Emma Freeman Photography: The Blog

New Blog & Website!

2011-10-10T09:36:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone!

I am thrilled to share my NEW blog and website! This blog will now start to collect dust, so please check out my new one and subscribe if you'd like to keep up to date on things around here.

Blog : http://emmafreemanphotography.com/blog/
Website : http://emmafreemanphotography.com/

Thank you!

Emma

Varsity Theatre Wedding / Macalester Wedding : Mel & Phil!

2011-09-15T16:13:00.001-05:00

Mel and Phil had such a beautiful and unique wedding! They met at Macalester College in Saint Paul, so having the ceremony there was a perfect idea. Their portraits are some of my favorite I've ever shot with my Contax 645 film camera! The reception was at the always impressive Varsity Theatre in Minneapolis. Enjoy some of my favorites from their day!

Jen George : Holistic Health Counselor & Shiatsu Therapist

2011-06-29T17:31:00.000-05:00

Jen is one of those people who you meet and just want to be friends with. She is a Holistic Health Counselor and Shiatsu Therapist in Dubuque, Iowa. She needed images for her new website, so we started brainstorming ideas together a few months back. She really wanted the images to reflect community, health and spirituality and give potential clients insight into who she is and what she does. We decided to go to the Lyndale Farmers Market, one of my absolute favorite places in Minneapolis. Our motto for the day became "what would martha stewart do" because the shoot felt SO Martha and I dream of shooting a feature for her magazine someday. The farmers market is a perfect location for lifestyle portraits because you can't help but experience everything around you and just dive right in, which makes for wonderfully natural photos. For the second part of the shoot, we went to my studio to photograph her doing shiatsu. The entire day felt like a beautiful collaboration between all of us involved-what more could you ask for?!

new technique: holga polaroid!

2011-06-24T13:37:00.000-05:00

I am soooooo excited to share this test of a new technique I am trying out! I bought a Polaroid back for my Holga camera and this is the first shot I took after I got the camera all set up. How fun is this?! I am taking this puppy to a two weddings this weekend and will be sure to share the images!

sunday at the farmer's market

2011-06-19T14:12:00.002-05:00

Minneapolis Wedding Photographer : Julie & Jeff engaged!

2011-06-16T16:20:00.001-05:00

I am finally catching up on all my blogging this week! For Julie and Jeff's engagement session, we decided to go down to Saint Anthony Main and then to the Twins Stadium where Julie works at the Promotions Manager. We got an all access pass to go anywhere in the stadium that we wanted to! We had so much fun running around on the field, hanging out in the dugout and sitting in the stands. I'm so excited for their wedding this September!

Monisha & Bryan : Lake Calhoun engagement session

2011-06-16T15:49:00.001-05:00

Monisha and I met awhile back through a friend when she was thinking about doing a boudoir session before her wedding. That same friend asked me to donate a photo session to her organization for a silent auction, which I like to do as often as I can to help organizations I believe in. Bryan happened to be at the event and bid on my session and a few months later we were in Uptown all together! Monisha and Bryan got engaged and decided they wanted to have a beach wedding in Mexico, because after all, why not? But for their engagement photos, they wanted them in Minneapolis where they met. We started at French Meadow Bakery to chat over a cup of coffee and from there wandered around the neighborhood, then went over to Lake Calhoun and Lake of the Isles for some more photos.

Congratulations you two! I hope you have an amazing wedding in Mexico!

Calhoun Beach Club wedding : mindy & jeff

2011-06-13T18:22:00.002-05:00

Mindy and Jeff had such a lovely wedding at The Calhoun Beach Club in Minneapolis. They are one of those couples that is so into each other and so excited to be married. Mindy made a lot of the details herself, which I love! She is a diy / crafter at heart, just like me. Mindy is a vegan too, so all of their food at the wedding was completely vegan. I was a vegan for 10 years, so when I heard about this little fun fact, I got really excited! D'Amico did all of the fabulous catering. They had their first date at Ecopolitan, an all raw/vegan restaurant in Minneapolis, so we decided to go there for some photos of the two of them. Otis, their adorable pup, came and met us too. Just look how dapper he is!

