new beginnings {oak park, il studio portrait sessions}

“A great photograph is a full expression of what one feels about what is being photographed in the deepest sense and is thereby a true expression of what one feels about life in its entirety.”
― Ansel Adams

As most of you have figured out by now, I’ve recently moved into a shared studio space. With this new dedicated space, new opportunities present themselves and I’m excited to share a little of what I’m up to.

It has never been my desire to spend my days in a traditional studio, churning out posed family photos. I’m happy to do them but I will always be better at allowing moments to unfold while I document and catch the candid moments.

These are the moments that bring me joy. They are the images that my clients love.

Beginning in September, I’ll be offering in-studio portrait sessions. Not headshots (though, I continue to shoot tons of headshots in studio and on location), but simple and beautiful portraits.

These portraits sessions will vary from single sittings to families and will still feel very much like the images that my clients expect from me: fun and modern.

So, without much chit-chat and blathering on from me, I’ll share a few images from recent studio sessions…

...i'll be his and he'll be mine...part 4 {holzer-hall wedding, marriott lincolnshire}

It’s almost time…

Shooting and editing a wedding is a labor of love. So much time is spent planning followed by time spent at the actual wedding and, finally, weeks spent going over all the images to cull and edit down to only the best images from the day.

In a lot of ways, it is a huge relief to complete and deliver the images. I know that family & friends are anxious to see images, so it feels good to know that they can now share the story of their day.

In other ways, it’s a little like saying goodbye to a friend. I’ve spent so much time with these people, it’s a little sad to move on.

But…it’s almost that time…time to deliver and say goodbye to these faces that I’ve been looking at daily, for almost 6 weeks.

I also want to share a funny story from the wedding (with permission from MIB!): Take a peek at the first image of the bride and groom with the cake. Do you see the looks on their faces? That’s not their cake!

You read that correctly…THAT.IS.THE.WRONG.CAKE.

I found out about the cake after the wedding and then I caught this while I was editing because in the moment, they rolled with the punches. And, in case anybody is wondering…the venue made up for the mistake. All good…

I’m planning to finish up this week, but in the meantime, here’s the last peek from the Holzer-Hall celebration!

Shout out to Tina Harle, my right hand gal and second shooter.

...bells will ring, the sun will shine...part 3 {holzer-hall wedding, marriott lincolnshire}

“I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where. I love you simply, without problems or pride: I love you in this way because I do not know any other way of loving but this, in which there is no I or you, so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand, so intimate that when I fall asleep your eyes close.”
― Pablo Neruda

It’s been 3 weeks since I had the pleasure of photographing Anna & Matt’s beautiful wedding! Three weeks! It doesn’t seem possible…but here we are.

I’m about halfway through my editing and wanted to share a few more images from their day…I hope to roll out 1 more sneak peek before I deliver their images.

Enjoy a few portraits that we were able to sneak in between the drizzle and downpour!

going to the chapel, part 1...{holzer-hall wedding, oak park, river forest, il}

"Some day, when I'm awfully low

When the world is cold

I will feel a glow just thinking of you

And the way you look tonight” -Frank Sinatra

Yesterday, I spent the day documenting the wedding of Anna & Matt. These 2 could not have been sweeter or more gracious from the beginning of our talks of working together until we said our goodbyes last night. What an honor to witness such a lovely day!

I have a lot of photos to pore over, so I will share a little at a time…relax & enjoy the slow roll out of their day.

Huge thanks go out to:

Tina Harle Photography, who second shot for me and captured the groom & groomsmen while I was with the bridal party!

Hair and makeup by the fantabulous Sara Jean Stevens!

a month of mamas: days 25, 26, and 27 {oak park photographer, oak park photo sessions}

“You can't just turn on creativity like a faucet. You have to be in the right mood. 
What mood is that? 
Last-minute panic.” 
― Bill Watterson

So. My goal of posting a month of mamas has gone pretty smoothly. There have been a couple of late entries & some combining of days, but all in all…I’m feeling pretty good about mostly keeping up with it.

This year has been my busiest and for that, I thank you kindly! Blogging has never been something that I have consistently kept up with because I am a photographer first and all of the other stuff gets done when I am able to manage it.

In a perfect world, I am able to do all the things: shoot an amazing session, edit the session in record time, post a blog that is engaging and witty and maybe brings a tear to one’s eye…lather, rinse, repeat. All while being the best mom, wife, and friend that I hope to be.

