Griffin Photography - Real photography. Real people. Baraboo, WI

{passion} what it means to me

2010-09-07T20:44:00.001-05:00

the little ones, originally uploaded by briemarie.

I love to capture people.

I love their expressions, their motion, the way that they don't realize that what you see is something amazing and breathtaking. I love to see them interact, two cousins sitting on the ground, an engaged couple that can zone out the camera and only focus on each other, I love it all. At the end of the day, I want to be able to capture those memories, the love shared, the laughter and the tears, I want it all.

I love to capture people.

{sneak peek} rachel + dan, glacier canyon, wis dells

2010-09-04T13:44:00.003-05:00

Here's a quick look at Rachel and Dan's amazing wedding on the patio at Glacier Canyon Lodge in Wisconsin Dells. We had so much fun with them, the day was gorgeous, especially after the storm the night before.

As always, there's more to come.

{samples} the new canvas

2010-08-31T11:26:00.004-05:00

I had to share the first shot of our newest print. I'm so excited because it's even more awesome big! The Fedex man delivered our newest canvas not even an hour ago, I'm so happy that I was home to rip open the giant box.

I love this shot, it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Remember this post? I knew when I saw this shot on my little lcd screen that it would be awesome and it is. Yay! I'm so giddy that I just want to dance right now.

I just had to share my new canvas with you, I can't wait to make Rob put it up, you may not know how untalented I am with the whole tool situation, but when he gets home, oh yeah, he'll be put to work.

As always, we love to hear what you have to say! Share some blog love.

{sneak peek} ashley + eric, baraboo wis, wedded bliss

2010-08-28T23:29:00.001-05:00

I just had to share this shot of Ashley's MOH getting her all tied up for the wedding. I love it, I hope it leaves you excited to see the rest!

{wedded bliss} sara + kirk, st. paul's baraboo, glacier canyon lodge wis dells

2010-08-26T23:07:00.007-05:00

It is well past time for some wedding love on this blog.

Sara and Kirk got married this past June at St. Paul's in Baraboo. I know Sara was a teensy bit nervous before the ceremony, but it was perfect. I think everyone can tell just by looking at these two how in love they are.

We had time to head out to the lake between the ceremony and reception for some fun group shots. I love it when we get a little extra time with our couples!

After taking a little detour by a lovely barn, which were the backdrop of some of my favourite bride and groom shots of the day, we arrived at the Glacier Canyon Lodge ready to party!

So, enough talk, take a look at this amazing couple.

I love how excited the girls are to see Sara's gorgeous ring.

I can't believe that I hadn't posted this teaser on the blog!

{sneak peek} ruth + chris, spring green

2010-08-25T04:36:00.003-05:00

I know I've been posting the latest sneak peeks on facebook, let's change that shall we?

My friend Ruth gets a hold of me a while back to shoot her engagement session. She's met this amazing man and they are getting married next year and would love for Rob and I to take them out and get some shots of them. Then she says, how do you feel about shooting at Taliesin? Taliesin?! Frank Lloyd Wright's home?! I'm totally down with that, let's do it! So we drove down to Spring Green last night and got some amazing shots, the light was perfect (I may not envy those Southern California photographers ever again!), Ruth looked amazing, and Chris was great. It was the first time I met Chris and although we all got bit up a bit by the horde of mosquitoes, we all had a blast.

Here's a little teaser to tide you over and I promise that I will from now on post to the blog first, especially since I've finally figured out how to fix the tiny image problem. Look at this huge shot! I am so in love with it!

{sneak peek} stephanie + dan, martinsville, wi

2010-08-05T12:03:00.001-05:00

Just a little sneak peek from Stephanie and Daniel's wedding this past weekend.

I love the fallen lone carnation.

{class of 2011} senior reps

2010-08-04T10:56:00.003-05:00

I've finally gotten a bit of time to talk about our senior reps this year. I think you may all recognize my little sister, Becky, I cannot believe that she is a senior already! We wanted to have some fun with her and decided to take her and Amber up to Minneapolis while we were delivering an album to another client. The girls got to shop at the Mall of America and then we hit downtown, walked around and found some awesome locations, like the top of a parking garage, which I love. Check out Becky's hair, doesn't it look amazing? And then Amber's eyes, I could just look at them for hours, although that would be a bit freaky, so I'll just give you a couple shots to check out how gorgeous these two are.

{one} J + V's first birthday

2010-07-23T21:41:00.002-05:00

I cannot believe that today my little monster turned one. I honestly don't know whether I should laugh, cry or do both. The past year has been lined with many changes and surprises. I never know how much one little person could change my whole life and I am blessed to be able to call her mine.

We had an amazing party tonight to celebrate the last year, and to everyone that came - thank you for celebrating this next step in Jamie's life, we are honored that you could come and share this time with us!

I cannot believe how daintily Jamie ate her cupcake, silly goose. Usually she devours them up, just like her boyfriend, Vik, who came over to share in the party goodness. Jamie did get dirty after a while, but it took some urging.

{sneak peek} sara + joe, bliss, madison, wi

2010-07-19T16:05:00.003-05:00

Here is just a little sneak peek of our day on Saturday. I saw this first image on my lcd screen and knew that I had fallen in love, I'm thinking a new canvas. Sara and Joe are just the cutest couple, I really just wanted to hug them both and squeeze their cheeks, don't ask me why, I just want to.

And as for the second shot, well, what's a wedding without a little dress up?

{holiday} happy 4th of July!!

2010-07-04T22:33:00.001-05:00

crazy lights, originally uploaded by briemarie.

I have no idea what went on in this shot, but I love it so much that I have to share. Jamie, surprisingly, didn't mind the fireworks. She kept pointing up at the sky at the pretty lights. It was awesome, until we got rained out. Okay, it wasn't a ton of rain for Rob and I, but Jamie is pretty tiny and gets soaked quick, so we didn't keep her out, too long.

I know you're thinking "man, why doesn't she take out those power lines?" Well, I kinda like them in there. I think the explosion would just be too much then, but I may take it out later.

I hope you all are having a wonderful 4th of July, spending time with friends and family. I know we did. I love spending time with my two favorite people. Ahh, love.

{celebrate} witwen parade 2010

2010-07-03T22:09:00.003-05:00

Our little family met up with some good friends for the Witwen parade today. It was Jamie's first parade, and I'll admit she got a little tired and cranky, but we all had a blast. There was a ton of people, and we even got to sit near the balloon guy, he made balloon animals for the surrounding kids, awesome!

I took a few shots, of course. I hope that everyone has a wonderful Fourth of July!

{exclusivity} a little wedding chat

2010-07-02T22:31:00.001-05:00

Granger_RK_0315, originally uploaded by briemarie.

One of the clauses in our contract states that we will be the exclusive photographer. What does that mean, you say? Well, we don't want you to go hiring another photographer to shoot the day, too. We'd be getting in each others way and probably getting pretty frustrated.

I wanted to talk about guests at weddings, particularly guests with cameras. Pretty much everyone has a camera these days. It's a fact of life that when you're heading out to something special, like a wedding, that you're gonna grab your camera, throw it in your purse (unless you're a guy and don't have a purse) and take some shots of your friends and family because, really, how often is everyone you love in the same place at the same time.

So, yeah, we're the exclusive photographer, but we don't want your friends and family to feel like we won't let them shoot. They want to remember the day, too. We get that. Of course, there's been a time or two that we have to be firm, but hey, let us get our formals shot first and then we'll move out of the way and let you take a couple.

Rob and I, we're pretty laid back. When we are shooting, we work on staying in the background. Sometimes you won't notice us, those are my favorite shots. Sometimes we'll move you around, but we won't obstruct your guests while they are shooting. It's not our style. As photographers, our goal is to capture your wedding day or your portraits as unobtrusively as possible. We want the focus to be on you and what makes you happy.

Why am I writing this, you ask? Well, one of our assistants was attending a wedding as a guest a couple weeks back. She had brought her camera to she could take some shots of her friend the bride. Nothing fancy, just some shots to remember the day. She didn't drag the bride and groom away from the dance floor or anything crazy like that, she was just shooting them as they naturally were. Whenever she would go to take a shot, the hired professional or his assistant, would step in front of her, ruining her shots.

When we talked about her day, she told us how frustrating the whole situation made her feel. She just wanted some shots to remember her friend's wonderful wedding, but all she left with was a bit of anger at the professional photographer.

I feel the same way. As a photographer, my duty is not to restrict others, but to capture the moments the best that I can. I will not get in your way, at least not purposefully. I want you and your guests to enjoy the day and leave with the feeling of newfound love.

On that note which was much longer than I had anticipated, enjoy your weekend!

{in love} emily + dave, devil's lake, baraboo, wi

2010-07-01T14:41:00.004-05:00

We had been a bit worried about rain on the day of Emily and Dave's Get to Know You Session, but our worries were for nothing. The entire evening was perfectly gorgeous. Emily and Dave are naturals in front of the camera. They are so sweet together that all I wanted to do was hug them. Seriously, the way that they could just tune out the camera and just focus on each other was amazing, each little gesture was filled with love.

It's sessions like this that reaffirm why we do photography. Adorable. Check out the images yourself and see what I mean. The whole session was perfect, from the light and location, to the love we captured.

As always, feel free to leave us some blog love!

{bliss} kristina + ryan, baraboo, wi

2010-06-30T23:47:00.004-05:00

Rob and I had the honor of capturing the wedding day of one of my very best friends from high school this past April. It's taken me this long to narrow down my favorites, so bear with me. ;)

I met up with the girls while they were getting their hair done at Exquisite Salon. Deb did an awesome job on Kristina, she looked gorgeous. Maddie, the flower girl, was so well behaved, I believe that she read all the books at the salon. After getting pretty, the girls headed over to the church to get dressed and get some shots in before the ceremony.

They got married at St. Joe's, which is one of the most gorgeous churches ever. Rob and I love shooting at St. Joe's, there are so many nooks and crannies that each time we go, we find something new.

Kristina's dress was gorgeous, white with sparkly, glittery beadwork and an awesome train. The bridesmaids' navy dresses complimented Kristina's perfectly.