Jeff has fantastic style - check out the purple ties, awesome socks and gray suits and shoes! Paired with Mindy's classic, vintage-inspired look, these two looked incredible!

Enjoy!

Cypress Wedding Albums: Erin & Ryan!

2011-06-10T17:46:00.001-05:00

I loved designing this album for Erin and Ryan who got married in Mexico last February! They chose a 10x10 book in classic black cover with cream ribbon. Albums are the best way to relive the wedding day from start to finish, which I love.

Enjoy and Happy Friday!

MN Bride Feature : Meghan & Mike!!

2011-05-11T16:30:00.000-05:00

Meghan and Mike's lovely Semple Mansion wedding is featured on MN Bride twice today! Yay! Check it out here and here!

Semple Mansion Wedding : Meghan & Mike

2011-05-03T15:19:00.001-05:00

Meghan and Mike had such a lovely and quirky wedding, my favorite combination. Mike is a big goofball and Meghan is adorable and kind and together they make such a wonderful couple. They got married at The Semple Mansion in Minneapolis and chose some of the coolest details I have ever seen! Check out the table cards, each one represents something that's important to them. The vibrant colors mixed with the elegance of the space made their wedding incredibly unique. As a surprise, Mike gave all of the guys Twins hats (they are HUGE fans) and put them on at the end of the ceremony. The string quartet played "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" as they walked down the aisle-Meghan had no idea it was going to happen! The look on her face was priceless.

Congratulations you two. I have absolutely loved working with you both and wish you all the best in life together!

Wisconsin Engagement Session : Lindsay & Eric

2011-05-02T16:16:00.001-05:00

These two are so wonderful! Lindsay has the most contagious smile, which I loved so much during their session! We went to the farm that Eric lives on in southern Wisconsin for the first part of the day. There were so many great stories about the land and all the hard work that went into updating all of the buildings. We had so much fun wandering around taking pictures there! For the second part of the shoot, we went to the spot where they got engaged, on a little remote lake. Eric LOVES to ride his motorcycle and since he met Lindsay, they have started riding together a lot-it's one of their favorite things to do together. I'm so excited to shoot their wedding in October in Wisconsin!

McNally Smith College of Music 25th Anniversary

2011-04-27T11:57:00.000-05:00

I love working for McNally Smith College of Music. Last week they had their 25th Anniversary celebration and asked me to come and photograph it. Here are a few of my favorites from the night!

personal : just me & my contax

2011-04-23T11:00:00.000-05:00

I can't seem to put down my Contax 645 camera. I have been shooting a lot with it at weddings recently, getting a handle on the exposures and compositions that I like with it, since every camera is so different. I have been playing with different films as well to find the ones that I like best (so far Kodak Portra 400/800 wins). I shoot everything wide open (f2 whenever possible) to achieve the yummy shallow depth of field that I love so much. Anyone who has assisted with me knows that if I have to go higher than f4 I whine a little...

This is a personal shoot I did a few weeks ago. It was early evening and I was wrapping up work at the studio. The light pouring through my windows was that incredible late-in-the-day light that photographers swoon over. I grabbed my Contax and wandered around near my studio and in the Warehouse District of Minneapolis. I looked for colors, textures and contrast that caught my eye. When I got this film back I was so excited! The true beauty of film is that if you nail the exposure in camera and get great scans (I get mine from Richard Photo Lab in L.A.), you don't have to touch the images in post-processing. For someone who shoots thousands of images regularly, this is a dream. The goal is to always spend less time processing images and more time shooting. The bottom line? I LOVE FILM! I included some little captions about each image too, since I always love to know what is behind an image.

Enjoy!

(This is an old, weathered table outside my studio.)

(I loved the color of the door and the strong contrast of the shadow of the tree.)

(The soft even light on these benches and the remnants of snow felt so dreamy. Film has such a lovely range of tones that is hard to achieve in digital.)

