Bethany Cox | Maine Wedding Photographers Bethany and Dan

April 27, 2017 Engagements, Rhode Island

Federal Hill Engagement Session: Erica and Matt

What do you do on a rainy rainy day in Providence Rhode Island? Well the four of us decided to rock out some engagement photos on that wet day on Federal Hill. Erica and Matt got engaged in DePasquale Square at Christmas time and wanted to revisit the spot for their engagement photos. Erica sent me the video from the engagement and it brought tears to my own eyes. So so cute! It made me uber happy we spent the session there too. Not to mention, we got coffee at the Venda Ravioli, where Erica grew up shopping with her grandpa. After all those special spots, we headed out to Buzzards Bay Brewing for some last photos before we drank a few pints and talked about our mutual love for travel. Not a bad way to spend a rainy day at all!

April 20, 2017 Vermont, Weddings

Chittenden Vermont Wedding: Krissy and Greg

In January, Dan and I packed up the car and drove from Kitty Hawk NC to Chittenden Vermont for Krissy and Greg beautiful winter wedding at the Mountain Top Inn and Resort. This New York City couple wanted to have a Vermont wedding without even having to discuss it: “About 24 hours after we got engaged, Krissy asked “Any thoughts on where you want to get married?” and Greg read her mind by saying “Vermont” – it was one of the easiest decisions we’ve made!” We think they made a perfect decision with that. It was a really gorgeous day, not too cold or windy but still having snow on the ground. The couple got ready in separate cabins on the property and met up for a dreamy first look, all dreamed up by Krissy herself. Afterwards we headed around the property for photos and then before we knew it, it was ceremony time!

All the guests headed to an open patio overlooking the Green Mountains. They bundled up in warm blankets and waited for Krissy to walk down the aisle with her dad. After laughs and tears and a first kiss, they were married! Everyone headed to the reception and enjoyed cannolis straight from NYC and signature cocktails. One thing I loved about the reception was there there were at least 3 distinct dance parties. It was a dance heavy reception and thats the kind of reception we adore. I also loved that some of the toasts actually happened later on in the night when everyone had already had a few good drinks and needed a minute to rest from dancing. It was unique and just right for that night. Im so glad we were there and got to enjoy this wedding. Talk about an awesome way to start the 2017 season.

Venue: Mountain Top Inn | Florist: A School House Garden

Makeup: Flawless Cosmetic Design | DJ: SuperSounds Entertainment

April 13, 2017 Michigan, Weddings

Detroit Museum Wedding: Becky and Kevin

Dan and Becky went to school together and she’s kept up with us ever since we started our business in 2010. When she and Kevin got engaged, she wrote us and asked us to be a part of her wedding day. We were super excited to say the least. We love to photograph friends weddings PLUS this one was a destination wedding so we were all in.

The couple got ready at a hotel outside of Detroit and then we all headed to the historic Ford Piquette Avenue Plant, where the first Model T was conceived and developed by Henry Ford himself. Cool right? The setting was so beautiful in our photographer eyes: gorgeous natural light pouring in the huge windows, brick, steel, chipping paint. We also took them to a mural in the city just a couple blocks away. It was so incredible and colorful and a dream to photograph. We were in heaven.

The ceremony took place surrounded by historic Ford cars and family and friends. With a dozen children in her family alone, there were A LOT of family members in attendance. Afterwards, we went outside for a few more portraits and then it was time for the party. They served some out of control BBQ and Coca cola and sweet Tea for dinner along with a dessert table that I salivated after as I edited the photos weeks later. After dinner, Becky’s dad performed a song he had written for her which was beyond precious. Dancing began and it was a laid back, sweet, snuggly evening. Since it was the last wedding of the season and we were feeling spunky, we even hit up the after party at the hotel later that night. All in all…. an incredible exclamation point to end our 2016 season!