Rob worked the formals before the ceremony, so as usual, I headed over to keep the groom from running, er I mean keep him company. ;) I love being able to get the groom by himself before the ceremony, it gives us time to chat and hang out before all the fun really begins.

The ceremony was touching, and once we left the church, I got to ride in the limo and we hit up some locations around Baraboo before heading up to the reception at the Wintergreen in the Dells.

Kristina and Ryan had trees as favors, which was totally awesome, and they had set up a candy bar full of all my favorites, which made for some fun ring shots. The centerpieces were stunningly simple, mason jars with beautiful arrangements.

The reception was amazing. Great food, good company and the test run of our new Photobooth setup which was a big hit. Kristina and Ryan are super close friends and let us run out the kinks in the system. I think we all had a blast, and since people kept coming back for me, we knew the Photobooth was a winner. The DJ kept the dance floor hopping, Rob even got out there for the macarena! I seriously didn't know that he knew how, the things you learn at weddings, huh? But I didn't marry him for his dance skills. ;)

The whole day was magical. I am honored that they chose us to help capture the memories of their wedding day. Congrats, Kristina and Ryan!

{sneak peek} emily + dave, devil's lake, gtkys

2010-06-26T23:05:00.002-05:00

Here's just a little taste of Emily and Dave's Get to Know You Session from this past Wednesday, be prepared for more of the most natural poses ever.

{personal} little miss j is 11 months already!

2010-06-23T22:18:00.002-05:00

It seems like we just brought Jamie home, but today is already her eleven month birthday. Can you believe that?! I find it hard to believe, but then I look at her and she's just so big! She crawls everywhere, just like a little crab, and gets into everything. She talks back (I'm pretty sure she gets her sass from her daddy) and giggles. She is always happy when she wakes up in the morning, she'll just lay in bed and talk to herself. I love it. I love her. She's a smart little cookie, too.

People told me that she would grow fast, but I didn't believe them. I'm still just a bit in denial that this little person is really my baby, she's growing up so fast and I don't want to miss a thing.

I think it's great when we can just stop what we're doing and focus on those little things in life. I think that's one of the reasons that I love photography so much, I love to capture those moments that you think I don't see. The little grin that a girlfriend gives her boyfriend. The kids racing around a field of dandelions, not caring whether they stay clean or get a little dirty. Grandma's hands as she helps a bride into her dress. It's those moments and so many others that make me treasure what I do, and I am honored and blessed that so many people feel the same way. Thank you, for letting us into your lives and showing us your hearts.

Of course, after that I need to leave you with some silly shots of miss Jamie and her ice cream escapade, but please don't tell the doctor we gave her ice cream! ;)

{in love} Ashley + Eric, Madison, WI

2010-06-22T14:36:00.004-05:00

Let me tell you all about Ashley and Eric. They are so perfect for each other. We were a little worried about the rain ruining the session, and we did get a teensy bit wet, but after ten or twenty minutes, I wasn't counting, the rain stopped and we got some gorgeous cloud coverage. There have been amazing skies all week and we got some awesome shots to go along with our awesome couple. We headed out to a little park on the outskirts of Madison, where Eric proposed. I totally made him reenact things, it was awesome.

Ashley then suggested we drive down the road. I love the locations! First: gorgeous park with lots of stuff, bridge, rocks, grass, oh yeah. Second: amazing grungy buildings with train tracks, what could be better? Take a look at what we found.

Happy Father's Day!!!

2010-06-20T17:29:00.003-05:00

Let's all take a moment to recognize the daddies in our lives. I hope everyone is having an amazing Father's Day, the weather is gorgeous, we should all be out enjoying the day with our loved ones.

It's Rob's first Father's Day and it is hard to imagine that the tiny bundle he is holding here is the same energetic little monster that is living in our house now. Jamie growls and crawls, getting into everything. We love it, and it's hard to imagine what we ever did before her. I think the best present we can give is love.

I hope that Father's Day is a beautiful day for everyone, and for those that no longer have their daddy, know that I feel ya. I always go up to the cemetery and talk to my dad, he doesn't say much (just like when he was here), but I tell him all about Jamie and what's going on in my life. What I'm trying to say with this, is make sure that the people you love know it, tell them you love them, give them a hug, and then do it again, just a little bit tighter. Now, this isn't supposed to be a sad day, so go make it the best Father's Day ever!

{sneak peek} sara + kirk's fabulous day

2010-06-13T09:15:00.003-05:00

Here is just a little sneak peek from yesterday's fabulous wedding: I love the hot pink! We had so much fun yesterday with Sara and Kirk, and tons of images to prove it. ;)

Rob and I took vacation this week and have plenty scheduled to keep us busy, so expect some more blog posts very soon!

{gtkys} daniel + rachel, pewitt's nest, baraboo, wi

2010-06-06T17:42:00.003-05:00

We met Daniel and Rachel at the house and then headed out to Pewitt's Nest, where we arrived to find a crowd of people already there. There was even a man with a guitar playing for the group. The light was perfect and even though the thermostat said ninety-three degrees, it was nice and cool under the leafy canopy.

We got some amazing shots down by the creek and then headed up the trail to the top of the bluffs for some scenic shots. Rachel is just gorgeous and I could totally tell that Daniel adores her. I love couples in love. They way that they smile at each other, link their fingers together, it always takes my breath away.

After Pewitt's Nest, we headed to downtown Baraboo. I think everyone knows how much I love alleys. I tried a new little trick called freelensing, you shoot without the lens attached to get some of the frame in focus and the rest blurred out.

It was so hot out that we totally would have stopped for ice cream if anyone downtown was open, bummer right? Downtown was like a ghost town, we had the whole square to ourselves.

I can not wait for Daniel and Rachel's wedding in August, we are going to have a blast!

You all know I can't get by without some flare right?

See, utterly gorgeous!

This is one of my favourite shots:

What do you think of my freelensing?:

{mini-sessions} along with my creepy monster ;)

2010-06-01T20:22:00.003-05:00

For the first time ever, we are offering mini sessions!

We all know that money is tight, so everyone is looking for the best deals. One place you shouldn't skimp is on your memories, so we are offering 20 minute sessions plus a 5x7 print and 8 wallet prints for $49. There are limited sessions for this date. We are planning on holding the mini sessions at Lower Ochsner's Park, next to the gorgeous bridge and river walk on Sunday June 13th.

Sessions will be booked back to back, so please make sure that you give yourself enough time to get to the session and be ready for your portraits. This is a great way to update the family portrait, get some creative headshots and just have fun in front of the camera. The mini sessions are limited to 6 people and you will have 10-15 edited proofs to choose from online within two weeks from the session.

As I said, these sessions are super limited and will require a $25 deposit to reserve your time slot. Please contact me at brie@realphotographyrealpeople.com or call 434-5468 to book your session or ask any questions I may not have answered.

So, to recap: on Sunday June 13th, 2010, we will be offering 20 minute mini sessions out at Lower Ochsner's Park in Baraboo. For $49 you will receive a 20 minute session with yours truly, 10-15 edited proofs in an online gallery within two weeks from your session, a 5x7 print and 8 wallet prints from your session.

And we all know that a blog post is nothing without an image, right? So here's my little monster. She creeps along like a little crab and growls. Who knew? No, really, who knew that babies growl at you? This is also her angry face, isn't she cute?

{sneak peek} Daniel + Rachel's gtkys

2010-05-25T22:57:00.000-05:00

Just a little sneak peek from Daniel and Rachel's Get to Know You Session this past weekend. Enjoy while I work on some more edits.

{class of 2011} senior specials

2010-05-21T20:00:00.002-05:00

It's that time of year again that our Juniors start thinking and planning and imaging what they will do for their senior portraits. We are offering our first ever senior specials just in time for the Class of 2011 to participate.

Our Refer a Friend program is still being offered. What does this mean for you? For each friend you refer to us and books their session with us, you get $10 in print credit and your friend gets $5 in print credit after they finish their session. Don't we all love free stuff?

We know money is tight, so we are also offering Two for One sessions. This one is pretty straight forward, bring a friend to your session, you split the $100 session fee, and we all havea blast rockin' the shoot. Isn't everything more fun with a friend?

And our last special, if you don't want to do a session with a friend, we are offering three free wallet accordian albums with your session fee. These little babies are 3x3 inches and contain up to 9 images from your senior session with added design elements.

And finally, as if all that wasn't sweet enough, for every senior that books their session by June 30, 2010, we are going to put your name into a drawing to win a Fuji Instax camera. Oh, how I love the instant gratification of an instant camera. If only they made film for my Polaroid.

{sneak peak} Lifestyle session ~ Neapolitan Princesses

2010-05-17T23:17:00.002-05:00

Neopalitan princesses, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Just a little sneak peak from our lifestyle session on Sunday. I loved the matching dresses, totally made me want ice cream. I couldn't believe the stunt artists here. I'm pretty sure that Abby would have kept going if we let her.

{personal} a little lake escapade, devil's lake, baraboo, wis

2010-04-29T21:08:00.003-05:00

Today was utterly fantabulous! The weather was gorgeous, a bit breezy, but who cares when you can go out to the lake, make some super cute girls lie down on the dandelions while the baby tries to chew one up, and take pictures of all of them?

I've got plenty to keep me busy, along with setting up some mini sessions for the end of May beginning of June, I'd love to hear what people are interested in. They will be tweny minute sessions, very limited spaces available. As soon as I nail down a date and location, I'll let you all know.

Cheers and happy days!

{sneak peek} baby feet

2010-04-28T19:52:00.002-05:00

So, I can not post a full shot of this adorable little session. It's going to be a surprise Father's Day present for a lucky Papa. Isn't that exciting?! Can you imagine going to steal a flag, don't worry I'll give it right back, to get some awesome shots of a little miss in her daddy's handmade Air Force uniform from way back when? Hee hee hee. I'm still a little giddy just thinking about it, but it was so perfect out today, I just had to go out and shoot. Of course, it would have helped if my model was just a tiny bit happier about being outside in the sun, but she wasn't too sure of the grass.

This is just a little taste of the full shoot. Don't you just love baby toes?! I know I do, Jamie loves it when I try to nibble on them. Although, she has got some big feet. I just tell her we have to buy big shoes, poor kid. None, absolutely none!, of the baby shoes I bought at garage sales last year ever fit her. Anyways, enough about me and my baby foot fetish. ;)

Have an amazing day!

