A Megnatic Mill City Engagement: Kolleen & Stephan

 

If you look up "Megnatic" in the dictionary, you would find this: possessing an extraordinary power or ability to attract.  This is an incredible word picture for an incredible couple. They have a magnetism about them.  They are drawn together beautifully and their laughter and passion for life in general brings others towards them.  Our time flew on Saturday as we enjoyed what was a beautiful, albeit breezy evening in Minneapolis.  We meandered through the nooks and crannies of Mill City- a place that happened to be the location of one of their first dates.  I loved watching Kolleen's eyes light up as she talked of their adventures together and Stephan's full-of-life laugh only enhanced what is a wonderful love!  Here is a glimpse at their engagement session: 

 

 

 

If there was any doubt (there wasn't) that their November wedding in Minneapolis is going to be full of laughter and fun, here is the final image captured from our session- showcasing that these two know how to be both gorgeously in love and hilarious! Kolleen has a killer left hook!

A Fun Forest & Field Family Session: Baby Valerie

 

    After days (and days) of rain, Saturday brought sunshine and dry weather and I was able to photograph a beautiful little baby girl and her adoring parents! Valerie is the most happy, easy-going baby I have ever photographed!  She was a delight and joy- just as she is for these first-time parents.  A year and a half ago, I had the honor of photographing Lacey & Joshua's wedding, (See those images HERE).  It was incredibly special to see them as parents now!  Valerie is the perfect combination of her mom and dad and looked so pretty in pink & pearls!  Here is a glimpse at our time together:

 

 

Custom Fine Art Albums: The Process / Part Five

 

The initial design time can take anywhere from 4-7 hours. Sometimes, I have a vision for how I think this layout, styles, colors, fonts, and themes will all come together right away and sometimes it take me a while to discover and develop this.  I draw from their invites, wedding day details and overall style to create something custom.  I also never use templates.  Almost all photographers do use templates- although they rarely share this. It is much quicker on our end but I believe it is not personalized, and doesn't help the flow and feel of an album at all- in fact, it hinders it!  So while this takes dedicated time and focus, I LOVE it.

I love the quotes, verses and song lyrics that couples include- it brings out more about their unique love story.

 

Next, I put the design online for the couple to review and make changes. About half the time, I get an e-mail back saying something along the lines of, "We love it. Don't change a thing!" and then sometimes I am asked to make a few minor changes. I am happy to do because I want them to love every single detail for a lifetime. 

After they approve the final design, I set to work with my lab to get it printed. I work closely with them to ensure the quality is perfect. I love how the pages are thick (1/5"!), durable, hard and the designs are flush mounted to these pages- it creates such a modern, fresh, clean and luxurious look! There is almost no seam in the design, as you can see below.

The cover is genuine leather, and the box it comes in is incredible- all of this showcases the quality. You want the best for the most significant day of your life and I have researched for years to find the best company that works only with professional photographers.  My cost to print is high- but it is worth it for this finished product!

 The process of creating a custom designed and luxuriously-printed fine art album for my clients is a long- and joyful- one.  Once I finish selecting, retouching and editing their wedding day images, I send a link for them to view, access, share, and download their high res images. I also include the Album Design Form.  As I mentioned in the beginning of this series, this form asks them as a couple to select their images for their album, let me know which are their favorites and what verses or quotes they would like highlighted within the album. Then, I sit down to work.


 One of my favorite aspects about my job is handing off the album personally to my couples.  The looks on their faces are amazing- and I feel like it is the perfect finale to the long and wonderful process.