I hate being in pictures! I'm a notorious blinker and my face just feels weird when I pose for a smile. So when my wife told me we were going to be taking a lot of them at 5 in the morning a few months before our wedding, I really had to put on my big-boy-pants and act excited.

So it's 5 in the morning and we're at the beach expecting to meet a photographer as groggy as we were. Much to our surprise, bright-eyed-even-at-the-crack-of-dawn Maureen Cotton set us as ease almost instantly. She came across as someone who is genuinely friendly yet professional without being uptight. For the next hour or so, she encouraged us to act naturally. While walking along the shoreline and having my Boston-native wife pointing out landmarks, there wasn't a moment that felt forced. Even the not-candid pictures felt natural. Maureen would usually say something clever and funny then take a shot while we were laughing, not posing. You can see in the results, that makes all the difference in the world to us camera-shy folk.

Maureen showed even more amazement on our actual wedding day! It was quite a cold day and she really knew how to keep freezing bridesmaids and groomsmen happy. It was magic how she organized so many people and even a 1937 Packard limousine! Her clever comments were even making the driver laugh out loud! Throughout the reception, Maureen showed us that she could very well have a promising career as a ninja. She was nowhere in site! Yet after all this, the best parts are just getting started.

The pictures on the beach were truly something. Both my wife and I have used several for our Facebook profile pictures. Candid shots, posed shots, brilliant use of lighting and even cool, artistic shots where she caught our reflection on a sand puddle or had the sun reflect off my glasses lens.

The wedding pictures came out even better! Every picture, I mean what turned out to be 904 pictures, every picture was masterfully crafted. While sticking with the brilliant artistic shots (close-ups of rings and bouquets and such), the real magic is how Maureen captured the feeling of the moment. My bride looked like an angel and even a picture she caught of my wife's aunt walking the dog that morning just makes you think "ooh...this one's a facebooker!" Getting ready at the hotel and my wife at her parents' house, it was really fun to see all the pictures of the madness a bride has to go through! It really is a team event! Maureen captured that perfectly!

While my wife and I look through her collection of pictures from our day, we can't help but smile and laugh, but some make us cry. My wife's phenomenal mom passed away two weeks after our wedding and Maureen's pictures were among the last taken of her. Despite how sick she was, you would have thought my wife's mom was on top of the world that day. Her wit was razor sharp as usual and looking at her still-wrinkle-free face, I could see where her daughter's majestic beauty comes from. We also used one of Maureen's pictures of her for the funeral because that's how we wanted her to be remembered. Thanks to Maureen's photographic brilliance, my wife's mom's magnetic aura is immortalized.

What just as impressive as Maureen's pictures is her ability to make you feel like more than a customer. She put about 150 pictures online of our engagement shoot and over 900 of our wedding day. In fact, she laid out all 900+ in chronological order so she's telling a story with her pictures. She's always quick to respond to a phone call or e-mail and remembers things about us and asks us about said things. She sends us letters wishing us the best after our wedding and even gave us a magnetic hardcover foldout with pictures from our wedding along with a letter featuring a picture collage and even put 3 of our pictures on it! It's way too late to make a long story short, but Maureen Cotton remembers the big things and even throws in little things just for a bonus.

Married couples warned us the big day will fly by, they were right. We are lucky to have Maureen Cotton capture it and freeze it in time. I would recommend her to anyone and everyone who wants pictures...especially camera-shy people like me who hates taking pictures you won't be blinking in any of them!

Maureen is great. My husband really didn't see the value in even having a photographer at first ("my family will take great photos!"), so I am so glad we ended up with Maureen and her assistant Lindsay! Maureen was in contact with us an appropriate amount (so one sit-down, one form, and some emails) leading up to the big day. She made our formal shots quick and painless so that we could get to the party. She had scouted the venue before we got there so she had ideas for photos in her head already, which helped. Also, she had posted over 600 photos before we had even returned from our honeymoon, which is unheard of in the industry! 98% of the photos, we didn't even see her take - she must be a ninja. She's also a super-calming presence (she's also a yoga teacher), which helped. She navigated the family dynamics and overbearing relatives with ease. I'd highly recommend Maureen!

Other great things: She doesn't charge for travel within 2 hours of Boston. She had handouts at our wedding so that people could take the photo information (website, login), with them. We've gotten few questions from guests, and they've only contacted us to say how much they love the photos!

Price: Maureen has similar prices to other Boston photographers, so no, it will never been cheap. You can spend less if you hire a non-professional, so that's just a budgetary decision for the bride and groom. However, Maureen's gives a lot of options in terms of building a package that fits your budget, and she does not hold your photos hostage from you in order to get more money, which I've heard some folks do.

Maureen was a complete joy to work with. We had both an engagement shoot and six hours of coverage at our wedding. Our photos are all breathtaking. She was extremely flexible and regularly in contact with us as we discussed what we wanted.

Honestly, any time I need a photographer, I plan to call Maureen. I know my friends and family feel the same.

Oh, and if there are small children in your wedding party, she's great with them, too!

