The Wedding Story of Kate Gagnon & Owen Osborn - Warren VT - July 11, 2009

Turned into a magical weekend for both families and friends who made it up to this gorgeous country house in the woods above Warren village in Vermont (~1 mile from my house). I had a blast documenting this story and before I get started spilling – sometimes I feel like writing more than others, but all of my weddings this summer so far have been real success stories - which have helped me continue to LOVE MY JOB!!!

Yet again, mother nature was extremely nice to me this past Saturday, and we were extremely lucky that the skies didn’t open up an hour sooner – which would have made for some very wet guests and one ruined hand-sewn, hand-dyed wedding dress… In fact she held out all day ‘til near the end of the cocktail hour and by then most of the guests were in the tent ready to eat. When rain did arrive, did it ever, tent walls flapping away with thunder & lightning and the sky went dark, but by the end of the family toasts the rain eased, the sun peered through on the horizon and some of us ran out to witness a double rainbow.

Seems to becoming sort of a pattern this summer, but at least it’s just rain after all - we could be worrying about much worse things – like being way to HOT… Had this been the winter we would all be skipping life to go skiing in the most amazing freshies everyday – can you just imagine? As I type this it is utterly pouring out yet again and now I start worrying about this next weekends weather… Most of my gear is weather proof so you need not worry about me or the images I create, as I thrive within the challenge and actually love making weather photos…

The Osborn home is tucked away at the end of a dirt road among all the others up here in the mountains of Vermont – a quaint little place with solar panels, country flowers, with it’s own sugar-shack, all with a peaceful view of the southern mountains… A path cut through the woods brings you next door to this oversized mansion of sorts where the gals stayed the weekend and got ready. Before the ceremony we did a few family and wedding party creative formals here on the stone patio with enough time left for everyone to make it back over next door prior to the ceremony to relax a bit and finish a little prep. This ceremony, like many others, made me cry a bit behind my lens (I’d rather not go into why), everything was so perfect for Kate & Owen that afternoon…

Here are a few of my most favorite moments captured from the weekend; you can view all the over 700 images on Pictage.com through the Prints tab within my website once Kate & Owen have released them and as an extra little sneak peek I’ve prepared a multimedia slideshow you can watch by clicking here.

Peace!

Spencer








































Kate just wrote me this about each of the other vendors:
Band: Starline Rhythm Boys (awesome).
Cupcakes: Mary Laulis, Bridge Street Bakery (she does much fancier stuff than we had, and is known for her decorating).
Caterer: Elder Hill Catering in Bristol, VT. Ian and Nancy. No website, and I believe I was their only wedding this summer. They were AMAZING to work with. Ian is the chef at Middlebury, so my mom found out about them through the chef at Amherst College where she works. They need a website.
Officiant: Owen's uncle, Frederick H. Osborn III. He isn't an official wedding officiant, but the family has weddings at the family house in Garrison, NY.
Tent: Celebration Rentals in Brandon. They work closely with Ian and Nancy, so she suggested them because of that.
Peonies: Mountain Flower Farm - organic farm right near you on Roxbury Mtn Road.

The Dress was made by one of Kate’s best friends: Jacqueline Kilmartin of Lillian Jackson Textile Design.

Molly & Zach's E-Session, Downtown Stowe VT

I met up with Molly & Zach yesterday afternoon to walk around Stowe a bit for an environmental engagement session - here are a few examples of the moments created...










I look forward to documenting their wedding story next August at the Stowehof.

Peace! Spencer

Adrienne & John’s 4th of July Wet Wedding Weekend Wonderland – Middlebury, VT 2009

WOW just doesn’t cover it here, so I’m going to let the images speak for themselves, but to say the least it was a blast documenting my largest wedding so far this year at the Illick Estate as Adrienne joined John’s MacIntyre clan… 3 photographers, 4 days, 300 guests, 11 piece band, 10 groomsmen, 9 bridesmaids, best fireworks I’ve ever seen in the state & RAIN producing a fair amount of standing water under the tent which stopped no one from having a blast:

For this wedding I hired two other photographers to shoot along with me, one of my best-friends and former Wedding Photojournalism partner from down in Boston, Glen Cooper, was my 2nd shooter and it was great to work with him again - hopefully Glen is available next time a couple selects to add a 2nd Professional Wedding Photojournalist. My assistant Curtis Savard stepped up as the 3rd shooter & logistics assistant because this was such a large crowd - he has come along way over the last year and soon will be ready to step into the role as 2nd shooter...

