Simone & Shawn's Intimate Wedding at the Four Seasons One Dalton

Simone and Shawn originally booked me for their Fall 2024 wedding at the beautiful Four Seasons One Dalton, but less than a month after booking I got an email from them telling me that plans had changed! The couple found out that they were expecting a baby so they decided to adjust their plans to have a much more intimate wedding with their closest family in May 2024. Luckily, I was available for their new date! 

I got to know Simone and Shawn a bit better in March with an engagement session at their favorite neighborhood bar, park, and at their apartment. It’s really nice to be able to meet a couple in person before their wedding day so that we can get to know each other and have a “test run” for our wedding day portrait session. Typically I’ll meet couples through an engagement session, but a meetup can also be done at an in-person planning meeting, or a venue site visit.

Simone and Shawn were originally drawn to my work because of my documentary style. They wanted the photos from their more intimate wedding to feature candids of them with their close friends and family prominently.

On their wedding day, the couple got ready separately with family and friends, and then saw each other for the first time that day with a first look on the hotel’s balcony overlooking the neighboring Christian Science church and plaza. The first look was followed by some more portraits in the plaza with family. After portraits, the couple had a ketubah signing with their families followed by a wedding ceremony with some Jewish elements integrated (such as the chuppah and the breaking of the glass) which was officiated by a close friend. Simone and Shawn wanted to use their wedding photos as a pregnancy announcement, so we incorporated their ultrasound photo into some of their portraits which I thought was beautiful!

After the ceremony, the guests gathered in a small ballroom for a cocktail hour where dancing spontaneously began. Cocktail hour was followed by a dinner enjoyed at one long table with a beautiful toast given by the bride's father.

Congratulations to Simone & Shawn who welcomed their baby boy in October!

Vendors

Venue/Catering/Bar: Four Seasons One Dalton

Photographer: Kayla Rice Photography

Floral: Table & Tulip

Hair & Makeup: Charlotte Phinney

Ceremony/Reception Musician: RD King

Arti & Jay's Hindu Wedding Ceremony at New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill

Arti & Jay chose an absolutely beautiful venue, New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill, for their intimate wedding ceremony with their families. The venue is picturesque year round but especially so in the spring with the flowering trees in bloom and fields of tulips filling the gardens with color. The colorful backdrop was a perfect one to compliment the vibrant colors of their Hindu wedding attire.

Arti and Jay’s love story is straight out of a rom-com. The couple met spontaneously at the airport and connected while talking nonstop throughout their flight. When they met they were living in different cities but stayed in touch and ended up re-connecting years later when the stars aligned for them to live near one another.

One of the botanical garden’s greenhouses served as the ceremony space on their wedding day. The lush greens of the space made for a gorgeous backdrop making the colorful reds and golds in their outfits pop.

The couple’s small family-only wedding was a traditional Hindu ceremony and featured some beautiful Hindu traditions such as exchanging garlands (symbolizing the partners welcoming each other into their families), Saptapadi (when the newlyweds have their garments tied together and walk together to signify their friendship), and the Mangal Fera (the bride and groom walk around the fire four times, each time signifies something different; duty, prosperity, love, and spiritual liberation). The family members in attendance were each given parts to play throughout the ceremony. The way Arti & Jay involved each member of their family beautifully showed how much they all meant to them.

Congratulations, Arti & Jay!

Collette & Spencer's Equinox Resort Winter Wedding

Collette and Spencer tied the knot at The Equinox Resort in Manchester, Vermont, in a lovely winter wedding ceremony. With a deep appreciation for the beauty of the outdoors, the couple wanted to incorporate the surrounding natural beauty in their day as much as possible.

Against the backdrop of snow-covered mountains, Collette and Spencer's day was filled with warmth and joy. The Equinox Resort provided the perfect setting for their celebration, blending rustic charm with elegant sophistication.

Collette and Spencer wanted their special day to be captured in a documentary style. They appreciated my moment-focused approach and wanted their day to be captured in a way that felt true to them.

