I had a fun afternoon with Maia today. This little lady can color with some serious vigor!

Reading The Three Little Pigs with Mom.

We played outside, too, in some nice sunny Minnesota weather. Check out that snazzy jacket.

She ran back and forth and back and forth.  Simple pleasures.

Have fun at Mickey’s house, Maia!

Just one photo for today. I’m trying to get caught up on some editing before I head into another weekend of sessions. I’ve got some fun ones coming up though so I’m sure I’ll be posting more soon!

I’m also have some problems with the notify list - main problem being that it’s not actually notifying. So I hope to get that straightened out shortly so that everyone can stay up to date.

Yesterday I got together with a group of other local photographers to do some more studio work. Several of them share a studio in St. Paul so they were kind enough to let a few more of us crash it. We had a few models scheduled to come but unfortunately, most of the either canceled or just didn’t show up so we had something of a paparazzi situation with lots of us shooting only a few models.

Kasidy, however, was good enough to show and modeled for us for quite awhile. We started off in the studio but then ventured out into the rest of the warehouse which was full of empty, gritty goodness.

Also, my sister was a total rockstar. She’s modeled for me a few times and even for two of my friends in the comfort of my home but this time, I dragged her out to spend the entire day posing in front of a group of guys she didn’t know. She was a super good sport, despite not having any modeling experience.

Bill, Andy, Pat, Scott, Jaime, Adam, Dave - it was nice to meet you guys! Kasidy and Sara, thanks for modeling.

Long day today and an early shoot tomorrow so I haven’t had much time to process photos lately but Ben says I have to post more so this one’s for him.

Yesterday, I photographed a wedding in Eagan with Christina of Teichrow Photography. We were lucky, the weather was great - relatively warm compared to what we’ve been having in Minnesota and nice and sunny. We got a chance before the wedding to head outside and take some photos.

(He went to Jared.)

Then back inside where there was some really cool art on the walls - and photo props in the groom’s pocket!

I actually haven’t even downloaded the other card of photos from the wedding yet. I’m off to do that now!

For the past few months, I’ve been getting together with a group of other photographers to work on studio lighting. The group is a local offshoot of the increasingly popular Strobist website which is all about inexpensive, portable, do-it-yourself lighting. It’s been fun to get together, have a chance to work with models and see what sort of ideas other photographers have. This past weekend, we met in a warehouse which definitely gave us a chance to do some unique setups.

Doing studio work has been a nice way to pass the crazy cold months we’ve been having!

This past Friday kicked off the third annual photographer mentor auction to benefit Thirst Relief International. A group of top-notch wedding photographers are offering 90 minute mentoring sessions (in person if you’re going to WPPI and maybe if you live in their area, on the phone otherwise) for auction and the proceeds will help to provide water filtration systems for people around the world who need it. There are some big names in there - Gary Fong, Kevin Kubota, Yervant, Mike Colon, Jesh DeRox, Jessica Claire, Jasmine Star, David Beckstead, Brianna Graham, Jerry Ghionis, Vicent Versace (John!) and a bunch more. If you’re a photographer looking to donate to a good cause and get something awesome in return, check out their auction site.

If this little guy doesn’t make you smile, then something is wrong with you. I think I probably smiled at him on my monitor the whole time I was editing these. He’d just woken up from his nap when we got there but perked up in no time and was just a smiley little cutie after that.

There was one quick session of tears (standing up is hard work) but Dad was right there to make it better.

Cute even when he’s crying. Thanks to Quinn’s parents for letting me shoot their little one!

This is going to be an image-heavy post but I’m sure you’ll see why. There were just too many to choose from! I spent a few hours with Anna and Cooper and there were cars and Lincoln Logs and princesses and knights and trains and tickle monsters and all kinds of things involved.

Cooper is four. He told me he’s been doing karate for five years now. He’d just gotten his first belt yesterday, very exciting!

Anna is five. She’s going to be a cowgirl when she grows up but for now, a princess and a ballerina will suffice.

We even went outside to play in the snow a bit. We were lucky to get out before the temperatures dropped below zero but even then it was a little cold!

And the whole fam…

I nearly needed a nap after this one. Being amongst ballerinas and sword fighters can be quite tiring. Thanks to my agent J for hooking me up with these cuties!

My friend Jeannette and I had a busy day yesterday and I got to meet some great families! We started off the team with the gorgeous L Family of three.

They had an amazing house, full of great color and design. Check out Bree’s bedroom (J and I both agreed that we wanted to move in there now and would have died to have a bedroom like that when we were Bree’s age!)

After we finished taking some shots inside, the Ls bundled up and we headed outside for some fun in the snow! It looked gray and dreary outside but I think those falling flakes turned out pretty cool.

Thanks for an awesome morning, guys!

I haven’t shot anything new in about two weeks because I’ve been working through a backlog of editing, doing a few freelance projects and a bit of other fun stuff like painting the room that will be my office (no more working on the couch all the time!). So here are a few bits and pieces from various shoots that have been straggling along…

A few more cuties from my time in Florida…

Josie Myers, a local model…

Got a few shoots coming up this weekend that I’m excited for! Until then…