rest of the weekend and a lovely time at your brothers wedding!
Talk to you soon!
Nicolena and David”
I work hard creating amazing images for my clients and am very grateful for their thankfulness. When I recommended a sunrise session toNicolena and Dave I was certain that they were not used being ready by 6:30am – but I was also certain that they would love the sunrise over Mirror Lake – and everyone needs to see the sunrise every once in a while. It’s almost a magical time of day - so beautiful and serene that you almost feel that you are watching something only meant for a special few. Turns out the staff of the Mirror Lake Inn greeted them with a chilled bottle of champagne on their arrival at 11pm and they were so enchanted with their amazing room that they stayed up most of the night sitting on the balcony watching the moonlight bounce off the lake and toasting one another…They went to bed around 4 and got up at 5. They enjoyed their weekend so much that they have decided to return each year on their anniversary – a speacial gift to themselves. Love it. I also love the images we captured that morning…here’s a sneek peak…
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Ayami - OMG Ann Marie, I can’t believe you guys saw your first snow already! Love the pictures (as always). You live in a beautiful area