(This street lamp was tucked in between two buildings. The wind was howling and my hands were freezing, but I had to make a picture of this. The subtle pinkish tone and the even light was gorgeous! The way they were standing so tall and silently, tucked away from everything, made them feel like a secret.)

(I saw these yellow flowers inside this window as I walked by. They seemed to long for warm Spring as much as the rest of us)

(The same kind of street lamp but in strong sunlight. Again, the tonal range blows me away and I love that shadow!)

(Something about this shot/location reminds me of a movie set. I want to bring a cute couple to this spot pronto!)

(I saw this on a poll near where I parked my car. I loved the remnants of other letters above and the subtle sense of the city in the background.)

(This funky little thing was on a side of a building in the Warehouse District.)

(I saw this lamp in the window of a shop and loved the shapes, colors and reflections.)

(This beautiful old tree is at the edge of a parking lot. I wonder what was there before they paved it all, and who decided to keep just this one tree. I hope it stays for a long time.)

(The colors and textures of these intrigued me.)

(I saw this bathrobe hanging in a window and loved imagining someone playing house in this store!)

(What photography is to me.)

(What I strive for at my studio.)

(I saw the bird print in the window and all of the amazing light reflecting off the buildings. I love looking in windows of shops that have closed for the day. Everything sits perfectly still. There is so much quiet beauty that I am drawn to.)

(This feels like Christmas to me. I wanted to see how the colors would render on film. It feels nastalgic, which is a quality I am always striving for in my images.)

(The contrast of the blue wall and the white snow was interesting to me. I have learned along the way that overexposing film by one full stop will give it a lovely quality, so that is what I do with all of my film work. I love the shapes of the snow and the muted colors here.)

(This was sitting against a wall on a sidewalk and stopped me in my tracks. The subtle colors with the even, warm light drew me in. I love the little pop of blue!)

Raindrops

2011-04-20T12:46:00.000-05:00

I have been taking a break from shooting personal work lately to focus on setting up my new studio and getting into the wedding season. This morning after looking out the window and seeing snow falling, I decided that I would keep my camera next to me in the car and take photos if I felt inspired and BOY did I ever! I found this green door near my studio and was at first just drawn to the vibrancy of the green and the opened door. As I walked closer I heard raindrops and saw these huge drops falling from the roof and making the most incredible splash on the metal. Spring is here!

molly & conor : 7 year anniversary

2011-04-07T16:59:00.000-05:00

Molly and Conor are great friends of mine. Conor is part of my family, having known him most of my life. Him and Molly got married seven years ago and came to Minneapolis for a weekend to celebrate. Conor is absolutely ridiculous and makes Molly laugh constantly, as is clear in these photos! I had a great time photographing them at my studio. Enjoy!

Sarah Kay : Inspiration

2011-03-28T21:51:00.000-05:00

Minneapolis Engagement Session : Meredith & Nick

2011-03-27T13:44:00.001-05:00

The day we did Meredith and Nick's engagement session was C.O.L.D. Nick lives in Atlanta and Meredith lives here, so adjusting to the brisk air was a little challenging for Nick. We had some coffee and chatted about life and their wedding and then ventured out to take some photos. Here are some of my favorites, all shot on Hasselblad. Enjoy!

Summer on Holga

2011-03-11T17:55:00.000-06:00

I just got a roll of Holga film back and really love these two images from last summer. The Holga is so quirky and imperfect, making it oh so charming. These images make me long for warm days filled with bicycle riding....

Grandma's Agfa Shur Shot

2011-03-11T17:53:00.001-06:00

i heart minneapolis - holga style

2011-03-11T12:02:00.000-06:00

I love me some holga! It's so playful, you really never quite know what you're going to get when you shoot a roll of film on it. I love to just pop this camera in my bag some days and make a few pictures whenever I feel inspired. This one of Libby I made when we rode our bikes to a bookstore in Minneapolis when it was still warm out! How I miss the warmth and cruising down the street on my bike! Soon enough, soon enough.