The Illick Estate is really the home of the Illick family in Middlebury VT, which the mother of the bride & I sort of teased could become one of those really premier venues for weddings: ~20 acres of pristine lawn, a beautiful clear pond, large house with enormous covered deck, sunken garden and amazing landscaping, really close to Middlebury but yet with few neighbors. Let me know if you would be interested in viewing this site and I'll see what can be done...

The Rehearsal Dinner was in the red barn at Mary's at Baldwin Creek in Bristol, VT and the "Meet & Greet" cocktail party was at 2 Brother's Tavern in the center of Middlebury, VT.

Nothing could have happened without Samantha Buczek who in addition to providing the tent, etc from Weddings, Tents & Events also acted as the Wedding Coordinator - she did a great job and I look forward to working with her again - she's a real sweetheart!

Spice of Life caterred the event, so the food was litteraly to die for and it seemed to me that Maggie brought along over 20 servers - really professional.

Downtown Fever was the band here, came up from Boston and with 11 peices really rocked all aspects of the night till 2am...

The ever talented Lucinda Rooney created all of the flower arrangements the morning of...

I'm not sure about the cake, dress, hair or tux's, so if anyone knows I'd be happy to add - what else did I miss?

Peace! Spencer

Janna & Frank's Weekend Wedding Story - Cooper Hill Inn - June 19th & 20th 2009

I truly had a blast documenting the story of Janna & Frank’s wedding this past weekend down in Wilmington, VT at Our Lady of Fatima, walking around downtown Wilmington with them with the majestic views at Cooper Hill Inn in East Dover, VT. Overcome a few more challenges than usual, I exceeded even my own expectations to ultimately produce an excellent collection of memories.

Here are my favorite 50:

, of which you can also view as a multimedia slideshow by clicking here.

You can also view these as a multimedia slideshow by clicking here.

Peace!

Spencer

Great article about my town

Click here to view a really cool article published in the NY Times June 26th, 2009 about the Mad River Valley in the off-season aka Summer. The Fuller Hill Loop she mentions virtually wraps around my small farm / photo gallery.

What she didn't mention is how amazing of a location the Mad River Valley is for weddings! I've started accepting bookings for 2010 and have had a few inquiries already for 2011. Let me know if you are interested or even still looking for venues and might like recommendations...

...Oh, and that 20-something might as well have been me if she had gone down in the other direction on East Warren Road (add another 10 years).

Peace!

Spencer

What's On My Mind: while editting Janna & Frank's wedding story...

I’m not ready to post any images yet from this past weekends wedding yet, but I feel the need to explain my mindset right now:

For some weddings I know my work is amazing as I’m creating it and then for some it takes me a few post-production stages to see it as clearly. This past weekend’s wedding was the later in that respect – only after the 2nd edit tonight (Monday 6/29, ~midnight) I now see that every wedding story I create IS MY BEST WORK EVER! The weather didn’t help, the fact that the brides mother hated having her picture taken certainly didn’t help, the theory that this was the pastors first wedding didn’t help either, having to deal with 2 videomonsters didn’t help & having my ears blown out by a New Jersey DJ didn’t help - but the results, as I see them now, ARE STUNNING!

I know I’ve said this before, and will say it again & again, I REALLY LOVE MY JOB!

Though I had a number of obstacles to overcome while shooting this past wedding, I’m realizing now that my performance was enhanced because of them; so that means my performance is often greater when provided with more hurdles. I’m obviously rambling here, but let me finish as I’m beginning to realize something important about myself – when challenged I exceed my own expectations; out of adversity spawns excellence; easy and simple is just too boring - I NEED TO BE challenged, so BRING IT ON...

Like most of the couples who hire me for my style and I agree to work with because of their personality, I can honestly say that Janna & Frank and ALL of their friends and family are really cool, even the M.O.B. and I would be honored to work with any of them again. And just like my last wedding, and most of those before, these are obviously just as much in love and I’m sure the images I post here in a few days will broadcast ALL THE LOVE OF THE DAY, maybe even better than ever before; please let me know if you disagree so I can come back down to earth…

Peace!

Spencer

A True Love Story: Caitlin & Ken’s Wedding Weekend in Middlebury VT – June 19th & 20th 2009.

