This adorable family braved the heat and the mosquitoes (both terrible) for a fun family portrait session with their kiddos at the UW Arboretum! We saw all kinds of wildlife, found some cool rocks, and got to see my favorite tree (yes, I have a favorite tree). Enjoy the photos of this super sweet family!
—Sam
We absolutely could not have asked for better weather (especially with the heat wave that came in just after we did these portraits), and the blooms at the gardens were gorgeous as well. We also got to enjoy a musical performance as we wandered the gardens, and then we eventually branched out into other areas of campus to take advantage of the beautiful ivy-covered buildings, before finishing up with some sweet photos of Milo and his mom! Enjoy the photos of this awesome and chill senior session!
—Sam
When Anne + Amy contacted me about a maternity session and shared that they were both due in July, I could not have been more excited! They had a beautiful Sun Prairie wedding in 2024, so what better way to celebrate almost two years later than with their maternity session in the same location!
With ultrasounds of both Bean and Squishie, as well as some ADORABLE tiny shoes (honestly, who doesn’t freaking lose it over tiny shoes), we walked around Sun Prairie in the same places where they celebrated their wedding and got to celebrate the upcoming additions to their family!
Help me wish these two a BIG congrats (x2) and enjoy the photos!
—Sam
I don’t know, but this was about as perfect as they can go! Mary Alice + Alex chose to begin their engagement session at Tenney Park by reading heartfelt vows to each other beneath the shade of a gorgeous tree, and if that wasn’t awesome enough, their dog, Winnie, was also dressed as a princess for the session 😍 (Special shout out to Brea for being an awesome dog wrangler and a quick-draw on the peanut butter!)
As we traipsed around the park, we saw all manner of wildlife (which feels auspicious), including a bunny, ducks, a baby Robin (with it’s family making a ruckus around us about this wee one’s first flight), AND A FREAKING BEAVER, which we originally thought was a muskrat until we got a better look. Truly this session could not have been more magical if one of us had been Snow White lol.
Enjoy the photos of this super sweet couple, and their shamelessly adorable dog, Winnie, as well as some of the wildlife we spotted along the way! And help me wish them a BIG congrats on their engagement!
—Sam
Alyssa’s favorite flowers are peonies, so Ariah knew a picnic proposal in the flowers (at the gorgeous Ovans Peony Farm in Beaver Dam, WI) was going to be the perfect spot to pop the question (and she was right!).
Alyssa had suspected a proposal might be happening, but she was convinced it was going to be the following weekend, and so the surprise proposal really was a surprise! Ariah had a custom-made blanket that said “Alyssa Will You Marry Me?” on it that she rolled out for the picnic (see the pics, it’s adorable!) along with the cutest picnic basket you’ve ever seen, complete with snacks (thanks for the cookies, they were delicious!), sparkling wine and wine glasses!
Alyssa said yes (if it wasn’t obvious by how madly in love these two are), and they celebrated with a toast and some frolicking in the flowers, then headed off to dinner with their families (another surprise Ariah planned for Alyssa) to celebrate more!
Help me wish these two a BIG congratulations, and enjoy the photos!
—Sam
The proposal happened on their 5 year anniversary (June 6th), and even more adorably, Ayla had also planned a surprise proposal for Ashley (with another awesome local photographer Nat Erlin - https://www.naterlinphotography.com/) for the very next day in the same gardens! So there was a lot of joy to go around that weekend!
First, Ashley had two friends (pictured below) that were sneakily in disguise to keep the “proposal bench” clear of anyone for an hour before the proposal happened, and they did so good AND their disguises were *chef’s kiss*. Once we got the word that it was going down, the two co-conspirators hid inconspicuously behind some bushes (that’s dedication), and I pretended to be a flower photographer for a bit until the magic started!
These two were so obviously and deeply in love it made me smile ear to ear despite the 99.9% humidity and the glaring sun trying to bring my vibes down (nice try, humid Wisconsin early summer, love wins)! We excitedly chatted about birds while walking around the gardens and the UW campus for couples portraits after the proposal. It was a beautiful day with an even more lovely couple, and I am so honored and excited to have been able to celebrate with them! Help me wish Ayla + Ashley a BIG congratulations and enjoy the photos of this super sweet couple!
—Sam
Ann + Sam (who you may remember from such weddings as this one) are having a baby! (Ann is doing all the hard work, obvs). These two decided to have their maternity session at the same place they had their first look on their wedding day, and it could not have been more beautiful! Enjoy the sweet photos of this even sweeter couple, as they look forward to welcoming their little Squidling in July!