In the world I currently inhabit, aka “the real world”, I work full time running my business and have 2 young boys, a husband, and a dog who all need my attention. At this very moment, my 6 year old is telling me about his Beyblades (is that how you spell it?) and I’ve had to stop typing multiple times and re-read the same sentence at least 20 times.

Since the end of April/beginning of May, we’ve also added T-ball/baseball to our rotation. This consists of 2 kids in 2 different locations (sometimes on the same day) for 2-5 days a week.

Let us not forget the end of school chaos. It feels like a years worth of activities and celebrations are stuffed into the month of May. I know that this must be a survival tactic for teachers, but it is A LOT for parents, working or otherwise.

This is my life. Sometimes stuff falls through the cracks. I would probably call myself an “okay-ish” mom, wife, and friend…but I try. I really do.

All of this to say…I’m “cheating” a little but I want to continue my month of celebrating mamas!

So, here’s to the mamas who are doing their best everyday! I salute you! I am you! We are the same!

a month of mamas: day 24 {oak park family photo sessions}

“You don't have favourites among your children, but you do have allies. ” 
― Zadie Smith

To the mamas who love without condition, even on the days when it’s really hard (and we all have those days, right?)…

a month of mamas: day 22 {oak park family photo sessions}

“The best way to keep children at home is to make the home atmosphere pleasant, and let the air out of the tires.” 
― Dorothy Parker

To the mamas who know the days are long but the years are short…

a month of mamas: day 20 {oak park family photo sessions}

“Mothers are all slightly insane.” 
― J. D. Salinger

To the mamas who are warriors…holding it all together…

a month of mamas: day 19 {oak park family photo sessions}

“Motherhood brings you to your knees in a way that doesn't leave room for you to judge others. It makes you see that there's no ideal - a constant struggle, constantly compromising, but ultimate love.”

- Maggie Gyllenhaal

To the beautiful mamas with smart mouths and a wicked sense of humor…(my favorite kind!)

a month of mamas: day 18 {oak park family photo sessions}

“Becoming a mom to me means that you have accepted that for the next 16 years of your life, you will have a sticky purse.” 

-Nia Vardalos

To the mamas who carry their sticky purses with style and grace…

a month of mamas: day 14 {oak park, il family photo sessions}

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” 
― Lao Tzu

To the mamas who always have time for extra cuddles and one more book…

a month of mamas: day 13 {oak park, il photographer}

“Without you there would be no me. 
I am everything reflected in your eyes. 
I am everything approved by your smile. 
I am everything born of your guidance. 
I am me only because of you.” 
― Richelle E. Goodrich

To one of the sweetest mamas I know…

celebrating 50 years {buffalo grove anniversary photo session}

“I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where,
I love you simply, without problems or pride:
I love you in this way because I don’t know any other way of loving.” 
― Pablo Neruda

I had the pleasure of documenting a 50th Anniversary celebration last night and even though I promised that I would only be blogging about mamas during May, I’m going to share a few images from yesterday.

To be fair, the bride is a mama x3 and a grandmother x8, so it still works!

Enjoy!

a month of mamas: days 11 & 12 {oak park, il photo sessions}

“When you feel neglected, think of the female salmon, who lays 3,000,000 eggs but no one remembers her on Mother's Day” 
― Sam Ewing

This quote makes me laugh out loud…or LOL, as the kids say (geez…I’m old).

Today is the 1 day of the year when we are to celebrate moms. They are the people who literally bring us into the world…givers of life. They are usually the first to wipe our asses, wipe our tears, clean up all our messes, and then eventually teach us to do these things for ourselves.

Looking back, I don’t know how good of a job I did to celebrate my own mom. I probably made cards or crappy gifts, but I don’t recall it being a big to-do in our home. My memory is shit though, so hopefully I’m just misremembering. My mom would probably say that I’m misremembering, but that’s because she is too nice to say that we were self-centered assholes (to our faces, at least).

Because I’m surrounded by amazing mamas, I know that too often this day is a disappointment. I hear so many stories and they can all be summed up by this:

We don’t feel special. We don’t feel thought of or appreciated. We hope for a magical or, at the very least, semi-planned day.

Year after year, we feel let down by it all. Our feelings are hurt because it wasn’t what we expected it to be.

There are tons of places where you can read about the mental load that mother’s carry and so we hope that on this one day…JUST FOR TODAY…that we won’t have to plan & help execute the day to celebrate ourselves.

I’m going to propose a radical idea.

Ask for what your want and BE SPECIFIC…I know this loosely falls under “planning our day” but hear me out…

Even though my family has always had cards, flowers, and gifts for me, I’m often left feeling underappreciated. I’ve struggled with this and found myself feeling all the things from anger to sadness to guilt.