Maureen went above and beyond for our wedding! She was a complete joy to work with following up to the wedding and was so flexible every time we had a schedule change for the big day. She cared so much about us and was a very calm/collected presence throughout the whole day. Her assistant was great too and we had many people comment on how great they were to have around. I can't say enough about the actual product! We have had dozens of people tell us they were the best wedding pictures they had ever seen! They were lively, exciting and candid. Her website is great, the printing services are so easy and she's very generous with what she offers couples for the quality and care she puts into everything. She's also super quick getting things onto facebook, just when everyone wants to see pictures! It was so much fun working with Maureen, I HIGHLY recommend her services!

Maureen Cotton was very professional and did an extraordinary job capturing our special occasion. She is someone who pays very close attention to detail and will go above and beyond to ensure that your pictures come out exactly how you envision them. A week before our wedding, she made sure to survey all the sites that we wanted to take our pictures at to ensure that she knew where the optimal shots could to be taken from. She is very well prepared and asked for a list of names and relationship of all individuals at our wedding so that she could make sure no one got left out. We even got our pictures 2 months ahead of schedule. We could have not made a better choice, she is someone who we would HIGHLY recommend and it was an absolute pleasure having her photograph our wedding.

Ruth and Miguel Malena

I can't say enough positive things about Maureen! 5 stars is no where near enough! As a photographer myself, hiring one to photograph my wedding was a difficult thing to do, since one doesn't usually want to hire someone to do what they do! But since I can't photograph myself (at least not well....) we needed to hire a photographer and Maureen was the absolute best choice! She captured everything and did it in a very unobtrusive way, she is calm and has a way of passing that calmness onto the bride! During formals she knows exactly how to tell you to stand, and directs everyone quickly and with a smile (and politely! I have been in weddings where the photographer has practically yelled at us during formals and Maureen is the opposite, making everyone comfortable!) Each and every one of the hundreds of photos is amazing, perfectly composed with perfect lighting. Maureen even captured many great photos of our wedding guests, friends and family who I am so glad to have photos of from that day! Everyone at my wedding commented to me after how great Maureen was! The turn around time for the photos was super fast, and she even emailed me a few photos to hold us over the day after the wedding! I would recommend Maureen Cotton Weddings a hundred times over!

I would recommend Maureen to anyone, anywhere, with no reservations! Not only were her photographs stunning, but her professionalism, responsiveness, and calm demeanor were equally impressive. I've been to weddings before where the photographers were downright bossy, or at best, awkwardly in the way; Maureen and her assistant were completely unobtrusive, and simply blended into the total joy of the day. She was truly a pleasure to have at my wedding. Leading up to the event, Maureen was by far the most professional of all the wedding vendors I worked with. From the initial first meeting/presentation to contracts to planning shots and timing, Maureen was easy to work with and always available by phone or email, with an incredibly quick turnaround. If all vendors were like Maureen, wedding planning would be a breeze!
The photographs themselves were so impressive; many family members commented that they were the best they had ever seen. She didn't miss a shot and captured the essence of all the emotions felt during the day. Gorgeous keepsakes of not just us, but all of our loved ones as well. (There are some truly priceless photos of my niece, my father, tender moments between family members...oh, and the first dance photos! Swoon!) I only wish I could hire Maureen to follow me around and document the rest of my life from here on out. Bottom line, hiring Maureen stands out as the best decision I made in all of my wedding planning.

Maureen was very professional and she showed up early on my wedding day. She took many photos that captured many moments on my special day. She responded quickly to my e-mails, and all 800 of my photos were posted on her website the weekend after my wedding. She's a great person, and does fantastic work!

Maureen was AMAZING. We honestly couldn't be happier withe the service we received from her. When it came to planning, the 3 things I was most concerned about were the food, the music, and (most importantly) the photography. These are the pictures we would have for a lifetime, and I've heard horror stories of people who have never looked twice at the pictures they got from their photographer because they were so bad. I researched for months to find the right person, and as soon as I met Maureen, my wife and I knew we would be hiring her. Not only are her technical skills among the best I've seen, but her experience and "artistic eye" allows her to capture the true emotion of the moment. And what impressed me the most is how intimate the photos seemed considering I don't remember seeing her even once the entire time! (with exception of the organized photos in the beginning, of course). Looking at the photos we received, I don't feel like I'm looking at through the viewfinder of a camera. The personal touch she gives to every photo makes me feel like I'm actually reliving the moment again and again. I really can't say enough about our experience with Maureen. She was absolutely perfect!

Maureen Cotton was able to fit me in to her very busy schedule on very short notice (about 2 months). We were able to work in what my then-fiance and I wanted and what we could afford. On the day of the wedding, she was quick and professional, so I could enjoy my day rather than pose for hours. And the pictures- the pictures are breath-takingly beautiful! The album I purchased was well worth it in every way. I will treasure my pictures forever! Thank you!!

Maureen is fantastic! I can not say enough about her services. She was so professional and unobtrusive during the entire day. I barely knew she was there but yet I have 1200+ pictures and 98% of them are incredible (and the ones that weren't were me making a stupid face). She truly captured the joy in the day and caught so many precious moments. She was SO VERY patient with my entourage of a wedding party and crazy family dynamics. She was well prepared and knew exactly who I wanted photos of and made sure she got them all. Her timeliness and responsiveness are second to none. Her quality of work was magnificent and she did it all (including riding on a school bus) with a huge smile on her face.