{in love} Heather + Zack, downtown Dells

2010-04-20T19:48:00.002-05:00

As I was blog stalking getting ready for Heather and Zack's GTKYS (Get to Know You Session), I began to believe that the light was better down under. There are a few other (ok, dozens) of photographers I love to peruse and their shots are full of this warm buttery light, so soft and ethereal. Boy, was I wrong.

On my drive to the Dells to meet up with Heather and Zack, I was falling in love with the light. It was so soft and buttery, you could almost spread it on a piece of toast. Delicious light. It only got better the longer we shot!

So, we met up at the River Walk and started out with some easy shots. Ya know, hand holding and walking. Rob and I love to just walk and chat, at least until something catches our eye and we stop to get some shots. ;)

Heather and Zack are both substitute teachers, awesome right? They met at University and I just love how Zack proposed! He told me the story as we headed from the River Walk and ticket station up to the Railroad station and the Just A Game fieldhouse, where we snapped some shots of the two of them playing a little b-ball.

From there, we drove over behind the mini golf course under the train trestles. I did get attacked by a pricker tree (don't worry, I'm fine) to get some super stealthy shots of the two of them. The first pic is my fav, btw.

As we finished up, Heather and Zack apologized for being so stiff. Are you kidding me? They totally rocked the shoot! Each little touch, showed their love, from just holding hands to standing with their foreheads together, they exuded love, it was amazing. We hardly had to pose them.

I so love love love love this one:

This is Zack's "what is that crazy photographer doing in the pricker bush?"

I love my job!

{sneak peek} kristina + ryan, 4.17.10, baraboo, wi

2010-04-18T16:58:00.003-05:00

Here's a little peek from Kristina and Ryan's amazing wedding yesterday. I took waaaaaay too many shots, but Kristina was so gorgeous that I just couldn't help myself. Ok, Ryan looked good, too. ;) Seriously, though, Rob, Chris (one of our fabulous assistants) and I had so much fun yesterday, that I am still recalling little bits and pieces to write down for my notes for the big blog post which I promise will come as soon as I go through all the shots to find my favs.

Cheers, and congrats Kristina and Ryan!

{wedding} kate + sam, baraboo, wis

2010-04-12T22:02:00.007-05:00

Ah-maze-ing. First off, I am going to apologize for how long this post is, but I really couldn't narrow down my favorites, I have too many.

So, where to start. The Al Ringling theatre, cupcakes, bowling, argyle socks, homemade cufflinks, giant teal shoes, a blue dress and pizza. How freakin' cool does all that sound?!

Kate and Sam got married at the Al, what an amazing venue. Kate got ready above the marquee sign, she looked gorgeous. She wore an amazing blue dress with black lace and super tall, glitzy heels, although she still didn't come close to being as tall as Sam, who I swear is the tallest person that I know! Sam wore a grey pinstripe suit, oh swoon, with a sweet teal tie, which I totally love! argyle socks and matching teal shoes, that they, and I do mean Kate, painted. Kate's bouquet was made up of brooches, it was a totally homemade wedding and we were so lucky and honored to have been a part of the day. It was all one big party.

What can be better than walking in on Kate getting ready and seeing two of the most ginormous balloons ever?!

After the ceremony, which was short and sweet, we headed a block over to the Baraboo Elks Club for the reception and some bowling. Yeah, you heard me, bowling! The reception was one big party and after Kate found her missing keys, it really got started.

Ian's pizza from Madison catered, Rob had the chicken pesto while I had a slice of their lasagna marinara, and let me tell you, we are in love! The food was amazing, the venue was awesome and we had a blast!

There was a giant tower of cupcakes, with little clowns guarding them and the best cake toppers: a giraffe and a hippo.

I swear, this was the best start to our 2010 season. Thanks Kate and Sam for making the day amazing!!!

PS. I love me some blog love, so leave a comment, I love to hear your thoughts.

{real life} miss rachael

2010-04-08T10:53:00.001-05:00

rachaelw, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Rachael's mom contacted us about getting Rachael's eight grade graduation pictures. We had so much fun with Rachael. She was up for all the crazy poses, and the chill outdoor settings for some fun shots. She's even got the best smile, although I don't believe that Rachael believed me when I told her that.
Good luck Rachael on this next step in life!

I remember when I graduated from eight grade, I went to a private school and it was the last big hurrah for my friends and I.I was so excited and nervous about leaving my little corner of the world, but it's breaking out of your old molds that make us into the people that we can become.

{personal} a little assignment

2010-04-05T23:05:00.001-05:00

taking care of business, originally uploaded by briemarie.

So, most of my friends know that every week I get a shooting assignment from an online group. It makes me a better photographer, I get to have fun, and I take some shots that I wouldn't have thought of otherwise. Like this shot for "violence".

I was over at the inlaws tonight and I was trying to figure out what to do, when I realized that I have two willing subjects. So, I asked my niece and Rob's little cousin, if they wanted to be dead. For pretend, of course. ;) They jumped at the chance, and both got to switch up laying on the ground in the coming rain. Hahaha, I love this shot, though.

{sneak peek} heather + zack's gtkys

2010-03-31T21:18:00.001-05:00

heather + zack, originally uploaded by briemarie.

I had to post a little teaser from Heather and Zack's awesome Get to Know You Session. We had a blast walking around the strip in the Dells, and the light was luscious!

There's definitely more to come, the full post from Kate and Sam's wedding, once I manage to figure out which of the totally rockin' shots to put on here, along with Heather and Zack's full post. Busy days ahead!

{sneak peek}

2010-03-28T07:29:00.001-05:00

big balloons, originally uploaded by briemarie.

I had to share a little sneak peek from Kate and Sam's amazing wedding. I mean, how awesome is it when you walk into a room, see a pair of the biggest balloons in your life, and the bride says "we want to walk down the aisle with these, what do you think?".
Heck yeah, we love love love the idea! I swear, I was dancing on air the whole day. Anyways, here's a little peak, be prepared for more to come, including, but definitely not limited to: blue dress, tissue paper, pizza, beer, bowling and more!
Kate and Sam, if you see this before leaving for Jamaica, have a great time!

{chattin' it up}

2010-03-26T22:51:00.001-05:00

8m onths bibby, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Where should I start? We had an awesome portrait session this evening with miss Rachael, she is graduating from 8th grade this year, exciting right? She has the best smile, although I'm pretty sure she didn't believe me. I'm tellin' ya, Rachael, great smile! I'll get some shots up in a bit from her session.
Right now, I am so excited that I may just pee my pants. Have you ever been this excited?! We are shooting our first wedding of the season tomorrow and, drumroll please, it's at the Al Ringling. Seriously my peeps, I don't think that you can understand how exciting this wedding is. It is a great start to our 2010 season, and our next wedding will then be one of my best friends! Awesome, right?! Whenever I start thinking about either wedding, I just get this silly grin on my face and I start to giggle helplessly. Yessiree Bob, I am that excited!
So, in honor of how totally psyched I am, because I've used the word excite way too much already in this post, I thought I would share a shot of Jamie when she knows that her food is ready. She loves food, and so far, we have been making our very own baby food. She loves it, we love her. All is good in the world.

Ok, peace out my peeps, I have got to get some sleep!

{personal} here comes Spring

2010-03-12T21:51:00.003-06:00

I think that Winter has lasted long enough. I am ready for the weather to start warming, the snow to melt and the grass to grow so we can get outside! I feel like I've been cooped up all winter, I can not wait to get Jamie out in the stroller and walking around. I have tons of plans for this summer. Jamie loves to look out the window, so I just know that she is going to love being in the stroller and seeing everything around us. We've gone on short little walks, it being so cold, but nothing too long.
She loves her Jeep stroller, it's the best.

This week has been a struggle. I had a sudden work switch around and ended up working during the week, I know what you're thinking, but I actually work weekends so Jamie doesn't get stuck with some crazy babysitter. No offense baby sitters - my mom was one, that's how I know. ;) We want to keep her with family, I know it's a little crazy and Rob claims that I am paranoid. He's probably right. Anyways, back on track: so, I had to work, which meant that on Thursday, when we were expecting a new package, someone had to be home to sign for it. Well, it finally arrived, but not before I made Rob walk up the street and back down in the thick white fog that had been laying on the ground for the past two days.

He's the best, please tell him I said so, I don't think he believes me.

Our package arrived and Rob is ecstatic! He, of course had to be just like me, and order Nikon's D700. I love mine, I named him Boris. Now, we need to name Rob's new addition. We took both cameras, Jamie and Jeep stroller out to the zoo today for a little test drive. Rob is even more in love now (I don't let him play with Boris very often) with his new camera. I can't blame him, the pics are luscious and gorgeous. Now if only I can talk him into the new 24mm...

Let's hope the fog means that winter is giving way to spring!

{personal} what fills my day

2010-03-06T21:32:00.002-06:00

All right, my blogging has been pretty non existent for the past month. I have so much that I want to share with all of you, and yet, it seems like I never have enough time in the day to get everything done. I know that I am not the most organized of people, ask Rob, he'll tell you. But there is a method to my madness. Try sitting in on one of my dreams sometime, I have the craziest dreams. I've heard that people don't dream in color, not true, I have the most vivid dreams, plus I can read. What does that mean, I suppose? It's on of my weirdities. Oh yeah, totally made up word at that. Wink, wink.

We have so many plans and ideas that we have for this coming year. Our days have been filled, not only with work, photography and baby, but with all the outrageous thoughts racing through our heads. We have our Senior Reps for Baraboo already, headshots are done and we are already talking to more students about having their senior pictures taken this summer. I can not believe that my baby sister will be a senior this year. Have I gotten that old?! I suppose it's true, time flies.

As I look back at the last seven months, I am amazed. Jamie is sitting up by herself, eating solid foods on a regular basis (so far the favourite is bananas), she tries to "swim" while on her tummy on a blanket and pretty soon she will be crawling all around. We had an awesome time at the Once Upon a Time bridal fair in the Dells and booked two amazing couples that day. We started offering metal prints, yes they are metal and you just have to clean them with windex, how sweet is that?! I bought a new car, with Jamie in mind, I'll miss my Jeep, but hey, priorities change.

