Hales Studio Blog

Sara and Amnon's wedding, The Barns, Middletown, CT

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 21:59:08 -0400

A few weeks ago I had the honor of photographing Sara and Amnon’s wedding for Danielle Fuller of Beyond the Lens Photography. This was such a great wedding with great people. Sara and Amnon decided to do a “First Look.” I’ve never seen a better face than the one Amnon made right before turning around to see Sara. It was priceless.

Sara had the longest train I’ve ever seen! It must have been 7 feet long. I just love this shot of the wind taking it and showing off how long it is.

Many thanks to the groomsman below as my trusty hand model for this shot.

I usually don’t eat the desserts at weddings but I couldn’t resist with this dessert table! The cookies were amazing!

Sara had a smile on her face all day long. Even at the end of the night when she must have been exhausted she was still smiling and so sweet.

Thanks Sara and Amnon for a great time. Congratulations and best wishes to you both!

Nashira and Chris- July 4th Wedding in Branford, CT

Sun, 25 Jul 2010 15:06:33 -0400

Nashira and Chris were married on one of my favorite summer holidays, July 4th! This day was a hot one! I was glad to be shooting again for Danielle Fuller of Beyond the Lens Photography. You can check out her blog post from this wedding here.

Once again I got to spend some time with the guys getting ready before the ceremony.

I just loved these pink flowers! I couldn’t get over how beautiful they were.

More of their fun details!

Nashira and Chris cut their cake outside and had sparklers for everyone. What a fun idea to incorporate into a July 4th wedding!

The kids were having a blast helping me get these cool shots below.

Nashira and Chris, congratulations to you both. I had such a great time spending July 4th with you both!

Lauren and Bill Engagement Shoot at Buttonwood Farm!

Wed, 21 Jul 2010 22:01:15 -0400

This summer has been so crazy! I’m sure that all my photographer friends can relate. As I’m getting ready to leave for a wedding in Pennsylvania I just wanted to put up this one image. On Monday night I went to Buttonwood Farm for an engagement shoot. It was absolutely amazing. I couldn’t help but share this picture with you all. If you get the chance to head out there this week its worth the drive. And the sunflowers are sold to help support Make-A-Wish! What a great reason to head out there.

I can’t wait to put more up later! Enjoy!

Erin and Joe's Wedding at Great River Country Club

Wed, 30 Jun 2010 16:59:00 -0400

Ah, yet another great wedding assisting for Carla Ten Eyck. I’m starting to get a little spoiled with all these great weddings and amazing details. Erin and Joe were no exception. I think you will agree.

I just love this picture of Erin getting her dress on. So lovely.

Erin showing off her blue suede shoes!

This was the first of many weddings this summer with hydrangeas. They are one of my favorites and I couldn’t help but take a few pictures of them. Just gorgeous! I also love the little dove that Erin put on all the flowers for her girls. So sweet.

I love this picture of Erin and her dad. She was so happy when she saw Joe, it was truly wonderful to see them together.

More of their lovely details.

Congratulations Erin and Joe! I had a wonderful time with Carla and Mike at your wedding. Thank you for allowing us to spend the day with you. I look forward to seeing you again soon!

Sarah and Andrew Engagement Shoot in Wethersfield, CT

Tue, 22 Jun 2010 13:03:05 -0400

Earlier this month Jared and I spent some time with Sarah and Andrew our 10/10/10 couple. We had such a great time with them. They were so fun and up for anything. It was the strangest day weather wise but we made it work despite the rain.

We started at this cute little ice cream shop in Wethersfield. What’s an engagement shoot without a little ice cream?

I just love this picture that Jared got of the two of them.

Next we went to the cove in Wethersfield. You can see the clouds coming in this shot before it started to rain.

A little rainy sunset.

Andrew kept Sarah laughing the entire time!

Sarah and Andrew, thank you so much for a great time! We are so happy for you both. Jared and I can’t wait for your wedding!

