It's Official...

I am a winner of WeddingWire's 2010 Bride's Choice Awards!

A big thank you to my clients for selecting me for this award!

Updates...

I've been busy this January working on Jessica and Lawton's pictures as well as booking more 2009 weddings. I've also been updating some older posts that have been needing revision for awhile. I'm looking forward to some much needed R&R in February. I'll be out of the office from 2-14 to 2-25. Don't worry I'll still be available to answer emails...

Here are links to the revised FAQ and my current availability for 2009.

If you're looking for recent work check the January archive for a beautiful winter wedding, the September archive for a couple of lovely fall weddings and more, and can't forget the June archive for beautiful summer weddings... and if you'd like to see more look to the right for additional archive options.

About to kick off the 2009 season...

I'm excited to announce the official start to the 2009 season! This Saturday I'll be photographing Jessica & Lawton's wedding in Schenectady, NY. Pictures coming soon!

The Quiet Months

The 2008 season is officially over and I'm just finishing up the processing of one last wedding. December through April tend to quiet months here at Reid Photography. Although this year my 2009 season starts in January. So look for new wedding pictures mid January. I also add some personal work this time of year as well. Which reminds me you can see more personal work and keep up with the (relatively) quiet goings on at Reid Photography on Facebook. Become a fan of my page or send a friend request to me. Which also reminds me... this year I'm adding Facebook galleries to my packages. I've always added some sneak peek pictures to my blog for couples to share with friends and family. Now I'm adding the sneak peek to Facebook as well to make it easier to share. Send links of either to friends and family or tag them right in Facebook.

2009 Availability Update

Currently I have the following 5 dates booked.

January 10th
March 14th
July 11th
August 15th
September 12th

I'm only booking 10-15 weddings for 2009 and holding to a strict 2 weddings per month limit. (This allows me to stay fresh and creative for each of my couples! And also allows for faster turn around for the DVDs.)

If you would like to double check my availability for your date or schedule an in person or phone consultation please contact me with your wedding date and basic information about your plans at melissareidphotography (!a) yahoo (dot) com. (Sorry - darn spammers keep finding my email!!)

If you happen to be looking for pictures from recent weddings be sure to check the archives September, August and July have some great weddings to view!

Exciting things coming up...

I'm so excited to announce that I'm making some changes in the near future... I've finally outgrown my current website so stay tuned for the début of my new and improved website coming in the next month...

Also as I start to thaw out from the extremely long and snowy winter I'll be posting more pictures... lots of personal work and with my wedding season starting up in about 6 weeks there will be many new weddings to view too.

The other exciting news is that I'm expanding my current photography offerings and looking for ways to bring clients something new. As you know I'm really a documentary photographer who specializes in weddings... now I'm looking to bring those same skills to some other aspects of everyday life and other special occasions.

Unique Engagement Sessions

I'm very interested in offering unique engagement sessions that are really a reflection of the couple's personalities... So invite some friends to dinner to celebrate and I'll be there to record you in your world, when you are most comfortable. Or love carnivals and fairs... take me with you and we'll make pictures of you having a blast on the rides or playing games. Or how about pictures of your actual proposal? Can't get more real than that... Have another idea... please share...

Birth Photography

This is subject very near and dear to my me. I am the mother of two beautiful children and the very lucky wife of a talented photographer... When my youngest daughter was born my husband brought his camera and made (tasteful) pictures of the time during labor when our families came to share the anticipation, during the emotional time when we first met her and after when our family had the joy of meeting her too... One of our biggest joys now is sharing those pictures with our now 5 year old daughter who will forever have beautiful, tasteful pictures of her arrival into this world. Since then I have wanted to give this gift to other families... Right now I'm looking for one or two families expecting a new baby in the fall or winter of 2008-2009 to share this with. The first two sessions will be at no cost if the births are at the Brattleboro Memorial Hospital or the Cheshire Medical Center / Dartmouth Medical Keene. If you think you would be interested please contact me to discuss the options etc.

contact: melissareidphotography@yahoo.com

"Do you travel?"

YES! Emphatically... yes I do! Traveling and seeing new places is one of the many things that I enjoy about photographing weddings. In the past few years I've had the privilege of photographing weddings all over New England including:

On the beach - South Shore, MA

On the water New Haven, CT

A winery in the Berkshires, MA

A farm in the Northeast Kingdom, VT

Mountain views in the White Mountains, NH

And more...