Minneapolis Wedding Photographer : Andrea & Ryan's Wedding Album

2011-03-09T15:41:00.000-06:00

I just finished designing Andrea and Ryan's gorgeous album and cannot wait to give it to them this week! I had to share a few photos of it. I think presentation is so important for images especially in the world of keeping everything on our computers. To have the experience of opening up a lovely album that is crafted with luxurious materials and reliving all the moments of a wedding is...incredible. It was such a treat to design this album for two of my favorite clients ever!

Instax Film is SO Fun!

2011-03-08T15:48:00.000-06:00

I am LOVING my new Instax Mini camera! I took it to Mexico with me for Erin and Ryan's wedding and had so much fun taking instant pictures and giving them to the guests. This was one I had to photograph and share since Erin looked so cute! I will definitely be using this little fun toy a lot more this year!

kaja's camera bags

2011-03-02T19:00:00.000-06:00

Sometimes you just connect with people and you can't explain it. Personality, common interests, whatever...but for some reason you just click. That's Kaja. She is an amazing art teacher who loves photography but because of the stresses of teaching and life circumstances, she hasn't been photographing as much as she wants to. After talks about old film cameras, favorite photographers and subject matter we like to shoot, we both decided we should go on a photo adventure together. I have a fridge full of expired film that is just begging to be shot. I went over to her house one night and after great conversation with our partners and a lot of wine, we pulled out her cameras and started talking "shop." It was fantastic. I LOVED her camera bags, they were so worn, so weathered with experience. You could just tell that those bags had been hauled around on so many shoots by someone else and then they were handed to Kaja to restart her photographic journey. It's just so amazing. This was before we went on our adventure, so for me, this image holds the excitement and the anticipation of getting out and shooting together.

Just go and take some risks and try whatever it is that you want to do. Why not? It's never ever too late to start again.

morning coffee

2011-03-02T18:50:00.000-06:00

One of my absolute favorite things is having coffee in the morning with Libby. It's slow and it sets the tone for the day. We both have very busy careers but in the morning we can have an hour of time together before our separate lives begin. Even better to be in Mexico, in the warm morning sun on the patio in our room. Perfection. It really is all about the small, everyday moments.

The strength of women

2011-03-02T18:46:00.000-06:00

My mom made this amazing bodice for me when I was in college and I keep it in my living room now. It is a constant reminder of the strength that women have. It is a source of inspiration and courage when I need it, a reminder of the incredibly strong mother I have.

Erin & Ryan : Married in Mexico!

2011-03-02T14:46:00.000-06:00

Photo Adventure / Loppett

2011-03-01T16:04:00.000-06:00

My friend Kaja and I had been talking about going on a photo adventure together for awhile. We finally found a day that worked and it happened to be the day of the Twin Cities Loppett which is an amazing cross country skiing event on the lakes in Minneapolis. Neither of us had ever been to it before so we grabbed our film cameras (I think we had 6 or 7 between the two of us!) and ventured out. I shot with my Hasselblad and Contax 645. My favorite was the kids race, those guys were cruising around and kept falling down but were having so much fun! This is exactly why I love Minnesota in the winter-people make it fun.

Isadora

2011-03-01T15:43:00.000-06:00

I got to photograph brand new Isadora a few weeks ago and what a little bundle she is! I absolutely love photographing in clients homes because it makes it very intimate and very personal. Both images were shot on Hasselblad with Kodak Portra 400.

Becca & Ben's wedding featured on Wisconsin Bride!

2011-02-18T10:14:00.000-06:00

I'm so excited that Wisconsin Bride is has featured Becca and Ben's lovely rustic wedding from last September. These two are amazing and I wish them nothing but the best in life together.

To view the feature, click here.

Pip

2011-02-09T22:29:00.000-06:00

My brother, Pip, is an incredible chef. He is someone who can make an incredibly delicious, creative meal by opening up the cupboards and the fridge and making a plan on the fly. You can see the gears turn in his head as he begins to plan a meal. When I was last in New York, we had spent the day wandering around taking pictures and throughout our stroll the topic of dinner came up. We went into a market and looked around for awhile and then he said, "I think I'll make pasta." A few hours later we were back at his apartment watching him make it. There is nothing I love more than watching people do what they love and Pip most definitely loves to cook.

