After several months of hard work, the Bello blog is finally up and running. Its launch coincided with our new Bello Photography website and we are excited to introduce you guys to our new look. We will be posting super-sized images of our fabulous Bello couples, from their engagement session to their wedding day. We might even add a slide show or two! Through our blog, we will also introduce you to some of our personal projects and provide a glimpse of what makes us tick. So browse through the posts, check the archives, leave comments, and SPREAD THE LOVE!

Chris & Andy

Will & Andrea are getting married next summer at Andrea’s family’s summer home in Woods Hole and wanted us to take some photos of their family while everyone was here visiting for Thanksgiving. Will & Andrea live in Manhattan and the rest of Andrea’s family ~ mom & dad: Joan & Ed; brother, Jaime, and his wife Monica, along with their adorable son, Mazelen (sorry guys not sure on the spelling of that!) ~ all live in or around San Francisco so it’s not often that they are all together. We had the pleasure of being there with them last Friday. It was chilll-YY to say the least, but that didn’t stop us from having some fun with everyone and getting some great shots. A special shout out to Will who went without a coat…what a trooper!

Here’s the family snuggling in close to stay warm.

First grandchildren have a way of captivating their family audience. Mazzy was no exception:

Joan & Ed lead the way down to the beach for photos. Joan earns a big gold star for her participation in the day. She had recently underwent a massive chemo treatment and was feeling drained, but happily tapped her reserves to be there with her family for some holiday photos.

Three generations of Osborns:

Nana & Papa snuggle in:

The things parents will do to get a reaction from their kids….Jamie we loved your commitment!

While the rest of the family headed back to the house to thaw out, Will & Andrea took a few minutes for some fun portraits….just a little practice before our engagement session in the spring:

Love this angle focusing on Will’s engagement ring….how cool that he got one too!!!

sooo in love….

Auntie Andrea snuggling with her love bug:

A big thank you to the Osborn family (and family-member-to-be, Will). We really enjoyed getting to know you all a little and are looking forward to spending some more time together and to meeting Will’s side of the family at the wedding in July! Happy Holiday and warmest wishes, Christine & Andy

We got some sad news today. After a brief, but brave battle with cancer, our friend Paul Foxcroft passed away last Tuesday. We met Paul in September, when we photographed the wedding of his son, Simon, and daughter-in-law, Megan. We instantly clicked with Megan & Simon, who like us found love across the pond. Simon, like Andy, is English and Megan, like me, is American. But, it was more than that connection that drew us to them. They are such amazing people, with kind hearts, and an infectious love for life. So, we were devastated when we heard the news that Paul was diagnosed with cancer and might not be able to come to the wedding. Against the odds, Paul made it to the wedding and was there to walk his son down the aisle, with his wife and oldest son, Johnny, at his side.

It was a wonderful wedding and the love in the air was absolutely palpable. We felt so honored to have been there with both families on such an important day!

Unfortunately, Paul quickly took a turn for the worse upon returning to England. We heard today from Meg’s maid of honor, Hilary, that Paul passed away with his family by his side. Although we didn’t know Paul well, we feel the pain his family is going through and wanted to show our sympathy by putting together some images of Paul on that very special day.

Simon, Johnny, Kat, Andrea, Meg & Nora, please know that you are in our thoughts and prayers. xoxo Chris & Andy

Just when we thought all of our engagement sessions were done for the season, we had one more spunky couple who wanted to brave last weekend’s chilly fall temperatures for some photos down at Lighthouse Beach in Chatham. It was definitely chilly, but the afternoon light was gorgeous and so were Kristyn & Patrick, who are getting married next summer at the Wequassett Inn in Chatham. They hired us as their photographers without having met us, so our first introduction was prior to our session. We met them at Kristyn’s folks house, not far from the beach.

If you look up the word FUN in the dictionary, you’ll find photos of Kristyn & Patrick. They are the kind of people who you just want to have around you. We instantly clicked with them and are so excited that they took a leap of faith and booked us sight unseen. We have no doubts that their wedding is going to be a total blast and we’re really looking forward to getting to know them both better over the coming year!

Although we were a little nervous about whether the session would be a success given how chilly it was, we couldn’t be happier with how things turned out. Of course, it helps that Kristyn & Patrick are totally adorable….check them out!

Seriously….is it legal to be that drop-dead gorgeous?

Peek-a-boo, I see you!

Kristyn loved this Danger sign, so we asked them to have a smooch and used them to frame the shot…cool, right?

Just to the left of the sign is the Chatham Lighthouse. Love this composition too.