Alicia and Jack's wedding at the Gershon Fox Room in Hartford, CT

Thu, 17 Jun 2010 23:34:00 -0400

Last month I assisted for Carla Ten Eyck at Alicia and Jack’s wedding in Hartford. They were so much fun and up for anything. After their first look Carla took us to the Carousel in downtown Hartford. The colors were amazing and matched their wedding, personalities and styles to a T!

The bridal party were such great sports that day to ride the carousel!

After a few rides on the carousel and walking up the ninety six steps to the top of the Soldiers and Sailors Arch in Hartford Carla had Jack spin Alicia! I thought we might see her breakfast but she held it down.

Alicia taking a break after the carousel ride, spinning and up and down the arch (in heals!). All this and she hadn’t even walked down the aisle yet!

The cutest little flower girl watching over the balcony as she waits for the ceremony to start. So CUTE!

Alicia taking a breather before walking down the aisle.

Congratulations Alicia and Jack! I had a GREAT time at your wedding and I wish you both all the best.

Sarah and Andrew Engagement Shoot Sneak Peek!

Tue, 08 Jun 2010 16:59:08 -0400

I had such a great time with Sarah and Andrew last week at their engagement shoot in Wethersfield, CT. I just had to share these two photos with you all!

Matt & Renee's Wedding Villa Bianca, Seymour, CT

Wed, 02 Jun 2010 22:27:00 -0400

Once again I had the best time with Danielle Fuller of Beyond the Lens Photography as her second photographer at Matt and Renee’s wedding.

While Danielle gets all the details of Renee getting ready, I’m with the guys capturing all their exciting details! I loved the green color that Renee picked out for them. I changed up one of my favorite shots of the bride with her flowers by having the groom hold them before the ceremony.

Before the ceremony I had some time to get the guys outside of the church. I just love how calm and collected Matt looks in this picture.

Here are some more gorgeous details! Can you tell they are my favorite?!

Matt’s brother, the best man, made the cake for them. I even got to try a little of it and it was fantastic!

Croquet and boccie ball games were great for the guests, especially the little ones!

I love these photos of Renee and her dad dancing. They are just so sweet.

Congratulations Matt and Renee!

Samantha and Joe's Wedding Brookfield, CT

Wed, 12 May 2010 20:15:00 -0400

A few weeks ago I had the privilege of photographing Samantha and Joe’s wedding with the very talented Danielle Fuller of Beyond the Lens Photography. I got to spend some time with the guys before the wedding and had an absolute blast! Then I met up with Danielle to get some great shots of Samantha and Joe during the ceremony and for some great photos afterward. Their ceremony and reception were at The Candlewood Inn, in Brookfield, CT. We had a GREAT time at this location and the staff was so pleasant to work with. I can’t wait to head back there again, hopefully sometime soon.

The ceremony was outside on the water! We had great weather and a gorgeous view, not to mention that wonderful light from the setting sun.

I love this picture of Samantha and her dad dancing, its just so wonderful.

This has to be one of my favorite dancing pictures of the night. They had a great time on the dance floor!

Samantha and Joe had some of the best dancers at there wedding! I had such a great time photographing them.

Congratulations Samantha and Joe! Thank you so much for sharing your special day with us.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Wed, 05 May 2010 11:50:17 -0400

A few weeks ago I had the honor of helping the oh so fabulous Carla Ten Eyck put her dream to reality with a Cinco de Mayo editorial shoot. This was one of the most colorful shoots I’ve ever been on and so fun! I couldn’t believe the location- PINK BARNS!

Here is a gorgeous shot of the wonderful headpiece from Twigs and Honey. I just love it!

The Fabulous Team of people who made this shoot happen:

Tony from Datura: A Modern Garden provided all the flowers and did an amazing job setting up the table with help from Diana Chouinard of Jubilee Events.