I wanted to leave you all with some shots of what, or shall I say who, has been keeping me so busy the last couple of months. She does sleep through the night, thank goodness, but by the time she's in bed, we are, too. She just wears us out! We are so blessed to have such a beautiful and healthy baby girl, I can only wish that everyone else is just as lucky in their own endeavors.

She has the best expressions, and she talks now. Nothing understandable of course, but she talks gibberish and we talk back to her. She loves it. She gives kisses now, and as soon as she learns to close her mouth during these kisses, I believe that we will get less slobbery, but we wouldn't trade a kiss for the world.

I never imagined my life would turn out this way. I am amazed. As if this wasn't enough, we have the best start to our wedding season this year. Two of my old high school friends are getting married in the next month and a half. Our shortest wedding will be later this month, and our longest will be next month. I promise to have an amazingly awesome time at both and hopefully, cross my fingers, get some shots up in a timely manner. ;) I am so psyched! I can't really contain my excitement, and Rob was so jealous of Boris, that he had to order his own just in time for our first weddings. Woohoo.

I hope you all are having a blast. As always, I love to hear from you, so feel free to leave me a comment or two. And yes, I know, she has little bat wing ears, they are gorgeous.

{wedding} dan + alejandra, madison, wi

2010-01-18T20:22:00.007-06:00

Finally, I am making time to blog this super awesome wedding from (please don't be mad!) last September, (I know, I know, it was almost four months ago!). All right, enough about my lack of blogging, onto Dan and Alejandra's gorgeous affair.

What a blast. Dan and Alejandra's wedding went so fast, we got to the church and this was the first time ever, that the girls were ready before the guys. The church was huge, fabulous and full of beautiful stained glass. Ale looked like a model in her dress and Prada shoes, she is tall enough to be a super model for sure. Dan looked handsome in his tux, even if he felt that the sleeves weren't quite long enough.

Ale's sister, Nina sang while Alba played the piano during the ceremony, isn't that awesome?! If only Rob wasn't tone deaf, right?

Well, since the church was in downtown Madison, we stopped by the capital for some fun group shots, waiting for another couple and their horse drawn carriage to move on, I tell ya, it was the day of weddings! There must have been half a dozen couples with the same idea! After those shots, we left downtown for the reception at Olbrich Botanical Gardens. The light was perfectly luscious, we did some more quick group shots in the gardens and then went in for dinner, cake and dancing.

They had guests come all the way from Bolivia, which is where Ale's dad is from, so I got to work on my super rusty Spanish from HS, it's sad that I took four years and don't remember much.

Anyways, we finished off the night with a bubble filled sendoff for the bride and groom! I hope the two of you enjoyed your honeymoon!!

Alejandra, isn't she just gorgeous?!
The girls getting ready.
Dan has such a strong profile!

I loved the bridal party, everyone had so much fun being bored while Dan and Alejandra kissed, and kissed, and kissed...

Why do I always forget my pitchfork at home?

2010 Once Upon A Time Bridal Fair

2010-01-05T11:51:00.002-06:00

Happy New Year!!!!

Well, Rob and I started out our year with the Once Upon A Time Bridal fair at Glacier Canyon in the Dells. It was so much fun, we went a little smaller this year, no couch to lug in, and we used the supplied table instead of bringing in our coffee table from home, I think that the taller table was much easier for people to look through our albums.

We went big this year with our new 20x30 metal print on the back wall which you could totally see as soon as you walked in the doors, how awesome is that?! We also brought our tv from home and had a slideshow of images running all day long. A couple of our past bride's were recognized, which is always awesome, one got called as a referrence and we had two brides snag us up, thanks Sara and Ashley, we totally can not wait until your big days!!

I am stoked, I am still high on the adrenaline of the show, meeting all the amazing couples and their families and friends. I only had one slice of cake from the booth next to us, we were so busy chatting that we did not have any time to really check out everyone else's booth once the show got underway.

We were in the perfect spot to see the fashion show at 2:30, the crowd was huge and the gowns and flowers were all gorgeous! I hope those of you that came and met us had a wonderful time, hopefully you now have tons to think about regarding your own wedding!

Cheers!

{personal} 5 months gone

2009-12-22T12:23:00.001-06:00

5 months thumb sucker, originally uploaded by briemarie.

I can not believe how fast the last five months have flown past. People tell you that they grow fast, but no one tells you how fast your kids grow! Jamie will be five months tomorrow, and every week there is something new. This week is grunting at me and trying to grab anything in my hands, or Rob's hands.

We've got plenty to keep us busy for the next couple of weeks. We will be at the Once Upon a Time bridal fair on January 3, so if you want to check us out for your upcoming wedding and meet with us, come on up to the Dells and we will see you there!

Have a wonderful holiday, merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

{wedding} molly + stu, wisconsin dells, wi

2009-12-09T12:32:00.004-06:00

What a fun day! Although the forecast said rain, we had gorgeous grey clouds and just the tiniest bit of rain, which I have heard is good luck for a wedding. The temperature was perfect, chill but not too cold to take some outdoor shots a the River Walk between the ceremony and reception.

The ceremony was at the United Presbyterian church in the Dells and Pastor Steve was great. Molly and the girls were getting ready in the basement when we arrived, Stu was already in his tux, ready for the formals to start. Princess Alexis, the flower girl, was one of the best models of the day.

Molly's dress was gorgeous! I love lace and her dress was covered in it. After the ceremony, we braved the sprinkling rain for some outdoor shots at the Riverwalk, hit Monks at the Wilderness for a quick drink and a sneak downstairs (Rob knows the peeps there) and then on to the Wintergreen and the reception.

There were a couple bowls of skittles and gummi bears awaiting the guests while they mingled, how sweet!

The meal was delicious, the music hopping. Rob and I had a blast meeting Molly and Stu's families and helping to capture the memories of their day. We played around with off camera lighting at the reception and once again set up the backdrop for an impromptu photobooth area.

Congrats, Molly and Stu!

{sneak peek} a super late sneak of katie + kevin

2009-11-11T14:08:00.002-06:00

Have you ever just looked at a picture and thought, this is love. That is what popped into my head when I saw this shot. Pretty standard, you have got your bride and groom, but I love the emotion conveyed here. Katie and Kevin are so great for each other, they are funny and so calm, I do believe that Katie was the calmest (most calm?!) bride that I have ever had the privilege of capturing memories for. Even with being a bouquet short, she was calm as a cucumber.

Ok, enough about me. Take a look at this shot. Can't you feel the love? It's like when you are first dating and your boyfriend opens the door for you, holds it open when you go shopping, or just unlocks your car door first, and not because his is frozen. Hint, hint, Rob, I like it when you do stuff for me. ;) Anyways, feel the love in this shot, know that I love some blog loving so leave me a comment if you like, and I know, I've got tons more to blog about! Stay tuned, I'll get some more up very very soon.

{happy halloween} jamie's first!

2009-10-31T21:05:00.003-05:00

Happy Halloween!!! This is my favourite time of year. I love the smell of fall, yes there really is one, the colors as they change, the way that families come together, I love it all. Halloween is my favourite holiday. It's the one day of the year when you can be anything you want. Usually, I would dress up with Rob, but this year I just didn't have the time. We did, however, dress up our little sugar plum, she's a pink Jaguar, isn't she the cutest baby in the world?

Okay, maybe I'm biased on that account, but I love seeing all the costumes, the best ones are always homemade and once Jamie gets bigger, I want to be able to help her create the most outrageous and unique costumes. I'm hoping that she loves Halloween as much as her daddy and I do.

I hope everyone has a safe Halloween, don't eat all your candy in one sitting, and know that I still have so much more to talk about, like the luscious metal prints that showed up on Thursday.

Enjoy my little Jaguar:

{in love} dan + alejandra, 8.30.09

2009-10-23T14:13:00.002-05:00

Ok, you've got me, I'm super super late on posting Dan and Ale's engagement shoot! I should be posting their amazing wedding from last month, but life has been so crazy hectic that I am so far behind. What's amazing is that both Dan and Alejandra are over 6 feet tall, yeah really. Now, I don't usually feel short, but today I did. I'm used to Rob being taller than me, but I'm fairly tall for a girl. The best part is that Dan and Alejandra were, basically, set up because they were both so tall, isn't that funny, and they totally hit it off together.

They are so easy going, just wait for the wedding post and you'll see how Alejandra rocked the high heels in her beautiful lace covered gown!

Take a look at this gorgeous couple, we just shot around Ale's parents house in Madison, and had a blast:

{personal} the ooooooh face

2009-10-20T19:49:00.001-05:00

ooooh oooh, originally uploaded by briemarie.

I know I've been rather lax on blogging lately. This is my excuse. I still find it hard to believe that one tiny little girl can take up so much time. She's sweet and sassy, she gets her stubbornness from her father. We are so blessed to have her.

Jamie is starting to talk to us now. Of course we can't understand a thing that comes out of her mouth, but she makes noises, smiles at our silly antics and even giggles, for her grandmothers. Currently, she's crying downstairs with Rob, so I don't have much time, just enough to post this tiny snippet.

I promise there is more to come. Way more, we have been so crazy busy the last couple of weeks that we are just now starting to get back on track with everything. Enjoy this shot of our sassy little girl and know that I have a ton more to post very soon!

{personal} jamie's christening gown

2009-10-06T20:43:00.003-05:00

When I had my baby shower, I opened one of those boxes. You know the kind, the long white ones you get when you're a kid that you detest because you know that it's clothes and you really just want toys. Right? Anyways, I open up this box and there's a note on top.

I could not believe what it said. My mom had her wedding dress cut down for a baptism gown. I still find this hard to believe even though the gown is hanging up in Jamie's closet. It's taken me a couple of months, but here it is. She wore it on Wednesday for her baptism, surprisingly it was a little big, but she looked so cute.

