Mr. & Mrs. Nawrot

Olivia messaged me about a year ago looking for wedding photographers for their October 23rd, 2016 wedding. I had shot one of her friends weddings and thats how they had heard about me. We met in February of 2016 and were able to sit down and chat about the different packages and options that I had available. It was so great to meet her and her fiancé (at the time), Kevin. They were such sweet people and seemed quite excited to have me photograph their wedding! I thought we were a perfect fit!

The day of the wedding, I met Olivia and her bridesmaids at the Hyatt Place Hotel where we captured some getting ready shots and her getting into her dress. My second shooter for the day, Jordan Parham, met the groomsmen at one of their homes. Adding a second shooter to your day allows me to give you all of the best moments. My second shooter will capture some of those candid moments that I may not be able to get while I am busy with the bride and groom. It basically allows me to be in two places at once and gives you quite a few more images to choose from.

It was a gorgeous fall day and our couple wanted to do a first look. Kevin was awaiting his bride at Aman Park in Grand Rapids. Olivia, the bridesmaids, and I walked through the woods to find the rest of the group. Kevin was already set and waiting in a nice little private trail where they would be able to see each other for the first time. First looks are amazing on wedding days. They allow you to get those wedding day jitters off your chest before you have to walk down the aisle. I also love them because it gives us a lot of extra time to capture those wonderful images of you on your big day.

After we went walking through the woods it was time to get down to business and get this couple to their wedding celebration. Their ceremony and reception took place at Johnson Park. It was a beautiful park. Everything was so simple but so stunning at the same time.

They were surrounded by friends and family at their wedding and reception. We had a wonderful soup bar to choose from for dinner with salad and bread (it was delicious!). They decided they wanted to do a sparkler send off as well so we played a little bit with the sparklers before I headed home for the evening.

It was a pleasure getting to know these two and seeing their love for each other. I was so happy to have been able to photograph such important moments for them and I wish them the best of everything to come in the future. They deserve it!

My partner and I over at Brick Street Studio just booked our first destination wedding! We will be heading to Washington D.C. in July and we are definitely looking forward to it. We will only be taking on 3 more weddings in 2017 but we are ready to start booking for 2018. Packages start at $1450 and there are Create Your Own options available.

Self Portraits

There comes a time when I feel like I need to challenge myself a little. I like to do that by taking self portraits.

This past week I decided to try my hand at taking self portrait engagement photos of me and the fiancé. It is much easier to take a self portrait of two people compared to just myself. Using Logan, I actually had something to focus the camera on rather than setting up the manual focus on the spot that I might stand at.

I usually use a remote trigger but this day I didn’t have mine so we just used the timer that is already built into the camera. Let me tell you, it was tiring running back and fourth haha. Logan was such a good sport about it though, he let me pose us however I wanted and we even did three “different” locations too. We plan to take some self portrait engagement photos throughout the summer at different locations around West Michigan. I am beyond excited to try these out but of course we will most likely get engagement photos done by a professional just for the experience 🙂

Enjoy!

My set up for these was my Canon 6D sitting on a tripod using my 70-200mm f/2.8 lens. I am so in love with this lens. Probably the best purchase I have ever made!

Are you getting married anytime soon? I still have just a handful of dates available for the 2016 year, I am also booking into 2017! Contact me to get your digital welcome packet and to go over any questions you might have! I cannot wait to marry my best friend in Oct. 2017!

Emily: Featured Senior

Meet Emily.

I met Emily in June at her first session. We had talked many times before then discussing outfit choices and what types of things she should bring to her session. She was big into fashion so she was excited to just have some fun with her senior outfits. Every single outfit she had was amazing! She definitely had some great choices and you’ll see why in the upcoming images.

We started Emily’s first session in Gaslight Village and then made our way over to Aquinas College’s campus. Both locations were stunning and meant for miss Emily’s session! 

Am I right about this girl?! She is gorgeous and what about those bright coral wedges!

For her next location we decided to head downtown Grand Rapids where we really got some of my favorite images!

After Emily’s first session she had reached out to me a couple other times throughout the year. She was also able to model for me during the Ionia Free Fair giving me a chance to test out shooting with the lights from the rides, and her a chance to have some very different images compared to everyone else. Before heading down to the fair we did a couple shots in the wheat field that is behind my parents house. Very bohemian style and some of my favorite photos!

Working with Emily was not only an honor but her mom as well. These two share such a special bond and you can see it every time they are together. It was so great to work with the two of them and for Emily’s final session we decided to shoot at the Whitmoore Center  in Lowell. A gorgeous set of trails that are much different than any other set of trail I have come across.