The late afternoon sun hit the beach fences lining the dunes and created some dramatic shadows…I love this shot! i think it’s the contentment I see in Kristyn’s eyes. What a world it would be if every moment, in every part of the world, felt like this one…

One of the great things about visiting the beach this time of year is that there generally aren’t many people around, so it’s easy to make fresh tracks in the sand. So fun!

 

Seeexxxxy…

 

The beach grass is quickly losing it’s color, but it’s still so beautiful to me.

Long fall shadows blanket the untouched sand, giving the appearance of snow, don’t you think?

I love the light in this shot and the expansiveness of the beach. We live in such a beautiful corner of the world!

I don’t know why I enjoy cutting people’s heads off so much, but I just love the effect. It’s so rock star to me!

After a long chilly session, Kristyn gets a lift from Patrick. The crazy woman took off her shoes. Madness!

A great big thank you to Kristyn & Pat for being such troopers and for being SOO much fun to be around. You guys were a joy to photograph and we can’t wait till August to be there with you when you say, “I do!” Thank you so much for allowing us to be a part of such a special time in your lives. It is truly an honor! And thank you too Diane & Dick for welcoming us into your home, and especially to you Diane for seeking us out! I think we’re going to have a wonderful time getting to know each other over the coming year! With hugs and warmest wishes, Christine & Andy

Sarah & Parke’s wedding was something the Great Gatsby would have enjoyed. It was elegant and understated, but the guests were clearly there to have a good time. And at the center of it all was the coming together of two people clearly meant for one another.

We had the pleasure of being there with Sarah & Parke when the said, “I do,” last month at St. Peter’s Church in Osterville. The reception followed at Sarah’s family’s beach front home also in Osterville. The ever-professional Undercover Tent erected a tent on the private tennis court for guests to enjoy the culinary delights of Cape Cod’s premier caterer, Olive Chase of Casual Gourmet. Meredith Fancy of Fancy Flowers put together a beautiful display of fall arrangements and the band Rare Form rocked the house until late into the night.

Thank you to all of the other vendors for helping to make our job so easy. But, most especially a big BIG thank you goes out to Sarah & Parke, and both of their families, for allowing us to be there with them on such an auspicious occasion! The love and friendship you have shown us means more to us than you can know! Big hugs to you all! xoxox C & A

Sarah looking stunning in her gorgeous gown from Kleinfeld’s in New York.

A moment with flowergirls Isabella & Julia.

Parke puts on his tie while his brother, Taylor, looks on.

Check out those baby blues….lookin’ good Parke!

Sneaking in the back of the church for their big entrance, Sarah and her bridesmaids prepare to walk down the aisle.

It’s subtle exchanges like this that are the moments we live for… (Don’t you just love the way Sarah is looking so lovingly at Parke? It’s as if there is no one else in the world at that moment. LOVE IT!!)

We did it!! Sarah and Parke face their friends and family after being pronounced hubby & wife, then take a moment for a quick kiss before leaving the church in style in Parke’s dad’s MG.

Picture perfect…

The guys…

And girls…

Some guests enjoy the view down on the family’s private beach.

Tennis anyone? Okay, maybe not now. You’d never know it was a tennis court would you?

Thank you again Sarah & Park for opening your hearts to us. We feel truly honored to have been a part of such a memorable time in your lives! You guys are the best!! xo

Living on Cape Cod it’s hard not to be near a cranberry bog. We are fortunate enough to have one at the end of our street. The bog near us is actually a working bog, operated by Brian Handy, who grows some 180 acres of cranberries in the towns of Falmouth and Bourne that he sells to Oceanspray. Every fall, we see the delicious berries ripen to a glowing red. Cranberry juice just happens to be one of my favorite drinks so it’s pretty cool to know that the juice I like so much may have come from right down the road. Even cooler is being able to watch how the berries are harvested before they end up as juice in our fridge.

Every October, like clockwork, we notice a more prominent redness to the bogs. A few days later, the workers are out there gathering their harvest and we think to ourselves, “We should photograph this.” But, it happens so fast and life is so busy, we inevitably miss it saying, “Next year!” Well, this year, we finally made it out there and spent a couple of hours documenting the process. The guys we spoke with at the bog said this year’s harvest was less abundant than in years past thanks to the dry weather we had in August and September.

The method of collecting the cranberries has changed quite a bit over the years. The days when workers had to hand pick the cranberries from the vine on their hands and knees are gone! Today, only a few workers using large machinery are able to harvest several hundred square feet of bogs in a fraction of the time. These changes have led to some unrest in the town and as a result this bog may not harvest cranberries next year, which made us feel ever better about finally getting out there.

