Sunrise Wedding Dress

This photo shoot is so special to me for so many reasons, so where to start! First, I have known Nicole for awhile now after we were in a wedding together of my cousin it was instant friendship! This girl has moved mountains, has thee best attitude of anyone I know and brings light where ever she goes. 

A few months ago she reached out and asked if we could do a photoshoot of her in her moms wedding dress! A "heck yes" was my answer for that! We tossed around some ideas and then landed on a sunrise shoot! I have never done a styled shoot like this before, especially all the emotion that came with it and have never done a sunrise shoot either, a win win! Nicole's mom does not have any professional photos of herself in her dress on her wedding day so Nicole had the great idea to bring this shoot to life!

I had help in creating a bouquet from Trader Joe's and an old chair I brought from home. She also wore her mothers ring too along with her own ring in all the photos. Nicole also brought a framed photo of her mom in her dress as well that we used too! 

What is so great about the memories that were captured you would never how chilly it was that morning at 5:30am and the wind that came with it! Nicole had one of her besties come along too that played some pump jams to keep us warm along the way! Nicole made a scrapbook for her mom for mother's day of our shoot, I can only imagine the emotion that came along with those moments. What an honor to be apart of something so special. 

XOXO

Johanna 

Grab your Girlfriends!

 Grab your Girlfriends!

Dress up, look cute, wear that favorite shade of lipstick and come take professional photos with me! Since I can remember friendship has been so important to me, now going on 10+ years with some of my dear friends, the memories and miles we have together are priceless. I have been in their weddings, watch them get engaged, watch them fall in love, watch their heart get broken, celebrated when they announced they were pregnant and also when they became a mom, stayed up all night, tearful phone calls, shopping, dancing parties and laughing so hard sometimes you wet your pants; truly what you share with your best friends.

But, now we are growing up... 

I came up with this idea in the dead of winter, go figure living in the midwest and getting stuck inside the negative degree weather! I thought to myself, I want to do this with my girlfriends so why not do it for other groups of girls as well! Here is where the idea began, my pitch to you :) We are growing up and our priorities are changing, marriage, babies, full time jobs, moving miles or states away, whatever it is, it's something! We all get together as much as we can but its tricky with the different lives we are living today. When we do find the time to get together we put our phones down, because we want to be more intentional, with the occasional boomerang or the cute coffee shop photo we post. Our cell phone framed photos from post high school are probably in a box covered in dust, or on a shelf we don't pass often, because our lives are changing, and that is okay. 

So, what I would love is for you to grab your girlfriends, of any age, or grab your mom or your sister, get dressed up and take updated fun photos! You wont have that awkward selfie angel, or the harsh light that can make you look like you have two chins, you won't have to keep them saved on your phone or only post them on social media. You can print the photos and put them in beautiful frames that align with your home decor! Photography has come such a long way and it's so easy to get access to a full gallery that you can revisit again and again, and keep printing + framing your favorite images of you and your best friends!

This idea + movement is so important to me, I have monthly dinners still planned with my high school girlfriends, and now college too. Another group of friends and I get together twice a year for a full weekend, it's the best way to truly catch up! A simple text or a 5 minute phone call goes such a long way! I hate the word busy, I really do. We need to choose to make the time, whether it's a lunch date, road trip, phone call, over night, or quick coffee because you are passing through town, because we need each other.

If you get down to the bottom of this, do me a favor. Text, email or call one of your best friends. Tell them you are thinking of them, you miss them and how great they are. Then make it a priority to get something on the calendar, next week, next month or before Christmas!  Our lives are so consumed with so many things, but don't let too much time pass until you are face to face with your best friends.

Always,
Johanna 

Nashville Proposal

I am not sure where to begin this story, but I will start by saying I got to be front and center as one of my very best friends said "YES" or maybe it was "I knew it!" then, "YES", to her best friend in Nashville! You can see the city in the distance from where he got down on one knee at Love Circle, it was a weekend I will never forget! 

Bradley texted me in October "Do you have plans before Christmas, I may need a photographer". It took everything in me not to scream at the Caribou I was in. I knew he was the one for her and I remember when she told me he was the one too. I was thrilled he requested me to be there to capture it all for her. This will probably go into the top proposals of all time, because people flew in for this celebration from five different states! Her family, besties from college + besties from high school, it truly was such a surprise and celebration!

I wont go into every detail because lets be honest, it was a lot of back and forth from the day he told me down to the hour before the proposal. How he would do it, when he would do it, where he would do it, and how it took everything and anything for him to keep the biggest secret from the love of his life. At one point, let me add quickly, I was in the car with Bradley + Zach, Scotti called before she bored the plane to Nashville and we all froze. She was on speaker and we witnessed Bradley just lying as he was also dying inside, a face I wont forget. 

Everyone flew in Friday and the big day was Saturday at 12:30pm. The amount of anxiety I had leading up to the moment was not as high as Bradley's but of course close. Not only was she going to get asked the most important questions of her life, but also ALL her favorite people would be waiting to celebrate after and I wanted to capture everything the best I could while shaking of excitement! 

Zach + I got to Love Circle Park only a few minutes before Scotti + Bradley. WHEW. Since there was no place for me to really hide, we made the decision prior to the trip that WE were going to be the surprise! Spending the weekend with them in Nashville! Once she saw me, she definitely was taken back, but knew something was up. We started by just taking a few photos since Nashville was in the background of them, then Scotti would "take some of us". Zach was all set to go with my phone to record the whole thing, but he was nervous too, hoping he would press start on time and not mess anything up.

I don't think I remember what Bradley all said, but I know it was sweet and he had a big grin on his face the entire time. The ring was perfect. 

THEY ARE ENGAGED!!!!

We snapped a few more photos before we were headed back to their condo which is also listed on Air Bnb ! The perfect place to stay while visiting Nashville. 

I was texting the girls that were headed back but not everyone was there yet (Bradleys family + friends, he is from Nashville). We stopped at a cozy coffee shop and did our best to convince her we were there for the weekend and how we should plan our day to celebrate! My nerves were still an all time high and I don't think the delicious iced latte helped me cool down any. A short trip and back into the car to the condo. As we were walking in the house Bradly said we have one more surprise.... she may have been suspicious of something, but not what she was about to see. 

I was able to race up the stairs because I had to see the reaction, duh. SURPRISE! Confetti flew, cheers screamed, laughs began, and tears were shed. What a moment. 

I think it took a few hours for it all to settle in, we were all there, and she was engaged. We hit up the rooftop to take more photos and it was such a beautiful night. Bradley had arranged a private room for dinner with everyone and then we hit Broadway. Danced + sang the night away, a city I can not wait to get back to. Celebrating two wonderful people with fabulous people in an incredible city, priceless.

I could not be more happy for my best friend. Congratulations to the both of you and thank you for allowing me to be apart of such a special day! I love you both!

XOXO

Johanna