I shot this on Contax 645 with 400 Tri-X film.

guard against perfection

2011-02-08T15:49:00.000-06:00

"As best I can, I've tried to remove most of what is superfluous from my life. I try to put myself in positions-in physical locations-where the possibility exists to be astonished. I also try, as William Stafford said, "...to be on guard against perfection." -Keith Carter

Saturday Morning

2011-02-08T09:32:00.000-06:00

Becca, my sister, said "we should definitely go to this little place in our neighborhood for breakfast. They have the most amazing egg and cheese sandwiches on homemade buttermilk biscuits and the space is lovely. I think you'll like it." And I did. I love small spaces with a lot of character and New York has plenty of them. This place had so many little things to enjoy...the handwritten menus on chalkboards, the fresh baked goods on the counter, the mason jar light fixture, the wall of windows pouring natural light in....I made one picture in this place and this is it. When I took it, I was a little disappointed that I didn't have color film loaded but now that I see the black and white, I love it.

Afternoon Beer in Brooklyn

2011-02-08T09:24:00.000-06:00

I recently bought a Contax 645 film camera. On my recent trip to New York, I left all my digital gear at home and grabbed this bad boy along with my Hasselblad. This was the first shot on my first roll of film in my new Contax. I was at a long, wonderfully lazy brunch with friends and saw this rustic table behind where I was sitting bathed in soft window light. I took my freshly poured beer and set it up with the group of friends in the background, although you can't make them out, I wanted to have a sense of movement back there, a sense of wonder. I knew this shot was going to be soft since I had to shoot at 1/15 of a second at f2. I LOVE soft, ethereal, imperfect images.

Farmer's Market Flowers in Brooklyn

2011-02-08T09:16:00.000-06:00

There are few things more lovely to me than a bunch of wild flowers from the farmer's market, dried and sitting in sunlight against a blue wall. This is in my sister's living room in Brooklyn and every time I visit, I make some photographs in this room because of the light and the colors. I am so drawn in by the most simple of details. For me, that's where the story lies, in those everyday moments and objects that say something about us. For me, a photograph can't ever just be about the light, it has to have a hint of a story involved, even if it's very subtle.

Sarah

2011-02-08T08:57:00.000-06:00

Sarah lives in India with her partner who is from Minnesota. I met her through some mutual friends and we all ended up going on this amazing camping trip just before the new year. Sarah brought home packets of henna and gorgeous scrarves for everyone to have. After a night of games, dinner, a hot tub, and great conversation we woke up to Sarah making the most incredible breakfast for everyone. Afterwards, a friend started using the henna on Sarah's hand and when she finished, I asked if she would come outside with me for a minute so I could take a few pictures. I love that she was still in her pajamas.

Lutsen Wedding Photographer : Brandi & Andrew : Engaged!

2011-02-07T17:45:00.001-06:00

Brandi and Andrew are amazing people. We met in Uptown for their engagement session because they love the area. It was REALLY cold that day but they were such good sports and ran around outside with me to get some great photos. We had to jump inside more than once to warm up but within a few minutes we were back out! They are getting married at the Lutsen Resort this summer and I am thrilled to get to photograph their wedding. We ended their session at Liquor Lyle's where they first met through mutual friends. We shared a beer...well actually we each had two because they were 2-for-1's! We had a great conversation about their lives, their wedding, politics and why they love Minneapolis. These two reminded me yet again why I love what I do so much. I get to hang out with incredible people and give them real, personal, honest photos. It doesn't get much better than that!

Laura & Dan : Love Session!

2011-02-07T15:46:00.000-06:00

I photographed Laura and Dan's wedding in 2009. When Laura emailed me and asked if I would come to their home and photograph them being "cuddly and us" I jumped at the chance! This is exactly what Love Sessions are all about...being real and affectionate and celebrating who love and what you love to do! I thought the way they stand in the kitchen together was SO sweet! These are photos that they want to be able to show their children years down the road, to remember this time in their lives in their new home, deeply in love and cherishing each other. That sounds like a perfect foundation for starting a family.