We hope you enjoy the show as much as we did!  Happy Thanksgiving!

We shot our first wedding at the Cape Cod Museum of Art last month. What a fabulous place for a wedding, surrounded by all of that art it was hard not to feel inspired. Equally inspirational was the relationship of the couple whose wedding we were photographing. If ever two people were perfectly suited to one another Cathleen and Stephen are certainly those people. They are a fun, silly couple who seems to thrive on stirring things up and bucking tradition. A perfect example of this was Cathleen’s wedding dress with it’s come-hither red accents. Red, and the love it inspires, were certainly themes for this fall wedding, with gorgeous red and yellow floral arrangements featuring sunflowers and red lilies. There were votives filled with cranberries on the tables, and Cathleen hand-painted the table numbers using very art-inspired red and yellow designs…very impressive!

Catering was provided by Crazy Chef’s, which does a stunning job with displays. Art could be seen in everywhere, including on the passed hors d’oeuvre trays. It really was such a lovely venue for a reception. We snuck away for a bit to take the bridal party to the beach for some photos….wouldn’t you know it was an unseasonably warm October afternoon and Corporation Beach in Dennis was packed! It seriously looked like a July afternoon with people everywhere! We managed to find a little corner away from the crowds. Here are some photos from the day. Enjoy!

Here’s a shot of Cathleen & Stephen’s invitation with their wedding bands.

Heirlooms from Cathleen’s grandmother stayed close to her heart throughout the wedding.

Stephen gets a hug of encouragement from his dad just before the ceremony.

Here comes the bride.

Love this shot of one of the flower girls receiving communion. Too cute!

A tender touch during the vows. Cathleen got a little teary eyed during the vows and ring exchange. We just love weddings!!! So much love!!!

Looking ever so sassy down by the sea wall.

Cathleen and her bridesmaids react to a photo of Mario, Cathleen’s friend and one of her attendants. He was a total clown during our group shot. I like to give clients a peek when we get a good one. Andy’s more secretive…he likes to WOW later! I just can’t wait!

Love and art go hand in hand

A great big thank you to Cathleen & Stephen for being so much fun to work with. We feel truly honored to have been there with you on such an important day and hope these photos keep those feelings of love and joy on the surface for many years to come!!! With hugs, C&A

Just before the cold weather settled in and the beach grass lost its golden hue here on the Cape we made it out to for one last engagement session at our favorite beach in Falmouth. The session was with our new friends Lauren & Ed, who are getting married in Boston next June. Lauren was referred to us from a co-worker of hers, Tracy Peterson, whose wedding we photographed a couple of weeks ago in Newport (stay tuned for those photos). Thanks Tracy…we love you!!!

We had such a great time with Lauren & Ed. They were silly and sweet and obviously in love. Photographing them was not only a lot of fun, but it was also a breeze…Lauren with her mesmerizing aqua blue eyes and Ed with his killer smile and Hollywood good looks; how could we take a bad photo?! We had such a hard time picking just a few for the blog that we decided instead to share with you the slideshow we put together for them. Have fun!

A big thank you to Lauren & Ed for coming down to the Cape to spend the day with us. You two were such naturals in front of the camera. Thank you for putting your trust in us and for being a really nice end to our season! THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

Every now and then we manage to capture a really funny or unusual image and so we’ve decided to start sharing some of them with you as part of our new Bello Chuckles photo section. We hope you laugh along with us and are reminded that life is too short to take ourselves too seriously! If we can’t have fun, then what’s the point?

We’re really hoping this new section gets people talking (and laughing), so to make it more interesting we’re going to ask you to come up with a witty/funny caption for the images. All thoughts and comments are welcome!

Our first Bello Chuckles photo features this little lovebug. He’s the adorable nephew of one of our fabulous couples, Molly & Guy, who got married last month here on Cape Cod. He comes from a large Italian family and is quite the character. We just loved photographing this little guy, but we’re not sure the feeling was mutual. We got the feeling he was trying to tell us something. What do you think? Roll your mouse over and off the image quickly for the full effect. Then, tell us what you think he’s trying to say.

 

Molly & Guy’s wedding was one of those weddings for us when it was impossible to be there with them and not want to join the party! The ceremony was a full mass at Corpus Christie Parish in Sandwich. We’ve never been to the Parish before, but it was a big beautiful building with a grandness that perfectly suited this couple and their celebration! We stopped at Dowses Beach in Osterville for some alone time with Molly & Guy and then joined the party back at Willowbend Country Club in Mashpee where things really got going.

