Asticou Azalea Garden

By Melanie Brooks

If you're looking for a place with a little zen and a lot of photo opportunity, head to Northeast Harbor on MDI. There you'll find the Asticou Azalea Garden and nearby Thuya Garden.

I was down camping in Bar Harbor with my family over Memorial Day Weekend and we decided to take a picnic lunch. We picked up some sandwiches in town and headed over to Northeast Harbor and the Azalea Garden. Unfortunately we had to eat our lunch outside of the garden as no picnicking is allowed on the premises. And after one step through the gates tells you why: it's completely pristine.

Real Maine Weddings 2011

By Melanie Brooks

Spring is here and the wedding season will kick it into high gear in just a couple of weeks. We're done oohing and ahhing over the 2010 issue of Real Maine Weddings and getting ready to produce another gorgeous issue for 2011.

We're looking for photo submissions for the following sections:

Features
We publish six wedding features in our magazine. We're not only looking for gorgeous photographs but also an interesting wedding story.

Trends
Have you been noticing any trends lately you want to share? We want to hear about it.

Editors Picks
These are a collection of whimsical photos that we love. They may not fit into the above two categories, but are strong enough to stand alone.

There are a few ways you can submit your photos.

1. Create a slide show of images on your website and send me a link. You can reach me at melanie@bangormetro.com.

2. Mail me a disc with your images on it, along with a synopsis of the wedding story. Our address is:
Real Maine Weddings
Attn: Melanie Brooks
One Cumberland Place, Suite 316
Bangor, ME 04401

3. Email me a collection of low res images, along with a synopsis of the wedding story.

I have no preference on how you send the images -- I just want to see them!

Our deadline is July 16. We are accepting photos from summer 2009 weddings through the deadline. We're shooting for an October, 2010 release date.

If you have any questions, email me at melanie@bangormetro.com.

Real Maine Weddings 2010: Mark McCall

Mark McCall has been a part of Real Maine Weddings from the start. His photos have also appeared in several issues of Bangor Metro. What can we say? He's good at what he does.

One of the brides I interviewed last year told me that Mark was so unassuming she didn't even notice him snapping photos for most of her wedding day -- and that's just how she wanted it. His photojournalistic style and use of black and white photography isn't your typical, traditional wedding photo look -- but it's still gorgeous. It's what sets Mark apart from the crowd and what makes him such a sought after wedding photographer.



Pick up your copy of Real Maine Weddings today at Hannaford Supermarkets and bookstores across the state.

Real Maine Weddings 2010: Nadra Photography

This is Nadra Edgerley's first appearance in Real Maine Weddings and we couldn't be happier! Not only are her photographs amazing she's a peach to work with.

We had a hard time deciding between the three photo features she submitted, but loved the fall photos of Ross and Nicole's southern Maine wedding. To see more of her photos (and a collection of her favorites from Ross and Nicole's wedding) check out her website.



Check back tomorrow for our final photo slideshow featuring Mark McCall.

Real Maine Weddings 2010: Carl Walsh Weddings

This is the second time Carl Walsh has appeared as a feature in Real Maine Weddings. We loved this wedding because of the story: the couple wanted to build their own timber-framed barn to get married in, but realizing how long it was going to take set out to find one already built instead.

The Red Barn at Outlook Farm in South Berwick was perfect -- and had never been featured before by our magazine. It's cozy atmosphere and gigantic stone fireplace melted our hearts.



Check back tomorrow to see photos from Nadra Edgerly's Kennebunk wedding.

Real Maine Weddings 2010: Michelle Turner

This is Michelle Turner's first feature in Real Maine Weddings, though one of her photos made our editor's pick in 2009. While she spends most of the year photographing weddings in Maine, Michelle escapes the cold and travels to Mexico and Central America during the winter to shoot destination weddings...lucky!

Along with her very cool website, Michelle also keeps a very cool blog. Check them both out for more examples of her fantastic photography style.

Her photos of Jenny and Justin wowed us. The colors! The candid shots! The different points of view! If a picture is worth a thousand words, this wedding was priceless.



Come back tomorrow to check out the rustic barn wedding shot by Carl Walsh Weddings.

Real Maine Weddings 2010: Eager Eye Photography

Rogier Van Bakel, founder and owner of Eager Eye Photography, has been featured in Real Maine Weddings for the past three years. His journalistic training and skills as a storyteller have clearly influenced his photographic style. Based on Mount Desert Island, Rogier's wedding photography has become so popular that he's set up an Eager Eye Weddings website where you can view photos from several galleries online.

