Monday, January 31, 2011

Lisa

I am in the works of improving my portfolio. I want to find time to do personal work and take photos where I can be more creative with styling and doing more fashion and beauty type of photographs.

Saturday afternoon I shot with the wonderful Lisa, who is one tough cookie! I call her one tough cookie because she was such a champ, modeling for me in the snow and it was FREEZING outside!  We were lucky enough to have a fresh snowfall the night before, so there was beautiful sparkly snow that fell onto the every tree branch. I bribed her to model for me with hot chocolate! By the end of the shoot, Lisa could not feel her toes what-so-ever!  I don't think she got the feeling back until several hours later! haha 
Winter can be miserably cold, but it is SO breathtakingly, beautiful at the same time!

Here are a few of my favorites of Lisa...





Also a special big thanks to Nicole Montella, a highschool senior, who is trying to build her portfolio for CCS. Nicole tagged along to see what a shoot is like, took some photos herself, and helped assist the shoot. Great job Nicole! 

<3 ML

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

GLOSTA

Uhhmm it is about 4 in the morning right now, I can't seem to sleep so I decided to update the blog. Tonight I am going to post something I have been thinking about lately and missing a whole bunch. 

This past August, My Mom, Sister and I went to a little town called Gloucester, Massachusetts.  Reason for this is because for as long as I can remember my mom has been telling me that she HAS to take me there. Growing up my mom would visit there often because her Aunt (my Grandma's Sister) and Uncle lived there. My Aunt moved there when she got married because that is where her husband and his family is from. My Aunt and her family moved to Michigan the year my Mom and Dad got married. So now a couple times a year my Uncle Paul and Aunt Virginia like to go back and visit their other family. 

About 2 years ago my Uncle and Aunts youngest son, Paulie got married and all of their family from Gloucester came in for the wedding. Needless to say, they were really cool and wanted us to come visit them during the summer.

So back in August me, my mom, sister, my moms cousin RoseAnn and her 3 kids, Nico, Michael and Mia all packed into one car and went for a 12 hour road trip to Gloucester! My Uncle Paul and Aunt Virginia came as well in another car, of course!

We stayed with my Uncle Paul's niece Ro, who my mom used to hang out with and stay with when she was young. Ro and her husband Ricardo and daughter Gracie and son, Joe were amazing. They were such nice people and made us feel SO comfortable. FUNNY too...I don't think I have ever laughed so much than I did when staying in that house!

And then there is Ro's sister, Fay who is awesome and so easy to talk to. She has two kids Marco and Francesca who are around my age and were so cool to take me with them where ever they went! Marco showed me around the whole island. Francesca took me to beach and shopping a couple of times. They even took me out with their friends at night. 

One of the days, a whole bunch of us all went to downtown Boston for the day, which is only 45 minutes away by train. I never had so much fun laughing at my Uncles sister, Zina who tried sneaking as many people as she could through the train station without paying. haha still makes me laugh!

Enough of my talking I am going to post some pictures already!


This is one of the first pictures I took when we first got there. This is a picture of the backyard of my Uncle Paul's Mom's, Sister, Zina and Niece's house. I loved how almost every house on in Gloucester is old and looks like these! So much history I love it! Zina and my Uncle's Mom live upstairs and Fay, her husband and Marco live downstairs. (Marco claims his bedroom is haunted...thats how much history lol)

Oh and if you hadn't noticed the reason I love this place so much is not only the people, but how BEAUTIFUL it is! This is Good Harbor beach where we would hang out every day. That house on the cliff was in a movie call "The Good Son" with Macually Culkin, I still have yet it to see it. 

This is a small town inside of Gloucester called, Rockport



Gracie, Julia and Me

Poor Quality photo, High Quality people! Me, Francesca & Marco @ a bar in Salem

Everyone at the beach!

Ro, RoseAnn and my Mom with thier sunglasses on upside down! Goofs!

At the back shore picking bubbalushi (snails) with Fay!

Marco and Uncle Paul picking Rizi (sea urchin)on the back shore, so we can go home and eat them!

I found one!

I love my Aunt Virginia! We came home and boiled the bubbalushi and ate them ...or hung them from our nose...either or. HAHA

Yup thats all bubbalushi in that bowl! Left to right Zina, Fay, and my Uncle Paul!