The gown is amazing, full of lace, off white, take a look for yourselves.

skylar {class of 2010} olbrich botanical garden, madison

2009-10-05T20:21:00.004-05:00

Skylar is a friend of Caitlin's, you may remember her senior session out at Devil's Lake. Skylar was a blast to work with, outgoing and willing to do all the crazy things we asked. She had even brought along her yellow prom dress, I know - yellow. I find that yellow is a hard colour to wear, I look horribly sick in yellow, but Skylar totally pulled it off. She was gorgeous!

We met at her grandmother's house and then headed to Olbrich Botanical Gardens, which was amazing. It was the first time that Rob and I had been there. It's huge and each path we took led us to great backdrops and amazing colors, there was even a temple! Seriously, how cool is that? It was really hard to choose my fav's, sorry that there's a ton of images to look at!

This is one of my fav's, I just loved the tree:

And then, is she not gorgeous in the next two? The light is amazing here:

She's like a princess awaiting her prince:

{sneak peek} molly + stu, wedding, wi dells

2009-10-03T22:13:00.001-05:00

molly + stu wedding sneak peek, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Just a quick little sneak peek of Molly and Stu. We had such a fun day, even with the rain clouds that sprinkled on us for just a bit.

Full post to come soon, we've got a super busy weekend planned, the wedding today and then a couple of portrait sessions tomorrow. We are just on a roll.

{outtake} Dan + Ale's wedding

2009-09-27T21:59:00.001-05:00

outtake, originally uploaded by briemarie.

As I was going through all the photos from Dan and Alejandra's wedding, I stumbled upon this gem. To me, it looks like Rob is break dancing for the bridal party. I giggled cuz it's just so funny to me. Rob doesn't dance. It's just so funny. We had a great time at the wedding, full post to come, although I haven't even blogged their engagement session, I'm just so far behind!

{album} amanda + aaron's book o' happiness

2009-09-24T16:55:00.005-05:00

I love our album vendor, seriously love them! They rock the albums, take a look at Amanda and Aaron's album, we shot their wedding in May and they now have this fabulous heirloom to share with their friends and family.

It's a Finao flushmount 10x10 inches of luscious goodness with a silk brocade in Dusk and leather spine in Opaline. This baby is gorgeous, just take a look for yourselves. There are so many options when it comes to making your album, that we know you can find the perfect look for you and your wedding, make it match, make it not, just as long as you love it.

I love their packaging, and it's completely recycled, pineapple leaves, mulberry leaves, yum.

Just a little look compared to a couple of our other albums.

caitlin {class of 2010} devil's lake, baraboo

2009-09-22T23:23:00.004-05:00

Caitlin and I met up one bright Sunday morning a couple weeks ago for her senior session out at Devil's Lake. As I was driving, the morning fog was dissipating, resulting in a beautifully sunny morning at the lake. Perfect for walking down one of the trails for some fun shots.

Caitlin came prepared, she had plenty of outfits and the jewelry to go along with it. I love that we had plenty to choose from. Although her favourite was the white shirt, which she totally rocked! She was up for everything I asked of her, we both climbed out on the rocks in the lake and got some great shots with the light coming behind her. She could totally model, I swear that in some shots, I didn't even recognize her!

Enjoy the shots.

{love} lisa + jake, chula vista, wis deslls

2009-09-20T23:02:00.004-05:00

I am so far behind on posting, and I do apologize for that. Some of you may remember Lisa and Jake's engagement session from a couple months ago. Well, we shot their wedding the end of August (yes, I'm that far behind!) at the beautiful Chula Vista resort in Wisconsin Dells.

The day was beautiful, I think that we just get blessed with gorgeous days. Lisa and Jake got married outside beneath the blue sky and towering trees, who could have asked for a prettier backdrop! Lisa's dress was gorgeous, and I loved her flowers, who wouldn't with that hot pink?

Plus, for the reception, each table had their very own cake! How sweet is that? I love cake. We had a blast, and we set up our photobooth for the first time at the reception. What a hit!

So, take a look, I hear a crying baby, so need to hurry off, enjoy!

Look at how cute Levi is here, he would be a great model.

hannah {class of 2010} Pewitt's Nest, Baraboo, Wi

2009-09-08T20:10:00.005-05:00

So, we met Hannah and her mom and sister out at Pewitt's Nest to begin her senior portrait session. She brought the most fabulous outfits! Seriously, this girl has style, way more than I have ever had, that's for sure.

We started out by the creek and then hiked up the hill to get on top of the rocks for some awesome landscape shots with the waterfalls in the background. Have I mentioned that we love to explore? After a couple outfit changes, we headed to downtown Baraboo where Hannah put on her amazing prom dress *swoon* it was fabulous! Some of my favourite shots are of her in that dress, although all her clothes were awesome, and I am so jealous!

Take a look at Hannah's amazing session:

This is one of my fav's, it reminds me of Cinderella:

Hannah and her little sis:

I saw this one in camera and knew I would love it!

{in love} stephanie + dan, baraboo, wi

2009-08-27T21:06:00.002-05:00

We first met Stephanie with her mom when they came to check us out. We knew that if they booked, it would be the first week in August that we could meet Dan and do their engagement shoot. I was worried since my due date was July 31st, but baby came early and when Stephanie called to say she wanted to book, Rob told her the news.

Needless to say, when they came up for their engagement shoot, I slowly followed with Jamie in a sling while Rob did all the hard work. Although, he really didn't have to work that hard, these two are pros at modeling. And smiling. Stephanie and Dan were so much fun to work with. Can you tell Dan is a football player? He plays down in Indiana, which is why we didn't have a big window of opportunity for their engagement shoot, he only came up to visit for a week.

We took them to downtown Baraboo and got some amazing shots. It's always exciting, we try to do something different with each couple, whether that's a new location, a new pose or just going off the spur of the moment. I know we're going to have so much fun at their wedding next year. Enjoy the images, Rob picked his favourites:

{love} jen + bart, waunakee, wi, 8.8.09

2009-08-25T19:22:00.006-05:00

It's taken me a bit longer to get this post up than usual, I will blame it on the baby!

When we woke up on Jen and Bart's wedding day, we were a little worried, the sky was grey and it was raining! Not a good thing for an outdoor wedding, but by the time we started the storm clouds blew away, leaving great big gorgeous white fluffy clouds and a beautiful day!

Jen and Bart met before the ceremony and we drove down to Madison for some kicking formals at the Union Terrace, which is where they had their first date, and then at the Capital. Not only were Jen and Bart amazing, but they had an awesome wedding party and were up for all the crazy things we asked them to do! Believe me, some things we ask are truly crazy, but if you're willing to put your trust in us, we will make some amazing images.

After finishing up the formals in Madison, we headed back up to Waunakee for the ceremony, which was performed by Bart's dad, awesome cape by the way, I think that Bart needs to get one of his own. The light was perfect and luscious, and I loved the red rose petals carpeting the grass, if you couldn't tell by all the pictures I took of those! The whole day was loads of fun. Dinner was fabulous and the cake cutting, well, there was no cake. Jen and Bart had pie! Seriously, how sweet is that?! Several different flavours, I tried the Reese's and Rob had pecan, with whipped cream, we love sweets.

Everyone was on the dance floor when we left, the DJ was playing the best dance music, nothing lame for this group. I love it when the music is hopping and there are tons of people on the dance floor.

Congrats, Jen and Bart, you two make an amazing couple!

{personal} little faces

2009-08-23T19:37:00.001-05:00

scrunched up, originally uploaded by briemarie.

I can't believe how fast a month goes by and how many changes can happen in that time. Since Jamie's been born, we've shot two weddings and several family and engagement shoots, I've lost all track of time, and she's already changing!

I've got both weddings to finish up, along with the other sessions to blog and I promise to get some up this week. Cross your fingers that little miss will be more cooperative, and if anyone has any ideas on how to get her to sleep at night that would be awesome!

Plus, we tried out a photobooth last night at the wedding, we'll talk all about that this week. It rocked!

{sneak peek} jen + bart - wedding

2009-08-19T22:24:00.003-05:00

I've been working through Jen and Bart's images and there are so many awesome shots that it's been really hard to choose which ones to put up, so I grabbed a couple for now, I know usually I'm much quicker, but the new baby takes up much more of my time than I had anticipated, so here's just a quick sneak peek for now.

Look at how handsome Bart is.

They decided to meet before hand, which gave us plenty of time for some quick butt formals.

And look at that, Rob hard at work. I hardly ever see pics of us working. We had our assistant, Chris, on the shoot with us, we weren't sure if I'd be completely back to myself after giving birth and wanted to be prepared.

{baby bump} karen - devil's lake

2009-08-11T22:38:00.004-05:00

Some of you may know that while I was pregnant, two of my closest friends were due around the same time. My best friend, Karen, wanted to do some maternity shots before her little boy arrived. So, we decided to hit the lake, good thing we went that day, too, because six days later little Victor arrived! I had so much fun with Karen and her family, you may recognize them from a family session last year. Karen is so gorgeous and the kids adore her, although poor little Sylvie just wants mommy to hold her and at this point, there's no place for her to go on Karen! It must have looked funny, two pregnant women tramping through the woods, but we had so much fun, we found an awesomely twisted tree, and no poison ivy -we were a little worried about that, but no itching, so we're all good. Karen was up for tons of poses. Plus, I even got her to get a little wet, just a little, there was no jumping into the lake for us, although it did warm up nicely.

I love the way that the light seems to be centered just on her in this shot:

Seriously, isn't she gorgeous? I swear I never realized how hawt she was until today, just look at those eyes!

These are just a few from the beginning of our session, I can't believe how long ago that was. I know I'm way behind on posting, please forgive me, the new baby is taking up way more time than I imagined. Although I could just watch her sleep for hours, now if she would just sleep at night.

{new arrival} jamie kathryn

2009-07-31T15:09:00.002-05:00

So, most of you may know that today is my due date. If not, today was supposed to be "D day". Plans change. Little miss Jamie made her debut last Thursday! I can't believe it's taken me this long to get some shots of her up on the blog! Although, no one tells you how tired you will be after giving birth. Jamie is healthy and home, she weighed 6 pounds 14 ounces and was 19 1/2 inches long, and she is just gorgeous!

Ok, I may be a bit biased on that last statement, but everyone that has seen her tells us how beautiful she is. She has little notches on her ears, I have one like that, but her grandpapa is taking all the credit for that one (although if you ask him, he will claim she looks just like him, pay him no mind). Rob calls her feet "Frodo feet" because they are so big, she has long toes, too. I love them, I could just nibble on them.

