Quite a Hike. | Milwaukee Engagement Photography

So, October is shaping up to be a crazy month. In order to fit in all of my engagement sessions, family sessions, and kid sessions before the holidays I've had to double up some days...including today. I was up early and took a drive to Beloit (see the results of that shoot in the previous post) and then drove back, loaded the pictures, reformatted and headed off to the Audubon Nature Center to meet with Tricia and Paul, who are marrying next summer.

What a neat place! I kept remarking to Tricia and Paul that even though I've lived in Milwaukee for quite some time, there are still plenty of places I've never been....here included.
We got in a nice hike, great shots, and were confronted with quite possibly the biggest animal I've ever seen in it's natural habitat: a huge buck.

We then headed down to the Riverwalk and our first stop was the Bronze Fonz, another infamous part of Milwaukee I've never seen. He was much shorter than I had imagined.

Despite being a bit chilly and blustery I had a great time discovering some new areas and getting in some great shots along the way.

Enjoy your sneak peek!

A Fonzie approved union. Heyyyyyyyyyy!

Autumn's Done Come. | Beloit Family Photographer

Let those 'I-don't-care-days' begin
I'm tired of holdin' my stomach in
No more slinky folk dollars for me
I'll take Sears & Roebuck dollars gladly
For my autumn's done come
My autumn's done come. Done come
- Lee Hazlewood

Autumn has most definitely come...and bringing with it skies that look like they could open up at any minute. Despite that we got in a few rays of sunshine today and I was able to hit two locations with Tami and her family in Beloit: Big Hills Park and Beloit College.

They were a fun group who offered up ideas and were open to any sort of sitting-in-wet-grass or whispering dirty song lyrics to get a smile. I tried a bit of "Spongebob-ology" with the little one, but she pretty much looked at me like I was nuts. It worked out okay in the end.

Enjoy the sneak peek!

I Can Stand A Little Rain. | East Troy Wedding Photography

Hold me, and make it the truth,...
That when all is lost there will be you,...
- Pearl Jam

Kira and Brad stood a little rain, but not as much as was forecasted for their October wedding day. Regardless of the cold and dampness it was a great celebration with friends, great food, and lots of happy tears.

Kira and Brad's day was a special one in many ways and everyone was in great spirits. The evening was topped off with "little piggies who gave their lives for the wedding meal" and an AWESOME band called Halfway Jane that I have to highly recommend looking up and listening to if you never have. They were amazing.

Despite a little rain it was a wonderful day and I feel incredibly honored to have been able to have shared it with Kira and Brad. I wish you all the health, happiness, and good fortune in the world.

Enjoy your sneak peek!

Brad's first glimpse of Kira

This "pose" is used quite a bit, but this was a fun group and it seemed to fit.

I love how the light fell on this shot of Brad and his mom dancing

Inspired.

Every photographer is inspired by something: life in general, weather, paintings, fashion. My biggest influence is from older photography. I have a love affair with Victorian and Edwardian era photography as well as old Hollywood starlet photography.

Wedding season is winding down. After a busy October I have some time to breathe and unwind. I hope to take that time to soak in some inspiring images and incorporate what I find so amazing about them into my own work.

Edward Steichen: He had a number of art-related talents, but his portraits of Hollywood starlets were amazing. His portrait of Gloria Swanson here incorporated the use of texture that is experiencing a bit of a popularity resurgence lately via Photoshop. This look was achieved with black lace. It's amazingly simple but beautiful.

Annie Leibovitz: Not older but remarkable. Despite her recent financial gaffes no one can deny she's our generation's photographic legend. Her use of light here is just awe-inspiring. Her images look like paintings.

Julia Margaret Cameron: Probably my top favorite, because of her legend. Cameron didn't begin photography until she was in her 50s and was harshly criticized by her contemporaries for ignoring the general rules of photography. In a word, she really didn't know what she was doing....she was completely self-taught. But she created some legendary images with her novice eye.

Henri-Cartier Bresson: The master at photojournalism. The way he captured people just being themselves is something some photographers never seem to figure out. I hope to get there someday.

Lewis Carroll: Okay, so he was probably more than a little inappropriate in his dealings with his young models. More than likely anyway. Which makes his inclusion a bit controversial, but his portraits of young ladies were just gorgeous. They had an intimacy to them that is inspirational. Maybe he was a product of different times....but his work has to be acknowledged.

Fall is In the Air.

Fall is most definitely in the air. You can smell it: burning leaves, cooler lake air, new pencils. The smell of fall...makes me want to go out and buy school supplies.

Today I had a sitting with this lovely family (you may remember little Brody from about a year ago). We had lovely blue skies and cool air, perfect for a beginning of fall photo shoot.

Just a reminder that if you're looking for Type A Images to shoot your Christmas/Holiday card pictures, NOW is the time to book! I'm full for October already and November will be filling up fast.

Enjoy the sneak peek!

Little Brody was a CLIMBER. I was quite impressed with his rock-scaling abilities.

Throwin' Rocks.

You may remember Owen and his mom and dad from their shoot last October. Little Owen is the same age as Betty and I always like the challenge of keeping up with a 2 year old and trying to get the best pictures possible.

Owen was determined to make me work for it!

His one goal during our shoot @ Grant Park today was to throw as many rocks as possible into the lake. Forget about the photo shoot...he had better things to do with his time!

We got in some great shots regardless and even got the extended family in on the game.

I hope Owen and his family enjoy their sneak peek!

He's totally eyeing up the rock selection on the beach here....you can tell.

Look at those eyelashes!

A Lovely Love Story. | Milwaukee Wedding Photographer

I will forgive his peculiarity and his concern for things, thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur. For they are part of what makes him a richly charactered individual.

I will forgive her skipping mind and her fondness for shopping, thought the Dinosaur. For she fills our life with beautiful thoughts and wonderful surprises. Besides, I am not unkeen on shopping either.

- Edward Monkton

Clients such as Tony and Lauren remind me of why I love shooting weddings for a living. I continued to remark all day to several folks that "it doesn't get much better than this". The light, the people, the venue....it was all perfection...or at least close to it. Weddings like Tony's and Lauren's are why I do what I do. To capture complete happiness in a great setting on a lovely fall day. It doesn't get better than that.

Tony and Lauren were married at the Villa Terrace museum which provided an absolutely gorgeous backdrop for their fun, laid-back nuptials. After the "I do's" we got some beachfront time in and headed over to Roots restaurant where the couple enjoyed an intimate reception surrounded by their closest friends and family.

And the DANCING! I have to mention the dancing. I have never in my life been to a wedding where it seemed every single person in attendance was a fabulous dancer. This came pretty close. It was so much fun to watch.

Tony and Lauren it was an extreme pleasure to be a part of your day. I hope you had a great time and enjoy your sneak peek.

I had to include this shot, only because I have no idea how this wedding guest is doing this dance move in those shoes!

Thanks to the Villa Terrace and Roots Restaurant for providing such a great backdrop for the day!