WOW just doesn’t cut it here! Caitlin & Ken’s wedding story actually made me tear more than usual as I witnessed their happiness over this past weekend. Ceremonies always get me (no one sees it of course - as I’m in the shadows and behind a lens, but it always happens), but this time it even happened to me during the posed formals – these two are really in love (I hope you can see it as clearly as I do in both of their expressive eyes and graceful movements)!!!

Here are a few individual and sequences of moments that really capture the energy that this enchanting couple cast.

Caitlin is the type of person I hope my son finds when he’s ready to marry (in like 25 or 30 years, so he can pay for it himself) – perhaps even a trip down to Savannah, GA may be merited. She’s that cool! The only one maybe as cool is her Mom, Susan, who somehow organized this amazing weekend from afar. Both Caitlin & Ken are extremely lucky to be joining such obviously caring families. So check out these moments I’m sharing here and let me know if you agree with the way I see…

Again I find myself reminding myself why I am so lucky to spend each wedding day / weekend with such awesome people – I LOVE MY JOB! to boot, just this past Monday, I met with another bride to go over her day at her chosen venue and she’s just as cool too…

Always a joy working with Nancy from NJOY – candy bar was a big hit and she did a great job dressing up the place; PEAK ENTERTAINMENT seems to be at every one of my weddings this year that doesn’t opt for a band; Waybury Inn in East Middlebury was a cool spot for the rehearsal dinner; most of the family stayed at the Swift House Inn so made a great spot for the formal posed shots; Lisa’s back deck at Roland’s Place in New Haven hosted the reception party; the gorgeous flowers where made by Blossom Basket; Roland made the Cake; all the gals had hair & makeup done by April at Manesteam Salon; Laura’s the Chaplin at Meade Chapel on the Middlebury Campus; & we even created a few pre – rehearsal moments up on the Breadloaf Campus because it was the place to be, and without it we wouldn’t have been here…

I look forward to working with you all again soon and long even more to sit down with Caitlin & Ken over some of my "ultra-hoppy, better for you than yoga" home-brew to design what will likely be one of my coolest if not biggest wedding albums to date...

Peace!

Spencer

Green Mountain Opera Festival 2009

Over the past month (June '09), in addition to creating wedding weekend picture stories for 4 lovely couples with their friends and families and during the weeks editing, color correcting & enhancing over 10,000 images & producing ~ 2,250 final quality prints I was invited to document a number of the Green Mountain Opera Festival performances in the Mad River Valley starting with some PR shots on the grounds of the Round Barn Farm, a beautiful outdoor picnic at Lareau Farm Inn and finally at the Barre Opera House this past Sunday (very stealthily I should add). Here are a selection of my favorites, some of which have been published in the Times-Argus, Valley Reporter and other fine VT newspapers... All of these and more are available to purchase online through the prints tab on my website at Spencer Leonard Photography.

Stacey & Steve's Wedding Weekend - Inn at the Round Barn Farm, Waitsfield VT - June 10-12, 2009

Let me start of by stating that the weather forecasters in Vermont might as well be called alchemists because the odds of getting VT weather right even a few hours ahead of time is just as likely as them making gold out of mud; though as a wedding photojournalist I’m often able to make what looks like mud to some, look like gold to others. Anyway, I digress - though the ground was a little wet in places and reports called for an “impending” (only really 40% if you belief in statistical mumbo jumbo) likelihood of rain, this past weekend was easily one of my nicest Round Barn Wedding weekends to date. Stacey & Steve were the perfect couple and as hard as it was for them to belief, their families were great fun to work with. Here are just a few of my favorite moments from their weekend in Vermont. I look forward to seeing both back up here this winter for some skiing (snowboarding) at Sugarbush…












































In Vermont, like most mountainous northern regions in the early summer, it’s best to plan for any possible weather condition. That means if you have a ceremony and reception outside, as a sort of insurance, you’d better have a rain plan, plenty of umbrellas, nice boots and maybe even black and white rainwear… If you do all of this IT WON’T RAIN of course…

Peace!

Spencer

Amy & Marty’s Wedding Weekend – Mountain Top Inn & Resort, Chittenden VT – June 6, 2009.

An amazingly energetic gaggle of friends gathered up at The Mountain Top Inn the entire weekend of June 5-7th to party with Amy & Marty – and to attend their wedding. I was there the entire time documenting this group; here are just a few of the moments captured. Total edit consists of over 700 images which will be available on Pictage.com once Amy & Marty return from their honeymoon and have released them…

This venue is a cool spot for a wedding; needless to say if you’ve seen it, the view is TO DIE FOR. Beyond that, Chelsea and her crew take care of everything and the food is equally amazing.