So far, Jamie sleeps a lot, she snores, too! Rob recorded her snoring on his phone, it's so funny! Our day is centered around her now, thank goodness that Rob has these first two weeks off with me, I don't know what I would do without him, although after that my sister will be here.

My little girl is going to be so spoiled!

{new arrival} baby c

2009-07-15T15:02:00.001-05:00

oh so tiny, originally uploaded by briemarie.

My friend Jess is now infamous at the hospital! She may be forever known as the three minute delivery, can you believe that? This little guy barely made it to the hospital before he was here. Little Mister Clayton was born at 1:59 in the morning, weighing in at 8 pounds, 7 ounces, and he was two weeks early to boot! Isn't he so cute, though? He has the chubbiest little cheeks and the longest toes. I'm definitely feeling closer to having my own, although I'm hoping that the labor is long enough to get the doctor in the room. I'm sure that we'll be seeing much more of little Clayton in the coming weeks.

{in love} molly + stu, pewitt's nest + downtown baraboo

2009-07-13T22:58:00.004-05:00

My pregnant brain has totally lost all track of time! Rob and I met up with Molly and Stu on the 18th out at Pewitt's Nest, neither of them had been out there before, so we got to explore with them. Rob had us hiking all over, and the exercise was well worth it. The light was luscious and Molly and Stu were so much fun! They are always smiling, even when trying to be serious, I love it!

We hiked up, and then back down by the creek bed, where we got some fun shots and reflections in the water. The weatherman said rain, but it held off for us, although it was nice and hot for our session. After Pewitt's Nest, we headed downtown and then out by the Old Baraboo Inn once we saw the concert on the square was going on - too many people and absolutely no parking!

We got some fun shots on the railroad tracks along with the awesome red walls of the Old Baraboo Inn. We had such a blast and can't wait for their wedding in October, these two are so much fun.

{personal} little pyro

2009-07-08T14:37:00.001-05:00

sparklers, originally uploaded by briemarie.

We didn't do a ton for the fourth, just went over to the in-laws for burgers on the grill. We can see the higher fireworks at their house from the backyard, which is awesome. Little miss loved the sparklers, she was not as impressed with the fireworks, but could have lit off sparklers all night.

I hope everyone had a great weekend!

{shot for today} blue skies

2009-06-30T21:47:00.001-05:00

surrounded by fields of green, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Do we not have the weirdest weather here in Wisconsin? I mean really, last week we could barely get around it was so unbearably hot and this week it's chilly and rainy?

Well, here's a shot from yesterday when the sun was deciding to shine on us!

{in love} sara + kirk, part II

2009-06-29T22:13:00.003-05:00

As promised, here is part II of Sara and Kirk's engagement session. We had so much fun getting the two of them to do all the crazy things. We have the coolest clients evah!

{personal} baby shower day!

2009-06-28T20:45:00.001-05:00

test paints, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Today was our baby shower! We had a table set up for people to paint onesies, and there were so many creative masterpieces! Even the kids helped out, I can't wait to put baby in the outfits. There was cake, punch and a taco bar. It was so great to visit with all the family and friends, especially since it's not often that everyone is together in one place.
Baby is definitely going to be spoiled rotten.

{in love} sara + kirk, downtown baraboo, devil's lake, wi

2009-06-27T18:15:00.003-05:00

This will be part I of II, so be prepared to see more of Sara and Kirk!

Sara and Kirk met us at the house, they took a look at our kitchen disaster/makeover and then we headed downtown to start the session. I love the old brick buildings that surround the square. Love them! We walked around the square, stopping here and there for the perfect shots of Sara and Kirk, they were up for anything. Even the crazy requests that I asked for, we did get a few weird looks from people driving and walking by, but that's normal for us.

Now, Sara had called Rob a couple days before the shoot worried about the rain, Rob, of course, told her not to worry until the day of (the weatherman is always wrong!) because it was gorgeous out! Sara and Kirk had some ideas that they wanted to try out, Rob and I were all game, a few shots were even thought up at the same time, it was like Sara had telepathic powers and was reading our mind! Awesome, right? After the gorgeous light downtown, have I mentioned that I am loving flare lately? We headed to lower Ochsner's to get some shots of the bridge and then drove out to the lake, where of course we asked our lovely couple to get wet. We even did "the Notebook" shot - which turned out awesome! We had so much fun and are truly blessed with the most awesome couples!

Take a look at part I:

I just had to add this one, it was one of those crazy poses I wanted to try out!

Doesn't Sara have gorgeous model hair? I am totally jealous, because mine just frizzes out on me.

This is the shot I got of "the Notebook" pose:

And here is Rob's (we had almost a second to grab the shot before Sara was back in the water):

{shot for today} strawberry heart

2009-06-26T23:27:00.001-05:00

deformed, originally uploaded by briemarie.

We went out, braving the heat, to pick some strawberries from the Berry Farmer, I've been craving them lately. They are so delicious, although all this heat is making them ripen much faster than usual!

{baby bump} missy + mike, in the studio and out at the farm

2009-06-25T21:41:00.005-05:00

Mike had called me about a month before the shoot to schedule his wife's baby bump shots for their first anniversary. How sweet! So, on the 14th, which is not only my little brother's birthday and flag day, it was their anniversary, and the day was perfect, albeit a tiny bit warm. They met me at the house, amid our kitchen remodeling disaster. I was so excited when Missy told me that she was willing to do anything! I know that I clapped my hands with glee!

So, we took off to the studio where Missy got all wrapped up, I have seriously been waiting for someone as adventurous as her to come along! We had such a blast in the studio that we decided to head out to my mom's farm, Mike and Missy are friends of the family after all, and get some shots with Mike's tractor. OMG - what an amazing day with a beautiful sky and gorgeous model. Missy is truly stunning, her belly is so perfect and round! And tiny, I swear that my own is way bigger and Missy is due a week and a half before I am, and she is just gorgeous! She is also one of the few pregnant women I know, that wanted to be surprised by what she's having, isn't that just more fun? I thought so. I can't wait to be surprised on the big day.

Pregnant women are just stunning. Take a look at our day, we had so much fun together, and it was great really getting to know Missy, because although they are friends of the family, I had never spent so much time with her.

Look at how cute these two are together:

I love their expressions in these two!

Mike claims that every time he puts his head next to Missy's belly, the baby moves it's butt next to him.

{personal} heat wave!

2009-06-24T22:33:00.001-05:00

gridlocked, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Holy cow, can you believe this heat we've been having? Rob has decided that the ac is going to be on, although it doesn't actually cool the room that I edit in, thank goodness he put up an extra ac unit in the window, this heat is just killing me! Tonight, I took a little break from editing and designing albums to hit the pool for the first time since I was a kid, it was glorious! I'm sure that we'll go to the pool more often, especially if this weather doesn't cool down!

I hope everyone is trying to stay cool, drink plenty of fluids!

{personal} cloud shapes

2009-06-23T21:37:00.001-05:00

clouds in grey, originally uploaded by briemarie.

What a beautiful sky! Other than the heat and humidity, it was gorgeous out today! I didn't really want to go outside, but we had an appointment to see how baby is doing, and drove down to Sauk with the doors off the Jeep and the wind in our hair. As we were driving, we could not help but look at the glorious blue sky dotted with the clotted cream clouds making amazing shapes.

We found out that baby is doing fine, and is most likely rounding out this week at 5 and a half pounds. The little thing has been moving like crazy lately, sticking it's tiny little butt in my side all day, it will be a very strange day when the baby is born and I no longer feel it moving inside me.

{spread the love}

2009-06-22T23:06:00.001-05:00

relaxing, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Today would mark my dad's 56th birthday, but he checked out early so we don't actually have anything to celebrate. I remember going out the summer before he died to Arby's and he wanted to get the senior citizen discount, but I told him he'd have to wait for a couple more years. Little did we know that he didn't have that kind of time.
I know yesterday was Father's Day, but still, I think we should all spend a little extra time with the people that we love and make sure that they know we love them.

Spread the love!

{happy father's day!}

2009-06-21T21:02:00.001-05:00

Independence Hall, originally uploaded by briemarie.

What a beautiful day to celebrate dads. The sun was out, and while it was a bit muggy, it was perfect to go out for ice cream and show some dairy love, which is perfect since June is dairy month, my dad would have been proud.

Have an awesome day!

{baby update} 34 weeks + counting

2009-06-20T22:03:00.001-05:00

34 weeks 1 day duo, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Goodness, time sure flies when you aren't sure what you're getting yourself into! We know what the outcome is, but are we ready? Yes and no, baby's room has been painted, the name is picked out, but we still need to get a lot of the big things, like a crib and the like, I don't believe that baby will enjoy living in the carseat forever.

I'm anxious to meet the little acrobat, and yet still scared of all the changes to come, but my parents survived so I know that Rob and I can do this together. He's so excited. Now I feel baby move all the time, but sometimes when Rob puts his hand on my belly, it will just settle down, which is awesome when I'm ready for a little rest, but that means that he doesn't get to feel the little darling while it's somersaulting around in there. I know he loves to feel it move just as much as I do.

Anyways, everyone enjoy your weekend, don't forget that tomorrow is father's day, tell him you love him, you never know when you won't get that chance!

{personal} the wedding ring test

2009-06-19T22:33:00.001-05:00

circles of love, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Tonight we went out to dinner with Rob's parents at the Peking Buffet, I love Chinese, and we go there so much that they recognize us, sad but true. The food is awesome! Now, I'm a little picky on which fortune cookie is mine, though, if you have ever gone out to eat at the Chinese restaurant you will know this: mine is the one that lands closest to me, don't mess with my fortune cookie! Anyways, my fortune tonight was: Tomorrow will be lucky and memorable for you. Rob's fortune says: A small lucky package is on its way to you soon.

I'm just hoping it doesn't mean baby's coming tomorrow! Anyways, once we got home, we tried the wedding ring test to find out what baby is. Basically, you take a piece of thread, hang the wedding band on it, and dangle it above the pregnant woman's belly, or wrist (we did both). It swung like a pendulum, so according to that it will be a boy, but I'll take that with a grain of salt and we'll see once baby shows up. Only six more weeks to go!