Emily, thank you so much for such a great year! I hope you enjoyed your time working with me as much as I did with you!

Book your senior session for the months of May-August and get an extra $20 print credit!

Kenyon: Featured Senior

Meet Kenyon.

Kenyon was my senior rep for Saranac for the year of 2016 grads. Kenyon is also my second cousin so working with him and his mother was a lot of fun. They are a fun family and definitely have some hilarious jokes and ways of working with each other!

Kenyon was an AMAZING senior rep for me. He and his mom were constantly telling me when they recommended people or gave away cards. It was great getting the heads up for future clients!

We started Kenyon’s senior year off with his free mini session that he got for becoming  senior rep. We took these images at his grandparents house and it made the perfect location. We even went back in the fall!

When becoming a senior rep you get a free mini session to choose images from for your rep cards. That mini session consists of a 30 minute session and one outfit change. It also gives me a chance to get to know you and your family for the first time. We will be working with each other a lot throughout the year so its a very nice start to our relationship!

Kenyon’s next session took place on the sunny beaches of Grand Haven. We started downtown Grand Haven and then made our way to the beach stopping at multiple places along the way.

He definitely rocked that beachy feel and we got some of my favorite images during his session!

For his final session we wanted that great fall look, colorful leaves and that gorgeous fall light. We started on a tree covered dirt road and went on from there.

Did I mention he had GREAT outfit choices! Every outfit was always flawless on him. He also plays baseball so we definitely wanted to incorporate his jersey into his photos a little bit.

Thanks for such a great year Kenyon. It was wonderful working with you and you were an awesome rep!

I’m still looking for reps for the class of 2017! Check out my post about the Senior Model Program if you’re interested!

What’s your ideal photo session like?

Have you ever thought about what you would want your photo session to be like?

Do you want it in the summer? The winter? Maybe sometime in between?

Today’s post will show case some work done throughout all seasons giving you an idea of what it is like shooting in certain seasons.

Winter

Since we are in the season right now (hopefully not much longer) here is Renae and Ryan from their January wedding in 2015! Shooting in the winter has a lot of ups and really only a couple downs.

For one, the snow is gorgeous! We don’t always get to see the snow so showcasing it in some of your images will definitely set you a part from everyone else. You can also do some fun things with the snow like Brittany and Chris are in the image below. When shooting in the snow just have fun with it! The only real downfall is how cold it can be sometimes and I suppose your feet could get wet if you’re not wearing the right shoes.

 

Spring

Moving on from the snow, who really likes spring here? Spring is a favorite of mine. I can kick off my boots and put on my favorite pair of ratty converse again while sporting my ankles in my new capris.

These are some of my favorite images from the spring of 2015. Plus all of these people were such a joy to work with, how could we not get some adorable spring images! What is your favorite thing about spring?

 

Summer

Onto those scorching hot summer days. Oh how I love summer though, everyone is just so happy in the summer. I don’t know if its the joy from being outside every weekend with their families or just the fact that the kids are on summer vacation. Either way, everyone is smiling in the summer. Plus we photographers always find a way to work around that bright summer light and give you the best photos you can imagine from the summer.

Summer is one of my favorites because that is when I get to take the most senior portraits and shoot the most weddings. Everyone loves going to the beach for their senior portraits so it gives me the chance to switch it up a bit and get creative when heading to some of the same locations. I also love the summer because that means the fair is in my hometown of Ionia. The Ionia Free Fair, the 10 best days of summer they say. I love it now that I am a photographer because I get the privilege of taking photos for families out on the midway with all of the lights and rides at night. They are so much fun! Everyone’s most requested shot is getting one done in front of the ferris wheel.

One more thing before moving onto the fall, I just love summer sunsets. The light in the sky leading up to that perfect sunset is just gorgeous light! One of my favorite times to shoot during the summer as I’m sure it is everyone else’s. Here is a little side project I did for myself, some images of my nieces just before the sunset on a July evening. I swear they could be models, they are growing up way to fast.

 

Fall

Onto my favorite season, Fall. Fall is my favorite not only because my birthday is in October and soon to be my wedding anniversary, but just all of the colors and that early fall light in the evening is just stunning.

Fall has got to be my busiest season in such a short amount of time. September through November is when anyone and everyone wants to get photos taken. I definitely don’t have a problem with that! I love fall photos for all of the colors, the pumpkins, the wonderful light coming out of the sky and just the atmosphere of everyones anticipation for the incoming winter months.

Seasons

Well there you have it. A few examples of my work from the last four seasons in 2015. Each season has its perks for photography, if you have any questions about getting photos done in a certain month feel free to ask! As you have read above, you know what I love about each season.