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North Bennington Block Party

We live in a pretty sweet place.

A sweet, small, close knit community of people constantly offering great photo ops.

My husband was born and raised here and we recently moved back from Los Angeles where we lived for about 11 years. I was proud of moving there because well— it’s LA. It’s cool. Back home in your “tribe” everyone thinks “you made it” ;And when you are in your 20s, these things count. Well, I am now in my 30s and you know what counts?!? Good, real people, fresh air, a tight community, free time and so many more...

We weren’t truly happy there. We didn’t have enough time to enjoy that life by the ocean. We were stressed and annoyed and tired by the “hustle” (very popular word there). I am grateful for our time there. It was a time of growth and discovery. We made lifelong friends and ate some of the best food in the world. We discovered lots of different cultures and left with an open mind and an open heart.

I am also grateful to this little place in Vermont that welcomed us with open hearts.

Be dearing.

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Intimate Sunset Wedding in North Bennington | Vermont Wedding Photographer

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Intimate Sunset Wedding in North Bennington | Vermont Wedding Photographer

This next weeding is close to my heart… Truth be told, I might be a little bit subjective about it as these two beautiful people are good friends of ours. They got married in front of family in friends about a month after this happened. Signing the marriage license and exchanging rings before, happened organically. They simply wanted to have an intimate ceremony in one of their favorite places and take some of the wedding pressure off. It made for such a sweet event. The day was as close to perfect as it could be. The most amazing sunset light bathed them in a warm honey glow.

If you ever feel like a big formal wedding is too stressful, go do you.

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Late Summer Cross -Cultural Wedding at Mountain Top Resort | Vermont Wedding Photographer

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Late Summer Cross -Cultural Wedding at Mountain Top Resort | Vermont Wedding Photographer

This late summer wedding weekend started off with a relaxed and fun rehearsal dinner at the Pond Pavilion - a beautiful space for smaller weddings and events. It is nestled in a forest patch with a private sandy beach. The grill is almost always going at these events with a good amount of both comfort american food and some fancier options for the foodies out there.

The best part of the night was the mariachi band that the bride and groom were surprised with. How much fun is that?! I covered the event in a more natural, photojournalistic way as Mei-Mei expressed the desire of not having a flash go off all night long. The pictures are a little bit on the darker side because of that but they did capture the night well.

Mei-MeiandRobin-3.jpg

August 28th 2018

Wedding day timeline

*without a first look.

(Group pictures taken after ceremony and during cocktail hour)

Hair and Makeup starting at 3:30

Bride getting ready in the main Inn

Groom getting ready at Wintergreen

Ceremony 5:30pm - 6pm

Cocktail Hour 6pm-7pm (take photos with groups)

at 7:15pm: grand entrance in barn with First Dance

Speech- Appetizer served

Father Daughter Dance Entree served

1-2 hours later - Cut cake and dessert!

Midnight is the official end, with a sparkler send off



As an immigrant myself, this cross-cultural wedding brought out all the feelings. The bride is Chinese and the groom is Austrian , raised in Mexico so you can only imagine the wonderful mix of traditions.

Usually I am in a zone of my own during the ceremony and sometimes I don’t even hear the vows but in this case, they made me stop in my tracks. The one part I probably will never forget as it really touched me deep were Mei-Meis vows thanking him for leaving his country to move to the U.S for her. She couldn’t hold back the tears and I couldn’t either. It’s hard to put into words what kind of sacrifice that is and hearing someone else acknowledge that, really meant so much for me.

The father-daughter dance was incredibly sweet as well. As Mei-Mei danced with her dad, there was a slideshow with pictures of her growing up. it made for a personal and emotional touch as they both cried during it while also laughing at the wonderful memories they have together.

At the end f the night, Mei Mei changed into a sequin red dress, a lucky color in Chinese culture.

Vendor team:

Venue and Catering: Mountain Top Inn and Resort

Hair and Make Up: Mountain Top Inn Spa

Photography: Idena Beach

DJ: Top Hat Entertainment

Cake: Dorset Rising

Flowers: Meadows Edge Floral Design

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Summer Vermont Wedding at Mountain Meadows Lodge | Vermont Wedding Photographer

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Summer Vermont Wedding at Mountain Meadows Lodge | Vermont Wedding Photographer

For me, every wedding is memorable in its own way. In 2018, Gabby and Adam’s wedding was by far the most emotional for me. On so many different levels. I cried sad tears. I laughed happy tears. I danced and celebrated when I found out they have an ice cream bar instead of cake… So. Many. Emotions. I hope I managed to catch all of the little snippets in time for them. It was a truly special day for so many reasons. Not only for them as a couple but I believe for everyone present. 

Gabby’s mom almost didn’t make it to the wedding due to some health issues. Being a mom myself and also a daughter to a mom I absolutely adore, my heart broke into a thousand pieces many times over that day. And then it was put together again and again throughout the day witnessing so much joy and love and kindness. I had a hard time even looking at Gabby’s eyes because they literally broke me. This girl has the most amazing, warm, beautiful blue eyes accompanied by the most infectious smile I have ever photographed… To see them fill up with tears was hard.