{sneak peek} molly + stu, gtkys, Pewitt's Nest, baraboo

2009-06-18T21:59:00.001-05:00

m+s gtkys, originally uploaded by briemarie.

We went out with Molly and Stu tonight for their engagement shoot. Rob made us hike all over Pewitt's Nest, but we got some awesome shots. So, of course, I need to get a little teaser up for my fans! Enjoy!

{in love} lisa + jake, devil's lake, baraboo, wi

2009-06-17T21:39:00.002-05:00

We met Lisa and Jake at the house, where we proceeded out to the North Shore at Devil's Lake. We stopped at the rock steps to get a few quick shots of the couple, and of course, the DNR pulled up to check for stickers. Oh, the drama! After the DNR disaster, Rob tried telling the warden that it was our fault for stopping, since you can't go, get the sticker and come back up the hill without leaving the park, but he wouldn't listen to him, we were buying a sticker anyways. I should have gone down with my preggo belly to explain the situation, but my luck I wouldn't have made it in time since I'm just so slow and I've started to waddle, yes people, waddle. Once the sticker had been bought, we proceeded on to the rest of our session.

Other than that, we had an exciting shoot. Lisa and Jake brought their son, Levi-what a little ham! He helped make sure that Lisa and Jake were smiling while getting into a few shots of his own. We walked around the lake a bit to get some shots on the rocks by the water, along with making everyone take thier shoes off for some shots under the concession stand, it's becoming a big favourite of ours. We found out that Jake does a lot of fishing competitions, I'm in awe at people that have that kind of patience, truly the only thing that I have ever caught are snags!

We had a lot of fun getting to know Lisa and Jake, along with Levi and can't wait for their wedding in August. Enjoy the photos:

I couldn't decide which I like better, black and white or color, so I did both!

{personal} tiny lucinda

2009-06-16T17:01:00.001-05:00

tiny lucinda, originally uploaded by briemarie.

So, my mom calls me up on Wednesday last week, I think it was Wednesday, to tell me all about the new calf they had. She is so tiny and adorable! Babies, no matter what kind, are always so cute! So, when we went out to the farm Sunday for my little brother's birthday, I can not believe how old he is! I took some shots of Tiny Lucinda, which is what they are calling her.

{sneak peek} sara + kirk, gtkys - devil's lake, baraboo

2009-06-15T20:02:00.001-05:00

s+k engagement shoot, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Here's just an inkling of what went on last night out at the lake! We had such a blast, and I absolutely love Sara's expression in this shot! Big post to come, but for now you'll have to settle for a couple little teasers.

2009-06-15T20:00:00.001-05:00

s+k engagement shoot, originally uploaded by briemarie.

{sneak peek} missy's baby bump

2009-06-14T14:48:00.001-05:00

baby bump ms, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Oh my goodness, did I not tell you that pregnant women are gorgeous? If I haven't, I definitely need to. I went out with Missy and Mike this morning to the farm, and we rocked the field, tractor and back pasture, along with getting some awesome shots in the studio. The day dawned perfectly for us! I'm posting one of my fav's, and there are so many that it's going to be hard to choose!
So, here I am teasing you with just one!

{personal} graduation cake

2009-06-13T22:00:00.001-05:00

graduation cake, originally uploaded by briemarie.

We hit our first graduation party today, and that meant visiting with family that we don't see very much and eating cake! I have a total sweet tooth, and love cake, especially Donna Ramsey cakes, they are the best!

I hope everyone got out to enjoy the beautiful weather we had today. Rob and I took the top off the Jeep, but then came home to paint the baby's room, it's now a lovely shade of aquamarine!

{shot for today} ready to play

2009-06-12T22:33:00.001-05:00

wilson glove, originally uploaded by briemarie.

It's the first day of summer vacation for Baraboo and that always reminds me of going to the pool, little league games and visiting the lake on those hot summer days.

Let's bring on the summer and the wonderful weather for our photographing pleasure!

{personal} first missing tooth

2009-06-11T21:50:00.001-05:00

missing, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Cheyanne lost her first tooth today. It's been loose for the last couple of weeks and today after school she was chowing down on a Laffy Taffy when out came the tooth, what a scary sensation! But now she's so excited to see what the Tooth Fairy is going to leave her.

Oh, the joys of youth.

forgotten melodies

2009-06-10T22:23:00.001-05:00

forgotten melodies, originally uploaded by briemarie.

My mom took us out to Monk's tonight and they had one of the dueling piano guys there. I believe that they are calling it the Mojo Show, and every Wednesday in June, one of the pianists will be downtown at Monk's. It was awesome, the place was packed and the music was nice and loud.
This is definitely not his piano, but the only shot that I've got of one, and what's more fun than seeing some photography every day, right?

{shot for today} crane mobile

2009-06-09T21:25:00.001-05:00

crane mobile, originally uploaded by briemarie.

The first time we saw this mobile, I didn't have the camera with me, but today I came prepared. This super sweet origami crane mobile is hanging in one of the exam rooms at the clinic. I've only gotten this room twice, but I love to look at the cranes, I can't imagine how long it took to make that many and hang them all up together. This is just a tiny slice of the entire thing. Cool, huh?

Speaking of the clinic, the doctor said that everything is looking normal, baby is growing just fine. Rob and I got to hear the heartbeat, I love that, it always makes me feel good when I hear that little heart beating. I think that may be my favourite part of the entire visit to the doctor each time. Plus, this time the doctor felt my stomach to see how baby was positioned, and although we still have 7 weeks to go, the baby seems to be pointing in the right direction. I'm still quite nervous on the whole it comes out part, but everyone tells me it will be fine.

Cheers everyone!

{info} dressing for portrait sessions

2009-06-08T15:10:00.001-05:00

maraschinos, originally uploaded by briemarie.

I know, the cherries totally don't fit in with the theme, but they are a super fun shot, so I though, why not?

People will often ask about what to wear for their portrait sessions. Well, wear something that you are comfortable in, feel free to bring a change of clothes or two, we'll let you know what would look best. Jeans are always great because you can move around easily, and when we ask you to do something crazy, like sit on that rock-you don't have to worry that you'll ruin your snazzy pants. If there is more than one person in the shoot, it's best to try and coordinate with each other, now this doesn't mean that your outifts need to match, like sailor suits, but if you're wearing a fancy dress and the other person is in holey jeans and an old t-shirt, it's probably not going to look the best. Solid colors look great on everybody, sometimes bold patterns try to take away from the people that we are trying to photograph, even if it is your favourite Hawaiian print shirt, it will take all the glory and leave none for your own cuteness.

Keep it simple, that's always the best motto to go with.

{shot for today} rebel

2009-06-07T22:30:00.003-05:00

Photographers that do pets must have a lot of patience. I can never get them to do what I want, take Rebel for example. He belongs to Rob's parents and is a huge moose of a dog, and he loves people, but he doesn't stop moving! I'm lucky he stopped for this shot.

{personal} mail call

2009-06-06T21:28:00.002-05:00

Rob and I came home after work today to find a package waiting for me in the mailbox. I love to get the mail, ever since I've been a kid I have loved to open up the mailbox and see what kind of treasures were to be found within. Today, I found my novel waiting to be paged through for the very first time. Oh, the excitement.

For the last two years, I have participated in NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month during November. The goal is to write a 50,000 word manuscript in 30 days. So far, I have succeeded both times. Last year, the winners were able to make a proof book for free, so I took advantage of the sweet deal and my proof copy came in the mail today. It's so exciting to see your name in print, isn't it always? I couldn't stop grinning, now I'll have to let people read it, that's more nerve wracking than anything else.

So now, I have my very own novel, in print, proof though it may be. I just had to share.

{sneak peek} lisa + jake, GTKYS, devil's lake, baraboo

2009-06-05T21:35:00.002-05:00

I just wanted to post a little sneak peek from Lisa and Jake's Get to Know You Shoot tonight from the lake. Rob and I had a lot of fun having them do all the crazy things we ask people to do, we're just more fun that way. ;) Enjoy and look for more on the way very soon!

{baby bump} a little test + me

2009-06-04T20:46:00.003-05:00

I've been wanting to do more maternity shoots during our slow times. Being pregnant is such an amazing feeling, knowing that a little someone is growing inside of you, well I'm already emotional enough as it is, but it's such a miracle knowing that you will be bringing a whole new life into this world.

The pregnant body is unlike anything else, it's full of curves and beauty. Everyone is beautiful, don't get me wrong, but I am loving my pregnant body. I'm not always loving the kicking going on inside, or the fact that I have to use the bathroom more often, but I feel like I have never in my life looked as good as I do now. Except when I think I've turned into a walrus, but that's a whole other story.

So tonight when we got home, I had Rob help wrap me up in some extra long cloth and pose by the fading light of the window in our studio. I was testing some little clamps to see how they would hold up during an actual shoot to hold my wrap up, and they seemed to work pretty darn good, I even walked around and tried to trip myself, on accident not on purpose. Of course, baby j had to get in on the action and was stretching a bit inside. I can't wait to do more baby bump sessions.

{in love} kristina + ryan, baraboo, wi

2009-06-03T21:14:00.002-05:00

Artistic freedom, these two words totally sum up Stina and Ryan's shoot, possibly to the point that we add it into our contract. I've known Stina since high school and she was willing to do anything for us and our creative ideas. Thank goodness Ryan is so well trained - he'll do anything Stina says. :)

We did their engagement shoot on the 26th of May, and we were a little worried about the weather and although the sky was one huge grey cloud, we didn't get wet at all-well, I didn't get wet, but everyone else waded into Devil's Lake for some sweet shots under the concession stand, I was loving the pillars!

We started out the session down at Lower Ochsner's Park with the super sweet bridge, and the little hill of dandelion fluff. Then we headed out to Devil's Lake, North Shore, where we had Stina and Ryan brave the dead fish and kamikaze sparrows all in the name of artistic freedom. We had so much fun with both of them. Kristina and Ryan are perfect for each other, as soon as they got out of the car, they were holding hands and cuddling, they are so much in love that just being around them makes you feel all gooey inside. Seriously, I could just hug them they are so cute!

