Bohemian Proposal Editoral Shoot

Well hello there! We've taken our annual blogging hiatus for the month of January and are excited to share this project on the blog with you today. Late last summer, the National Stationer Wedding Paper Divas reached out to us about doing a wedding inspiration project with one of their paper suites. We were intrigued and then promptly gathered some of our favorite Minnesota wedding vendors to collaborate on the project. Lizie from Lizie Anne Weddings and Proposals, set the stage with a concept she dreamt up for a Bohemian Wedding Proposal among dreamy weeping willow trees. The lovely Tara from A Day in Provence  joined forces to create lush, bright florals for our scene that complimented the summery green foliage. Julie from Julie Swenson Beauty made our models even more beautiful with breezy hair and makeup and our real-couple Paige and Savaughn who made my job a piece of cake. The shoot was featured on 100 Layer Cake last week which felt like just the right avenue to share with their readers. It's always fun for us to work on these sorts of projects because it's not often we (as vendors) get full creative control with a team who shares the same vision. Then, by the time wedding season comes we have new vendors to recommend to our couples who are looking to round out their wedding day team. It's a win-win for us all, and this shoot definitely makes us anxious to get the 2016 wedding season rolling!

2015 - In Review

2015 marks our fifth year documenting weddings full time. We've always said that you can enter a career by way of education or experience - and our path has been experience. Of course we are constantly pushing ourselves to take classes and workshops to learn more, but there are no professional photography degrees behind our team of photographers. In 1993, a professor at the University of Colorado - Anders Ericsson, wrote a paper about how 10,000 hours of experience will make someone an expert in their field. After five years, we've well passed the 10,000 mark, and while I wouldn't say we are experts, I can say this business has taught us far more than we ever thought possible about entrepreneurship, hard work, setting boundaries, weddings in every shape and form and dreaming big. This year brought us documenting weddings in 13 states, photographing past (and new!) clients growing families and a true welcome as Midwest Photographers in addition to our New England base. With over 300,000 images processed (I'm not exaggerating) by Matt, myself, Chuck and Abby not to mention our crew of phenomenal second photographers - Missy, Jenny, Devin and Mike - it was a year of living and loving big. With the volume of work it might seem like we're a well oiled machine with lots of minions to keep things running. And while we have our workflow down, each and every wedding and portrait shoot is handled in our humble little studio without elaborate outsourcing. It's a labor of love, and one we are honored to call our life's work.

Thank you for joining us this year. From the highest points in Maine to the shores of the Mississippi River, we've been honored to tell these stories with our cameras. We are eternally grateful for your support and look forward to another year documenting love.

*Previous years in review: 2011, 2012 (part I, II, III), 2013, and 2014*

Holiday Mini Sessions

Looking for a fun and easy way to have a FABULOUS Holiday Card this year? I know what that's like. Usually I'm scrambling to find a decent photo of Matt and I from the year earlier and I'll be the first to admit that the tripod method does. not. work. We thought it would be a fun and convenient way for those of you who have wanted a family/pet/couple/newlywed/engagement photos to get to work with us for slightly less than our normal rates AND get some stellar Holiday Cards to start you out right. E-mail us at hello@summerstreetphotography.com or though our Contact Form to reserve your spot and for all the juicy details including shoot location and rain date, Holiday Card details, suggestions for what to wear and more. We hope to see you there!

Corey + Brandy = A Proposal

We just had to share this one with you. Brandy and Corey live in Texas and had planned a Boston Vacation in September to enjoy the city, take in some Red Sox Games and unknown to Brandy - get engaged. Corey contacted us before their arrival to set up the plan, which was about the sweetest thing any guy can do after buying a ring and making a plan for a perfect proposal. It was clear that he was excited and ready to ask Brandy to marry him. We worked together to find a location in the Boston Public Garden where he would ask her, and instead of getting to specific (since they had never been there) we simply decided to 'meet' them by the Make Way for Duckings statues in the garden. When we approached them and casually walked by, giving Corey a nod, he was reading Brandy the Make Way for Ducklings book (he's a keeper). We chose a time that would be quieter in the Garden and followed Corey around until he found the spot. Brandy was totally clueless at this point what was going on, and that she was about to get paparazzi-ed. We watched as Corey's foot started tapping a million miles a minute as he locked eyes with Brandy and talked with her....all the while fumbling a bit towards his pocket for the ring. After a few minutes he sweetly got down on one knee and asked Brandy to be his wife. We snapped away, and after a few minutes we approached them as planned to grab a few photos of them as a freshly engaged couple. They were so sweet together and we loved learning about their upcoming journey to move to Germany for Corey's job. What an exciting and happy time! Congrats Corey and Brandy, we wish you nothing but the best!