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daily mantra:

“people ask me when they walk into the shop which artist is the best and most well known…i tell them, the most popular artist is the one YOU love the most…”

{mexican.art.gallery.host}

my welcome home present….this beautiful canvas of Brian and Melissa custom wrapped by Roxanne and Company at Pixel 2 Canvas. after trying several canvas companies, i have finally found my home at Pixel 2 Canvas, a company that caters exclusively to professional photographers and just creates the most magical printed canvas i have ever seen.  my advice to clients wanting a canvas… GO BIG!! this is a true investment in your personal history that will last a lifetime. Brian and Mel chose the 20 x 30….and honestly it has inspired me to think bigger for my own home gallery.

well….i have spend the last year trying to find what works best for me as far as coffee table books and i have finally found it. the pictures really do no such justice to the stunning quality of this album. ultra thick pages, beautiful color, and just an over all luxurious feel.

for clients who purchase albums, i offer a slideshow so they can view it directly on their computer or tv and check out every little detail of their book and photographs before ordering.

check out Brian and Melissa’s slideshow by clicking the link: http://labellavitablog.com/brian_n_mel/index.html

daily mantra: knock on the sky and listen to the sound…{zen.saying}

i had the privilege of photographing Emery and her parents on Saturday, and i think it might have been more fun for me than for them! this 6 month old on the move just dazzled me with her love for the camera and her willingness to pose. honestly, it was as if she were born to be a photographers child. i was spoiled by her laughter and eye contact. thank you, Miss Emery B. for being your magnificent self.

i met caroline and nate in a coffee shop in portland this summer. from the moment i met them, i felt something comfortable and familiar. i couldn’t put my finger on it at first…it was something in the way they talked and smiled. we continued discussing their special day. nate mentioned how much they loved the ocean, and how they had both grown up happily in mid-coast Maine. it isn’t weird that people feel a connection to the ocean. . . its huge. however, to find a couple from home…completely out of the blue…is unique. a wave of relief fell over me the second he said it.

even though we are from different towns in the area, we understand the culture and community is still the same. growing up there is an experience and blessing filled with endless stories that you tell your children and grandchildren for years to come. it is, indeed, a small world. and when i learned that nate’s mom was actually my home room teacher in the 7th grade at Thomaston Grammar School, it felt all the more minuscule.

nate proposed to caroline at a red sox game. yeah…talk about every new england girl’s dream, right?!

i found this quote….when i read it, i knew it was for nate and caroline…

daily mantra: “the spaces between your fingers were created so that another’s could fill them in”…..{unknown}

ooooo…..tis the season for mailing out wedding packages to all of my stunning brides. getting prints, products, and albums in the mail is like Christmas EVERY DAY. for me, seeing it all come together is the greatest reward i get for all of the hard work. (i’m not tooting my own horn, but readers, it has it been a crazy summer, and these prints and products are like my babies).  but, alas, it is time to part with them and send them into the hands of my very deserving couples. this is the item that ALL of my brides receive with any package they choose. i always feel it is so important to put something physical in the hands of my clients. they too worked hard to save, plan, and design their wedding.all boxes are custom created and designed.

when my husband and i left our little city life to move to Rumford 5 years ago, we were basically starting over from scratch. we had no immediate or distant family in the area, we had no friends…not even acquaintances.  to say the least, it was isolating. however, over the last couple years we have melted into our small, mountain town life as if we have always lived here, and our newly found friends have molded into more of a family than we ever expected. whether it was simply just hanging out for fun, or help with the girls, or moving {you really find out who your friends and family are when you  move}, or helping us paint, scrape, babysit, our close friends have sincerely made our life here a genuine home. brian is definitely a huge part of our family life and day to day existence…Mike works with him every day and our girls simply adore him. and when melissa came into the picture a few months ago, she too was instantly welcomed and loved as a very wonderful addition to Brian’s life…and in turn our family.

to: brian and melissa.  with all my love and all my soul… {mandy}

daily mantra: “love is not about finding the right person, but creating a right relationship. it’s not about how much love you have in the beginning but how much love you build till the end.”  {unknown}

words cannot begin to express how excited i am about my 2010 couples. yet again, i feel blessed with amazing brides, all unique and amazing in their own ways, and next year promises to be diverse and magical. i was so glad to meet up with natalie and kier, an August wedding couple for next season, on probably one of the last days we will have such warm sunshine here in Maine. they are such a genuine and beautiful couple, inside and out, and i can’t wait until next summer!