Sundays

2011-02-07T15:09:00.000-06:00

Sunday is my favorite day of the week. There is something about the day that invites sleeping in, lingering over the New York Times, sipping too much coffee, eating a delicious brunch and just slowing down. One of my favorite spots for brunch in Minneapolis is Cafe Barbette. A friend and client works there in addition to being an incredible dancer. I ran into her on Sunday and she brought us some amazing mango sorbet on the house to have after brunch...it was incredible!

Here's to slowing down, losing track of time and enjoying little gifts like sorbet.

Best of Midwest Burlesque 2011!

2011-02-07T12:20:00.000-06:00

I LOVE BURLESQUE. Phew, I'm glad I got that out. Burlesque is such an incredible art form with some of the most generous, kind, creative, funny people involved who I have ever met in my life. I have worked with Lili's Burlesque Revue for a few years now and have been lucky enough to photograph their shows as well as do some awesome portrait sessions with them. The Best of Midwest Burlesk Festival happens every year in January and brings performers from all over the country to our cold city. I didn't think 2010 could be beat but holy crap, 2011 really blew last year out of the water! I posted a lot of photos here because I simply couldn't help it. The photos of the Portrait Studio at the end give you an idea of what kinds of silliness happen when you book it for an event! I love it because people have a chance to get some fun, relaxed photos of themselves AND you have more room to move and play than you do in a traditional photo booth.

Flora Bella's lovely work!

2011-02-07T12:03:00.000-06:00

Last week I was lucky enough to collaborate with Lisa Roy of Flora Bella on a little photo shoot! She made these stunning bouquets for Minnesota Bride's Look of Love event. I went to her lovely studio where she does all of her floral work as well as runs Roycraft, her crafting business. This is the first of many creative collaborations that Flora Bella and Emma Freeman Photography will be doing together this year, so stay tuned!

February Love Session Special!

2011-02-01T15:29:00.003-06:00

I'm so excited to announce a very special treat for the month of February! Book a love session for yourself, for you and your person, for a friend, for your family...for whoever wants some personal, lovely photos at a special price!

Contact me at emma@emmafreemanphotography.com with questions or to book a session! Hurry, these will fill up fast!

Mike & Meghan : Engaged!

2011-01-27T16:14:00.000-06:00

Meghan and Mike were so much fun during their engagement shoot! During our first meeting together, they shared how they got engaged...Mike took Meghan all around Minneapolis to every place they have lived together and gave her a little gift and talked about memories from each place. He ended at their new home and asked her to marry him! I wanted to use that idea as inspiration for their session so we piled into a car and drove around to the six places they have lived over the years of their relationship. They had so many funny stories about each place, it was so much fun to get to know more about them. We also ventured down to St. Anthony Main for some wintery photos that I just love! They are getting married at The Semple Mansion in April and I know it's going to be a great wedding. Enjoy!

Minnesota Bride Feature!

2011-01-27T15:51:00.000-06:00

I am so honored to have work featured in this month's MN Bride! Colleen and Joe's lovely wedding is featured along with his cool purple boutineer AND one of my favorite bride's ever, Liz has her shoes featured. Check it out and pick up your copy!

Owen

2011-01-26T19:48:00.000-06:00

This guy was so fun! Book your session in our NEW cozy, beautiful studio! Contact us at emma@emmafreemanphotography.com!

Winter on Film

2011-01-21T16:32:00.000-06:00

(My brother Pip at Thanksgiving peelings onions)

(Pies that my mom made at Thanksgiving)

(Sled after the big snow fall, Minneapolis, MN)

(Hydrangea in my parents yard, Oconomowoc, WI)

(My mom's garden in winter, Oconomowoc, WI)

(A true Freeman Family lighting technique for Christmas)

(Garden, Oconomowoc, WI)

(Birdhouse, Oconomowoc, WI)

Engagement Session on Film : Nicole & Kris

2011-01-21T16:25:00.000-06:00

Here are two images from Nicole and Kris' engagement session a few months ago. I shot both of these on my Hasselblad with 400 Tri-X film. I love film so much!

