These new albums are available with either a round spine (more traditional) or a square spine (more modern). The pages are square cut for an elegant, modern look, and deliciously weighty (look how thick they are!)

There are a number of cover options, including leather wraparound (the most traditional style), photowrap, leather with photo cameo, and this amazing acrylic cover. The acrylic sheet is thick, with a photo mounted underneath. It is sleek, modern, and oooooh so cool.

And what fun would an album post be if I didn’t include a few of my favorite spreads? In fact make that … almost all of the spreads! Thank you Jen and Scott for having such a spectacular wedding at beautiful Belle Mer in Newport, RI. It was a treat designing a sample album for my studio with your images!

After a lively cocktail hour, everyone moved to the main room for the first dance:

Dinner courses and toasts were layered, which kept me on my toes (special thanks to my assistant Laura for being an amazing human light stand!)

I love the little guy above, watching the toasts so intently. 

The rest of the night was filled with drinking, dancing and a very fun photobooth (the photos will come along soon, in Courtney and Darren’s gallery) …

And one last photo to round off the evening.  Thank you all for a fabulous time, and I hope you’ve enjoyed the teasers!

Judy’s shoes were super funky too – bright green flats with big bows to go with her green toenails.  Love it!  I was on a mission on Saturday to get some cool makeup images … it was a fun challenge and I think I did OK … I especially love the photo of Judy’s sister Tiffany applying her own makeup – she did Judy’s makeup and she’s incredibly talented!

I met up with the guys at the venue for their photos.  They were keeping it real with the Miller Lite …

Once Matt was ready to go, we held their sweet and funny first look around the back of the building.  The light was amazing back there, and it gave them plenty of privacy.

We made the most of the gorgeous light and the pretty stone and foliage, and took some couples portraits while we were there.  Matt and Judy’s doggy Dempsey also put in a (ridiculously cute) appearance.  Love him!  And his adorable bow-tie!

The bridal party photos and ceremony will be along in the next two days …

Kate and Alex’s ceremony was officiated by an old family friend of Alex’s parents, Erika.  She filled the ceremony with wonderful anecdotes, and the written word in its many forms featured heavily.

There’s nothing more pleasing to a photographer during a ceremony than a row of tearful bridesmaids.  Kate shed a few tears too. 

Cocktail hour followed, outside the grand house.  I love the mix of smiling faces and delicious food.  Yum!

The light was spectacular towards the end of cocktail hour, so I pulled Kate and Alex aside for a few portraits.  These photos make me so happy …

And a few more – the side of the house was just out of view of the guests, and the light was divine.

The reception will be along soon.  Alex and Kate are on their way to Australia right now (to live!  for a year!), so if you’re a friend or family member stopping by to take a peek, leave them a message in the comments … I’m sure they’d love to see who’s been by!

Cocktail hour was in full swing when we got back.  It was fun seeing the blue and green parasols, and the games for guests; there was a photo game for the little ones, and an “I met you when” board for the adults.  I’m a big fan of having fun things for your guests to enjoy throughout the day!

The reception was held in the Coach House at Elm Bank.  I love its rustic charm, and Jess’ whimsical bird theme perfectly fit the building.  Jess and her mom created almost all of the details themselves – Jess’ mom Bobbie even hand carved the cake toppers with clay the week of the wedding!

After dinner came the toasts.  They were sweet and fun, and I love the expressions I caught on Chris and Jess’ faces:

One of my favorite moments in the day is the first dances.  There was some great energy here …

And a few final shots from the reception to finish off.  The dessert table was amazing – I’m so happy I had my little video lights on hand to light this dark corner!

Thank you all so much for a very fun day, and I hope you’ve enjoyed this crazy week of teasers!

We’d taken some fun photos around the Museum itself earlier in the afternoon – I loved the space capsule, and of course T-Rex. 

Amy’s blue details were so pretty.  I also loved the vintage suitcase, used to collect cards, and the river rocks that were used as escort cards:

Jon and Amy went straight into their first dance at the beginning of the reception.  I love these black and white images of them – so much emotion again!

