Lauren & Tom at Oak Hill

Almost three years ago, Kelsey and I got married outdoors at a beautiful location near Galena, IL called Oak Hill. Just a few weeks ago, we both returned there to shoot someone else's wedding. Lauren and Tom got married in the on-site chapel, so it wasn't exactly the same spot that we used, but it still was so cool being back there. It brought back lots of memories!

Their reception was at Eagle Ridge which also provided an absolutely beautiful setting. Lauren & Tom had all their family and guests drive to Galena from Chicago because Lauren wanted to use these locations away from the big city.

I must confess that personally, I'm not a huge country music fan, but I wanted to post this video anyway. Tom & Lauren had a bit of a country theme going on, and I think the music they picked out ended up fitting their video really well. Plus, they got married at Oak Hill, so I've got to show it off!

Kelsey was the photographer and she got some great pictures - check out some of her favorites from the day here and here.

Katrina & Anthony's Love Story Video

Katrina has spent the last few years in Missouri, Anthony in Indiana, now they both live in Minnesota, they're getting married in Illinois, and they came to Wisconsin to make this video - talk about road trips! I'm starting to think I might be making a lot of these videos in the future - as enjoyable as the usual slideshow can be at a wedding reception, a love story video just seems to better apply to a wedding and IMHO, it's just more fun to watch! Katrina & Anthony are getting married this Saturday and I'm really looking forward to working with them again!

Christa & Paul's Love Story Video

I'm pretty excited about this video because it's the first of its kind for me. I've offered the "Love Story" video for quite a while, but Christa and Paul were the first to take me up on the offer. They're planning to show this right before their ceremony and I think it will be a great way to set the stage. C&P - thanks for giving me some great footage - can't wait to get some awesome photos at the wedding!

Alyssa's Senior Photos

I had the opportunity yesterday to take Alyssa's senior photos. I've been friends with Alyssa's whole family for about as long as I can remember so it was great to spend part of the day with her and her mom yesterday. This was my very first shot at a senior portrait session and I think it turned out pretty well!

Lesson learned from this shoot: if you're taking pictures on a really windy day, find a location that's well-guarded by lots of trees!

A Day In the Life of Avery

Just a quick little video to shamelessly show off my daughter. This is how Avery spends much of her time these days - standing, dancing, and rolling around on the floor...she also tends to make a lot of noise, but I guess I'll have to save that for a future post!

Desktop Still Life

Every once in a while something that I'd generally consider ordinary catches my eye and seems for a moment to encapsulate some form of simple beauty. A groundhog making a visit above ground to look for food, the long shadows of chair legs cast by the setting sun through a window, drops of water falling from a showerhead... I don't know if these little moments of visual serenity happen to other people or not, but I love it when they happen to me. I think they help ground me, reminding me that there is beauty even in the midst of the busyness of daily life. This happened last night as I was working on a wedding video. My desk was a bit cluttered and nothing had been placed anywhere for an aesthetic purpose, but warmed by light of my desk lamp, this scene of my work space struck me as a picture of peace, in the midst of my long-work-hour day. Generally, it seems to me that if you try to take a picture of these moments, you can never do them justice, because for some reason, a camera lens just doesn't let you "feel" a scene the way your eyes can. But I tried to capture this one anyway.

Amy & Dennis Engagement Photos

Amy and Dennis will be getting married this summer and this last weekend, I took them out for an engagement shoot along with Dennis' two sons, Clay and Chase. As you can see, the four of them make a beautiful family! We had some great weather and some great locations and I'm excited about how their pictures turned out!

These guys were real troopers - Amy was wearing raised-heel shoes with slippery soles and she and Dennis still made it out onto the rocks in the middle of this pond. And the boys, of course, were willing to go anywhere.

Sword-fighting never gets old.

Thanks for the great photo shoot, Dennis & Amy (and Clay & Chase). I'm looking forward to seeing you again at the wedding!