More from Becky and Kevin: Engagement Session

Venue: Detroit Ford Piquette Avenue Plant | Videographer: Sculpted Films

Hair: Blo Blow Dry Bar | Flowers: Bloom Design

Catering: Slow’s BBQ | DJ: Radiant Receptions

April 10, 2017 #bdtravlin, Personal

#bdtravlin: Detroit

I’ll willingly admit we didn’t take a ton of photos on our trip to Detroit. We really only had one afternoon in the city itself. The rest of the time we were photographing Becky and Kevin’s wedding (coming on Thursday to ze blog) and sleeping. In our one afternoon though, we headed into the city to see what it was all about, or at least what we could glean in that tiny amount of time.

We first just drove into the city to get a feel for the layout and also to scout out a mural we wanted to photograph Kevin and Becky in front of. After that we drove over to see the Heidelberg Project, which had been on my bucket list for years. We also drove past the Monument to Joe Louis, but the light turned green before I could get a photo of it from the car. Whomp. Clearly we were a little more set on seeing rather than photographing.

Our tiny one sided take on Detroit is that it is nestled between hope and despair. We saw a lot of sad things but we also saw a lot of happy things. The art was bursting from every wall… but a lot of walls were falling. Can you get a picture of that in your mind? I felt safe and in danger. I felt good and bad. I really liked it honestly. It has a palpable soul and thats something that I am always drawn to. The struggle was and is real… but its not hopeless. If you get a chance… visit. We plan on going back one day and spending an actual real amount of time.

Note: The images of the Heidelberg Project are not for our profit or commercial use. We just want to share them so you can see and perhaps visit. Please see their website to learn more about the artists.

March 10, 2017 #bdtravlin, Personal

#bdtravlin: Stockholm

As a child of the 80’s I was an avid reader of the American Girl Books, particularly Molly and Kirsten. Sadly both are phased out in the American Girl world but I’ll never forget. I can also trace back my interest in Sweden right back to reading about Kirsten and St Lucia! Anyone with me? All this to say, we needed to visit Sweden since it was possible in our Euro Trip.

We only had two real days in the city so we spent the first day going to two museums: Fotografiska and the Abba Museum. Both were so so so good! Fotografiska is a museum of just photography. While we were there they had two special exhibits happening. The first was the Bettina Rheims I’ll Be Your Mirror exhibit, which reminded me a lot of a feminine Mario Testino. Big bold photos, Bright Colors. Celebrities. I was feelin it. Next was an exhibit called Ikoner which was photography of people with Down Syndrome and their right to exist. You guys. This was so powerful! The images were paired with short films, introducing you to the lives of the people in the photos. I particularly loved “The Rockstar” and “The Diva.” The Abba Museum was simply pure fun. I loved everything. The colors. The music. The vibe. The story. It’s a definite must do if you enjoy their music. Its also not very big so it doesn’t take your whole day. I’ve always been a fan so it was no question we would go. I also enjoyed the fact that we took a ferry boat to get there and that it’s right next to an amusement park.

The food was delicious for us. We ate at two notable restaurants. First we were craving burgers after all our museum-going so we headed to Barrels Burgers and Beers. I dont know if it was because we were so hungry but I still remember how delicious this was. We follow them on Insta too now so I think of them often and REALLY want to go back. I also had one of the best beers in my life (and also one of the most expensive at $15) and I cant remember what it was!! Another reason to visit again amiright? It has something like sunset or sunrise or tropical or something in the title. Gah! We also ate at Meatballs for the People. Yaassssss!!!! We had to have meatballs… i mean… when in rome right? They were delish and a perfect send off on our second day which consisted mainly of shopping. Obviously.

After Stockholm we flew back to Oslo and hung out with Deanna (see Norway Post). It was an huge long and wonderful trip that Dan and I will never ever forget. Im so glad there’s space in our lives for trips like this. When we got back to America we headed back to Maine and began and month-long search for an apartment, which eventually led us to living on the sailboat last summer. It’s funny to think of how unpredictable life is. Before this trip we had no idea we would be going to Europe or that we would be living on a sailboat. We were just innocently doing our off season thing and within a few months we had been on an epic Euro trip and fulfilled a huge number of bucket list items. Now a year later, we have a beautiful apartment in Portland and are planning a trip back to Iceland this coming June for a wedding. Im so so thankful for our life and what we have been able to do and look forward to our next adventure!