Ally:Senior

World, 

Get ready for this senior. Smart. athletic. creative. fashionable. and ROCKIN'! Fashion design +graphic design will be what Ally pursues in college next year. I hope they are ready for her :)

Every senior takes a bit to warm up and feel themselves. For some reason this alley warmed Ally right up.. ;) She started completely workin' it. Ally, her mom and I were all cracking up as she worked it through this random city alleyway. So many great looks. 

Great job Ally.. I hope this felt like a fashion shoot vs a boring posie pose session :)

Sweet Ben

This little man was as sweet as can be. Mom had done such a great job getting him to sleep by the time I arrived.... but it wasn't long before he wanted to greet me.

Mom had this great wrap that she uses when carrying him around.. I loved it!

Once he realized it was his debut.. he decided to ham it up a bit.
We did wear him out though.. so by the end of the session we were able to catch this image for dad. He was a baseball player and I'm sure hopes been will share that same dream! 
Thank you for inviting me into your home. I can't wait to see how big he is the next time I am in town!

Rosemary, Jonathan + little Jonathan

Well...another successful trip down to Des Moines. All of my sessions went better than expected and I had a blast each time. It was so great to see repeat clients and meet new ones. I was a little worried about the weather when I arrived on friday.. it was quite chilly. It could have put a damper on my outlook for the weekend, but I didn't allow it to. I kept my hopes up for beautiful weather, and I got it! 

This first session was a bit chillly, but they did great and held out. 

Rosemary and Jonathan have been married since he was 20... and she still looks at him with sincere adoration :) They are a family friend of the family I stayed with in Des Moines. On Sunday eve, we all had dinner together and we talked to Jonathan about when they got married.  Jonathan said.. "I knew I was going to marry her on our second date."  How sweet is that?!

The session was focused on the two of them and their grandson. They have quite the tight knot family, and I loved that they found value in capturing the connection they share with him. They each have a special bond with him that wasn't hard to miss.

Thank you Rosemary + Jonathan for sticking it out that chilly morning. More to come soon!

Ron+Nicole Love at First Sight

Meet Ron and Nicole. They have been together for 4 years, and Ron still holds her just as close and looks at her with as much adoration as you would imagine he did from the beginning. When Ron first laid his eyes on Nicole he took a double take and was in awe of how pretty she is.. but he thought she was way out of his league. Nicole stepped up to the plate and made the first move to meet him.  Good thing she did.. they are a fantastic couple!

They both have the most amazing eyes.  

So casual.. so fun.
Holy cow... I am in love with this shot. This location was awesome... didn't realize the light was going to peer through that well.

The leaves here are great right now. This tree was on fire!!
I love Nicole's face here.
I can't take complete credit for these shots... the fact that the is a heart in the top right corner... One of those things I noticed as I edited through. I couldn't be more excited. So I give credit to my creative subconscious for noticing it ;)
By the way... they are seriously naturally this cute. No direction needed.

Ron  and Nicole... you rocked it!! I had soo much fun with you. Thank you for being up for anything and feeling so relaxed with me. It shows through in every image.

Kyree + Jakhai

I have been so lucky to book up this fall. The weather has been amazing, which makes me even more excited to get out for my sessions.

Yesterday was another gorgeous fall day and I got to spend part of the afternoon with these two little guys.  Adorable!!

Kyree is turning 4 soon.. so he was the star of the show. 
Absolutely hilarious. He was awesome for me.


You can't help but smile at Jakhi's dimples. Go ahead and try... you just can't do it. :)


Casual Family Portrait.
Just try not to smile at them...
Another fun family portrait.
As you can imagine.. two boys can be a handful.. but they were so great for me. Thanks guys!

Meet Toby

Quiet and Pensive.. but a little bit of a show off... :) That would be this little guy. Toby was adopted from Guatemala this spring, and this is his very first professional debut. When dad first introduced us, Toby was a bit shy... but we became buds quite fast. He followed me around the house, gave me hugs, and even kept wanting to sit on my lap. Such a sweetheart! Mom & Dad showed me all of the fun things he is learning from them... and Toby got quite the kick out of showing off as we clapped in excitement. At just 18 months, he is really a smart little man!

I love this sweet little face... 

I love subtle things that parents do.. things you can't prompt them to do.. but you must pay attention and catch. 




I loved all these little detail shots.. he has such cute chub :)

Thank you Tracy & Greg for inviting me to come and photograph your new family. It was a joy hearing all about it.

The Perfect Baby Bump

I have been having a lot of pregnant bellies lately...I am loving it.  This session had the perfect baby bump, a very entertaining couple, gorgeous weather and yummy light. I couldn't as for anything else... oh yes.. one more thing... they brought their own chase lounge to cart around in the field!!! Ahhh how I love my clients!

Dani & Alex + extreme love & adoration+ perfect sun flare = a rockin' shot!!!!!!

A little twist on the regular kiss... how sweet.
Alex looks beautiful... If you walk behind her you can't even tell she is pregnant... she is in great shape!
Dani is so funny.. he likes to hold his tummy too :)
This shot grasps the essence of them. A completely natural shot.. and I think their joy shows through with ease.
The baby (they don't know the sex yet) moved a lot during the session. And when it doesn't... Dani gives the belly a little poke to get "him" (I think it's a boy) moving.
I forgot to mention that Alex and Dani are a past client of mine. I photographed their wedding! It is so fun to watch my clients grow in their relationship.
This shows the comedic side of Dani. He thought it would be funny to put a soccer ball in his shirt ... It was hysterical. He stood with his hand on his back, rubbed his tummy, and looked down at it with adoration. I love it when clients have ideas.. they end up having a great time with it. Good job Dani!
Ummm... this fabulous field was at our second location and I am absolutely in love with every single image that came from it. 
I told you... Perfect Baby Bump!!!
There is Dani trying to get baby to kick.. and a little smile from Alex as she thinks it is so sweet.
Alex & Dani... I can not thank you enough for letting me share this new journey with you. I am so excited about this session I am going to burst. You rocked it and I can't wait for you to see the rest... so many, many more! :)