Wedding photography in Boston, on Cape Cod, in Providence, Vermont, and Maine … I had a shorter season this past year due to taking a personal sabbatical last spring, but I still managed to photograph 14 beautiful, warm, exhilarating, fun weddings in the winter, summer, and fall. Here are some of my favorite wedding photos from 2017!

Each year, I post a selection of my favorite photos from each wedding I photographed, in either slideshow or scroll-through form. This year, I’m sharing both! For those slideshow lovers, look no further – click the play button on the image above to start a whirlwind, fast-moving gallery set to music. If you prefer to take your time and savor the images, I’ve posted a couple of photos from each wedding below, with a little about what I loved about them. This is the first half of the year, February through early September. Part two – mid September through December – will be along next week!

My first wedding of the year was Nicky & Danny’s Biltmore Providence wedding. This sweet couple had one of my favorite first looks on the second floor of the gorgeous Biltmore Hotel, and Danny’s reaction to seeing Nicky was just perfect.

Nicky & Danny took me to some of their favorite spots in Providence for their wedding portraits. I fell in love with the Providence Public Library – what a gorgeous building!

This moment just melts my heart. I love how it captures, perfectly, how sweet Danny is, and how in love he is with Nicky. I can’t imagine anyone not wanting a photo that shows this kind of love from their partner.

Molly & Jordan also got married in the winter, at the Barn at Gibbet Hill in Groton, MA. This photo of Molly getting into her dress is one of my favorite getting ready photos of the year; she is so elated, and it was such a fun and funny moment.

Molly & Jordan had a first look in the lobby of the hotel where they got ready. I spotted the moms taking a peek and am so glad I captured this sweet and fun moment for them.

I’ve been trying to photograph the groom’s side getting ready myself this year (versus sending my second photographer) as I really love spending time with the guys and getting to know everyone before portraits. It is also really fun to photograph as the pace is so different to the girls’ getting ready – it is usually fast and furious!

This moment at Analise & David’s Boston Park Plaza wedding was one of my very favorites from all of the guys’ getting ready that I photographed this year; David was so incredibly sweet with his little ring bearers, and I said to Analise how great he’ll be as a dad.

While my focus on the wedding day is the couple, I am also constantly looking for great photos of everyone else, too. I captured this photograph from the bride’s point of view; Analise and her dad were waiting at the central door to enter the church, while the bridal party lined up at the side door. Like many of my photos, it’s a simple shot but I hope it takes Analise right back to how she was feeling in that moment.

I love the parent dances, and especially the father-daughter dance – probably because I’m so close with my dad, and we didn’t do a father-daughter dance at my wedding (something that always makes me feel a little sad in retrospect). I highlighted this one because as well as the lovely moment at the end of the dance, I really love how it shows off the beauty and grandeur of the ballroom at the Boston Park Plaza, a new wedding venue for me this past year.

I LOVE special exits – from sparkler send-offs to confetti tosses after the ceremony, there is nothing greater for getting everyone excited. It’s so much fun capturing so many people in one frame, surrounding the couple with love and cheers. This was my favorite confetti exit photo of the year, as Mike and Ann descended the steps of St Ignatius church at Boston College, their alma mater.

Many of my couples pulled out all the stops for their first dances this year. This dance-ending dip at Boston Harbor Hotel was pretty spectacular, and I’m grateful to Ann and Mike for holding it for more than a second so that I had time to scoot around and capture it from the best angle! If you’re planning a dip at the end of your first dance, I highly recommend either holding it for a few moments, or giving me a heads-up on where the dip will take place so that I can be ready for it.

The iconic arch at the Boston Harbor Hotel – and a fun and joyous moment as the wedding party cheers Ann & Mike.

Amanda & Jeremy’s wedding at the Royal Sonesta Hotel in Cambridge was bright and sunny, conditions that make for a happy couple, but are sometimes not the easiest to photograph, especially in the middle of the day. So I was thrilled with this photo, which captures the fantastic weather and yet is still flattering and striking.

I love Jeremy’s expression here as he proudly shows off his new wedding ring while he and Amanda exit their ceremony. Such big, happy smiles! This is always one of my favorite moments on a wedding day, when everyone can finally relax and soak in the moment.

Kelly & Jon had an absolutely epic wedding weekend, and I photographed three full days of celebrations, culminating in their actual wedding day on the Sunday. These two adventure seekers were completely unaffected by the pouring rain throughout their day, and I loved photographing how they embraced the weather. This is Kelly leaving the little getting ready house at Riverside Farm, VT, on her way to meet with Jon.

The Brown Barn at Riverside Farm was the backup spot for the ceremony, which had originally been planned for outside. It made a pretty great substitute! This was right at the end of the ceremony: a perfect first kiss dip, with elated friends surrounding the couple, framed by elements of the unique barn.

Kelly and Jon are so exuberant, and their generosity shines through in everything they do, even when giving a simple hug. It was hard narrowing down the selection of favorites from their wedding, but this really captures the spirit of who they are, and the importance of their family and friends.

As I mentioned, I really really love exits for capturing pure joy; unfortunately it’s rare for me to photograph a sparkler exit as they aren’t legal in Massachusetts. So, whenever I’m in Vermont for a wedding, I encourage my couples to take advantage. This was such a perfect moment; Jon and Kelly took time to interact with their guests as they walked though the sparklers at the end of the reception.

The couples I work with are such a joyful bunch that I often don’t get to capture those super emotional, tearful moments that I also crave. Alex, however, was an emotional yoyo, which I absolutely loved, and took full advantage of! Here she is tearing up at one of the most unique and thoughtful gifts I’ve seen from a groom: a diary entry from when James first caught a glimpse of Alex on their college’s “new faces” page.

This is Alex leaving Wychmere Cottage at this beautiful Cape venue. I have made several photos at this spot over the years, but this clean, graphic image of Alex is my favorite. I love how her lean perfectly centers her in the doorway, and her expression – trying to keep her dress out of the way (and clean!) – contrasts with the perfect symmetrical calm of the composition. It’s a photo about me, as much as about Alex, and I’m OK with that!

This might be my very favorite photo all year! Along with the guests (who roared with glee throughout) I was blown away by James and Alex’s incredible choreographed first dance. They took ballroom dancing lessons back home in Chicago, in preparation. I am so happy that I caught this perfect moment at the end of the dance. But this photo, really, is all them.