Andover is a beautiful little town just 15 minutes from my home…tucked securely under a belt strip of mountains, all glowing with fall color.

{i.love.love}

daily mantra: love is not about finding the right person, but creating a right relationship. It’s not about how much love you have in the beginning but how much love you build till the end….{unknown}

The morning starts out as all wedding mornings have this season. With rain; me assembling my emergency weather kit,  my husband checking the weather radar in fifteen minute intervals; my brides sending emails in panic. But today, the rain didn’t bother me. I knew I would be shooting at one of my favorite locations, with a very special couple, and enjoying delicious and amazing company the entire time. Chelsea and Jason were referred to me by Lindsay and Jared (see 4 weeks back to their beautiful wedding); Chelsea was her maid of honor, and Lindsay was Chelsea’s…so this was a homecoming of sorts for me.

Chelsea had her own flair to her beautiful, classic attire….

I just loved this sentiment on Chelsea’s ring! {from.the.heart}

Let me just say that when Chelsea told me almost a year ago upon booking that she was getting a trolley, I started counting down the days of her wedding…

it doesn’t get any better for a photographer than a trolley…seriously.

{the.ceremony}

Married….

{mr.and.mrs.smith}

dear Chelsea and Jason…

when i got home and uploaded all of your photographs, i was instantly brought back to your truly beautiful day. there has never been a ceremony more genuine and emotional. my heart was so touched by the obvious love that you two share together…a connection i know will last a lifetime and beyond. Chelsea, I have watched you and Lindsay, Jason and Jared…share so many profound moments this year, and i just can’t feel any more blessed than i do right now as a photographer, and as a person.

all my love to you both,

amanda

daily mantra: put your ear down close to your soul and listen hard…{anne.sexton}

all weddings are special. every single one is different and timeless in a different way. but, this one…this wedding…is beyond special for me. not only did i get to go back home to shoot a wedding, but i get to do it for one of my amazing friend Kali and her soon-to-be hubby, Matt. after my rough weather last weekend, it was blissful to awake on saturday morning to nothing but blue skies, sun, and a gentle sea breaze.

i traveled all over downtown to find the perfect spot for too shoot these gorgeous flowers (notice the small yellow flowers??? its DILL, so all i did was want to snack  on the bouquet the whole time i was photographing it). i found a beautiful door in the Farmsworth Museum area. notice the number….

i just loved Kali’s tattoos on her wrist. obviously…ready for marriage in every way…the two most important elements permanently placed on her body and in her soul.

did i mention it was a perfect day….

she is such a gorgeous bride…you could see it on every man’s face in at the wedding {even Noah’s…the ring bearer}

they literally glow…

anyone who knows Kali, knows what a great sense of humor she has. i think she is going to fit right into this family…

{as a side note, i will be photographing Matt’s sister and her finance this fall…she is seen at the bottom of this set. i can’t wait!}

its so amazing to watch someone you have grown up with…someone who you have seen change and succeed, find the love of their life. 

daily mantra: love is what dreams are made of….{anonymous}

RECEPTION PICS TOMORROW…..

I met Jared and Lindsay almost a year ago, and the minute I booked them, I knew this was a once in a lifetime chance to be part of a more than extraordinary wedding day. Why? Not only do they both have just amazing hearts, but they are high school sweethearts and have been together for 10 years. Their families and friends  have watched them grow, change and evolve, not only as individuals, but as a couple. This wedding not only married Lindsay and Jared, but two families who love each other just as much. As I wound down through the sweet downtown of little South Berwick, my heart was filled with more excitement than ever before.

The weather was…ridiculously perfect if there is such thing…

This wedding advent calendar was a gift to Lindsay….I just love how personal and genuine it is…and you know I am sucker for the quote!

I could not get over these bouquets…just gorgeous.

Lindsay just has so many amazing friends…all were just as excited as she was for this day. I loved this shot of her and her mom too….it is so clear how close they are.

and the guys got ready across the street….

The wedding took place at the stunning Hamilton House in South Berwick…

My fav….

I was SO lucky to have a fun group willing to try anything…

I just love these girls…

Jared and Lindsay…

dear Lindsay and Jared…

i feel so blessed to have gotten the chance to know 2 extraordinary people over the last year. your wedding day was so special for all involved, and it was a reflection on your inner beauty and the amazing relationship you both have cultivated over the last 10 years. i wish you both the most divine happiness together, and a lifetime of the same love {and even more} that i saw on your wedding day. thank you, thank you, thank you.

all my love,

amanda

daily mantra: “love one another but make not a bond of love: let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.” {kahlil.gibran}