Engagement

Kerrie and Robert - Ludington engagement photos

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If you’ve been around me for longer than five minutes, you may know that I’m mildly obsessed with dogs. When Kerrie and Robert pulled up to our decided engagement photo location with probably the most precious pup of all time, I knew it was going to be a good day. (Spoiler alert: he’s also the ring bearer at their wedding, giving a new meaning to “golden retriever”)
Robert’s family has been making memories in Ludington Michigan every summer for generations, so it was a no-brainer where they wanted to document the next step in their lives together. These two have infectious smiles, big hearts, and great taste in dogs.
Congratulations Kerrie and Robert, I’m so excited to document your wedding in August!

Jayna and Brandon - Downtown Kalamazoo engagement photos

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Jayna and Brandon’s engagement session was scheduled on a day with the oddest weather I’ve seen (maybe ever). Checking the forecast the morning of, predictions kept flipping from cloudy, to sun, to thunderstorms and I wasn’t quite sure what we were going to end up with.
I called Jayna to see if she wanted to try for a nicer day, and to my surprise they were completely ready for engagement photos no matter what! I couldn’t have been more thrilled with the results. We chose a spot downtown Kalamazoo where we could jump inside for a second if the conditions did get well and truly crazy, and it just so happened to also have awesome texture and leading lines for days.

The rain stopped and started FIVE TIMES as we were shooting, and they didn’t flinch once. At one point, I looked over and saw that the sun came out as it was still pouring, so I asked them “Hey, what if you went and danced in the rain?” and with no hesitation, they embraced every bit of it.
They are both easygoing, wonderful, and so perfect for eachother.
Congratulations Jayna and Brandon! I can’t wait for your November wedding.

Emma and Bryant - Kalamazoo Al Sabo engagement (featuring Bell's Wedding Ale)

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These two are beautiful and unique individuals. They are full of joy and adventure, and they have built the sweetest life together. Emma contacted me about their Bell’s Brewery wedding a few months back, and I was over the moon (Not only are brewery weddings pretty much my favorite, but Bell’s is an incredible venue. Come on). We started talking engagement ideas, and Emma and Bryant’s adventurous nature led us to Al Sabo preserve as our location.

Just a few short weeks before the engagement session, Bell’s releases their wedding ale: an Imperial Wheat Ale brewed with honey, coriander and orange peel, sure to make any wedding day a party. Between the name, the venue and the description, clearly we needed to incorporate it into their engagement session.
After a weather reschedule (Thanks Michigan false spring), we ended up shooting on the absolutely perfect golden afternoon in May. I could not have asked for nicer conditions, or more pleasant people to share them with.

Congratulations Emma and Bryant, I’m so glad I get to celebrate with you next year!


Kristin and Will - Downtown Grand Rapids engagement photos

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The day before Kristin and Will’s engagement session was mid sixties and sunny, great photo weather you might think! The day of our shoot comes around and the springtime air was replaced with low forties and enough wind to ruin just about any mood. You would never know it to look at these two. They took the whole thing in stride, laughing through the entire session, and joyfully pointing out every dog we saw along the way (I care deeply about that, Kristin gets me).
We wandered around ta few of the great locations downtown Grand Rapids has to offer, and then finished up with a pint at City Built Brewing. Honestly, it was perfect.

Congratulations Kristin and Will! Your October wedding is going to be magnificent.

Tammy and Paula - South Haven engagement photos

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Tammy and Paula are the perfect example of people who are completely complementary to each other. We chose two locations that are special to them in some way, and the rest was just letting them be who they are together. At one point during our shoot, I asked each of them what they loved most about the other person and their answers almost had me in tears. They truly notice and appreciate the little things about each other, and that’s so special to see.

You two are so great together, and I can’t wait for your wedding this summer!

