On Monday, my long dreamt-of J.Crew Jane Austen shoot was featured on the Minnesota Bride Magazine Blog! What an honor and a priviledge for this fabulous shoot to be featured on the most fabulous of all the Minnesota wedding websites; I seriously could not be more thrilled to be associated with such an upstanding publication.

One big bear-hug to my friends at Minnesota Bride. You guys rock.

I’m so excited to share more from this shoot.

There is nothing in the world like laughter between sisters.

At first light Saturday the sky was a stunning pastel pink but no less than 30 minutes later the sun disappeared behind a line of blue(ish)-black rain clouds and I wanted to cry. All that planning, all that weather stalking, all that waking up in early enough to witness first light and a line of rainstorms was going to spoil our day. But oh, no. Uh uh. Natalie & Dave weren’t having it. What started out as a “meet and see how long we can go until we get rained out” turned into a session for the record books. We ended that morning in St. Anthony Main drenched with rain water but laughing so hard it hurt. Just further proof that I have the best clients in the whole world.

To my peeps and new friends, Natalie & Dave. You guys rock. Thanks a million for putting up with the rain, the umbrella and my hair. Happy, happy 5 years of wedded bliss; here’s to 70 more.

Jacinda & Matt’s sweet, sweet love story goes a little something like this: she liked him, he liked her best friend, she stopped liking him, he started liking her, she realized she wanted to spend the rest of her life with this guy she never actually stopped liking and he decided he couldn’t live one more day without her. The rest is a blur of college, a wedding, living in South Africa(!!!), currently a grad school education at Luther Seminary and lots and lots of laughter.

And now, even after 3 years of marriage, they acted like newlyweds in front of my camera. Gross. (Just kidding. You know I love it.) Happy Anniversary to two really, really wonderful people. Your type of love is why I love my job immensely.

A huge, huge congrats to Jen & Casey on their graduation into the next stafe of life! Can’t WAIT to meet the new addition to the Crews family (who made his worldwide debut last week!). Since apples don’t fall far from their trees, I know for certain that he will be one amazing little guy.

Today is the day that changes everything. Today, at noon, myself and 6 other fabulous local vendors will be styling & photographing a concept shoot that has taken just slightly less planning than my wedding 5 years ago. I have enlisted some fabulous and amazing local vendors and we’ll be bringing a substantial amount of talent your way and I can’t WAIT to show you the results. (And with it the entire breadth of my rebrand! Soon, my friends, soon.)

Until that October day, here’s a little sneak peak into the Creative Brief behind this concept shoot. It’s going to be BIG. (And insanely gorgeous.) If you want even more of a sneak peak, make sure you follow me on Twitter; I’ll be twitpic-ing the day’s events between shots.

My favorite (only) brother and his gorgeous girl came to visit 3 weeks ago and for 6 days I put away work (mostly) and spent some amazing hours with them. We watched bad movies, indulged in late night chats, drank more Sprite than I thought possible, gave cuddles to the dog and since they tend to be one of my favorite subjects in front of the camera, I turned our visits of Minneapolis landmarks into a photo shoot. (You can take the photographer out of the city…)

There’s something about sharing your favorite spots in the city with your favorite people who have no reason not to love it; as it turns out, you fall a little bit more in love with it all over again.

Raf & Lizzie. xoxo. You know how much I love you both.

In the darkness of some cloudy days came one amazing ray of sunshine. Jenna of Eat Drink Pretty made my week and featured Kimber & Chas’s fabulous Utah engagement session. If you don’t follow the Eat Drink Pretty blog, you are missing out. (I mean that.) Between her panache for making the most gorgeous sweet treats, she also posts about one of my very favorite topics: entertaining.

I also found out that a couple of the photos I took of the JNP Studios Workshop Tablescape were published in Issue 9 of the online magazine Utterly Engaged. The tablescape was all about the manly-man so I’m sure they were – ahem – thrilled with the uber-girly squeal that escaped my lips when I first saw my name.

Even though it hasn’t been the kindest of last 30 days, I know how blessed I am to have my photography recognized by a blog and an online publication that I love. Blows to the stomach included, I realize I am living one hell of a charmed life.

I have so many fun blog posts coming up soon including the details of two spectacularly gorgeous Minnesota weddings. Look for those to hit your Google Reader this month, but first…I must go put Life in a headlock. He deserves it.

My hope for next year is that I can look back and cherish where I am right now; WHO I am right now because I think the recognition of how far one has come is important but remembering who you were is just as important. A year ago, I was holding myself back in protection from the fear of the unknown but today I am purposefully running full stride in the direction of fear and uncertainty. I know my failures will be numerous but that’s ok because playing it safe is no longer in my vocabulary.

I am so grateful to the clients and friends I have gained since the beginning of this journey. I have been entrusted with documenting one of the most important events in a couple’s life and I am being honest when I say I am totally honored by their trust. 

Saturday was the first wedding of my second wedding season ever and let me tell you, it set the bar pretty high; can’t wait to share. Until then, Happy Anniversary to me and a heartfelt thank you to my clients, friends and support system for pushing me and believing in me. I would not be here without you.

There has been a lot of chatter lately about what community in the photography industry means and how to live it. Well, this is me raising my hand in support of the environment that has flourished in the Twin Cities. It is a community that really is about community and being there for each other through good times and bad. We’re a community that takes silly photos of each other just because we can. We’re a community that pushes each other to succeed. There are very few times in life where I can remember feeling so swept up by a community of like minded peeps. (And before I sound too much like a cult member – onto the photos. Oh dear. Just…keep reading.)

One of the best parts of this community is the people and one of my favorites would have to be Callie Chappell. (For reals.) Callie is sweet, gorgeous and hilarious; pretty much the definition of a triple threat. Callie is also a Wedding & Lifestyle Photographer in the Twin Cities and when she emailed me asking if I would be willing to do some quick headshots for her, I literally jumped at the opportunity. And then I turned it into a full-fledge THING and made her go out in the 40 degree weather with her bare arms and legs, but this is what I do. We all know this.

Dear Callie, thanks for making my job easy. I adore you.