Nicole and Mike were married on August 25^th, with a ceremony and reception at the Ingleside Hotel in Pewaukee, Wisconsin.

Nicole + Mike | Ingleside Hotel Wedding Photography

It was a super hot Wisconsin summer day at the Ingleside Hotel , but the heat definitely couldn’t stop Mike’s enthusiasm. He had me grinning most of the day with his vibrant personality—especially when I saw a book he had called the “Groom’s Instruction Manual.” I don’t think he actually read it; it was probably there for comedic effect. But it was so funny we just had to get a picture with it!

I’m not sure if this was covered in his groom’s instruction manual, but one of Mike’s buttons fell right off of his suit coat! Thankfully, I happened to have a needle and thread in my bag, so I was able to stitch it back on. Crisis averted. I like to be prepared in case of wedding emergencies so I can help out with more than just the photography! Mike laughed it off like a champ, and we got right back to the business of celebrating!

All through their wedding day, there were so many “aww” moments. I always know that my heart’s going to melt when a bride walks down the aisle and locks gazes with her groom, but the look on Mike’s face—wow! It was so obvious he was over the moon in love with her. The way he looked at her was so full of love and adoration that it made me smile every time. And Nicole was perfectly happy too, even if she was a little more reserved about it. They were so happy to be getting married.

I took Nicole and Mike aside to get pictures of just them, with no one else around. This is one of my favorite parts of any wedding day, because it gives my couples a chance to soak in the day, enjoy one another—and give me really awesome images, too! For these two, it was like watching that moment when Nicole walked down the aisle all over again—and that same joy was on display in the first dance, too. 

This wedding was also a celebration of family, including the ones that couldn’t be there to celebrate the big day. I loved that Mike had a single rose and an empty chair set aside for his grandma. It was heartfelt and overwhelmingly beautiful. 

Pewaukee Wedding Photography

Thank you, Nicole & Mike, for sharing your joy with me. Thanks also to my second shooter, Cassie, for helping me cover this amazing day!

Keely and Shane were married on May 26^th, with a ceremony and reception at Serendipity Farm in Waterloo, Wisconsin. 

These two have such amazing plans together. Keely graduated UWW with a BSW Masters and just ended an internship to start a full-time professional job as a mental health therapist—all in the past three years! Shane is in the military and deployed at the start of July, so they only had a few months together after their wedding, but they have such a strong love that even the distance closes when they talk to each other. To hear them talk, nothing is out of their reach!

Keely and Shane’s Serendipity Farm Wedding

Honestly, nothing can slow them down—even the weather. It was super hot on their wedding day. In fact, there were several points throughout the day when Shane had to go inside the farm house so he could cool down. My second photographer, Cassie, and I did our best to stay cool, too. Luckily, Serendipity Farm has both indoor and outdoor spaces. This rural family-owned farm has breathtaking views of rolling Wisconsin farmland. The venue is infused with rustic country charm and was the perfect backdrop for Keely and Shane to say their “I Do’s.” 

And yet, despite the heat, the real story of the day was Keely and Shane and their love for each other. That was evident especially in the first look. They were both so happy together! It’s moments like these that make wedding photography so fun: there’s no denying the genuine warmth in their expressions when they saw each other for the first time. And I’m so privileged to get to capture those moments.

Shane & Keely, thank you for allowing us to be part of your amazing day. I know that you two are going to take the world by storm!

I took my daughter Ellee into the studio this past Sunday to take her picture in her ballet costume this year.  Last year she only let me take one picture of her at the dance studio and I was so sad I didn't capture more of her.  Ellee was a ham in front of the camera and she did everything I asked her!  I honestly cannot remember the last time she actually cooperated with me!   The costume is so pretty and itchy, according to Ellee!  But to me it is so gorgeous and Ellee looks like a princess in it!  Honestly, I want one!  (Really, no judging here!  Who doesn't want to prance around in a ballet costume and feel amazing!)  

  Of course Miss Ellee wanted to do a few funny faces pictures and extra fun ones!  And why not right?  There is an old curtain rod I keep at the studio and every time we go there , Miss Ellee has to pull it out of the closet and be Princess Elsa and "freeze" everything.  Of course it made it into the pictures too!  LOL   

I played around with some lighting too and tried to be artistic in some images but we were getting to the point where Ellee was done and just one more picture wasn't working anymore so we stopped.  Here is one I really like.  I really wanted to get above her but took what I get from her.  