After some delicious food by Wolfgang Puck Catering, we were entertained with toasts and more dancing.  The parent dances were super sweet, and Amy made a heart-wrenching toast to her mom (just thinking about it makes me well up).  Thank you all for a beautiful evening and I hope you’ve enjoyed the teasers!  The full gallery will be ready soon here, on my Clients site.

Some details to start us off …  As well as the traditional accoutrements for a Jewish ceremony, you might spot the ropes used for the Irish tradition of handfasting:

A family friend provided the ceremony music.  I love how happy Amy and her parents look, processing down the aisle:

Some shots from the very emotional ceremony … there was an equal mix of laughter and tears, perfect!

This ceremony was such a treat for me to photograph – it was a great length (so many ceremonies just fly by) and it was incredibly well personalized to Jon and Amy.  I love it when I feel I know the couple ten times better by the end of the ceremony.

One of my very favorite moments (of course!) was when their daughter doggy Hannah brought their rings down the aisle for the ring exchange.  She did such a great job – and just look how cute she and Amy look, shaking hand and paw!

The final shot of the ceremony has to be my favorite, though.  The huge smiles and pretty bubbles were awesome.  Coming soon: the reception!

Teryl and Hunter were … amazing.  Look how gorgeous they are!  They were so much fun to work with – their bridal party, too – and they were both on emotional rollercoasters the whole day: huge grins and many giggles during the getting ready and portraits, then tears during the ceremony, toasts and first dances.  Love it.  Some other highlights for me were going to King Charley’s burger shack for a few fun bridal party photos … the perfectly delightful bridal suite (white walls and mirrors and lots of natural light, hurray!) … the adorable flower girls and ring bearer (check out the girls up to no good during the ceremony) … fab party music from Sounds Unlimited … the amazing non-matching bouquets and bouts (I really loved this idea) … and the most emotional toasts I’ve heard in a long time.  Thank you all for a fantastic day and I hope you enjoy the teasers below and the highlights slideshow (click here).

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© 2009 Kate McElwee Photography

I started off with a few getting ready shots at the girls’ apartment in Ballard, then we scooted over to Discovery Park for Joshua and Janina’s first look. Once Joshua was in place, I asked Janina to head over, and on her way she spotted a perfect white rabbit in the undergrowth – we took it to be a sign of great things to come (she’d had a bit of a crazy time with her hair and makeup appointments) and we were not disappointed.  After the first look, we headed down to the beach at Discovery for some killer couples portraits, then joined the rest of the gang at Golden Gardens for group photos.  It was definitely a greatest hits photo tour of Seattle for me!

The ceremony was just before sunset at Gasworks Park on the little platform overlooking Lake Union and downtown Seattle.  What a view!  I was grinning like an idiot by this point!  I loved that they wrote their own vows, which were emotional, funny and down to earth, and the wine blending ceremony was a very cool touch.  After that, we enjoyed a yummy light supper, amazing cupcakes by Trophy (the best in Seattle), and then it was party, party, party all night long.  They ended the night with a beautiful sparkler exit.  It was perfect.  Thank you both for sharing your fabulous day with me, and I hope you enjoy the teasers below and the slideshow (click here).

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© 2009 Kate McElwee Photography

The original plan was a large wedding one Saturday in July … but it just didn’t feel quite right.  The date and venue were changed, and a Thursday in August became the perfect day for a beautiful, small, intimate wedding at Tibbetts Creek with just their closest friends and family.  I loved that they kept the things that were important to them – an incredibly emotional (and at times hilarious) ceremony, with their good family friends officiating and reading; amazing music from cello maestro Shaun Paul; fabulous cake by Kingsley’s Dimensional Desserts; and a very short and sweet reception with just a handful of toasts and lots of good punch and coffee.  No bouquet toss, no first dance …  although I did encourage them to do a little dance later on when we were alone for photos. 

There were so many things to love about this sweet wedding, but the highlights for me were Katie’s dad’s speech – complete with Korean communication ducks … Katie’s amazing dress … Katie’s sisters’ adorable kids … the sunshine at the end of the day … and the amazing way that Bobby and Katie look at each other.  Thank you all for making it so special.  I hope you enjoy the teasers below!

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© 2009 Kate McElwee Photography