Maddie and Connor - Kalamazoo greenhouse engagement photos

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It’s a little bit ridiculous how natural Maddie and Connor are in front of the camera. Frequently I would look up from the camera to give them a prompt, and they would already be doing it. Basically, they’re a pair of photogenic rockstars, and I love it.
They wanted to make sure we included a piece of their WMU history in the photos, so we planned on swinging by the campus off Drake rd, and visit Asylum lake as it’s understandably one of their favorite spots in Kalamazoo, but this still left me with a warm up location for a February engagement session and I knew just the spot. VanderSalm’s Flowers is full of much needed color for winter photos, and they were super gracious to let us come in and take advantage of their greenhouse temperatures.

Thanks for being amazing you guys, I’m all sorts of excited for your Bell’s Brewery wedding this summer!

Brittnay and Brandon - Downtown Kalamazoo engagement photos

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These two have some of the brightest smiles you’ll ever see in your life, and attitudes to match. They’re just the type of people who make you have a better day just by being a part of it. Brittnay requested an urban photo setting (which I am super about) so we adventured around downtown Kalamazoo and the surrounding area, stopping at Fido Motors Cafe for a warm up chai and some rare winter sunshine. My goal for any engagement session is to capture people being who they are together, and they made these photos a complete breeze.

I can’t wait for your 2020 wedding Brittnay and Brandon, you’re made for each other!

Amanda and Mark - Kalamazoo Sweetwater's Donut Mill engagement photos

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When I first started talking engagement photo ideas with Amanda and Mark, she had one simple request: Her donut obsession needed to be represented. Obviously, Kalamazoo engagement photos meant Sweetwater’s was the clear option, and now I’m looking for any excuse to work delicious donuts into photo shoots!
These two are so unique and talented, and I have complete confidence their wedding is going to be a perfect reflection of who they are.

Congratulations you lovely people, I can’t wait to celebrate your marriage!

Simone and Keith - Arcadia Brewing Kalamazoo engagement

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These two are a living testimonial for why I encourage dogs during sessions, and why I believe people who choose to have microbrewery weddings are a different type of phenomenal.
Simone and Keith could light up any room they enter. The genuine joy they experience from living life together is so infectious, I left the engagement shoot with a gigantic smile on my face. They’re laid back and wonderful, never missing a chance to laugh together.
It only made sense that the ideal place to warm up during the shoot would be a brewery, and Arcadia is one of my favorites. Huge windows, space for dogs in the warmer months, and no shortage of excellent brews. And let me tell you, we needed to warm up. It was beyond frigid the day of their engagement photos, and yet nothing seemed to dim their spirits.

Congratulations Simone and Keith, your Bell’s Brewery wedding is going to be unbelievable!

Stephanie and Ryan - Three Rivers engagement photos

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Winter is here, and soon the blog will be filling up with snowy engagement sessions. I live for getting to know people while shooting, and I’m so looking forward to the next two months of doing just that!
In the meantime, I want to share with you a throwback to one of my favorite engagement sessions from before I was any good at consistently updating the blog: Stephanie and Ryan.
Stephanie is energetic, adventurous, and sweet. Ryan is equally energetic, thoughtful, and would literally do anything for Stephanie. Oh my goodness, I could tell from the first meeting with them that the attitude of mutual love and respect they had for one another would set them up for so much happiness for years to come.
Their wedding day was no exception. It was full of the sweetest first look, loads of laughter, and even fireworks (Check it out here)
I will forever adore these people.

Natalie and Libby - Kalamazoo Asylum Lake engagement photos

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When we first arrived for Natalie and Libby’s engagement session, it didn’t take long to feel like everyone had already been old friends. Asylum Lake preserve holds a lot of memories for these two, and so we hiked around to their favorite spots, probably spending no more than 30 seconds not laughing.
You two are so incredible to spend time with, and your life is only going to get more awesome with one another in it.
I can’t wait for your wedding next year!

Montana

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If you follow the blog, you'll know David and I don't stay in one place too long. We love Kalamazoo, and call it home, but there's way too much of the world left to see, so every so often we plan an adventure. 
This one had been in the works for over a year, but I had no idea just how special it was going to be. David had lived in Montana for a bit previously, and had been compiling a list of must-see places since we first started dating, knowing someday he would be able to show me around Kalispell and the Glacier National Park area. When wildfires halted our plans last September, we decided to try again for June of 2018. 

