Brooke & Travis: Family Session

Brooke and Travis have what I like to call "personality plus". They are a heckuva lot of fun, and know how to live life to the fullest. Plus they're totally in love with each other and their cute little pup George. What's not to like? :)

Last weekend we met up with them for a day of photo fun in beautiful Port Washington, Wis., a picturesque small town right on Lake Michigan. In the morning we did a family session and in the afternoon we did a bridal/trash the dress (which will be featured in an upcoming post). Even in the unexpected morning chill, they were total naturals in front of the camera, which made my job super easy.

Afterwards we went out for breakfast at a local joint and chowed down on corned beef hash, among many other breakfast delicacies. And later, we introduced them to the wonder that is Kopp's frozen custard. Noms.

For this session I rented the 35 mm f/1.8 and the 85 mm f/1.4 lenses. And let me tell ya - even though I'm still in love with my 50 mm, I found myself using the two shiny new lenses more often than not.

Gah! Look at those eyes!! And check out George's stylin' sweater!

Look: George has "Yoda" ears! :)

Awwww. :)

Stay tuned for a post on their bridal/trash the dress session!

Chris & Nina

Brian met Chris at his school's graduate student orientation last August and quickly bonded over their shared love of computer and video games. A couple of  months later I met Chris and his wife, Nina, and we all hit it off. So, when I learned they didn’t have any recent cute photos of themselves, I knew that needed to change that pronto.

Last weekend we braved the sunny, hot outdoors to capture their enduring love. And let me tell ya: these two were troopers. For reals.

The shoot was definitely challenging, but forced me to deal rather quickly with rapidly changing (and tricky!) light situations, mostly due to that bright, shining ball in the sky. All in all, despite the horrible lighting, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of photos we came away with – looks like my practice has been paying off!

Gah! Nina, you're so gorgeous! 

One of the best parts of being friends with these two is that their house is filled with love - both from the human and pet variety! While I was waiting for those two lovebirds to get ready, I snapped a couple of photos of their furry friends.

Make New Friends...But Keep The Old.

Normally when I move to a new place (which I've done a few times in my life so far), I tend to make new friends easily. I think it's because I'm an adventurer at heart, and as such I befriend people who can help guide me on my journey. My Sherpas, if you will.

After I returned to Chicago last summer, I became my own Sherpa (or perhaps even the prodigal daughter). I had a general idea of how to get around, where to go and what to do. As such, I've been something of a hermit when it comes to meeting new people.

To overcome my minor self-diagnosed case of "hermititis", I've been reconnecting with some of my old pals that still live in the area. One of these friends is the lovely Sherah, whom I originally met shortly after I moved one block away from my old house when I was about 7-years-old. She acted as my Sherpa to the new neighborhood, guiding me to new friends and experiences I just didn't have on my old block.

 Sherah & I, around age 9ish. Ignore my short hairdo...*buries head in sand*

It was a major bummer when she moved away a few years later. Slowly but surely, we lost touch. Years passed, and we both went to college, met cute boys, married them, and had babies. Well, she had a baby anyway....I adopted cats. :)

Through the wonder of Facebook, we reconnected. Then I found out she, too, was a photo nerd. So, when I finally decided for sure that I wanted to take this whole photography shindig to the next level (along with taking nice photos of Brian & I), I knew just the gal to call to get the job done.

Visit her blog here - you know you wanna!

Sherah and I today...isn't she just the cutest pregnant lady ever?! 

{Photo is courtesy of Sherah G. Photography}

Stay tuned for some updates to the blog with some of the lovely photos she took - you're gonna love it. I guarantee it!

Makin' Dough.

As a child, I was obsessed with creating cookies and other baked goods. The passion continues to this day - I've actually somewhat seriously entertained the idea of becoming a full-time baker, but when I discovered I needed to be up at 2 or 3 in the morning in order to do so I quickly retreated to my puny little mixer and spatula in my compact apartment kitchen, condemning that plan to the realm of fantasy.

So, when I got the opportunity to photograph behind the scenes at a bakery up in De Pere, Wis. a couple of weeks ago (at a reasonable hour, of course!), I jumped at it. The employees were absolutely wonderful about having a foodie/slightly-clumsy photographer in their inner sanctum as they were pouring, sifting and mixing up a frenzy.

Enjoy, and try not to drool too much. :)

P.S. - Yes, all of the baked goods pictured below taste as good as they look!