Sara and Will ||||| O'brien Barn ||||| Film Wedding

Sara and Will were married at the O'brien Barn a few weeks ago. Not only is the farm one of my new favorite venues, it is also Will and his family's farm... so this was at an at home wedding for him, which makes it even cooler in my books.  I was in heaven for this wedding. Not only was I shooting film, but also...the details were amazing, Sara and Will and their wedding party were super chill and fun, AND some of the first words out of Sara and Will's mouths when we arrived were "We trust you and your vision" and "We don't want any photos that aren't real". Talk about being head over heels with a couple...I totally was. I also had Laura Zastrow shooting alongside me for the day. she is super duper fab, and I was lucky to have her along! Thank you so much Sara and Will for having us, we loved every minute of your celebration! 

these next two images were taken by the lovely laura 

 

jen and blake |||||| film engagement session

Jen and Blake made the trek to Ontario from Madison for their engagement pictures, and I couldn't be more grateful that they did. Even though we had to dodge the rain, ticks, and maybe even a little bit of animal droppings, I had such a lovely morning with them. Anytime I get to hang out with a super fun couple trekking around the hills of my home is a great time. I am looking forward to their wedding this fall--so much! I got to hear some of their plans for their intimate wedding, and I am so excited! On to the photos. 

lexi and tynan…and a photographer in film shooting--lovely evening--amazing couple induced euphoria

there are no words. seriously I am so excited to photograph lexi and tynan's wedding this october that it is kind of scary. when I met up with them for their engagement session....which was the debut session for my newest film camera (medium format, how did it take me so long to be united with you?) .....I KNEW within moments it would be a super fun evening. and i wasn't disapointed. lexi and tynan are so.much.fun. and some time couples just kind of GET ME....i know, super cheese, right? but I felt like they totally did. so...before I gush on for too long (i have promised myself to be a tad less verbose this year)....on to the photographs! 

mamiya 645//canon EOS 1V//kodak 400 & 800

ten ||| personal photography

in a little less than a month, matt and I will have been married for TEN years. don't get me started on how old that makes me feel! a few weeks back we took an anniversary trip to a cabin outside of nashville. (oh my goodness, it was a amazing. if you are ever in the area, stay HERE. it was a dream) and then we road tripped over to the mountains of north carolina. (another GREAT place to stay is the stone chalet we rented). here is a little photo-taste of our trip. you will note there is not many of me. let me just say....i enjoy the pictures from 10 years ago a lot better of myself. 

when you are having this much fun, who cares about a little hail? hillary and Jason's wedding

yep, you read that right, I said hail. on hillary and jason's wedding day there was hail, sleet, sun, rain, just about every kind of weather you could imagine....in may!....in wisconsin. even though they had to make the call to have their wedding indoors instead of out, like they planned, they didn't let that detail get them down. one thing I can say with certainty is that hillary and jason and their family and friends like to have FUN. and they definitely did so on saturday. it was great to be able to spend time with such happy people just enjoying their time together! thank you jason and hillary for having me be a part of your day! 

waiting on baby….vanessa, angel and fabio

the last time I saw this adorable little family, it was fabio in vanessa's adorable baby belly. It was so lovely to see them again as they await the arrival of the newest member of their family--a baby girl. we didn't quite have the sunny glorious evening to photograph in that we did last time we met, but it was still a gorgeous may evening, and I so enjoyed watching this family interact! 

a beautiful day in may for carly and scott's wedding

when I photographed Carly and Scott's engagement session, we discussed how since it was super cold they day they GOT engaged, and very chilly on the day we took their engagement session that their wedding day would be lovely. well, i got a little worried leading up to this past saturday when the forcast called for rain and chilly temperatures, but Carly and Scott's wedding day ended up being a lovely day. no rain! I had an amazing time photographing Carly and Scott, their friends and their family. They are all SO MUCH FUN! And they are so surrounded by people that love them. It is amazing to be able to spend time with people like that. Not to mention the elegant, simple and sophisticated touches that Carly incoorporated into the day. I loved it all! Thank you so much to Carly and Scott for having me! And a big shout out to Jessica Brandau of Forever Dear Photography: thank you so much for second shooting for me! 

pause

sometimes I wish there was a pause button i could press. to stop them growing up so fast, to freeze time so certain moments lasted so much longer, to keep them from passing up some of the stages their are in now with such alarming speed. but since there is no pause button to press, I press the shutter instead. thinking with each click " this way I can at least keep some of this time for ever" hoping I can look back through images and recapture what it was like now. I am also trying to reevaluate and recognize that which is really unimportant to spend more time and energy on the things of GREAT value. (which is why I no longer have a personal facebook account....among other things) 

mamiya 645//canon 1V//kodak 400

a walk in the woods with tara and matt

//winter day, couple in love, beautiful light. 

//film and digital mix

sarah and luke's intimate ceremony

i often get asked what kinds of weddings are my "favorite" to photograph. up until recently my answer probably had a lot to do with details, venues, and a general aesthetic--and while, i still do love it when people put thought and their own personality into the "look" of their day, all that pales in comparison to the FEELING of the day. hands down, my favorite events (of any kind) to photograph are events full of joy, full of family, full of people who care about EACH OTHER and their marriage above all the details of a wedding that can stress out the best of us . 

Sarah and Luke's ceremony was just that, my favorite kind of event.  It was an intimate ceremony with just some of their most immediate family members, held at the Rooted Spoon in Viroqua (um...if you are having an intimate gathering, RUN don't walk to check out this venue. they were amazing...the atmosphere is so laid back, the space was warm, inviting and unique,  the staff was so helpful and friendly, the food. oh my goodness THE FOOD. seriously, you won't be disapointed). The whole day was just so lovely, sincere, and  full of joy. Sarah and Luke are such genuine, loving, easy going people and it was a complete honor to document their day. 

thank you so much Sarah and Luke and family for including me in your lovely celebration!