It was a blast working with all of you – hope to see you again soon!

Spencer

PS: Here's a little multimedia slideshow you can view...

Allison & Hunter’s Love Story, May 31st 2009

After hours upon hours of additional tweaking the already multi-day task of color correcting and color enhancing these images I am proud to report that I have finished the final edit of over 650 moments from this early Summer wedding at The Inn at The Round Barn Farm in Waitsfield, VT. Below is a selection of my favorites – honestly it was hard for me to narrow down from the long list of decisive moments I created – I have goose bumps too…

Even though the last minute decision was made to do the ceremony indoors because of high winds and possible chance of rain, the natural light streaming into the milking parlor filled the room with a romantic glow & then through some natural calamity (extremely high-winds = power outage for ~4hrs) the reception in the main barn upstairs was by candle light, further enhancing the already romantic atmosphere of the early evening...

Allison & Hunter had 35 of their closest friends and family up from Florida and a few from overseas for this beautiful wedding weekend in the heart of Vermont. I often remind myself how blessed I am to live here and how much in love with my job I am. Every weekend I witness / document love stories and create the real life, fun & emotional moments that turn into lifelong memories – there is nothing else I would rather do!

I miss you two already!







































































You can also view a musical slideshow of their day by clicking here.

The other vendors on scene where:
*Annemarie & Tim the hosts at The Round Barn Inn
Nancy from NJoy Event Planning
Mitzie Spears was the JP
Newton from Peak Entertainment
Nancy from Schoolhouse Gardens
Vermont Cake Studio

* When the power went out at the tail end of the cocktail hour Annemarie & Tim hustled over two huge portable gas generators to quickly (some how quietly) restore power to the kitchen and DJ (also for my monitor) virtually saving the day – THANKS A TON!!!

Beautiful Spring Day in Stowe, VT with Cody & Brad

This adorable young couple drove all the way from Michigan to elope in Stowe, VT - It was absolutely worth it!!! They asked me to document their brief wedding ceremony in the garden at the Stone Hill Inn and then we walked around a few of my favorite spots in Stowe so I could create memorable moments for them.

Peace to you both! Spencer

Coya & Josh’s Elopement in Vermont, Sunday May 17th 2009

In addition to creating picture-stories for 25-35 weddings each year, about ½ as many engagement sessions and even less environmental portrait shoots, I am also periodically asked to photograph a few couples who have come up here to elope in lieu of doing that full blown wedding thing. So far this year I have documented 2: for this couple and then again only 2 days later for another.

As a side, eloping in VT is a real treat for those looking for a peaceful, quiet setting to spend together or with a few friends to share in the love. I’m sure Vegas or Atlantic City would be memorable too, but in a much different way…

This day started at the Loft of Millstone Hill, East Barre VT for some getting ready “fly on the wall” shots and then a few creative portraits outside before heading up to Goddard College to meet with 8 close friends and family for an extremely cute ceremony in the gardens (this is a beautiful spot which I will definitely bring other couples back to). Coya & Josh choreographed the entire day the way they wanted and I was blessed to be a witness.

Peace to you both! Spencer

New feature arriving soon (for a lack of better wording): Venue Promo Cards

The following 8x10 promotional cards are available here by right clicking to print or preferably by contacting me directly or the featured venue for a hard copy. I’ve also made them available to view and order sample print styles from my online image gallery host: Pictage.com.

These 14 (image order below: Windridge Tennis Camp, Basin Harbor CC, Bates Mansion, Castle Hill Resort, Edson Hill Manor, Hildene, Killington Grand, The Ponds, Inn at the Round Barn, Rusty Nail Bar, Stowe Mt. Lodge, Sugarbush, Trapp Family Lodge & Windekind Farm) are only the first of many to come…

I should be adding ~20 more soon from past Vermont weddings documented and then one for each going forward.

PEACE!

Spencer

Vermont Wedding Association Annual Stowe Wedding Show

This year’s 7th Annual Stowe Show took place at the new Stowe Mountain Lodge – a gorgeous spot at the base of Stowe and on this particular day, April 19th, 2009 I should have been up skiing as the conditions looked even better. Always a blast to hang out with Judy and the other great VT wedding vendors and meet a handful of cool couples interested in my unique style of wedding photography like Molly & Zac pictured below or Juliet & Seth whose wedding weekend I documented here at the Stowe Mountain Lodge last summer... Anyway, here is a selection of images from the day along with a few of the 3 beautiful gown models showing off the jewelry and flower arrangements from my buddies Alan & Wayne at Wildflower Design…

Kate & Cody's Engagement Session

Had the great pleasure this past Saturday, 2/7/09 of hanging with Kate & Cody, a very cool couple that has agreed to hire me to document the story of their wedding this summer in Montpelier. Though bitter cold we ventured out onto the lake by his parents new lake house for about an hour in search of the perfect engagement announcement photo – here’s a selection of what I created for them:

PEACE!

