October 7, 2020
James and Kristin are getting married next September at the York Golf & Tennis Club. They just bought a house in Southern Maine after spending a handful of years in Boston. Like many couples living in cities, they decided to move to the suburbs once the reality of COVID set in. The happiness between these two is extremely contagious, which makes me that more excited to capture their wedding next season.
October 7, 2020
My fiancé used to be a Chef and I’m a wedding photographer. Our original wedding was on Ram Island Farm in Cape Elizabeth, Maine, but because of COVID our plans changed.
Since we couldn’t celebrate with friends and family this year, we decided to throw an intimate garden party under twinkle lights with a handful of close friends. The inspiration for the dinner came from our wedding inspiration and from the love of our gardens. My fiancé used to work for Eventide Oyster Co. and Big Tree Catering, so naturally we’re obsessed with hosting. I love the idea of outdoor dinners, especially those nestled under a tunnel of twinkle lights. It’s something I’ve always dreamed of creating.
Yellow Twist Floral Design spent time manipulating standard roses to give the appearance of a garden rose. The muted blush tone paired with a vibrant and creamy yellow allowed for either tone to serve as the neutral. Roses, cosmos, and protea in soft shades of mauve and yellow provided a lush centerpiece down the table.
This entire dinner party was a celebration of late summer and a reminder that even in COVID you can have elevated intimate gatherings and a reason to dress up!
Photography: Natalya DeSena Photography
Florals: Yellow Twist Floral Design
Rentals: One Stop Party Shop
September 14, 2020
Taylor emailed me a few days before her session and asked if she could bring her Frenchie named Oliver. I immediately jumped for joy as I have two frenchies, one whose name is Olive. There is a certain connection that Frenchie owners have and I just couldn’t get enough of this little guy.
Taylor and Ryan are getting married at Beech Hill Barn next August. They’re wedding is going to be relaxed, modern, and romantic. I can’t wait to document all of the beautiful moments and to watch these two tie the knot.
September 14, 2020
I photographed Abi & David’s engagement session at Willard Beach in South Portland, Maine. The weather that September evening was perfect. Abi’s wedding palette includes pastel colors; soft pinks, blues, beige, and blush. Her vision for this session was to create a beautiful picnic incorporating all of those colors. The pastel colors of the sunset paired flawlessly with the soft tones of her picnic. This was one dreamy cotton candy engagement session.
September 10, 2020
Nikki & Ryan got married at French’s Point in Stockton Springs, Maine. These two love birds go WAY back, and I mean all the way back, back to Kindergarten. They grew up in Winthrop, Maine, went to the same high school, and went on to the same college. The connection between Nikki and Ryan was honest, gentle, and true. It was an honor to capture all of the feels on their wedding day, from the tears, laughs, and silly moments. I can’t wait to share more of their story and more images once their final portfolio is completed. In the meantime check out their wedding previews below.
Photographer: Natalya DeSena Photography
Planner: Pinch Me Planning
Venue: French’s Point
Catering: 111 Maine
Video: Rebecca Drouin
Florals: Mimi & Mum
H+M: Natasha Baxter
August 24, 2020
On this day last year I documented Jill’s best friends wedding on Peaks Island. Yesterday, I documented Jill and Andrew’s engagement session at Kettle Cove in Cape Elizabeth, Maine. I love the network and connection that my business has given me. It’s such a beautiful thing to watch the milestones in a friend group; from engagements, to weddings, and family Sessions.
Yesterday was a beautiful day for an engagement session. Before the session, I sent Jill and Andrew a few questions, so take a look at their answers and images below!
1. What is your favorite thing to do together?
We are lucky to have many of the same interests. We love to ski, bike, and go boating.
2. What are your hobbies/what do you do on your free time?
We are both dedicated to fitness. Andrew spends many mornings at the CrossFit gym in Yarmouth. I can usually be found running or biking. I love to cook and we both love learning about wine and whiskey. We have lots of friends and family close by, who we spend most of our free time with.
3. What are you looking to get out of this session other than photos?
To get to know you and your photography style to make sure we are comfortable in the spotlight on our wedding day. We would also like to use one of the photographs for our Save the Date invitations.
4. When you look back on these photos in 20 years what do you want to feel?
Extremely happy
August 17, 2020
I’m a sucker for shooting at the beach and I could spend every day shooting sessions there. Johnna and Max traveled an hour and a half from the Boston area to shoot their engagement session in Cape Elizabeth, Maine. Before every engagement session I ask my clients a few questions in order to get to know them better and to learn more about what they want out of their sessions. Johnna and Max responses are below:
1. What is your favorite thing to do together? We love to travel together whenever we can. Whether it is out of country, a road trip, or exploring all over New England for beaches, lakes, or ski trips. Whenever we can get away, we do! If not, we love to just have game nights or go out with our friends and family.
2. What are your hobbies/what do you do on your free time? On our free time together we love to just go on hikes and walks with our puppy. We also always love to relax to binge a show or watch a new movie.
3. What are you looking to get out of this session other than photos? To have fun and as a way to celebrate our engagement and getting more excited for our wedding. This will make us(more max) get more comfortable in front of the camera to prepare for our wedding day!
