Heya!

why I do this

The simple answer to why I do this: I love people. And I love creating stories about people, whether that’s on one of the biggest days of their lives or on a quiet Sunday afternoon. I also think that as a woman, I know how hard we can be on ourselves about the way we think we look, and I’m especially passionate about helping other women to see what everyone else sees: the incredibly beautiful person they really are.

Random Facts about Dory

I’m originally from the DC area, growing up there and then starting my own family under the shadow of planes landing and taking off from Dulles Airport. I moved to Maine several years ago, tried out Oahu for a year and a half, and ended up raising my kids back here in Western Maine.

I’m all about the rural life, but I also love traveling: heading back to Hawaii on a fairly regular basis, and playing tourist in New York City or San Francisco. One of the highlights of my life has been photographing elephants in Sri Lanka. Next on my list is exploring more of Europe!

I LOVE to cook—my Instagram stories are just as likely to be about what I’m cooking as they are about what I’m photographing. My favorite thing in the world is entertaining friends and family for dinner, and making visually beautiful food that tastes delicious, too.

It all started when . . .

A neighbor handed me my first camera, an old Kodak Insta-something when I was eight, and I became obsessed with capturing everything I saw around me. Today, I prefer the unexpected over the traditional, the candid shot over the posed, the moment after the pose over the pose itself. I’m especially obsessed with capturing emotion: a mother seeing her daughter in her gown , a groom watching his partner walk down the aisle toward him, a bride hugging her father tightly as they spin around the dance floor. Those moments get me in the heart place every time.

This is a family business, and my daughter and associate shooter, Makena, and I are passionate about capturing beautiful, memorable images on every wedding day we shoot. We believe the key to that is making sure you, your wedding party, and your family feel relaxed, happy, and comfortable. We know how hard it is for some people to enjoy the photo process, so we work hard (or not that hard—we’re pretty foolish!) to make sure everyone is laughing and having fun all day long (no matter how much they thought they hated the idea of being photographed). I can’t tell you how many people have told us at the reception they didn’t realize they could actually enjoy having their picture taken. We live to hear at the end of the day: "You guys were so much fun!" because that's exactly what everyone should remember at the end of the day: that they had the very best time of their lives while we captured them doing it.

The Knot Best of Weddings Hall of Fame

Winner, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 The Knot Best of Weddings

Published and featured in Real Maine Weddings magazine

Member, Professional Photographers Association

:The Cameras:

• Nikon Z9 mirrorless camera body: My new favorite thing—incredibly crisp, detail-rich images coupled with the very latest in mirrorless technology

• Nikon F6 Film camera body

• Nikon Z7 ii mirrorless camera body

• 2 Nikon D850 camera bodies:

The Lighting:

• Flashpoint Speedlights and Pocket Flashes

• 4 Flashpoint XPLOR 600PRO TTL Monolights

• Several different LED lighting options

The Effects:

• A host of Flashpoint and MagMod attachments

• Prisms and pipes for lighting effects

• Smoke bombs, atmospheric fog, and confetti poppers

The Lenses:

I'm sort of a lens hoarder, so while I have several others, these are my tried and true friends that come with me on every shoot:

• Nikkor 24-70mm 2.8 VR

• Nikkor 70-200mm 2.8 VR

• Nikkor 14-24mm 2.8

• Nikkor 35mm 1.4

• Nikkor 58mm 1.2

• Nikkor 85mm 1.4

• Nikkor 105mm 2.8 VR

• Nikkor Z-mount 50mm 1.2

• Nikkor Z-mount 35mm 1.8

• Nikkor Z-mount 24mm 1.4

• Nikkor Z-mount 85mm 1.4

• Nikkor Z-mount 105mm 2.8

• Nikkor Z-mount 24-70mm 2.8

• Nikkor Z-mount 70-200mm 2.8