The slideshow below are some of our favorite shots from Rogier's Orono and Dedham wedding of Jenny and Nic. The military uniforms, classic white church, and the views from the Lucerne Inn made for some stunning photography. Jenny's huge smile didn't hurt, either.



Check back tomorrow to see shots from Michelle Turner's wedding on Penobscot Bay.

Real Maine Weddings 2010: Andree Kehn

The Real Maine Weddings website has been successfully re-designed and updated thanks to our techie guy Luke Abbott. The site is gorgeous thanks to our art director, Sandy Flewelling, and all the wedding photographers whose photos stunningly captured six different weddings around the state.

To celebrate the re-design and give credit and kudos to the six photographers who have worked with us to bring the 2010 issue to fruition, we're putting together a slideshow of photos from each of our featured weddings.

Some of the photos made their way into the magazine while some didn't. We can't print every single incredible photo, but luckily we can show them to you on this blog.

Andree Kehn is a wedding photographer based in Bethel. Her Red Sox wedding in Greenville was the very first wedding we chose for the 2010 edition. We loved everything about this wedding, including the heartwarming story that accompanies the photos. Click here to read it for yourself.



Don't forget to check back next week for a glimpse into the other five featured weddings and see the photography of Michelle Turner, Nadra Edgerly (Nadra Photography), Mark McCall, Carl Walsh, and Rogier van Bakel (Eager Eye Photography).

Real Maine Weddings 2010: Covers

An overwhelming majority of you voted on our two covers this week and left interesting and insightful comments. THANK YOU! We love to see your feedback. We said that we'd let you know which cover we chose by today, but it was a bit of a trick. Since we publish the magazine twice with two different covers we are actually using BOTH of the covers!

As of 10 am this morning, the cover on the left (the one we're using for Spring 2010) was the clear favorite, with 67% of your votes. Here were some of your comments:

As mentioned above the photo to the right not only looks staged but could be taken anywhere in New England. The picture to the left is genuine and definitely says Maine. - Anonymous

Both couples appear to be happy, but I agree that the one on the left seems more genuine, a natural moment captured for posterity. - Bruce

I too found the picture on the left to look deary - not full of hope and light like the picture on the right. Young love (ok I am old) is full of hope and the one on the right just has more warmth to it, more hope. The one on the left make look a wee bit more natural we still can tell it was a suggestion vs. a real candid - but it really lacks the brightness & hope. Feels more like these deary economic times. - Anonymous

I choose the one on the LEFT. It is very magical, they way you should feel on your wedding day. The one on the right is nice, but it seems generic, like any photographer could have taken it. I think the photo on the left has more emotion. - Kris

Real Maine Weddings 2010

Some of you might not know that besides Bangor Metro we also publish a wedding magazine called Real Maine Weddings. We've been doing it for three years now and each year it's gotten bigger and better -- and this next issue is no exception. There are 66 pages jam packed with photos and tips on how to plan for your Maine wedding. All the content is Maine-centered, meaning you wont find any generic fluff in this publication.

Below are two covers for the 2010 publication. Vote for which one you like better! Both are taken by photographer Russell Caron. We'll let you know which one we chose at the end of the week so check back.

poll by twiigs.com

Entrepreneurship Award!

We work day in and day out to shed positive light on all the people and places in our region who are doing amazing things. But every once in a while it feels good to toot our own horn and we have cause to celebrate here at Bangor Metro world headquarters!

It has just been announced that Mark Wellman and Tori Britton of Webster Atlantic Corporation (the umbrella under which Bangor Metro, Real Maine Weddings, and the forthcoming Maine Ahead magazines fall) have been selected to receive the Entrepreneurship Award from the Bangor Region Chamber of Commerce. Toot toot!




Here is what the write-up says in the November 2009 edition of Chamber News:

[This award] recognizes an individual or business whose innovation and creativity have succeeded in opening new economic opportunities for our region. Mark Wellman and Tori Britton operate the Webster Atlantic Corporation which publishes Bangor Metro, Real Maine Weddings, and Maine Ahead. All of these publications serve to increase the region's visibility.

We are all honored and humbled by this recognition...especially considering the company we're keeping! Other award winners are...

Danny and Carla Lafayette: The Norbert X. Dowd Award, the BRCC's most prestigious honor.

Bangor Savings Bank: Business of the Year

Olympia Snowe: Catherine Lebowitz Award for Public Service

Hilda Hutchins McCollum: Community Service Award

Eastern Maine Medical Center: Non-Profit of the Year

John Simpson: Arthur A. Comstock Professional Service Award