4. When you look back on these photos in 20 years what do you want to feel? Happiness, to see how much fun we have together as well as well as our connection with each other.
August 12, 2020
Alley and Jon’s original wedding was supposed to happen on July 4th, 2020 at French’s Point Stockton Springs, Maine. Like many other couples, they pushed their large celebration to 2021 and decided to have a micro wedding this summer at Migis Lodge and Panther Pond.
Alley and Jon live in New York City. As you can imagine, the beginning of COVID was tough on them as they both started working from home in their small apartment located in what was the epicenter of the pandemic at the time.
As summer approached they decided to escape the city and head to Panther Pond, Maine, which is where Alley’s Dad lives. They set up mini offices around her father’s cottage on the lake and hunkered down for a few months. In June they decided it would be a fun idea to have a micro wedding since they were here in Maine for the summer. They had already pushed their larger wedding to next season, but they wanted to celebrate their love on their original wedding date in a place they hold near and dear to their hearts, Alley’s family cabin. They started the day on a magical boat ride at Migis Lodge in South Casco, ME and then got married at her Panther Pond cabin. They invited neighbors and friends to gather for an intimate lakeside reception, and in true Maine fashion, they celebrated with a lobster bake.
I’m extremely grateful that I get the chance to work with Alley and Jon on not just one celebration, but two. I can’t wait to document their larger celebration next July!
Vendors:
Venue & Boat: Migis Lodge
Reception Location: Great grandfather’s Panther Pond Cottage
Planner: Wed In Maine
Florals: Studio Flora
Dress: J.Crew
Shoes: Stubbs and Wootton
Headband: Lele Sadoughi
August 11, 2020
I’ve had a lot of questions lightly about what to wear during your engagement session. Everyone’s style is different, but I put together some of my favorite looks whether you’re doing your session in the streets of Boston or at the beach in Maine. If you and your fiancé are similar to me and my fiancé, then you probably don’t have many high quality photos together. This one hour session is aimed to capture your personality and relationship. If you are ocean lovers, let’s go to the beach or enjoy an evening sail together. If you love the city, let’s take a stroll to your favorite coffee shops and parks.
I know many of you have already seen my engagement session brochure, but I wanted to give you some visuals – color palettes, links to beautiful dresses, as well as links to some of the styles your fiancé can wear.
The First Style
This first style is one of my favorites. It’s clean, classic, and elegant, which is what I strive for in my photography. I love how timeless this look is and it fits in well with coastal New England engagement sessions. Take this look to downtown Boston, Portland, Maine or to the coast.
LADIES OUTFIT
Dress
Shoes
Earrings
MENS OUTFIT
Blaser
Pants
Shirt
Shoes
NORDSTROM
Dress 1 Dress 2 Dress 3
Rent The Runway
Dress 4 Dress 5 Dress 6
The Second Style
I like to call this style casual dressy, it’s easy yet beautiful. You can add statement earrings and heels to the flowy white dress to make it more sophisticated. Your fiancé can keep it low key and classic in khakis, a white t-shirt, button down, and maybe a pair of vans. This a perfect look for the beach, or a night out downtown.
LADIES OUTFIT
Earrings
Dress
Shoes
MENS OUTFIT
Entire outfit
Shoes
Below are some of my favorite dresses for the above look. The ones on the left are J.Crew and the ones on the right are various brands you can rent from Rent The Runway. Rent The Runway is a great option for your engagement session and it’s an amazing option if you’re not wearing the outfit more than a couple times. It an easy process and I highly recommend it. I provided the links to the dresses below.
J Crew
Dress 1 Dress 2 Dress 3
Rent The Runway
Dress 4 Dress 5 Dress 6
The Third Style
I like to call this the nautical fall look. It’s coastal, clean and the contrast between colors makes it fun. I love the brown shoes paired with the other neutral tones which definitely gives it a more fall, earthy look. If it’s in the midst of summer still, swap out those brown shoes for a pair of beige boat shoes for your fiancé and a pair of beige heeled sandals or flats for yourself. I provided more dresses below with links.
LADIES OUTFIT
Dress
Shoes
MENS OUTFIT
Sweater
Pants
Shoes
RENT THE RUNWAY
Dress 1 Dress 2 Dress 3
MADEWELL
Dress 4 Dress 5
MICHAEL KORS
Dress 6
I like to tell my couples to bring two outfit changes to every session. It allows you to get one casual look and one dressy look. It’s rare that we get professional photos done, so I highly suggest taking advantage of it!
I hope you found this post helpful in planning your engagement session and I can’t wait to capture beautiful photos of you and your fiancé!
July 21, 2020
Alexander proposed to Alexis onboard a private sailboat charter with Silver Linging Sailing in Oqunquit, Maine. Alexis is from Sydney, Australia and Alexander is from Buffalo, NY. They met on a Contiki trip in Europe 4 years ago and soon after the trip was over they started dating. They did the whole long distance thing for 3 years, traveling to see each other every 3 months. Last year Alexis decided it was time to move to the USA so she moved in with Alexander in Boston. This was such a magical evening out on the water and I’m so happy for these two. Cheers to these two as they start their next chapter!
