Jen and Ryan had a rainy November wedding but that didn't stop them from having fun!  They married at the beautiful St. Mary's in Bristol with ceremony at Rosecliff Mansion in Newport.  Jen's style was traditional and elegant perfect for her venue.  Wendy from Plantation Catering delivered an amazing menu with the most beautiful flowers adorning the ballroom and bridal party from Stoneblossom of course.  Nancy Paolino and The Black Tie Band kept everyone young and mature on their feet the entire time.  Jen really wanted to incorporate a sailing theme as you can see with all of the accents.  Great time!

 

Warning!  Be prepared to be very hungry after reading about our visit to Simply Devine Catering in Barrington.  Peter and Janet Devine own and operate Simply Devine specializing in everything from a wedding of 400 to an intimate house party for 20.

 

We have worked enough events with Peter and Janet to witness them work their magic.  Peter loves cooking and building a menu that is balanced, appetizing to the eye and taste yet doesn’t prepare anything he can’t replicate the day of your event.  He prides himself on combining quality ingredients with his passion for cooking.  Nicole and I did get to eat the beautiful offerings after we photographed these works of art.  The tenderloin was cooked perfectly and the artichoke stuffed chicken breast with roasted red pepper sauce was Devine!  Craving a little of that Focaccia right about now.

Janet serves not only as your day of coordinator but she loves to bake.  She is the mastermind behind their beautiful wedding cakes, mini pastries and this orange spiced strawberry shortcake.  All of us here at Serendipity have a sweet tooth, this was insanely delicious.  Yes everything is home made from Simply Devine, nothing frozen or brought in.

We asked them what sets them apart in the catering business.  “You get us, the owners working your event”, their sincerity and passion are so apparent when you spend time with them.  Truly they care about the entire event from linens to being sure your luminaries are lit at dusk.  Real food for real people is Peter’s mantra, Janet laughs but it’s true; nothing institutional in this kitchen.  

Janet tells us that the trends in weddings are special dietary considerations.  No more extra sides for the vegetarian on the guest list.  Couples are really focusing on special gourmet offerings for all of their guests.  Janet says 3 out of 10 weddings have some allergy consideration to be factored into their menu.  These are the details the Devine’s live for, working countless hours with their clients to create the perfect event with great food of course.

What makes the experience unique with Simply Devine is that their entire staff is trained and employed directly by them, no staffing agencies here.  Their attention to detail carries far beyond the kitchen.  

Nicole Fancied this wine shot as we were staging the shots.

Thanks for the great hospitality and delicious food.

 

 

 

Welcome to our newest blog installment!  We are partnering with Southern New England’s premiere wedding vendors that have provided our couples with superior service to share why they are considered the best of the industry.  We are canvassing the area to  bring you the latest wedding trends and to flash back to some of our favorite weddings.

Our first stop, Castle Hill Inn.  This is truly Newport’s finest wedding venue.  If you are looking for a classic Newport experience, look no further than Castle Hill Inn.  Brides from all over NY, CT and RI seek this exquisite venue to tie the knot and celebrate with world class food and service.

Nicole is asking Marie and Nell the hard hitting questions!

Marie and Nell are the amazing women who pull everything together.  Combined they have over 16 years of experience planning the most sophisticated soirees at Castle Hill Inn.  Not only are they experts, they are passionate, easy going and a lot of fun to work with!  They truly care about delivering the best experience possible for your wedding day.

Marie describes working with them as one stop shopping.  Your linens, china, menu, rehearsal, and accommodations are all part of their service.  Not to mention they will even help you plan excursions for you and your guests throughout Newport.  Now how is that for service?

Gold or Silver?

 

Beautiful linen choices

Nell explains that the couple can leave all their worries behind.  They will put it all together from the rehearsal dinner with one of their many amazing restaurants in Newport to making sure you capture that perfect sunset photo.  