So so pretty! I cannot wait to print and hang on my wall!  I am so excited to share this with you!  

Jennifer              

            What do I do with this beautiful crown???  Its so big!  Do I put on my head? Wait , I know!  I put my face through it!  LOL!  This session was so fun to shoot.  Mimi was a ham in front of the camera and all the images turned out so wonderful.  This has been my favorite session this summer!  

We had plan to do a glitter toss/blow but Mom just ran out of time to get some.  Very random but I found this confetti in the trunk of my car (yes, I had confetti in the trunk of my car) so we went with it!  We had soooo much fun .  This was Mimi's favorite part of the session!  A princess and  confetti....In fact we were going to save it for last but ended up doing it earlier in the session so she would keep cooperating!  Ahhhh, the things we do for kids! 

One of my favorite pictures of all time.....

...and some more! 

Thank you Mimi and Mom for allowing me to capture these!  I had so much fun and look forward to you seeing you! 

Jennifer

Groom to Be: Tyler Eichstaedt

Met and bonded over hunting.

Celebration of Marriage: September 22, 2017

It was over 90 degrees outside when we took Marisa and Tylers engagement pictures!  I met them at one of their friends house just outside of Watertown.  We went out back to the wooded area where friends and family were swimming in the pond.  This couple was seriously so love!  They just connected....  

I love Tylers face on this one!  He couldn't hold the expression for too long but we got it! 

I believe this image above just brings a warmth over my heart-I cannot explain it in words...try to feel what I am talking about. See-isn't it amazing?  

I wish Marisa and Tyler a lifetime of happiness and cannot wait to capture your wedding day with you both.  Congratulations. 

Dear Sweet Archer, 

It was such a pleasure meeting you!  You were seriously the perfect baby for your newborn pictures.  I came into your home to photograph you on your seventh day of life.  

You only winced once or twice but went right back to sleep.  Your eyes appeared only for a second or two here and there but they gently closed back into to state of whismical dreamland.  

Mom bought this fun hat off of esty and I think (and I am sure everyone else too!) you look adorable in it!  

It fit you perfect and you wore it well!  

Capturing your tiny little toes and feet and hands and fingers made me think back to the day my kiddos were babies...time really does fly and you really do forget how just how tiny they once were.  Hold onto this time as it is so precious.  

  Be Brave Little Man is what the sign says above his crib.... So many dreams, hopes, and love for this little guy.  

Congratulations to the Setz Family and Archer, may all your dreams be big.

Jennifer

 She is simply stunning and amazing! (And so is her Mom!)  This is the second year I've taken head shots for Mimi for her performance in OAM pageant(Mom, correct me if I am wrong here!)  . The images are simply stunning.  

Mimi is the perfect model!  She knows when to smile and move her head to look just absolute perfect!  She will have no problems placing in first place again this year!  

This is my absolute favorite from the session.  The year before we did one with her hair all over too and turned out so cute we had to do another one this year.  We added some flowers to her hair and a moved her hands up by her face.  I might need to brighten it up a bit but its still one of my favorites. What a difference a year makes...

How can this little lady not steal your heart!!?!?

Thank you again for coming to me and letting me capture her!  As always such a joy to see you!

This was my first cake smash in my studio!  I am in love shooting these!  The kids could not have been more happy and perfect for this shoot!  

Look at the eyes on this little guy!  If you could capture this image, what would you say???  

"Does she have more cake then me?"  

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Get your hand out of my cake!  My Cake!  Not yours!"

Yum Yum in my tum tum!  

Hmmmm, Mom its really ok to be eating this??  Because I totally love it!

The twins are turning one.  I think this is my favorite age or the age I miss the most.  I miss watching them grow and figuring out what each part of their body is for.  Their personality really starts to shine through!  These two were so adorable and perfect. 

This is by far my favorite picture of the cuties!  I just love expressions on their face and how cute they are!  

                                                                                And then they turned one....Where did the time go? 

Here is a before and after picture.  Do you notice any differences?

The first thing that catches my eye is the wrinkles in the backdrop.  Who wants wrinkles in their image?  I know this is one of things that just gets under my skin and I hate how it looks. To smooth the wrinkles I use the eye dropper tool to find the right black and then take a brush and paint over the background or back drop.  I zoom in to about 300% to be precise on this technique.  You do not want to see mistakes on this becasue it would show very easily.  This not only smooths the backdrop, it gives the image a much better look and more drama and imagination to the picture.  Is she on stage?  Which ballet is she in? 