"So how much does it cost to get you to my {cool-beautiful-unique-historic-funky} location?"
I'll try to make this easy... If you were to draw a big circle around Saxtons River, VT with a 50 mile radius (no this isn't math class) any place inside of the circle would be included in my base rate...If outside the circle a $.60 per mile round trip travel fee would be charged

Inside the circle (not a complete list of course):
Vermont
Arlington
Brattleboro
East Dover
Grafton
Jamaica
Ludlow
Manchester
Newfane
Putney
Quechee
Rutland
Springfield
Stratton
Townsend
West Dover
White River Junction
Wilmington
Woodstock
New Hampshire
Claremont
Dublin
Keene
Hanover
Lebanon
Marlborough
Newport
Peterborough
Sunapee
Walpole

To check my availability in New England, upstate New York and beyond or to received a quote for your wedding please feel free to contact me at melissareidphotography@yahoo.com.

FAQ

What does hiring a documentary wedding photographer mean? If you've spent any time looking for a wedding photographer you've seen a lot of words used to describe them.... traditional, photojournalistic, editorial, documentary... It can get confusing. I use the term documentary to describe how I photograph your day because my approach is really to document your day. I won't direct you, move you, tell you how to look at each other (except for the formal groupings). I try my best to stay out of the way. You don't need to smile at the camera if you happen to notice me making a picture of you - just go back to what you were doing. After awhile you'll tend to forget I'm there. You and your guests won't spend all day doing what I tell you; you'll enjoy the day as it happens. Your pictures (and this is the most important part for me) will look like your wedding pictures and no one else's.

Will you direct us during the day? My approach is to observe what is happening and make pictures of what I see. In general the only time of the day I will give direction is during any posed formal pictures you require. Otherwise I stay to the sidelines and watch what is happening around me for the right moment to make the picture.

How will we know you are a good fit for our wedding? If you've read through the first Q & A and found yourself nodding in agreement then that is a good start. Send me an email (melissareidphotography@yahoo.com) with the details of your wedding and I will check my availability. If I'm available for your wedding let's meet! If we're too far away to meet before the wedding not to worry I work with many couples by email and/or phone.

What can I do to prepare my guests for the documentary approach to the wedding photography? The rehearsal dinner is a great opportunity to mention to your friends and family that your photographer has a documentary approach to photographing weddings. Let them know that you're very interested in pictures that reflect how your wedding day flows rather than the staged and posed pictures. Let them know that they do not need to stop talking, dancing or otherwise interacting and pose at any point during the day. If they notice me making pictures ask them to just continue on with what they are doing. Assure them that after awhile they'll barely notice I'm there at all.

What is included in your packages? My packages are largely based on the amount of time you need my services. Included in each package are the high resolution files in both color and black & white and the print rights. Also included is a "sneak peek" of the photographer's favorite pictures on my blog and as a Facebook gallery.

How long should we hire you for if we would like to have pictures of the getting ready, ceremony, formals and reception? Everyone's schedule and timing will be so the time one means will vary. I'm always happy to advise and offer suggestions based on each client's specific needs.

What if it is time for you leave and we haven't cut the cake, had our first dance, or (fill in the blank) yet? I check in with the bride and groom about 15 minutes before I'm scheduled to leave. I do this in case there is anything else you would like coverage of before I leave. If you decide that you require my services longer my rate is $250.00 per hour payable at that time.

Should we see each other before the ceremony? There is a trend to encourage couples to see each other before the ceremony. My preference is to follow your wishes on this. Although a private meeting before the ceremony can be a beautiful moment to photograph in the end this is your day and you should decide when you want to see each other.

Since we are very interested in the documentary approach, what can we do to speed up the formal posed pictures so we can get back to our guests? Before the wedding make a list of the important group pictures and who will be in them. Limit the list to six to eight groupings.

Example List
Bride & Groom w/ full bridal party
Bride & Groom w/ bridesmaids
Bride & Groom w/ groomsmen
Bride & Groom w/ Bride's family
Bride & Groom w/ Bride's parents
Bride & Groom w/ Groom's family
Bride & Groom w/ Groom's parents

Plan about 30 minutes of my coverage time for about six to eight posed pictures. Provide the list to me at least two weeks prior to the wedding. Ask a friend or family member who know the people on the list and who will not be in the pictures to assist with rounding up the people needed the day of the wedding.

How many weddings do you take in a year? I generally book about 12 -15 weddings in a year. This allows me to stay at top form for each of the weddings I do book. But because of this policy it's best to check my availability as early as possible.
revised 1-29-09

Recent Accolades...

One of my pictures from a wedding in 2005 recently got some attention on two online blogs.

The Online Photographer

http://theonlinephotographer.blogspot.com/2006/10/photographing-as-subject-for.html (scroll down - the formating seems a little off)

Awesome Photographs

http://photographs.wordpress.com/2006/12/20/getting-ready/

Thank you to both for the compliment!