Spencer

Skinning in Camels Hump State Park, Huntington VT, Saturday 1/31/9

One of the major reasons my family moved up here to Vermont was for the colder temperatures and for skiing at Mad River Glen. So it was inevitable that I would eventually grow tired of lift access and need a new way to experience my telemark skiing. An old friend of mine from NYC talked me into buying a set of skins and to venture out together for the first time to find untracked snow in the wild. I suggested we try to go up Camels hump as another friend & I had recently rocket-sledded down the Burrows Trail and I’d seen other tele-skiers push off the trail into the unknown. Fortunately about ¾ mile in another more experienced skinner quickly gained on us with his two dogs and agreed to show us something he called “the one true line” which took us up to Bald Hill at ~3400’; the trail head being ~1900’ so needless to say it was a workout for my lesser used muscles, but the skins surprisingly were easier to push through the snow & climb than snow-shoes. It was absolutely worth it as we found knee deep freshies starting with a very cool cliff drop into steap open woods. I was there to ski and not photograph, but of course I had my camera with me to capture possibly the nicest view of Camels Hump available; let me know if you agree. I’ll be returning here every Saturday morning I don’t have a wedding and there is enough snow to find new “perfect” lines, so let me know if you are interested in joining – perhaps this would make for your absolutely unforgettable engagement session…

PEACE!

Spencer

2nd Winter Wonderland Wedding of 2009 + we went skiing!!!

This past weekend, 1/24/09, I had the pleasure of creating a photo-documentary of the wedding of a truly fun-loving, adventurous couple and their teenage sons at The Castle Hill Resort & Spa in Ludlow, VT – the really cool part for me was we went skiing at Okemo early Saturday morning together to start off the adventure. Taking long sweeping turns on the pristine groomers reminded me of my alpine racing days – the last time at Okemo was like 20 years ago for a GS as a J3… Though on tele’s now and little backwards, I was able to make that familiar popping extra turbo like boost just out of each turn – exhilarating! Anyway, I digress from the main story here: I managed to create some cool moments up on the slope with Marianne & Jean before heading off for the wedding story… Like an engagement shoot, or rehearsal party coverage this break helped lighten them both up to me and more importantly to my camera – the rest of the day was just natural – like I wasn’t even there for them… Here are a selection of my favorites from the day; be sure to also check out the multimedia slideshow from this day on my site.

Heather & Omar's Winter Wedding at Killington - January 10, 2009

I met Heather & Omar almost a year ago today as I had driven down to discuss there wedding plans the day before they returned home to Puerto Rico. They had spent a week skiing together at Killington, during which time Omar popped the big question, so they decided what better place and time to get hitched. Winter weddings are always a ton of fun, however one needs to plan for extreme cold up here in VT. This past Saturday it was 7 degrees outside, but fortunately not as windy as the day before, so we were able to go outside for a little while (5 minutes). Here are just a few of my favorite moments from the weekend:

Vermont Vows Fall Wedding Affair - Coach Barn at Shelburne Farms Saturday, November 1st 2008

I had the pleasure of presenting my work at this years show along with all the other "Best of Vermont" wedding venues and vendors. The show had an extremely strong turnout overall and the number of qualified leads in my direction was very cool. If you were unable to attend this year, you surely missed, out as this is the best wedding show in the state. Click here for a list of the Who's Who in VT Weddings. Here are a few snaps of my booth and a few other tasty treats...








Though I do photograph at up to 35 venues all over the state each year and run into many of these vendors fairly regularly, it is also great for us to see what everyone else is up to. Not only did I meet some really special Brides & Grooms to be, as well as some cool parents & friends, I also had the opportunity to connect with a few new participants who I also look forward to working with soon...

Just my opinion - I'd like to see VT Vows do two Vermont shows next year, one up here near Burlington or maybe in Stowe and another down in the Southern part of the state near Manchester, maybe at Stratton... I'd DEFINATELY sign up for both!!!