April showers held off for a glorious evening wedding I photographed recently at The Warren Conference Center and Inn in Ashland, Mass. I enjoyed being a part of Kathy and Turhan’s wedding day and also catching up with Kathy’s sister, who I worked with at the Valley News. More photographs from the wedding can be seen on my Facebook page, or in the Prints section of my Web site.
After several days of rain this week, the softball team at Whitcomb High School in Bethel, Vt., celebrated the use of their new field with a 20-5 win over neighboring South Royalton yesterday. Both teams lost their riverside fields to several feet of silt when Tropical Storm Irene flooded them in August. The kids’ enthusiasm was great to see as I was there to photograph the game for the Valley News. More photos from the game can be seen in the newspaper’s online gallery here.
From top: Whitcomb’s Cambry Zullick, left, is congratulated by teammate Amanda Begin after Zullick’s third inning solo home run against South Royalton in Bethel, Vt. It was the first home run at the team’s new field, which replaced the old one, damaged by Tropical Storm Irene’s flooding last fall. Whitcomb won, 20-5; Whitcomb’s Lindsey LaPerle, right, waits for the call after the ball gets away from South Royalton’s Kim Lakin; Whitcomb’s softball team has signed their names in the new softball field dugout, calling themselves the Irene Team.
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As the sun came up yesterday morning, I found many enthusiastic anglers in area rivers and ponds on opening day of Vermont’s trout fishing season. I was making pictures for Jared Pendak’s Valley News story. I haven’t cast a line since going with my grandfather as a kid, but I can see why so many are drawn to the sport. A few more photos from my morning can be seen in the newspaper’s online gallery here.
From top: David Mattern, of Tunbridge, Vt., right, holds up a string of rainbow trout while his friend Garrett Chrostek, of South Royalton, Vt., paddles their canoe out on McIntosh Pond in Royalton, Vt. The pair had caught four before taking a break to help Mattern’s father load his canoe on opening day for trout fishing season; Eight rainbow trout lie in a cooler after Wes Mattern, of Tunbridge, and his son Ben, 6, caught them at McIntosh Pond; Jason Ballou, of Bethel, Vt., shows his son, Kellan, 6, how to bait his line with a worm while fishing for trout on the Third Branch of the White River in Bethel. Returning to the same spot they fished last year, Ballou said the river channel was in a different place after Irene’s flooding; Sharon Waters, of Randolph, casts her line into the White River under the Royalton village bridge in the morning. Waters said she was looking forward to a day of fishing – including with her adult son in the afternoon – on her only day off in three weeks. “I just love being by the water,” she said.
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While working on a story for the Valley News last weekend, I followed a group of interested bird-watchers as they explored an area of the Connecticut River known as a pathway for waterfowl migration. Organized by the Vermont Institute of Natural Science, the tour was led by Phil Brown, who is New Hampshire Audubon’s Director of Land Management. A bald eagle and a nesting peregrine falcon were amongst the highlights of the tour.
From top: Common grackles fly across a marsh adjacent to the Connecticut River south of Charlestown, N.H. With the unusually warm weather in March, the ice melted early in the area’s rivers and streams, speeding up the migration of birds that come through the spring on the way to their summer breeding grounds up north; Lebanon, N.H., resident Tina Avery looks through a spotting scope at an American black duck during a tour of what’s been designated the Middle Connecticut River Important Bird Area in Charlestown; N.H. Audubon’s Phil Brown: “If they get to breeding areas earlier, they’ll have an advantage, but also a risk.”; A mid-tour look at photographs of a hooded merganser.
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On Saturday, I covered the Vermont Basketball Coaches’ Association’s Senior All-Star Game in Windsor, Vt., for the Valley News. It was great to the see how much players from schools across the state enjoyed being around each other. More work from the game can be seen in the newspaper’s online gallery here.
From top: North and South girls teams from Vermont’s Division III and IV schools battle it out on the court at Windsor High School; Mid Vermont Christian’s Eli Seale looks to pass to a teammate before a jump ball is called; Players are honored for their accomplishments between two of the afternoon’s four games.
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Earlier this winter, I was hired to photograph Jack and Laney Sammons (and their dog Pon) at their Tunbridge home for Mercer Lawyer magazine. Jack teaches at Mercer University’s Walter F. George School of Law in Macon, Ga. I enjoyed meeting them and talking about the town we all enjoy being a part of.
Last weekend, I arrived at the Juniper Hill Inn in Windsor, Vt., to do photographs for Katie Beth Ryan’s Valley News story about the inn’s upcoming role in Gordon Ramsay’s FOX-TV show, Hotel Hell. Juniper Hill co-owner Robert Dean was in the middle of meeting with his staff, but walked over, shook my hand and said, “You must be the photographer. The ceremony is to be held over here…” I stopped him to say I was there for the newspaper, not the afternoon wedding. It’s not often when my two worlds as wedding photographer and photojournalist converge.
Jennifer Turney, a server at Juniper Hill Inn, gets the dining room ready for a wedding reception. The inn has recently undergone changes after receiving a visit from celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay.
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Last weekend, I enjoyed photographing Annette and Alden’s touching wedding ceremony at the North Universalist Chapel in Woodstock, Vt., followed by a fun reception down the road at the Masonic Lodge. It was nice to see so many familiar faces, and to be a part of a joyous time. More work from the wedding can be seen on my Facebook page, or in the Prints section of my Web site.
Last week, I was honored to be a part of Arts Day, a new district-wide gathering of students from five schools to work with artists in Strafford, Vt. The kids participated in eight workshops in calligraphy, painting, sculpture, felting and photography. My part was to work with ten students (including my daughter) as they photographed the day’s activities with their cameras. Above, my students are shown documenting the other photography workshop taught by Amy Donohue. I am working on a slideshow of the students’ photographs to give away (the cover is below). Contact me if you’d like a copy.
While putting together my new web site, one of the most enjoyable parts of it was looking back on my year as a wedding photographer. I traveled across Vermont and New Hampshire to photograph nuptials inside and outside at churches, inns, summer camps and homes. Here’s a few of my favorites, which can also be seen in the Wedding section of my site.
From top: Anne gets ready for her wedding ceremony at the Echo Lake Inn in Ludlow, Vt., in May; Billy reacts to seeing Tanya for the first time before their ceremony at Bethany Birches Camp in Plymouth, Vt.; Emily and Aaron react to the pronouncement of their marriage at Aloha Hive Camp in Fairlee, Vt.; As her husband Jamie reacts, Rachel is dipped by his cousin at Pierce’s Inn in Etna, N.H.; Kristen and Chris hug after their first dance at the Round Barn Farm in Waitsfield, Vt.