The second thing I notice is the tutu has creeped up onto her leotard.  Those darn static cling things!  They are so cute, but always creep!  To correct this I used a tool called a healing brush.  The healing brush finds what is underneath what you want to get rid of. It can also add onto something like her tutu.  Near the left side by her waist you can see a hole there.  I just used the healing brush to cover that hole.  Sometimes you may have to clone a part of the image to get the precise look you want but the healing brush does do a good job.  You should be careful because it is easy to over do and this make things look not real.  For example, if I used the healing brush on all of her tutu and filled in all the gaps or holes, it would be overwhelming and not look real.  But you are the artist...if you are going for a look of fullness that may be the way you want to go. 

The last thing  I really wanted  to do was make her eyes pop. I glance there first and they just seemed to be lacking that pop I wanted.  I decided to color the whites of her eyes white white.  I know some of you may think-what?  Your going to color the whites of her eyes even more white.  I added a new layer, zoomed in about 500% and with a very small brush I colored the whites white!  I adjusted the opacity level to about 25% and wowza!  This is what I wanted.  I now see her eyes first.  A quick crop to make things even and done. Convert to JPEG and save. 

So a couple edits to this image really made it 100% better in my eyes.  I love this image.  Not only because of how it looks but because of the girl in it.  She is my daughter.  She loves to dance!  She loves to wear dresses and tutus although I have a feeling those days are coming to an end soon.  The tutus have been sitting in the same basket in her closet in her room for a good nine months now untouched.  I asked her last week if she wanted to wear a tutu to dance class and she just nodded her no.  I will miss the tutu days.  

I like to ask my clients which picture they like the best.  My favorite one always pops out to me while I am going to through the images to edit.  Kellys favorite happens to be one of my favorite too. 

I am not sure which one Kelly liked better, but these two images were top on my favorite list too.  The sky behind them was perfect.  Hardly any editing to do except to make the clouds stand out a little more.  The long green field with the corn on the side made the perfect backdrop.  

     Kelly had a second favorite too.  She stated the one where I am kissing Michael on the neck and he has a huge smile.  What is there not to          love about this image?

I love this next image.  I love how Kelly and Michael are surrounded by love,  their friends, and family.  I love how everyone is smiling.  I love how Kelly and Michael are engaged with each other - not caring about anything except their love.  It just makes my heart melt.  

I want to add a few more images that were taken the short time I was there.  I believe I really stepped out of my comfort zone and captured the images Kelly and Michael were looking for....

Thank you again Kelly and Michael!  It was so amazing to capture these images.  Thank you for letting my creative side come out.  Thank you for being so easy to work with.  Thank you for bringing the best out in me!  I wish you and Michael a lifetime of happiness.  Your love shines outward to everyone you see and brings sunshine to their day. 

Jennifer

Many kids and parents came to check out the event.  There were activities of coloring a pair of paper glasses, making a minion with glasses, tons of pipe cleaners to make fun glasses.  There was even an eye doctor set up play area where you could pretend to be the eye doctor.  The patient could even pick a pair of glasses out that were hanging from a large laundry basket!  Story time included books about kids wearing glasses and "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, what do you see?" One of my ultimate favorite kids book.  The best activity of the event, in my opinion is the piñata!  These kids tried so hard to get that candy out!  When it finally broke kids rushed everywhere to capture it!

Last but certainly not the least was the celebration of wearing glasses with cupcakes!  The eyes of the kids just lit up and all had cupcake faces afterwards! 

Thank you again for allowing to come into this world even though it was only for a few hours!  

This is Westin.  He is about two months old.  He did a fantastic job of letting me photograph him!  I had some wonderful helpers along the way too.   Mom and big brother were the absolute best and so helpful in creating these images with me.  I could not have done it without them!  I cannot thank them enough for allowing me to come into their home and capture these precious moments for them.   

When I first arrived big brother, Wyatt broke the ice and asked about my daughter, Ellee and if she had come with.  They had gone to 3K together and haven't seen each other in some time.  I told him she was at home watching a movie and he seemed really sad that she stayed at home and wasn't able to play with her.  But then he started to ask every question in the book about my camera!  It was really cute!  I have never had anyone ask me so many questions about my camera! I was kind of under prepared!  He of course had to show me his room and Westin's room. I immediately felt right at home and my nervousness went away!