—Sam
And also where your dog is, yeah? Especially when your dog is as cute as Maggie! Anne + Adrien wanted to have couples portraits taken in the apartment they’ve made a home in together before some big moves that are coming their way, and the session couldn’t have been cozier or sweeter (though, not pictured is the Tornado Warning in the middle of the session that had us chilling in the parking garage for 30 minutes under the building, which was exciting, if less cozy lol). Enjoy these relaxed portraits of this awesome couple and their fur child, Maggie!
—Sam
These two often head down to Tenney Park to draw and enjoy the view of Lake Mendota, so it felt like the perfect place for a golden hour proposal (spoiler alert: it was)! The proposal was as lovely as can be, as are these two! Enjoy the sweet photos of this even sweeter couple, and help me wish them a big congratulations!
—Sam
I absolutely love lifestyle family portraits, especially when it comes to newborns. There’s something beautiful and affirming about the chaos of kiddos running around and parents holding them, along with their new little sibling, that just makes me so happy! I think it’s because even when parenting is hard, the joy in the everyday is profound.
Holly + Rich and their two older kiddos, Fiona and Winnie, welcomed home their new little sister, Marigold just a few short weeks ago! Goldie is settled in at home, and is exactly as adorable as her name (which is to say very)!
Enjoy the photos of this sweet family, and welcome to Earth, Goldie!
—Sam
Brigitta reached out about photos because she and her wife, Janine, recently celebrated their 5 year anniversary and wanted family portraits that reflected their life as it’s unfolded over these last several years. When she mentioned they wanted to do portraits at home, I was super excited, because I love in-home lifestyle family portraits! For one, lifestyle family portraits are less about getting the kids to act in ways that feel unnatural to them (sitting still for instance), and two, they’re a beautiful way to celebrate something more akin to day to day life with your family and your little ones. For Brigitta & Janine, that included their 3 kiddos, ZZ, Sagan, and Fletcher, the kids’ au pair Pertunia, and Meeko, their older doggo (3 cats not pictured, because new humans are scary - fair enough kitties, fair enough!).
The moments captured were unscripted, joyful, and most of all, reflected the beauty of everyday life for this lovely family!
—Sam
When I was connected with Meier by a friend early last week, I was told about Stormy + Meier’s situation, which is that Stormy was not only diagnosed with Pancreatic cancer just last week, but that he was also told at that time that the cancer is terminal, and he has months to live. I can only imagine the type of grief that must come with that news, and my heart aches just thinking about it. But Stormy + Meier’s story isn’t a story about death, despite the news Stormy received, it’s a story about love and joy.
Meier told me that they and Stormy wanted to not only do couples portraits together (along with their newly rescued pup, Juju), but also that they had decided to get married in short order, to allow them to celebrate their love with their closest friends and family while it’s still possible to do so, and that they wanted photos of their multicultural and multi-faith wedding day as well. Photographers know the power of photographs of our loved ones, and it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see why taking these types of portraits while Stormy is able to do so would be incredibly meaningful to both of them. That said, everyone handles the this type of news differently, and I wasn’t sure what mood to expect during our couples portraits. Whether things would feel shy, or somber, or something else entirely. It turns out, something else entirely was right.
I was amazed by the joy and love that was apparently immediately when I got to meet Stormy & Meier in person, and even before we started taking photos, I felt like I was with friends (probably because we apparently know a ton of the same people, how have I not met these two before?!).
We went from gym to office to home to outdoors, and in every setting, these two were almost giddy to be interacting together. What started off as a situationship when they first met quickly turned into something infinitely precious to both of them. As I edited these photos after the session, I kept being awestruck by how absolutely beautiful their interactions were, how much they laughed and joked and played. I guess it shouldn’t come as any surprise though that folks who are trans and queer know exactly how to find joy and comfort and love even in the midst of adversity.
Stay tuned for the wedding photos from this amazing couple’s wedding celebration, and in the meantime, please consider donating to the GoFundMe for Stormy + Meier, which will be used to help care for Stormy in a variety of ways during this period, but most importantly to help him realize his lifelong goal of going to Africa, allowing him feel deeply connected with his ancestors in the time he has left. If you’d like to donate, click here.
Enjoy the photos of these two, and I’ll end with this beautiful quote: "How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard."
—Sam