It was everything I could have ever hoped. The natural beauty was every photographers dream, but the company was the absolute best. 
We started the trip off with his favorite breakfast spot in Kalispell (Split Rock Cafe) and then toured a few the top breweries (Bonsai Brewing Project was pleasant as heck), and finished up on Flathead Lake, boating with one of David's best big sky buddies. 
 

Day number two held things I didn't see coming from a mile away. 

David took me on a hike to Holland Falls, knowing the entire time I would want to take photos at the top, so we packed a tripod and remote (on top of that, I looked like a hot mess, hiking with a boots/sundress combo that I swapped out for flip flops when the walking was done.... for the photos sake of course). 
We had been planning on shooting frame-able photos at some point this trip, so I thought nothing of his insistence I make absolutely sure to have the wireless remote in the bag.

Once we  fought off the invasive ground squirrels searching for snacks (note that close up shot was not taken with a telephoto lens) we set up the tripod and took a few shots. 

And then he surprised me. 

I had no idea he had been planning the proposal ever since we booked the first trip that got rescheduled, and had kept the ring a complete secret all this time! I've been on cloud nine ever since, this man is my best friend, and my biggest supporter. Life is such an adventure with him, and I can't wait to start the next chapter of it. 

He planned it all perfectly, and even got us THE most beautiful Airbnb in St. Ignatius to spend our first engaged night.

After all that, we spent the next few days camping, hiking, and getting overall publicly unpresentable. One of my favorite hikes from the standpoint of feeling so accomplished when we finished was definitely Iceberg Lake, but there wasn't a single bad day and not one hike I regretted. We spent loads of time outdoors away from cell reception, and it was perfect. 

I have no doubt we will be back to this other-worldly place. Bears and ground squirrels included, there is something special about Montana. 

Becky and Thomas - Ludington engagement

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Becky and Thomas are not only crazy photogenic and wonderful to work with, but they're a special couple in general. Hearing how he talks about her is already enough to make me happy cry, and the way they enjoy life together is completely beautiful. 
They wanted to do something special for the engagement session (and we're always up for a road-trip), so we adventured out to Thomas's hometown of Ludington, where the session was full of genuine laughter and lake-drenched pant legs, and I couldn't be more thrilled with the photos!
 

Kelsey and Billy - Kalamazoo engagement session

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Kelsey and Billy are the kind of people you would want to hang out with regardless of the occasion. They're fun, sweet, and up for anything (we tested that last one for sure to get some of these shots!)
Between everything they have in common such as a love of Bell's Brewery, or their differences like whether or not another dog should be added to the household, they balance each other in all the right ways. Their wedding is going to be amazing, and their life together even better!
 

Abby and Shane - Downtown Kalamazoo engagement

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Abby moved to our beloved, but temperamental mitten state from sunny Florida, and it wasn't long before she met and fell in love with Shane. They are both adventurous, love to travel (especially to NY) and complete each other in all the perfect ways. During their engagement session, they let me lead them all over downtown Kalamazoo shooting, and laughing along the way. It's such a thrill to know them, I can already tell that their Skydeck wedding with be the stuff dreams are made of!

Janel and Ben - Grand Rapids adventure engagement

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Janel and Ben are with no exaggeration probably the coolest people you will meet. They are artistic, and unique, and very genuine with you right from the first moment. 
I could already tell that their engagement photos were going to be something special, so when Janel suggested touring some of their favorite spots around Grand Rapids, I was so on board!
We started getting some shots in the greenhouse of Horrocks market in Kentwood, then moved over to Vertigo music (where Ben couldn't resist purchasing a record) before finishing up at a personal favorite of mine: Stella's Lounge. If you like whiskey, that is the place for you. 

The locations were amazing, but the people definitely made this session unforgettable.