The gorgeous dress and jewelry was provided by Beth Chapman from The White Dress by the Shore.

Hair and makeup was done by Catie Bane from Dana Bartone and Co.

The wonderful hair piece that I couldn’t help but put on before and after the shoot was provided by Myra Callan of Twigs and Honey.

The wonderful mini donuts and cakes that I was eyeing up the entire afternoon are from Tastease in Hartford.

Nichole Tremblay of Coral Pheasant provided the paper design.

A very special thank you goes to Carla’s dad, Carlos Hernandez-Chavez, for providing almost all of the wonderful pieces we used for the table design.

Make sure you check out Carla and Sara’s blog for more pictures from this crazy and fun photoshoot!

Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone!

Tori and Jared- Portrait session Litchfield CT

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 15:19:43 -0400

Here are few more of my favorites from a portrait session I did with Tori and Jared in the daffodils. I was determined not to miss it this year and I was so glad the weather cooperated for us. It almost didn’t but the rain went away and the sun came out and made for some great light at the end of our session.

I couldn’t help but show them the amazing pictures I was getting! I think they were happy!

I just love the glow from the setting sun behind them in this picture. So beautiful!

Thanks Tori and Jared for hiking through the daffodil field for me to get some great shots of you two. Lets do it again next year!

Tori and Jared- Portrait session sneak peek!

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 22:56:29 -0400

Last weekend I had a great time photographing Tori and Jared in a simply wonderful location. I found out that the daffodils were in bloom in Litchfield, CT and we only had a few days before the peak would be over. If you have never been it is truly amazing and is definatly worth the trip.

Here is one of my favorites from the shoot so please enjoy!

Flavors of Connecticut 2010

Tue, 20 Apr 2010 21:57:00 -0400

Last week I attended the Flavors of Connecticut 2010, Culinary Gala. I wasn’t there to work, just to eat, but I took my camera with me just in case! I couldn’t resist photographing all the great food and wonderful table designs.

There was a great line up of 30 participating restaurants from Connecticut. One of my personal favorites was On20 with chef Noel Jones. If you haven’t visited his restaurant in Hartford yet you need to put it on the list!

I had a great time sitting at the Mohegan Sun table and was completely stuffed by the end of the night. Five courses is a lot after enjoying hors d’oeuvres for one straight hour before dinner. I managed to make it through all of them but there was no room to spare. Every dish was so wonderful and the presentation was amazing!

Here is a taste of what I saw at the event.

Enjoy!

Vizcaya, Absolutely Beautiful

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:31:00 -0500

Recently while on a trip to Florida, I visited this beautiful home and garden in Miami. Don’t let the pictures fool you, Vizcaya is not in Italy. The pictures I took don’t say enough about how wonderful this outside garden was. The house sits right on the water and is a site to see. If you are ever in the Miami area make sure you put this on your list of things to see.

A little cappuccino break made it feel like Italy.

Fort Lauderdale Beach Concert

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 13:58:18 -0500

Last month I took a trip to Miami and went to a great outdoor concert on the beach. Here are a few pictures that I got of the Barenaked Ladies and O.A.R.

I had a great time outside on the beach with both these bands who are amazing live. More photos to come of the rest of the trip but these lighting images are so much fun I had to share.

Enjoy!

Here is a great shot of Barenaked Ladies through the crowd. I loved the lighting.

I got right up front for O.A.R. and was able to get some great shots! They put on a fantastic live show.

This one is my favorite! Love the lighting and the smoke, great combination!

Christine and Mark's Wedding New Years Eve

Wed, 27 Jan 2010 21:40:00 -0500

I had the pleasure of assisting the fabulous Carla Ten Eyck in Greenwhich, CT. We had such a great time celebrating with them and ringing in the new year! Their wedding was absolutely wonderful and Christine looked so gorgeous!

The reception was at L’Escale and it was amazing. Everyone was so friendly and great to work with. I can’t say enough great things about them. Hopefully I’ll get to go back there again soon!