I say this a lot and many might not fully understand what I mean. Most other wedding photographers will. I feel my heart grow with every single couple I photograph. I am forever thankful to you all for sharing these precious moments with me…


Their first dance was to Peter Gabriel’s Book of Love

(This song is special to Mike and I and it was the first time I have ever heard it play at a wedding… the moment it started we both locked eyes. It was awesome!)

Best Photographer Ever! Idena captured all of our pure joyous and loving moments in the greatest way possible. We told her we did not want to spend a lot of time taking formal pictures, and she was able to capture every moment we hoped for without having us pull away from the party too long. We had a semi traditional Jewish wedding with many different parts across many different locations and she moved seamlessly and went with the flow not missing a beat. I also had the pleasure of having her in my suite while I got ready with my friends and she was so sweet and funny and brought nothing but good vibes right before the ceremony....”
— Gabby and Adam

Gabby and Adam Highlight Video

Vendor Team:

Venue + Catering:  Mountain Meadows Lodge

Photography: Idena Beach assisted by 2nd Photographer :Dori Fitzpatrick  (Thank you Dori!)

Videography: Michael Beach

Flowers: Vermont Country Flowers

Band: Groove Authority

Wedding Dress: Doyle by Waters

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Wedding Reception|Stoweflake Mountain Resort|Vermont Wedding Photographers

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Wedding Reception|Stoweflake Mountain Resort|Vermont Wedding Photographers

I've been saying for a very long time that one of these days I might just go for it and deliver the whole reception party as a black and white collection. I just LOVE the look of it!

What do you think?! Yay or Nay!?! Leave your thoughts below :)

This is one of the last weddings I shot at the amazing Stoweflake Resort in Stowe VT. If you've never been to Stowe, you definitely have to visit. It is such a cute little place! There is a lot to do there at all times and the food is amazing! Vermont has some amazing food overall but this area is a tourist hub so you find it in abundance.

Anyway, back to our black&white reception. This crowd was FUN!FUN!FUN! and it was a blast celebrating love with them! I knew they will be ever since I met Beth and Dan for the engagement session a year back. They were so much fun to hang with and we ended up connecting over our love for tacos and awesome beer (mostly tacos).

If the party is important to you, no matter what you do, my advice is to not skip on picking a great DJ. We all have that awesome friend with a huge music playlist but your wedding day is not the time to try that. I have seen weddings go terribly wrong that way. Trust me on this! Hire a great DJ and you won’t regret it!

Once you do pick the best guy (or girl) for the job, trust them. Let them do their job. This is what these guys do every weekend. Give them a general guideline and trust them.

In this case, the last song of the night was a special request : Wagon Wheel. It’s a tradition to Dan’s college frisbee team. When this song started everyone put their arms around one another and sang along. I got goose bumps just remembering that moment. Beth cried happy tears. The whole room was just a big mushy bowl of love.

Cheers to you all!

Click play! Life is better with music :)



Thank you all for a FANTASTIC time!

Vermont Wedding Vendor Rockstars:

Venue: Stoweflake Mountain Resort and Spa

Coordinator: Arianna at Stoweflake Mountain Resort and Spa

Second Photographer: Dori Fitzpatrick Thank you love! :)

DJ/Lights/Sound: Peak Entertainment Who absolutely rocked the dance floor all night!

Cake Designer: North Country Cakes Cutest most delicious Lego themes cake ever!

Hair: Stoweflake Mountain Resort Spa

Bride and bridesmaids Sandals: Sseko Designs who uses fashion to create opportunity for women globally. Go to their site, shop, help make the world a better place :) Awesomeness!

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Summer Wedding at Stoweflake Mountain Resort| Vermont Wedding Photographer

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Summer Wedding at Stoweflake Mountain Resort| Vermont Wedding Photographer

It dawned on me that the day of the wedding is the day I finally get to really know the couple. 

Beth and Dan- I met them for the engagement session, I talked to them on the phone a couple of times and e-mailed back and forth a bunch. But I only knew them, really knew them... when they were surrounded in a big circle of love by all their friends and family at the end of the night. Beth with happy tears in her eyes dancing with this funny, warm hearted man she gets to now call her husband. I get goose bumps just remembering that moment.

I'm looking forward to sharing more of their day soon...

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Wedding at Mountain Meadows Lodge in Killington | Vermont Wedding Photographer

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Wedding at Mountain Meadows Lodge in Killington | Vermont Wedding Photographer

This wedding was a absolute pleasure to be part of! So many sweet moments, so many fun memories, so many amazing people :)

Here are a couple of sneak peeks until the full gallery is ready. Enjoy!

 

Vendor Network:

Venue + Catering:  Mountain Meadows Lodge

Photography: Idena Beach assisted by 2nd Photographer :Dori Fitzpatrick  (Thank you Dori!)

Videography: Michael Beach

Flowers: Vermont Country Flowers

Band: Groove Authority

Wedding Dress: Willowy by Waters

 

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