Let’s not leave out Kerri your event manager of the day!  Her main role is to execute your vision, as well as making sure your guests are comfortable, entree’s are hot and dresses are fluffed!  Kerry initiates a team approach on your wedding day by communicating with other vendors such as the band, videographer, and photographer so that we can all provide the best service possible.

The ladies of Castle Hill Inn explain that the trends for this year and beyond are lounge furniture, fireside gatherings with S’mores and so much more. Everyone at Castle Hill Inn is on board and ready to orchestrate a special moment if you  choose to see each other before the ceremony.  We cannot stress enough how magical this is.  It allows you to truly take full advantage of the property for photos.

One of our favorite opportunities while working a wedding on the property is what we call “the moment”.  It is when Kerri whisks the couple off after they walk down the aisle to a private moment in the garden.  Champagne awaits as the two of you gaze into each other’s eyes as if it was the first time. Simply AMAZING!

"The Moment"

We always stress with our couples that we like to move around on the wedding day, giving them range of styles, composition and backgrounds for their album or wall collage.  There are very few properties like Castle Hill Inn in this state that can give you the dynamic range of photo options for your wedding pictures.  

Marie shared with us that choosing Castle Hill Inn isn’t just about choosing a place to get married.  You are choosing a destination to celebrate the special moments of the rest of your lives.  Many couples return each year to the property to celebrate their anniversary. Unlike other venues you can stay on site, reminisce around the property, dine at the 5 star inn or just relax on the sprawling lawn in an Adirondack chair and take in the magnificent view like you did on your wedding day.  We take it a step further, for our Castle Hill Inn Couples we will celebrate with you on your return visit to the property to capture those anniversaries or new arrival to the family.

Thank you ladies for spending some time with us, we look forward to seeing you both soon and working with the talented staff at Castle Hill Inn to bring you the wedding of your dreams, Newport Style!

One of our most memorable weddings at Castle Hill Inn was Melissa and Adam.  They had a perfect Summer day for their out of town guests.  Melissa chose a chocolate brown and green color scheme with flowers by Stoneblossom.  She chose exotic orchids and was one of the first at the time to incorporate Fiddleheads into the arrangements.  A perfect wedding and as you can see we utilized every inch of the property since photos were such a priority for them.  

 

 

 

Turn off That Flash!

 

Last week’s topic was loaded with information to get the momentum started and the feedback has been great.  Everyone loved the metaphor of the window, glad that helped.  

 

This week I want to tackle another important topic “TURN OFF THAT FLASH” but wait my camera automatically pops it up or turns it on, doesn’t it know best?  Yes and No.  This is where I remind you to practice, practice, practice, try your shots in various configurations.  Usually turning off your flash might mean a longer shutter speed requiring a tripod or something to hold your camera safely while the sensor records the image without motion blur from your hands.  

 

Why turn off the flash?  Natural light is always more flattering and true to life.  For example ever notice when you take a photograph with your flash that your subject looks like a deer in headlights?  Your on camera flash is a very small source trying to light a very large area so your close subjects will be overly bright and background very dark.  

 

Don’t run out and buy a super expensive tripod a small easy to carry model will be fine as long as the mount has a quick release to easily mount and dismount your camera.  

 

This photo was taken at The Towers in Narragansett.  Unfortunately a tripod was not conducive since the window’s don’t open wide enough, I guess they worry about a few too many drinks for the guests.  Ok but how do you photograph that beautiful fountain lit up at night? Impromptu tripod, I don’t suggest this but when your hired to be creative you have to make do.  I set the camera outside on the ledge raising the lens up with a small book and set the camera to manual to fine tune my settings and voila.  If flash went off it would have completely destroyed the look and feel of this image.

 

Go ahead, I dare you to turn off that flash.  Find a subject try it with flash and without, hand holding it and using a support or tripod.  Send us some images.

 

 

 

Welcome to the first installment of our new weekly feature on the blog.  Last week we explained why we had the passion to educate you loyal readers to take better photos and appreciate the art that goes into making great photos.  This is dedicated to you and is all about you so please feel free to ask questions so you can gain the knowledge you are yearning for.  

