Zachary -- Senior 2010 { Minneapolis Portrait Photographer }

I had a great senior shoot with a really cool senior last weekend. I had to "untype" the word kid because he is no longer the "kid" I knew years ago. Zach is my neighbor and is quite a few years ahead of my "kids", but I remember the days when he was only 11 years old or so. I had not seen him in so long that I was very surprised to see how much he had grown and changed. He has a super personality and it was so much fun photographing him.

Joy and Dan- Black Hawk Park { Minneapolis Wedding Photographer }

I photographed an engagement session with a wonderful couple about 2 weekends ago. I met Joy and Dan through a friend from work and he said they were the nicest couple he knew. And he was right. Although there was threat of rain all day Joy and Dan said, "Let's just go for it!" Well, it rained as soon as we all got to the park and they didn't sweat it at all. There was a picnic going on so we all quietly took shelter under the pavilion while everyone ate hot dogs and hamburgers around us. But this was the perfect opportunity for Joy and Dan to get a peak at the venue since this is where they will be having their wedding ceremony and reception. The rain did stop and it was a fun session. Joy and Dan adore each other and Ms. Joy just couldn't stop smiling from ear to ear, but we were able to mix-it up a bit. :-)

Congratulations Joy and Dan! I can't wait to see you guys on your wedding day!

Cute in Pigtails { Minnesota Childrens Photographer }

On Sunday I was able to bribe my daughter (Mya) into doing a mini-session. I promised to keep it short and treat her to a mini-blizzard from DQ. When she said "sure", I said - "I mean today". She said, "OK". So I rushed to the closet to find any dress that would fit and figured we would go with traditional pigtails for the hair. She had only one demand and that was that her older brother come along to make her laugh. Of course he gets a great deal out of this situation. He gets into the car and says: "This is great, I'll get to have ice cream and I don't even have to take pictures." Hmm, are you beginning to see what I'm usually up against? We get to the park and I shoot a few shots and then we wonder into a tall grass area. I get my daughter to go into this area for a few shots, then all of a sudden:

My son says: Mom, a snake!
Mya: (shrieks and yells)
Me: What? OMG, don't let it get in my purse -- Mya, hurry squat and smile! (snap,snap,snap).
Mya: Mommmm, hurry!
My son: Mom, mom he's going by your purse. Hurry! Mom let's get out of here. Ok mom, he went under your purse. But let's get out of here!
Me: Grab my purse! OMG, let's get out of here!

So we ran out of the tall grass and took a breather and laughed our heads off. The kids thought it was funny and certainly earned the ice cream treat in the end. And, the pictures turned out great! The last photo is her nervous look. :-)
(Oh, and it was a small garden snake. eek!)

Wow! Nice CD Case! { Twin Cities | Wedding Photography }

I'm trying out some new things here and there and one is a custom CD case for client DVDs. I usually give clients their DVD in a plain black case or a paper CD holder that holds a 4x6 photo. There is no extra cost for either option, it was just my way of delivering the DVD in something other than the clear plastic jewel cases you pick up at Target. Well, now I will include this nice custom case with any DVD slideshow (which is also included in my Collection III wedding package). Here are photos of what my first cover looks like. J&L, my first clients to get this product will be so pleased. I'm looking forward to ordering more of these custom CD cases.