We finished up our shoot in downtown Baraboo just as the last of the light was fading, but for once the marquee at the Al Ringling was on while we were shooting, so we had to get a shot of them with the theatre. We had so much fun and totally can't wait for their wedding next April, even if it's only half as exciting as their engagement shoot- we will have a blast!

This shot is my favorite from the entire session, I'm thinking perhaps a new canvas? I love the field of dandelion fluff. The wet backs and two mosquito bites were totally worth it.

I found out tonight that this one is Ryan's favorite:

{personal} 31 weeks and counting

2009-06-02T23:08:00.001-05:00

pressure, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Well, as many of you know, Rob and I are going to be having a little bundle of joy at the end of July. I can not believe how fast time is flying. I'm anxious and excited and super scared all at the same time, it's the craziest time of my life. We didn't want to find out what we're having, so that will be a surprise, although Rob's dad, Bob, claims it will be a boy. We'll see when baby decides to arrive, which the grandmas have decided we need to do a pool for when I pop. I can't believe how big I am, I don't feel big until I look in the mirror, or see myself through the camera, and I can't wait to have pictures taken of my baby bump! I just need to find a fun photographer to do those.

Now, on a business note, the Fedex man showed up without me paying attention and dropped off two gorgeous engagement books! How I missed him I will never know, but I can't wait for the couples to see how great they look in print. It's as fun for me as it is for them!

{wedding} amanda + aaron - quarry arts building, madison, wi

2009-06-01T17:12:00.004-05:00

Well, it's taken me since Amanda and Aaron's wedding, which was on May 9, until now to pick a few of my favourites for the blog post. Now that I figured that out, let me tell you about this awesome wedding:

Rob and I were a little worried when we woke up to cloudy grey skies and sprinkling rain, but the rain stopped and the sun slowly filtered through the clouds for Amanda and Aaron's rooftop ceremony at the amazing Quarry Arts Building in Madison. Seriously, the venue was amazing! Everything was laid out so perfectly, and turret towers - it was the coolest place for a wedding. Amanda looked gorgeous, her champagne colored dress was perfect, the ladies were all wearing the same shade of Christian Dior lipstick, and would you believe that they all rocked it completely different, you could not tell it was the same shade on all those beautiful women!

Mary, the officiant, did a wonderful job, allowing everyone at the ceremony to help fill Amanda and Aaron's grace account full of love. Although the wind picked up during the ceremony and Amanda's veil had a life of its own, it didn't distract from the moving vows that Amanda and Aaron wrote for each other. I don't think that there was a dry eye on the entire balcony after listening to what they wrote for each other, I know that my own were tearing up with the moving words that they spoke to one another. The ceremony concluded with a champagne toast on the rooftop.

Catering was done by Blue Plate Catering, and the food was amazing! It was so good that we were talking about it days later. I know that Rob and our assistant Amanda could not get enough, unfortunately my eating for two means that there is less room than before and baby takes up a lot, so stuffing myself was not an option.

What a night, though. There was dancing and partying, it was such a lively group, and everyone was full of love and laughter. I know that Rob got a lot of envious looks regarding his fedora, which later made the rounds.

This was the first wedding featuring our new engagement Guest book and we got so many compliments, of course I told everyone that it was Amanda and Aaron that totally rocked the book, it was full of shots of them! Love it! Plus, the people liked my new chucks, I may just wear those babies to every wedding because they are so darn comfy!

So, enough about me, take a look at these gorgeous shots:

Seriously sweet venue:

Amanda kept checking out the crowd before her cue to head out.

Isn't her ring gorgeous?

I don't know why, but I love this shot. There's just something about it that makes me feel all tingly inside.

Amanda and her dad during the father-daughter dance, it totally made me tear up!

And then Aaron and his mom totally rocked their own dance.

{sneak peek} stina + ryan

2009-05-26T22:09:00.001-05:00

{sneak} stina + ryan, originally uploaded by briemarie.

One of my best friends from high school is getting married next April and chose Rob and I to document the day for them. We just finished up with their awesome engagement session, and had to post a little sneak peek. Stina and Ryan are totally up for anything, wading into the freezing lake water, lying down on the wet grass for some sweet dandelion shots, oh the fun we had. The large post will come later on, I still have to post Amanda and Aaron's wedding, too, so look for those in the next couple of days.

Plus, I'll leave you with this little tidbit: Artistic Freedom!

{personal} memorial weekend

2009-05-24T23:21:00.001-05:00

close up rock monument, originally uploaded by briemarie.

What a gorgeous weekend! Other than yesterday's rain, it's been beautiful out, sunny, nice and warm, we took the top off the Jeep and drove out to the lake today for a little cookout with my friend Karen and her family. The kids, of course, wanted to play in the lake, so we went out to the shore and the little island where we found a couple of fabulous rock monuments. I wonder how long it took them to make it? It took the little boys on the island mere moments to knock the whole thing down just minutes after I got my shots. Although when we left they were trying to reconstruct it.

The lake was nice and busy, you can see all the colored dots on the shore behind the sculpture, there were tons of people fishing in the lake, lots of canoes and kayaks on the water, and everyone was in a great mood. I hope that everyone is enjoying their Memorial Day weekend!

{in love} jen + bart - devil's lake, baraboo, wi

2009-05-23T22:37:00.003-05:00

You may remember me talking about Jen after the Once Upon a Time Bridal Fair, Jen is the bride that booked with us that day in January. Well, we met up with Jen and Bart at Devil's Lake's South Shore for their engagement session. We had such a blast with them. Bart and Jen are fantastic together, and have such great chemistry. We hit South Shore, which was still nice and quiet, let's give it a month and it will be crazy people filled, got some shots with the lake, the rocks, and let me tell you, I do a lot for photos, but this session takes the cake, because I got pooped on! Yes, a bird pooped on me, thankfully just my jacket and not my camera, it was gross enough. Of all things - Jen assures me that there won't be a repeat of this at the wedding, though.

I did not remember how fabulous Jen looks, but her eyes totally popped, they are gorgeous and blue, love them! We finished off their session on the railroad tracks, what fun, even though it was still a bit chilly. Jen and Bart were amazing troopers, though, and we got some awesome shots on a twisted stump and the rocks, we are definitely blessed with our clients, they'll do almost anything we ask!

Take a look at a few of our favs:

{real life} sawyer's 5th birthday session

2009-05-20T22:06:00.004-05:00

My goodness, we had such a hectic Mother's Day, with two sessions and wishing both our wonderful mother's happy day, that I have totally spaced and left you hanging with a tease and two more shoots to chat about. So, we'll start off with Sawyer's session from that morning:

This was our third year documenting Sawyer and once again, it was a bit chilly, but the sun did come out and shine for us. Sawyer wanted nothing to do with two crazy people trying to get a smile out of him, I don't blame him, we always ask people to smile for the camera, but don't offer any incentive.

I can't believe how big he is! He loves music, although I wasn't willing to sing today, I still have a bit of a cold. We did hit a local park, but that wasn't doing it for us, either, until we were about to leave and not paying attention. Little tease, that's when the smiles came out! Sawyer was just waiting for us to stop paying attention to him so we could get the shots.

{sneak peek} amanda + aaron -quarry arts -madison, wi

2009-05-10T21:32:00.003-05:00

Here are just a couple of shots from Amanda and Aaron's fantastic wedding we shot yesterday, goodness it's been a busy weekend for us with a family session this morning and an engagement shoot this evening, you can expect a couple more teasers before the week is out with full posts to follow! Isn't the Quarry Arts building gorgeous? Wait until we show you the inside, it is amazing, and we're so happy that we got our new little toy, it definitely did the building justice, and of course, Amanda is glowing and radiant! Her veil was playing with the wind most of the day, but I could go on and there will definitely be a full post very soon, so you will all have to settle with just these two shots!

I know, I'm such a tease. ;)

{equipment} tamron 10-24

2009-05-10T21:30:00.001-05:00

tamron 10-24, originally uploaded by briemarie.

Rob and I hit Amanda and Aaron's rehearsal on friday night, and knew that we needed a wide angle for the venue. So, after scouting out the building, we went out and hit up the Camera Company, and we were in luck! Rob and I walked in, took a look at the Nikon offerings and became the proud owners of the Tamron 10-24mm. Of course, we needed to test that baby out and had a camera just sitting in the car. As we drove past the mall and saw the carnival, we just had to stop and get some pictures.

Can you believe this shot is straight out of camera? No editing at all, this lens is awesome, we used it at the wedding, of which I have some teaser shots ready to load up next. Of course, moments after Rob snapped this shot, it started to rain so I bustled us right back into the truck and home, it had been a long day after all, and we had a wedding to get our beauty sleep for.

{personal} just a beautiful day

2009-04-28T17:54:00.001-05:00

sprouting leaves, originally uploaded by briemarie.

When I woke up this morning, I knew it was going to be a beautiful day. The sun is shining, it's warm, although not overly warm and riding in the Jeep with the top off was a bit chilly, but who cares, it's gorgeous out!

We've been making lots of portrait sessions coming up and a super sweet wedding next weekend, time flies! Plus, yesterday I came home to find a new display print had arrived, now we just need to find a frame for it, isn't that always the hard part?

Well, the baby is doing fine, we had an appointment last week, and I feel it moving all the time. Yes, I call it "it", although usually "baby", especially when I'm talking to the little darling. I'm not crazy, I talk to my baby bump, and then it kicks me, perhaps that's how motherhood will begin, I'll talk and baby will kick. We have about three months before baby is due and have been getting tons of stuff ready, cleaning out our old office to make way for a nursery, hitting up yard sales for goodies, we have a ton of onesies for the little thing, maybe that's all it will wear? We still need to find some of the big furniture, like a crib, although Rob's parents have one, I want to find one in dark colors, it will go awesome with the green I am planning on painting the nursery. I'm doing a fairy tale theme, so any ideas - let me know! We love comments, it makes us feel loved!

Spread the love and hug a friend! I'm in that kind of mood right now, it's better than the "I need pie right now! Chocolate with whipped cream!" mood that came earlier today. Cheers everyone and happy spring!