Mast Brothers Chocolate

2011-01-10T15:30:00.000-06:00

When I attended the A Bryan Photo workshop in Alabama last November, their team showed us this video of Mast Brothers Chocolate Company in Brooklyn, NY. I found their story so inspiring and interesting; one of family, of a love for food and small business and a desire to provide a quality product in small batches. I am constantly striving for a similar philosophy with my business. I always want to provide quality images over quantity and an amazing experience from start to finish, just like these guys do. Enjoy!

Minneapolis Kids Photographer : Fitzgibbon Family

2011-01-07T13:14:00.000-06:00

I photographed Jaime and Brendan's wedding two years ago. They had an incredible wedding at The Basilica in St. Paul and The Cedarhurst Mansion. They asked me to photograph their daughter, Elise, over the holidays, and I couldn't have been more excited! This little girl is SO cute! I just love staying connected with clients over the years and seeing how their families grow.

Alana

2011-01-05T18:23:00.000-06:00

Badlands

2011-01-05T18:14:00.000-06:00

These are a few images I came across from a trip to The Badlands that I took a few years ago. It's fun to look back on them. I will be posting more images from my archives throughout the new year.

A lovely album

2011-01-05T17:08:00.000-06:00

Simply put, I love making albums for my clients. They are hands down the best way to retell the story of a wedding day. I get so excited to deliver an album to a couple and just love to imagine them sitting in their home on their couch, looking at it together with their family and friends. I hear over and over from people that their wedding day was amazing but seemed to go by so quickly. The album is a way to relive some of those wonderful moments that may otherwise be forgotten over time.

My goal is to always make beautiful albums with clean designs that will not date themselves quickly. Here is our most recent album for a great couple, Nikki and Matt, who were married last Fall. I love that they chose the rich purple cover to match the bridesmaids dresses! So, so lovely.

Home in the Winter : Happy New Year

2011-01-05T16:49:00.000-06:00

I absolutely love going home for Christmas. My family is VERY close and we have a lot of traditions that we have kept alive for many years. Home is always warm, full of good conversation, love, great food and drink and amazing memories. Here's to a wonderful new year full of all of those things.

Nikki and Matt's Wedding featured on MN Bride Blog!

2010-12-16T14:47:00.000-06:00

These guys were so much fun at Nikki and Matt's wedding! We got them to ham it up for the camera, which wasn't hard to do! A big thank you to Megan at MN Bride for sharing my work on the blog today.

To see the feature, click here!

We are a featured vendor on So You're EnGAYged!

2010-12-13T14:47:00.000-06:00

I am so excited to be a featured vendor on So You're EnGAYged, a wedding resource for LGBT and allied couples! Check out their wonderful website and my listing here!

Film Images Part 2

2010-12-06T12:10:00.000-06:00

These are some of the color images I shot in Alabama at the A Bryan Photo workshop. I absolutely love the classic look of film and the simplicity of it. All shot on Hasselblad with Kodak Portra film.

Film Images!!!

2010-11-30T11:34:00.001-06:00

I am SOOOO excited about these images I shot on film at the A Bryan Photo Workshop in Alabama a few weeks ago!! The tonal range of film is unbelievable and the square format is something I absolutely LOVE. These were shot on a Rolleiflex and Hasselblad cameras with Kodak Tri-X black and white film. They were processed by Richard Photo Lab in Los Angeles. Thank you so much to Bryan and his incredible team of people for offering us such a career-changing experience. Thanks to Brian at Richard Photo Lab for his extensive knowledge of the photography industry and his generosity (he had our film overnight processed so we could critique the next day!). A huge thank you to Kodak for donating all of the film we got to shoot with too!! I will be sharing more film images soon from the experience! Enjoy!