Gloucester is known as a fisherman's town. This is the famous memorial statue for all those lost at sea.

And this is the Gloucester Fisherman's Wives Memorial, for all those women and children who lost their husbands, sons and brothers at the sea.

My sister and I at Wingersheek beach I think it was called....BEAUTIFUL! There were so many rocks to hang out on and climb or lay out on and crystal clear water!

Nico, Julia, Alessandra, Grace, Michael and Me early morning, waiting for the train to Boston


This is the Connah Store in Boston, mind you everyone talks with an awesome accent. I LOVED it! 
I started talking like them by the time I left! The R's are turned into A's. Like they pronounce Gloucester like GLOSTA!

Just a little history lesson, this is the original house of Paul Revere, you know "the british are coming! the british are coming!"

 Candid shot of everyone at Joe and MaryAnn's (My Uncles brother) house for dinner one night!

Francesca & her fiance Chris took me to get an infamous Steak cheese sub and we ate it at the park over looking the water on my last day!
This is the draw bridge that opens everytime a boat needs to come through....stops traffic and all!

Mia being cute as always!

I have SO many photos from this trip, but I just posted some of my faves and the ones that described the trip best. 

I didn't use my 5D mk2 much on the trip, which kind of bugs me since I would have got better quality photos...but I did take Gracie's senior pictures and a couple cute ones of Mia on the beach with it! Maybe I will post those another day.

All in all....I must say that Gloucester has been one of my favorite vacations yet! I had SO much fun! The place, the scenery, the food and especially the people we were with were so amazing. I still cannot thank them all enough for such an enjoyable time! And what is even MORE awesome is that Francesca and Chris invited us to their wedding this Summer August 12th, so we get to come back and visit! 

August cannot come sooner!

Hope you enjoyed this post! 2 hours later...maybe I should try to go to bed?

Love, 
ML xoxo

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Joe and Chelsea

I shot a beautiful wedding in November of an even more beautiful couple, Joe and Chelsea Leone.  I have been meaning to put this up on the blog for some time now, but things got crazy right at that time with christmas and the end of the semester for me.

I met Joe and Chelsea a couple of years ago because, my boyfriend, Domenic's older brother, Steve is married to Joe's older sister, Genna. So I have known them for a couple of years and have always seen them at Steve and Genna's daughter's birthday parties and what not. When they approached me about photographing their big day I couldn't believe it and was SO stoked! 
Joe and Chelsea are both truly, amazing people. They are both the kind of people that make you feel instantly comfortable while being in their company, like you have known them forever. They are the nicest people and super easy going. Chelsea just got a job as a teacher! And Joe owns his own Lawncare and Landscape business. It was such a pleasure photographing both their engagement photos and wedding day. This was one of my first BIG weddings to shoot on my own...with  the help of my friend Joe. The wedding was so much fun to shoot and I feel so blessed that Joe and Chelsea gave me the opportunity to do so!

Here are a couple of my favorites from their wedding....

Joe's dad helping him get ready for the big day...


Joe and his best man, Steve, who is also his brother-in-law. Joe said growing up he always felt like Steve was like the big brother he never had..so he decided to have him as his best man. Steve is a character, let me tell you, funny guy! I chose this picture to put up on the blog because it describes him perfectly, he's giving Joe the "I got my eye on you" gesture! haha 
              
   Joe and his Mom
                                                 
The Groomsmen in Joe's work truck....Joe owns a lawncare company called C Joe Mow (See Joe Mow) haha I love the name his mom came up with it! 





The Beautiful Bride, Chelsea!






All the gals gathered in the bridesroom as Chelsea gets ready.

Chelsea and her Momma!

The awesome Bridesmaids!





Their First Dance


CHEERS! To the new Mr. & Mrs.!




Chelsea dancing with her Dad :)

Chelsea surprised Joe by singing a song that she dedicated to him called 
"I just call you mine" by Martina McBride







Fun was had by all on the dance floor especially these two!


I love this shot of these two dancing....they look so happy!

Thanks for checkin out Joe and Chelsea's Wedding!

I will post again very soon! 


<3 ML