The foundation to any photograph has ALWAYS been understanding exposure.  This is where we want to challenge you out of your camera’s automatic or program mode.  I heard that gulp, its scary and unknown we know.  Yes your camera manufacturer put a lot of work into telling the camera how to take a fair picture under many circumstances but not giving you full control.  There is a great book that explains “the exposure triangle” in essence there are three variables that have to be in harmony to correctly deliver the right exposure.  ISO (film speed or your digital camera sensor’s sensitivity to light), Aperture (size of the opening in the lens when the picture is taken sort of like your pupil) and Shutter Speed (how long your shutter is open allowing the light to pass through to your sensor).  Don’t be afraid!  With practice you will understand this we promise.  The great thing about digital is you can quickly learn because you can see in real time what impact your adjustments have on your photograph.  Remember and change in one of the three (ISO, Aperture, or Shutter) will impact the other.

Time for a few metaphors to better help explain things.  Imagine your camera is like a window with storm shutters that can open and close.  Aperture is the size of your window if its bigger more light passes through making your room brighter.  Shutter Speed is the amount of time that you keep your window shutters open.  The longer they are open the more beautiful light coming into your room be careful this means a lower number many people make the mistakes in photography that the bigger the number the longer those shutters are open or how big the window is.  Now put on your sunglasses and stand inside that room.  Your eyes become more adaptable to the light coming in (a low ISO).  Not to get too far ahead but the lower your ISO the more light you need but the crisper your photograph (less grain or noise).  Ok back to today’s lesson.  There are many recipes to increase the amount of light in the room or how much we see.  You could first increase the time you open your shutters, increase the size of your window (increasing your aperture) or lose those Ray Ban’s and increase your ISO.  Each decision impacts the other but with proper choices they can all live in perfect harmony.  Raise of hands how many of you even knew your camera had these settings?  Depending on your camera not all might but many do, some are more accessible then other models hidden beneath menus.  When we approach our photos the first decision we commit to is our ISO (the lower the number the less interference in the photograph)  you will find cameras running between 100 to 6400 ISO.  Yes thats right 6400! Nikon and Canon have done a phenomenal job building image sensors capable of ISO speeds that high but it doesn’t always mean a higher ISO is the best answer remember the consequences (noise!).  So look at that camera and find your ISO, Aperture and Shutter buttons, dials or menus.  Move them around and see what your camera is capable of or pull out the book and find out what you camera can handle.  Understanding this will help you with all of our future lessons.  I know running through your minds is how on earth am I going to remember all of this and instead of pointing and shooting I now have to remember three adjustments?  Not really.  Your camera should be able to compensate based on your adjustment of any of the 3 variables.  So really you will be making 1 or 2 inputs and the camera will help you from there in most cases.  

The only way I can learn is by doing and seeing it for myself.  So last weekend I (Randy) photographed an event at Blithewold and he was having some fun with details.  Here is the first shot of the ornament on the tree.  Not bad but not quite what I was going for.  

This image was taken with the following settings:  ISO 640, Aperture F4, Shutter Speed 60, Flash ON

 

As we begin an exciting new year and settle into the hybernating season we thought it would be the perfect time to begin a new feature on the blog.  We still have weddings, portraits and engagement sessions to blog but we are busy behind the scenes polishing off the new website (if you are an avid blog reader this has been a long project for us) but when we do something we do it right.  So on to the real news of this first post for 2010.  Our new feature is an educational series to help teach you the art of taking better photos.  That’s right everything from how to photograph the new baby to nailing the perfect Christmas Tree shot.  Through this series we will inspire you with our proudest moments and not afraid to show you what didn’t turn out the way we planned and explain why.  Some might argue aren’t we giving away years of experience?  Yes and No.  We believe in transparency and knowledge is power.  You have a lot of blogs, pages, books, episodes, movies, podcasts, tweets, texts, instant messages, emails, appointments and oh so much more competing for your attention.  We want our blog to be a must on your weekly or daily routine.  We have inspired many clients to pick up a camera again and attempt to have as much funa as we do.  5 brillliant photographers can walk into the same church with the same couple and walk out with 5 VERY different images.  We can only inspire you and explain some of the technical stuff but the real art lives in your eye.  Fear not you don’t need to have the latest and most expensive digital camera for this, some basic knowledge of your camera and settings are helpful.  So the challenge is on, email us what you would like the first topic to be.  Stay tuned for the results.  Oh and did we mention some lucky and loyal followers will be invited to a live workshop this Spring?  So dust off those cameras and stay tuned.  