We also had a familiar face join us for the day, Tom Morlock from Vantage Point Films who is also a lot of fun to work with. Their band, The Rhythm Shop was UNREAL! They kept us dancing all night!

Now on to the photos!

Christine looked absolutely beautiful in her dress. I love the light on her from the window in this picture.

I grabbed this picture of their get away car, loved the Rolls Royce!

We stopped for a few minutes under these great trees to get some gorgeous shots of them after the ceremony. These are my favorite!

I loved their cake by Sweet Lisa’s Exquisite Cakes.

I had a great time ringing in the new year with Christine and Mark. Congratulations to the lovely bride and groom!

Lightin' It Up

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:16:53 -0500

I spent the afternoon and evening yesterday at Carla TenEyck’s Studio for her lighting workshop. It was a lot of fun despite the bone chilling cold weather. I couldn’t feel my fingers after shooting or my toes! Our models Sara and Zac were just great and easy to work with. We started outside in the late afternoon and I got this shot with just natural light.

Then we threw in a flash for a little back lighting with some daylight.

It was almost dark when I got this shot. Another back light with a video light.

We went inside for a little warm up before heading outside when I got this great shot of Zac. I love this picture, its so relaxed and laid back. Just what I was going for!

We finished off the shoot outside with Sara throwing FIRE!! It was the highlight of the day. It was amazing to watch and to shoot.

I had a great time and learned a lot. Thanks Carla!

Remembering an afternoon at Elizabeth Park

Tue, 05 Jan 2010 20:27:14 -0500

Since its so cold out I was reminded of the great time I had at Elizabeth Park with an amazing family. What a fabulous day we had and it didn’t rain. Surprising considering all the rain we got this past summer. There are so many great places at Elizabeth Park to photograph. I was surprised to find great shade and wonderful color all over the park and I didn’t have to go to the gazebo! :)

Here are some of my favorites from that day.

What great light in this photo!

My iphone ad, so cute!

I can’t wait for it to warm up outside and photograph at Elizabeth Park again soon. Stay warm everyone!

Italy Inspired Christmas Eve Dinner in CT

Wed, 30 Dec 2009 11:36:10 -0500

For Christmas Eve Dinner this year I was very inspired by the traditional Italian dinner of the “Feast of the Seven Fishes.” Although I am not Italian, I love Italy and thought it would be fun to do a take on the tradition. We didn’t do seven courses of fish but we came close with a five course meal that was fantastic. As much as I love photographing people I also love photographing food. Here is our dinner so you can see how it came out.

To get started here is a picture of one of my favorite ornaments on our tree.

The table all set. Menu included!

For the first course: Antipasto Platter

Second course: My personal favorite Shrimp Cocktail

Third Course: Pan-Seared Scallops with Wilted Spinach and Orange Salad

Fourth Course: Flounder Stuffed with Crab. Notice the bag of frozen peas on the bottom left side of the picture. I burnt my thumb while taking a tray out of the oven.

Dessert: Home made Tiramisu

If this wasn’t enough food to make us sick we also made our traditional Sticky Buns for Christmas morning breakfast. It wouldn’t be Christmas without them. Notice the band aid on my thumb from burning myself.

My husband wrapped our chocolate lab Bailey up in ribbon from Crate and Barrel. She is one of the best presents we’ve ever gotten. I couldn’t help but put this image in for you all to see.

I hope you all had a great holiday with friends and family. Merry Christmas!

Baby's First Christmas

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 21:21:00 -0500

Recently I photographed a newborn session with the cutest little guy named Calvin. Although he cried for most of the session I was still able to get a few good shots. Later on we did a two for one with a birth announcement and Christmas card. I thought they came out great!

This was the winner!

This one was my favorite! Look how precious.

Thanks McNamar Family for welcoming me to your home to meet Calvin. I had such a great time.