The high energy Boston-based band Beantown rocked the house and allowed guests to get in on the act. It was hysterical to watch and the energy was infectious. The temptation to grab an instrument and join the fun was hard to resist!!!

Thank you to Randy and the crew at Willowbend for providing an incredible backdrop on a perfect fall afternoon, for always taking care of us and making sure things run smoothly, and for making our job such a breeze.

Our biggest thank you goes out to Molly & Guy who are such fabulous people and a perfect match! You two were a blast at our engagement session last spring and we knew your wedding would be amazing. You certainly didn’t disappoint! You guys rock and we love you! Thank you for just being you!!! xoxoxo

Below are a few of our favorite photos from the day. ENJOY!!

Molly tries to tuck behind the door leading into the waiting room off the church’s grand entrance to hide from guests as they arrive before the ceremony begins.

And here, one of Guy’s nieces gets emotional during the ceremony as her new cousins comfort her….seriously, is that a cute photo or what?

Molly’s stunning Vera Wang dress from L’Elite Bridal Boutique in Boston was a show stopper! Here she & Guy leave the church after saying, “I do!”

A quick kiss and a toast before heading to the beach for photos. This Rolls Royce by Executive Transportation of West Falmouth is our favorite for the killer red fabric lining the roof’s interior and the sexy red leather seats! Request Chris as your driver…he’s sweet, low-key and as a Cape native he knows where he’s going and how long it takes to get there, which helps ensure you arrive on time!

If you’ve followed this blog at all, you’ve probably sensed I have a thing for shoes. Love these puppies by Kate Spade with the cutesy bows on the back to match the bow on the back of Molly’s dress.

Simply stunning….Is he a lucky Guy or what?

Back at Willowbend for photos with the rest of the gang.

Guy gets a little lift from his friends! Whooooaaaa!!!

Here they get a bit more serious….not to mention studly!

The girls show they know how to have a little fun too. I don’t know what it is, but we have the best looking couples and wedding parties. You all make us look good and make our job a piece of cake!!

Molly & Guy’s moms, Sheila & Sara, celebrate as M&G seal their new union with a kiss.

What do you think Molly’s niece is thinking as she checks out the cake??

A new Elvis is born…Guy’s nephew joins the band with some serious hip hop style!

Molly lets loose as she rocks out with Beantown.

Well, that’s just a glimpse into Molly & Guy’s special day. Thank you both again for being so wonderful and so much fun to be around!!! xoxoxo C&A

Maybe it’s because they both come from large families, Kaitlin with her brother and 2 sisters and Adam with his sister and 3 brothers, but whatever the reason Kaitlin & Adam are the kind of people you just want to have around you. They are sweet, optimistic, energetic, fun, and completely in love. We had the pleasure of being there with them as they said, “I do” a few weeks ago. The day started off cloudy and rain seemed to threaten their tented reception at the Asa Bushnell House in Centerville. There was a quick rain storm just as the ceremony started, but by the time Father Mark Hession of Our Lady of Victory in Centerville prompted the newly married couple to kiss, the rain had stopped. At Dowses beach for photos with family & their bridal party, the skies provided a dramatic backdrop and by the end of our time on the beach, the sun poked through for the most incredible light for portraits of Kaitlin & Adam. Here are some of our favorites from the day:

Kaitlin’s killer Christian Louboutin baby blue pumps. I was obsessed with these puppies and the way her legs looked in them all day! FABULOUS!!! Oh, and how about her gorgeous ring! Sweet!!!

Hopping on the trolley to head for the church…see what I mean about her legs!!!

And how about this handsome devil and his groomsmen? Not too shabby!

Adam showing off his new hardware.

We often recommend that brides keep it simple when it comes to make up on their wedding day and Kaitlin hit a homerun with her wedding day look. (Love the eyelashes!!! Don’t be afraid of fakies ladies…they can really add some serious wow factor!)

Adam didn’t do too bad with his wedding day look either….Eat your heart out 007!

The wind was a bit breezy down at the beach for our photos, but it came in handy for this shot.

Check out those cool storm clouds and how they contrast with the sun peeking through….love it!

Cocktail hour at Asa Bushnell House

And here’s the view the guests enjoyed…

I love this angle during the toasts. And Kaitlin just looks so beautiful listening to her dad’s heart-felt speech.

A big hug and thank you to Kaitlin & Adam for choosing us as your photographers. We loved getting to know you at our engagement session earlier this summer and were truly honored to be there with you on such a special day. You two are wonderful and we hope you keep us in your lives for a long, long time! xoxo Chris & Andy