I’m beginning to think that winter is the perfect time for a wedding. It transforms the landscape. You might have to brave frigid temperatures for you photos, but in the end they are so completely worth it. Joe and Molly’s wedding was one such occasion. Temperatures dropped into the single digits and believe me, it was a wedding for the record books. Molly actually said before I left, “you’re going to write about how this was the coldest wedding!” and it’s true, I am going to write that. I’m also going to write about how Joe and Molly’s wedding was fabulous day tucked away in the hills of western New York, and the day started at Molly’s house…

When I arrived the house was buzzing with activity. Bridesmaids were almost ready, Molly was tucked away upstairs, and family were getting all of the last details in order. When Molly came downstairs, she made sure to clean her ring before everything got started.

Molly not only was a bride, she was a gorgeous bride! I love these two portraits we took before heading off to the ceremony.

Off to the ceremony, which was personal and intimate, and even included a duet Molly and Joe sang to each other. What a talented couple!

After the ceremony, we went back to Molly’s house and took some photos on the surrounding property. This was the coldest part of the day. I have to hand it to the bridal party for getting out there, and of course Molly and Joe who braved the most weather. Doesn’t it look gorgeous though?

Like any prepared winter bride, Molly had matching boots and a coat so she could stay warm and look as good outside for pictures as inside. That’s a must if you’re having a winter wedding in my opinion – you always need more accessories.

So lovely, I think the series of Joe carrying Molly through the snow is just perfect!

For the reception we headed to Anastassia Events, which has transformed an old church in a great reception site (below) in Portageville New York. It’s a really unique place and has a bed and breakfast (presumably the old parsonage) attached as well.  It was my first time at the location and I think they did a great job. Before joining everyone in the reception, we finished up with the photos you see above in the b&b.

Some of the other details from their wedding day are below, and one of the most unique things was their choice of cake: ice cream cake! Molly requested Coldstone ice cream cake and if that’s your favorite, I say go for it on your wedding! There were about ten different flavors of cake, which were listed on the back of the menu card, so there was certainly something for everyone.

When Joe and Molly cut the cake, it was a little bit more challenging since they were cutting through ice cream… and once they tucked their napkins in I knew it was going to be serious business!

Having fun on the dance floor, I love this imperfect yet lively photo from the end of the day. I’m sure you’re dying to see more, so head over to my proofing site, create a profile, and then use the couple’s last name as your password to view the gallery. Also, help Joe and Molly win a free 11×14 or 16×20 by leaving your comments below! Congrats again to Joe + Molly – thank you so much for letting me document your wedding and enjoy re-living it through the photos!

Just so you could see what it looked like today I brought my camera out on a little family walk (Matt, Lexi + I) for some snapshots. Snapshots. I like that word because there’s something very simple and real about it… and that’s pretty much how these photos are. I had multiple layers on myself and a target plastic bag wrapped around the camera – it mostly kept the snow out, but it was still a challenge. To try and keep things simple, I started in aperture priority but of course the camera could not handle all of the white snow and was trying to make it gray. Gray? yes. Confused? Let me explain. To calculate the exposure for an image all cameras have light meters inside of them that measure how bright (or dark) scenes are. Cameras average the light in a scene so that it is middle (or appx. 18%) gray. While this usually works pretty well, it doesn’t in situations like the one I encountered today, where the scene is almost all white. For a better explanation, read this post I found.

To shorten the story, as I fumbled with my camera settings while trying to keep my hood on and the camera safe within the plastic bag (I’m pretty low tech in that way, I know) I ended up incorrectly exposing most of my pictures. When I got home they were much too dark, and therefore, very snapshot worthy. I did edit them to increase the exposure (which I think completely falls in the realm of acceptable editing – back in my darkroom days there were many dodge +burn sessions) and… this is what I came up with. I had the hood from my 135mm lens on my 50mm which is why you see so much vignetting on the images (I didn’t add that in on the corners). Even though I these didn’t come out perfectly, I like their graphic quality and thought I’d share them with you.

It really has been crazy here – if you’re living through it, I hope you’re enjoying it as much as I am. There’s something about the snow that is just so much fun. It makes you feel like a kid since it transforms the world so much. For those of you in the north who have yet to have a snow day… I’m sorry! Truely I am. I would invite you down here if I trusted Virginia drivers in this weather, but I don’t.

There’s something about the cold weather that brings out the best… and worst in us. It can transform a landscape into the moody day you see above, and it can turn me into a wreck as I get stuck backing out of the driveway before heading to the wedding. I know, a little dramatic – but ask Matt, I was not happy and taking it out on him. I was prepared, however, and arrived in Nunda with my silver boots ready to tromp through the snow and shoot anything. Shoot I did, (a camera not a gun) until my little fingers froze and I could not click the shutter any longer. Honestly though, Molly and Joe had a wonderful wedding, and it really was gorgeous as you can see. We took some breaks to warm up and really, I think it was worth it to be outside. I love to get a sense of location in pictures.

So hear we are in 2010, my first wedding of the new year, and this is just the beginning. Honestly, I’m looking forward to all of the weddings I will be at in 2010, both documenting and celebrating with friends. I’m so excited for the reunion/celebration in June with my college friends at Laura + Travis’s big day. I’ll also be traveling throughout Virginia, Michigan, New York and Florida (so far) to document weddings, but I’m pretty sure there are a few other states in my future. Being in my third year of wedding photography I still get excited about each day but I’m so much more confident than when I started. It’s actually kind of fun to look back on where I started and see where I’m at now. In fact, why don’t we look back – here’s an image from June 2007 and Ryan and Allie’s wedding – one of my first! What’s crazy is I’m going to be shooting Kaity and Mike’s wedding this February – and she’s Ryan’s sister. I’ve come full circle on that one.

As I continue to look back, the main differences between then and now are really equipment and experience. Like most people who start out, I had the basics. One camera body and one lens. Seriously, that’s what I used at first as I slowly upgraded to where I am now, with multiple lenses, two flashes and two camera bodies. Of course, equipment wouldn’t be anything without the experience. Shooting in all kinds of locations and light with a variety of people has challenged me to document things in new ways while staying true to my style in each situation.

It’s fun to think about the past but I can’t wait to plan for the future and be inspired this weekend learning from and being around photographers at Imaging USA! Conferences always are challenging and I’ve never been to Nashville so win-win. I head down to Tennessee this weekend and will have the wonderful opportunity of reconnecting with the very talented Manda Townsend of Townsend Photographers as well as my favorite second shooter Kaylan Buteyn. I will have to take my flip and hopefully document a fun video or two to share. There will be lots of fabulous photographers there as well – most of whom I don’t know, so here’s to making new friends in 2010!