This year, I decided to go a different direction. I actually told my husband what I wanted and I was very specific:

1. let me sleep in. anything past 7am is considered a win.

2. make breakfast tacos & please do so before 10am so I don’t get hangry. PS: clean up your kitchen mess…

3. no obligatory gifts that feel forced. I can tell when you went out the night before & panic shopped.

4. if you must gift me something, a gift of experience is preferred. A massage, pedicure, or even a couple of hours alone would be delightful. Bonus: that last one doesn’t cost a thing!

   So far he has stayed the course. I slept in and then I had delicious breakfast tacos. I got a few handmade cards and a beautiful handmade gift from Oliver (a ceramic replica of our home), and a gift card for a spa day.

   And now all 3 of them are leaving the house…

To all the mamas, caregivers, and aunties out there…may you feel appreciated and loved today and ALL THE DAYS ❤️

Word to your mother!

a month of mamas: day 10 {oak park family photographer}

“Perhaps it takes courage to raise children..” 
― John Steinbeck

To the mamas overflowing with love…

a month of mamas: day 8 {oak park, il photo sessions}

“So how on earth can I bring a child into the world, knowing that such sorrow lies ahead, that it is such a large part of what it means to be human?
I'm not sure. That's my answer: I'm not sure.” 
― Anne Lamott

To the mamas whose kids are grown and raising children of their own…

(Read the blog post about the mamas in these images)

a month of mamas: day 7 {oak park, il photo sessions}

“I think that the best thing we can do for our children is to allow them to do things for themselves, allow them to be strong, allow them to experience life on their own terms, allow them to take the subway... let them be better people, let them believe more in themselves.” 
― C. JoyBell C

To the mamas just starting out and the mamas who’ve been doing it for years…

Photo sessions make great gifts… or treat yo self!

Book your session now: Find My Session!

a month of mamas: day 6 {oak park, il photographer}

“my mother
is pure radiance. 

she is the sun
i can touch
and kiss

and hold
without 
getting burnt.” 
― Sanober Khan

To the tough mamas who make it look easy…

Photo sessions make great gifts… or treat yo self!

Book your session now: Find My Session!

and then there were 5...{in home family photo session, oak park, il}

“[Kids] don't remember what you try to teach them. They remember what you are.” 
― Jim Henson

We live in a world full of “perfect” Facebook families, Instagram worthy photos of siblings who never fight and only ever get along in their perfectly curated, camera ready homes, and holiday cards that rival the royal family/Kardashians (take your pick).

Sorry, but nobody is buying your picture perfect life! We’re onto you!

I don’t know about you, but I’m always relieved to see photos of shit getting real.

I like to see messy, chaotic, funny, silly, sad, happy, frustrated, skinned knees, real tears…all of the things that come with life.

When I look through old photo albums, I prefer the candid moments over the curated moments because it helps me remember that moment. It transports me to another time and that is a beautiful thing.

That’s something that never happens when I look at the “fantasy” version of family photos: Everyone dressed impeccably. No hair out of place. Not a blemish to be found. All eyes on the camera and pained smiles across everyone’s lips (especially mom, because she has been threatening everyone within an inch of their lives).

My hope for all of the amazing people who hire me is that they are able to relax & enjoy the ride. I want them to know that we will get that “perfect” photo, but that they need to be flexible in what their definition of "perfect” is.

Also, bribes are a perfectly legit tool to keep in your bag of tricks! ( I almost always have lollipops to offer up)

Will everyone be looking at the camera? Maybe, but I can’t guarantee it. Will everyone have a smile on their face? Possibly, but I never force people to smile. I have tricks & sometimes they work, but not always!

What I will promise you: I will be there to document your family in this moment. When you look back on the images, they will make you smile, laugh, cry, or maybe all 3.

If this isn’t the reaction you have, I may not be the photographer for you…but, I hope I am.

I love being invited into the chaos and being part of these milestones.

I’d love to tell your story too…(you can book sessions here)

a month of mamas: day 5 {oak park, il lifestyle photographer}

“Through the blur, I wondered if I was alone or if other parents felt the same way I did - that everything involving our children was painful in some way. The emotions, whether they were joy, sorrow, love or pride, were so deep and sharp that in the end they left you raw, exposed and yes, in pain. The human heart was not designed to beat outside the human body and yet, each child represented just that - a parent's heart bared, beating forever outside its chest.” 
― Debra Ginsberg

To all the Super Moms, doing all the things…

Photo sessions make great gifts… or treat yo self!

Book your session now: Find My Session!