Could this little family be ANY cuter?! I don’t think so!! We pulled out some “vintage” Dr. Seuss books to flip though and added a few hand drawn frames on the backdrop– totally cute! We even stepped outside for a just a couple shots in the chilly weather. Definitely some of my fav family images! Enjoy =)
OMG his poses.. LOVE it!!!
Fort Madison, IA Family Photographer
February 6th, 2012Iowa Newborn Photography
February 6th, 2012Kinsey and Jeff are so cute and can you believe she is pregnant with TWINS!!!! She looks amazing and I am so excited to meet these darling babies!! We had a lot of fun with this maternity session, check it out!
Nauvoo, IL LDS Temple Wedding Photographer
February 6th, 2012Jamie and Rex flew in from Texas to be married in Nauvoo, IL at the gorgeous temple! It was quite cold but the images were SO worth it! I always love shooting in Nauvoo because there are so many gorgeous spots and the temple is amazing! Congratulations Rex and Jamie — you are an amazing couple!
Hamilton, IL Senior Portrait Photography
February 6th, 2012Delaney is SO gorgeous and I was so excited to shoot her senior portraits! We did a few in studio and some around town, which was a bit chilly but she was a trooper! Her sister even tagged along for a few and they got some cute shots together. Check out this Hamilton, IL 2012 senior!
Fort Madison, Iowa childrens photographer
February 5th, 2012
Iowa Wedding Bouquet Ideas
September 5th, 2011One of the biggest decisions a bride makes is her color palette for her wedding. A great way to see how things will come together is to create an inspiration board! You can use this amazing site called Pinterest to find those inspiration pieces for your wedding.
Generally a bride chooses her favorite color, or the color she wants to be the main focus, for her bridesmaids dresses. Then around that main color she chooses accents to compliment it. The flowers are where all of those colors converge to become a whole picture for the wedding theme. It is really where you can get creative as well!! You can chose one type of flower, one color. Or you can go with all of the wedding day colors with a variety of flowers. One new trend is to use paper flowers or broaches to put a unique spin on the wedding bouquet. You can find great options for these on Etsy!
There are so many flowers to choose from, so what do you go with?? One thing to consider is the season you are getting married in and what type of flowers are in bloom or available. You can check with your florist to find out exactly what they can do for you as well! A lot of times they will have photos of various bouquet ideas and you can also search the never ending valley of information – the internet!
My new favorite flower is the Anemone- gorgeous!! They are available for most of the year, other than the summer months. This flower has become popular as part of the black and white wedding trend. The white anemone with a black center is one of the few flowers which features true black color. They are also available in pink, red, and a breathtaking blue. These flowers would really pop in your photos which is something brides tend to worry about! White flowers are hard to photograph against white and get them to really pop so the white anemone offers a great contrast if you want white flowers. Or you can add something to it such as greenery or babys breath to create a little depth and contrast for the photos if you are going with a white theme.
Another option are flowers that the color can be altered quite easily such as the Hydrangea. These flowers change dramatically in color naturally but can be adjusted by the levels of PH when grown in a container by a professional florist. White hydrangeas can also be dyed BUT this may be a risky option as dyes may bleed onto your dress etc. Check with your florist on the options for this if you are considering dying your flowers.
Spring Flowers
1. Phlox
2. Vinca
3. Scilla
4. Daffodils
5. Pasque Flower
6. Allium
7. Hyacinth
8. Gladiolus
9. Tulips
10. Crocus
Summer Flowers
1. Daylily
2. Black Eyed Susan
3. Hosta
4. Blanket Flower
5. Rose
6. Stoncecrop –Vera Jameson
7. Bell Glower
8. Aster
9. Shasta Daisy
10. Balloon Flower Liatris
Fall Flowers
1. Michaelmas Daisy
2. Blue Mist Shrub
3. Turtlehead
4. Chrysanthemum
5. Joe Pye Weed
6. Sneezeweed – Helenium
7. Perennial sunflower- Helianthus
8. False sunflower – Heliopsis
9. Stonecrop – Sedum
10. Solidago – Goldenrod
Winter Flowers
1. Camellias
2. Evergreen holly
3. Snowdrops
4. Crape Myrtle
5. Bergenia
6. Witch hazel
7. Hellebores
8. Snow Berry
9. Winter Jasmine
10. Mahonia
Fort Madison, Iowa Wedding Photographer
August 8th, 2011In life, only few are able to find their one true love. Of those, only a handful are so lucky to find that person early in life. Mary and Colin are of these fortunate few. They have been inseparable since high school when they first met and fell in love within a few short days! Over the years, Colin and Mary’s love blossomed. After asking her parents for their permission to marry their daughter, Colin proposed. They have been waiting for this day for five years, and now it was finally here. Mary was breathtakingly beautiful with her red hair and cream dress. Her bridesmaids wore gorgeous cream gowns and throughout the day they laughed and cried with excitement for Mary and Colin. The ceremony was held at St. Marys Church in Fort Madison, Iowa. Following the beautiful ceremony, we shot the formal images and then we were off to the reception at the Comfort Inn. I don’t think Mary forgot a single detail!! We set up a fun photo booth at the reception and everybody was enjoying dancing and mingling! Mary and Colin even had a dance off which I thought was great!!
Mary and Colin – Thank you SO much for choosing me to shoot your wedding! Having wonderful couples like you two that are so in love, whose happiness is so infectious, is truly why love what I do
Iowa Wedding Photographer
June 10th, 2011This week I traveled to Chicago to attend an AMAZING workshop by Justin and Mary Marantz. My adventure started off with the GPS battery going dead as soon as I made it to Chicago, which resulted in two hours of me being lost! The good news, I saw Ikea and stopped in there for a power shop and refocus. Must have been exactly what I needed, as I got back on the interstate and by some miracle I found my hotel! After a speedy check in, I jetted to the Grotto for the meet and greet and some dinner. We spent a little time getting to know each other as well as Mary, Justin, and Julia. Julia is Justin and Mary’s assistant/third shooter/coordinator/anything else you can think of/amazing!
After a good nights rest I got up so ready to be inspired! As soon as we all arrived and took our seats, Mary handed us all little notebooks wrapped with their signature teal bow! LOVE! As I totally needed something to take notes on =) My head was spinning after about an hour into the workshop!! They were so extremely sweet and forthcoming with information. As they were teaching at the hotel, we were all allowed the opportunity to shoot some of the detail shots of the “getting ready” portion of the day. Then we drove into Chicago to a huge church– about three times the size of any church here– where we spent just a little time shooting before we headed to the Aragon Theatre where we shot the “reception”.
Thank you Mary, Justin, and Julia for an amazing day! You are all truly talented! I cannot wait to utilize all of the great information as well as network with some of the wonderful photographers I met! Here are a few images from the day… enjoy.
Fort Madison, Iowa Photographer ~ New Packaging!
June 2nd, 2011I recently updated my logo and have been in the process of revamping my brand completely! I have started with my packaging and I wanted to share a little sneak peak of what all of my wonderful clients get when they receive their order. I have a few other things I am working on to expand this and I can’t wait to share them! Check it out =)
Hamilton, Illinois Family Photographer
May 30th, 2011I Love Love Love this family! All 40 of them– yes… I said 40!!! Over the holiday weekend this family got everybody together for a cookout / get together and they wanted to document the occasion with some photos! It had stormed all day so we were almost unable to shoot the shots outdoors– and a family of 40 inside was probably impossible. But the storm broke long enough for us to do each individual family as well as a few of everybody together. Here are just a few we took that day! Thanks Bliss Family =)