Lobstermania!  Jacob’s mom is a regular Serendipity customer and regularly calls after a shopping trip at Teddy Bearskins to photograph Jacob debuting his new clothes.  She took this session seriously bringing her own Lobster Trap for a prop!!  Now that is commitment.  How cute is he though?  Love the hat too.  See you soon.

 

Melissa and I had the pleasure of photographing Danielle and Greg’s wedding a week ago at the Fall River Country Club. They had the kind of September wedding every bride hopes for, it was perfect for their outdoor ceremony and sunset pictures. Last year we photographed Danielle’s sister’s wedding so we felt right at home with this family. Greg is hilarious, just a ball of energy and lots of fun. The shot of him jumping was his idea, nice job Melissa! A surprise video from Greg’s brother currently serving in Iraq brought everyone together and was a nice way for him to be part of their special day. We could not get enough of that beautiful sunlight but we did have to let the happy couple spend some time with their guests. Thanks for making our job so fun and easy!

Lucky, if there is any word to describe Tim and Lucy it would be “Lucky”. Their love story spans across the Atlantic with Tim in LA and Lucy in the UK finding one another in Greece for work, I joke with them about how much work really got done at that conference! Tim grew up here in Rhode Island so it was natural to have their wedding here with a reception at The Towers. Sadly the weather wasn’t so cooperative but that didn’t stop Melissa and I from being creative!! Lucy is so beautiful and elegant, Tim handsome and sensitive. A perfect match. Our good friend Lisa from Pranzi Catering did her usual multi tasking, great catering and serving as the day of coordinator. We always have fun with Pauline rocking the house from Moondance!!!! I hope you both are enjoying yourselves in Hawaii. We are so happy luck found you and brought you to us, thanks for letting us be part of your very special day.

Last Tuesday I met up with Brady and Andrew, two very adorable brothers. They were both so full of life and very willing to pose, not typical for this age group. We hit all the spots around Colt State Park battling some strong wind. The boys love the movie “Cars” and filled me in on their favorite characters. I hope you love your pictures boys!!! Thanks for being so good. See you soon.

I remember the day Kelly called to book us for her wedding, we hadn't met or spoke before but within three minutes it was true Serendipity.  We already had so much in common.  See eleven years ago Jody and I got married at the same church she and Alan chose here in Bristol; Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, every year we celebrate our anniversary with a nice al fresco dinner at Cafe Nouvo and of course Kelly and Alan were planning their reception there on our actual date...September 6^th.  It was all too good.  The weather was absolutely perfect.  Kelly and Alan are really fun and easy going letting us do our thing.  The butterfly release after the ceremony was a crowd pleaser and it meant a lot when one of the butterflies landed on Kelly’s bouquet and then Alan.  Nothing makes a grand entrance to your reception quite like a Gondola!  Alan celebrated his Jewish faith with a blessing before kicking off the night.  These two know how to dance and party.  Congratulations on a perfect wedding!

 

Hello everyone!  I apologize for the delays on blogging, we had to unexpectedly switch operating platforms from Windows to MAC last week.  The conversion is going smoothly but taking time.  Hang in there, I will start uploading your photos in the next 24 hours.  The good news is our workflow is more efficient and the images never looked better!  I heart APPLE.  Thanks for being the best clients any photographer could wish for.