The couple's commitment to genuine moments and authentic emotions shone through in every aspect of the day. From heartfelt vows exchanged in front of their friends and family to laughter shared during toasts with loved ones, every detail reflected their love for each other and those around them.

The choice of hiring a wedding photojournalist like me to capture their day was a testament to Collette and Spencer's desire to preserve the memories of their day in a way that truly reflected who they are as a couple.

After dinner, toasts, and parent dances concluded, the couple danced the night away surrounded by family and friends on a packed and fun-filled dance floor.

Congratulations to Collette & Spencer!

Vendors

Venue/Catering/Bar: Equinox Resort

Photographer: Kayla Rice Photography

Second Photographer: Josh Kuckens

Floral: Nancy Bishop Floral Design

Hair & Makeup: Crystal Vasquez & Company

Ceremony Musician: Samantha Barry (friend)

Officiant: Elizabeth Andersen (friend)

DJ: Foley Weddings

Cake/Dessert: Cake Gypsy

Veronica & Andrew's Inn on Boltwood Wedding

I first met Veronica and Andrew at a wedding expo that I exhibited at shortly after I moved to Boston. They were super sweet and seemed interested in my documentary style wedding photography, so we continued to chat after the event. Once they had nailed down their wedding venue, they reached back out to book their engagement and wedding photography!

About a year before their wedding, we did a sunrise engagement session at the Boston Public Garden. It was such a good chance for us to get to know each other a bit better and for Veronica and Andrew to feel comfortable in front of the camera.

Veronica and Andrew's wedding at the Inn on Boltwood in Amherst, Massachusetts took place on a rainy late September day. The cozy interior of the Inn provided a romantic setting for their ceremony and the tent set up outside for the reception gave everyone space to dance and keep the (very fun) party going despite the weather.

Veronica chose to do first looks with two of the most important men in her life before her wedding; the first with her father and then out on the Inn’s front porch with Andrew.

The ceremony was beautiful and Veronica and Andrew both read personal vows they had written which included both touching sentiments and funny anecdotes that got the room laughing.

After a cocktail hour, guests made their way into the reception tent for dinner. Andrew’s grandfather gave a blessing and parents and close friends gave heartfelt, emotional speeches that brought tears to everyones eyes.

Veronica and Andrew's wedding day was filled with warmth, happiness, and ended with a packed, energetic dance floor.

Cheers to Veronica & Andrew!

Vendors

Venue: Inn on Boltwood

Photographer: Kayla Rice Photography

Second Photographer: Adam Pulzetti

Floral: Forget Me Not

Officiant: Julie-Ann Silberman-Bunn 

Hair & Makeup: Crystal Vazquez & Co. 

DJ: Marx Entertainment - DJ Alonzo

Dessert: Atkins Farm

Courtland & Matt's Backyard Wedding in Gloucester

When Courtland told me that she and Matt were planning their backyard wedding at Courtland’s parents’ home in Gloucester, Massachusetts, I envisioned a picturesque setting but never imagined it to be quite as beautiful as it turned out to be in real life.

When I arrived, family and friends were helping to set up flowers in pink, orange, yellow, and cream hues around the lush green yard and down by the ceremony space that overlooked the water. Two floral pillars stood on a wooden platform by the docks, framing the spot where the couple would soon be married. The week had been an overcast and rainy one but the rain held off and we even saw some blue sky peeking through throughout Courtland & Matt’s wedding day.

Courtland and her bridesmaids got ready in a small guest house down the driveway. The couple shared a first look in a clearing in the woods overlooking the water away from the hustle and bustle of the wedding preparations closer to the house. We then gathered the wedding party and family members and took a few portraits before the ceremony followed by some portraits incorporating the scenic waterfront views with just Courtland & Matt.

Guests began to arrive, so the couple took a private break and prepared for the ceremony to begin. Friends and family mingled in the yard and then gradually took their seats down by the ceremony space. The processional music began (played by musician Ollella) and the couple and their wedding party processed from the house down through the yard and down the aisle. Courtland’s veil nearly escaped with a gust of wind as she and her parents walked down the aisle, but her mother was able to catch it just in time. As a wedding photojournalist, moments like this are gold to me. I’m always looking to capture the humorous, strange, and unexpected moments that weddings almost always are full of.