Dimitri & Eleni

2010-11-23T18:26:00.000-06:00

The Brown Family

2010-11-23T18:01:00.001-06:00

My approach to family sessions is simple : to keep it fun and genuine. I ask my families what they love to do together and we use that as inspiration for the session. Kids feel comfortable when they can just play and be themselves and not just sit still and say "cheese". I love capturing those real moments of love within a family, when you're running around in the hard, hugging, joking around...and my favorite is to shoot in the home of the family because it provides the personal elements that are key to great photographs. I love getting to watch these boys grow up and am already looking forward to their next session!

All in a Day

2010-11-05T14:00:00.001-05:00

"A day is a perfect piece of time to live a life, to plant a seed, to watch the sun go by.

A day starts early, work to do, beneath a brand-new sky.

A day brings hope and kindess, too...a day is all its own.

You can make a wish and start again, you can find your way back home.

Every bird and every tree and every living thing loves the promise in a day, loves what it can bring. There is faith in morningtime, there is belief in noon.

Evening will come whispering and shine a bright round moon.

A day can change just everything, given half a chance.

Rain could show up at your door and teach you how to dance.

The past is sailing off to sea, the future's fast asleep.

A day is all you have to be,

it's all you get to keep.

Underneath that great big sky the earth is all a-spin.

This day will soon be over and it won't come back again.

So live it well, make it count, fill it up with you.

The day's all yours, it's waiting now...

See what you can do."

From the book All in a Day by Cynthia Rylant, illustrated by my favorite artist, Nikki McClure

I want this entire book tattooed on me!

Anne & Matt : Engaged!

2010-11-03T19:18:00.000-05:00

I love Anne and Matt! I met them through my amazing studiomate, Kristina Perkins, who is also a photographer. Matt is her brother and as soon as we sat down and started talking about their wedding and how much they love going to music shows in the city, I knew we'd be a great fit. They chose Hidden Beach for the first part of the session and The Nomad for the second part, where Matt used to work. We goofed around, dark a Surly Darkness together and took some great photos of the two of them. I am so excited for their wedding at Spill the Wine next year!

Yiling & Kris

2010-10-26T19:47:00.000-05:00

What I can say about these two...they are vibrant, passionate, authentic, loving people. Yiling and Kris live in Seattle and brought their love of their city into the wedding. Check out the coolest cake I have ever seen! They had the cake maker include scenes of their life together-the Minneapolis skyline, Seattle landmarks, their scooters, the two of them and their bunny in kayaks...AND it was all in shades of blue and green! It was so unique, I loved it. Yiling's dress was handmade by an artist in Seattle and was s.t.u.n.n.i.n.g. They got the ties for the guys from Etsy. There were so many creative details throughout this wedding. They incorporated their Chinese and Filipino heritage into the ceremony in such beautiful ways. I loved every moment of this wedding and was so honored to be part of it. Congratulations to you both!

Nikki & Matt

2010-10-26T17:09:00.000-05:00

Nikki and Matt had an incredible wedding. They are so sweet together and have a huge group of close friends. There was so much style, laughter and love during the entire day. I love when couples plan a lot of time for photos, it allows us to really explore and create some fun images without the stress of a time crunch. Nikki knew that she wanted a lot of time before the ceremony for photos and we had so much fun! It was one of those perfectly gloomy days that we photographers drool over! Congratulations you two!

Kathy & Greg : Featured on MN Bride!

2010-10-13T10:29:00.000-05:00

I am so excited that Kathy and Greg's lovely backyard wedding has been featured on MN Bride's website! They have one of the sweetest and funniest engagement stories I have heard in awhile, which you can read on the website. This was hands down one of my favorite weddings of this year!

http://mnbride.com/real-weddings/kathy-greg

Jess & Darrell : Love Shoot in Cannon Falls!

2010-10-11T15:53:00.000-05:00

Jess and Darrell have been married for six years and decided to do a photo session for fun! We met in Cannon Falls, MN, a lovely little town. We had a blast just wandering around and being inspired by all of the beautiful buildings and little corners that the town had to offer as great photo spots. I think more married/committed couples should do fun photo shoots together! Who doesn't want great photos of themselves together to put up in their home?

Thanks you two! I hope the next six years are as great as the first.