Mom had so many cute hats for Westin to wear for the shoot.  My favorite and Mom's too, is this multi color hat.  Big Brother,  Wyatt, had actually worn this hat too when he was little, so it has even a more special  meaning behind it for the family.  Westin did great!  Only a few cries here and there, making sure Mom was still close by.  

The second hat mom wanted was a HOOT!  Who doesn't love an owl hat on a baby boy?  I don't know which image I like better, the black and white or the color one?  Thoughts?  I love black and white images.  I believe they bring so much more of a statement.  I love the color images too, don't get me wrong, but there's just something about black and white.  

By this time Westin was starting to get a little restless...a few more cries and looking for mom more.  I had to get a few more images of this beautiful baby.  I could have taken pictures of him all day!  So we grabbed big brother and got a few shots with him.  Wyatt is such a ham for the camera!  His smile is beautiful and will have the ladies lining up when he gets older :). 

These last few pictures with mom were actually pictures of her consoling Westin.  He was ready to be done posing for the camera and wanted it out of face.  Plus he was getting hungry too. I can totally relate to getting crabby when you get hungry.  When I get hungry, I need to eat at that very moment or my crabby pants come on.  No waiting, NOW!  Just like him!  We called it quits and Mom got a bottle! 

Old, rustic red barns! The perfect added charm to any image.

I love the way the white dress stands out against the red barn.   

Even the jean jacket rocks it out!  

Brick...I Looooooooooove brick!

All three of these images were taken at the same brick wall.  Different angle and different depths of field help capture true beauty. 

Staircases or steps...

Another amazing backdrop.  The stairs allow more dimension to come into play.  As a photographer, you can use the steps to get different angles of the client too.  Why have the same old boring straight on image?   

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  There are so many amazing backdrops in the outside world to take an image.   These are only a few of my favorite places to seek out and have my clients photographed there.  I am always open to any ideas that come from the client too!  I actually love it when they are more adventurous and think outside the box more than me!   

I will blog more about choosing amazing locations for your images...Until then, 

Have a great day!

Jennifer

Ellee Watertown Blue Revue DanceI just the attitude displayed here by my spunky five year old!

When I first signed up my daughter up for Watertown Blue Revue, I really had no idea what I was getting into.  All I knew is that my niece talked about Watertown Blue Revue all the time because her sister was in it.  I loved all her stories she told me about it.  I loved the stories of how they did things together as a team, like going to to pool in the summer and having  cookouts.  I thought, hmmm, that sounds like an awesome organization to be part of.   What I didn't realize was the traveling to different parts of the state on my Saturdays for her to compete.  Ok, It was only really three of my Saturdays and the competitions  were in and around the Appleton area.  And actually my cousin Molly, who I barely get to see, lives up that way and I thought, what a great opportunity to see her and her daughter Bella.  That brought some excitement into my heart!  In addition to the traveling part, I didn't realize the cost was an arm and a leg for her to do these dance competitions and be part of the organization.  There was a small downfall this summer with our family financially and actually considered pulling Ellee out of the organization, but I talked with the owners and bless their hearts.  They waived any late fees that may have occurred and to pay when I could.  My heart poured to out them and felt like I was in the right place. So even though I wasn't so sure about signing Ellee up for dance, there are other good things I didn't realize were going to happen.  I didn't realize how many nice people are out there and willing to help.  I have made new friends and acquaintances.  The bonding between the moms and the girls is unbelievable!  We are,by far, not the dance moms you see on TV!  I didn't realize how much fun Ellee really has dancing!  To see her face light up just melts my heart.  I didn't realize how much fun I actually had taking her to these competitions and watching her dance.  I didn't realize how much fun it would be to capture her special moments.  The Saturdays became Mom and Ellee day.  I actually miss our Mom and Ellee day.  

Would I do it again?  Absolutely!  Even though money can be an issue, it will be a time in her life she will never forget and I will never forget either.  I want to make her childhood as special as possible.  I want her to look back one day and really appreciate what she was able to do and all the experiences she was able to go through and enjoy.  I want her to remember those special times of MOM and ELLEE days.  I want to remember those days.  

...and besides, look at how adorable she is!  Can she get any cuter?  I don't think so!  I am in love this costume!