Courtland’s uncle (Uncle Pete) officiated the wedding, which added a nice personal touch to the ceremony. He performed a unity ceremony with the couple, told stories of Courtland’s youth, shared some beautiful words, and then handed over the microphone for each of them to share their vows before officially announcing them husband and wife. Guests threw rice in celebration as the couple recessed back down the aisle.

Right after the ceremony, Uncle Pete helped me announce a group photo and we had guests gather in the yard as I ran up to the top floor of the house to take the large group photo. Cocktail hour included an oyster station (served in a boat) hosted by Island Creek Oysters out of Duxbury. The couple mingled with their guests who stretched out over the yard, the deck, and into the tented reception space by the water.

After an hour or so of drinks and delicious food catered by local Gloucester restaurant Passports, the DJ asked guests to gather around the dance floor to welcome the newlyweds to their reception. The couple’s parents and wedding party made their grand entrance followed immediately by Courtland & Matt’s entrance and first dance; a fun and spunky choreographed dance to “Die Young” by Sylvan Esso (a personal favorite of mine). Lovely toasts by the father of the bride and the father of the groom followed shortly after, and a joint Mother/Son and Father/Daughter dance after that.

The sun set leaving a bright blue twilight sky over the reception tent where guests ate dinner and enjoyed each others company. After dinner, guests gathered once again by the dance floor to watch Courtland & Matt cut their wedding cake. It was clear that this day was incredibly special for the couple as they teared up expressing their gratitute for everyone that came to celebrate with them and helped to make their wedding day as beautiful as it was. After their thank yous, the dance floor opened up again for some fun, energetic dancing to end the night.

Here are some of my favorite photos from Courtland and Matt’s backyard Gloucester wedding. Enjoy!

Vendors

Venue: Private Residence

Catering & Bar: Passports Restaurant

Planner: Isabel Pett of Hēdon Event Planning

Photographer: Kayla Rice Photography

Officiant: Uncle Pete

Hair & Makeup: Talia Day

Ceremony Musician: Ellie Barber (Ollella)

DJ & Videography: South Shore Sound & Lighting

Rentals: The Event Company

Cake: Flourish Bake Shoppe

Lynn and George's Berkshires Elopement at the Devonfield Inn

The Berkshires make for an ideal elopement location where couples can exchange their vows amidst the picturesque beauty of nature. Nestled within the rolling hills of western Massachusetts, beautiful towns such as Lee, Lenox, and Stockbridge offer a romantic backdrop (for another beautiful Berkshires wedding, check out my blog post about Taylor & Sam’s microwedding at The Mount in Lenox!)

Whether saying "I do" on the grounds of a historic estate, a quaint inn, or with a picturesque mountain backdrop, a Berkshires elopement allows couples to escape the noise of the world and focus solely on the love they share.

I had the opportunity to work with Lynn and George back in March while photographing their Massachusetts engagement session at The Farm at Raven Brook, and got to know their sense of humor and their fun, easy going nature. Showing up on their wedding day with this established time together allowed us to immediately feel comfortable with each other and allowed Lynn and George to act more naturally around the camera. As a documentary wedding photographer, having this established comfort with my clients is extremely helpful when capturing candid moments.

Lynn and George chose The Devonfield Inn in Lee, MA for their Berkshires elopement in June. The charming Devonfield Inn is surrounded by beautifully manicured gardens, rolling green fields, and majestic birch trees. With their immediate families by their side, Lynn & George tied the knot surrounded by birch trees on the grounds of the inn. Their ceremony was incredibly special and they had their family members (and their photographer) tearing up at their beautiful words to each other. We had the grounds to ourselves for portraits and explored the beautiful barns, fields, and lawns before returning to the inn for their unity ceremony, cake cutting, and champagne toasts with their families.

Lynn and George’s Berkshires elopement was an incredibly special, intimate celebration in a charming and beautiful setting. Take a look through some of my favorite photos from their day below.