Winter in Grand Haven

I feel so lucky to live less then an hour from multiple beaches on Lake Michigan and Grand Haven is one of my favorites because the pier is so photogenic! I’ve photographed many summer sunsets at the state park but never ventured out in the winter - until now. Friday was a “warm” winter day with sunshine and no wind so I decided it was the perfect time to bundle up and try out some winter photography. I ended up spending two hours at the beach walking around, taking pictures and people watching. Here are some of my favorite photos :)

Baby Myra

I have been photographing Chris and Sarah since their engagement many years ago and it’s such a joy to see their family continue to grow. Baby Myra was about a month old when I went to their house for a mini session to document the family of 5! Big brother Joshua and big sister Emma were so sweet with their baby sister and just wanted to keep touching Myra. Here are some of my favorites from the session- we even got the dog, Ruby in some pictures :)

Klein kids 2021

In the past I have photographed the Klein family in the fall so I was excited when they chose to mix it up and do winter/ Christmas photos this year! I have always thought downtown Rockford does a great job decorating for the holidays and am glad I finally had a reason to take pictures there. The focus was just on photos of the kids rather then the whole family this time and though it was cold they toughed it out (and were bribed with candy) for almost an hour for this photo shoot :) I would definitely recommend this location next Christmas to anyone looking for some family pictures! Here are some of my favorites of the Klein kids.

Hounakey Family

Last weekend I met the Hounakey family at the Downtown Market greenhouse. They came home to Grand Rapids from Chicago and Washington DC for the holidays and I love that they made a point to schedule family pictures when everyone was together! The giant Christmas tree and all the twinkling lights among the greenery made for a beautiful backdrop. Plus, this family was not at all shy in front of the camera which made the session fun for all of us. Here are some of my favorite photos!

Abby and Nic's engagement photos

On the last warm weekend of October I met up with Abby and Nic to take their engagement photos at Grand Ravines. Abby and I used to work together so it was lots of fun catching up with her and meeting Nic, they are not getting married until next October but I appreciate the way they are planning ahead! They wanted a few photos with their dogs and despite our best efforts the dogs were not in the mood to hold still so we gave up on that pretty quickly. The fall colors have been late this year, but we found some great spots on the trails and by the river. I’m so grateful that Abby and Nic were up for an adventure (and a long walk) because we got lots of great photos. Here are some of my favorites!

Beverage Family 2021

I’ve been photographing Karen and Doug since their wedding in 2011. I was lucky enough to take photos of both their kids as newborns and have done family photos for them every year since. However, we weren’t sure it would work out this fall with many scheduling conflicts, but at the last minute on a beautiful October Sunday I headed to their beautiful yard and continued the tradition ofl fall family photos. I love the way they continue to honor their sweet daughter Alice who died in December 2019 by having the unicorn stuffed animal in all the pictures! Here are some of my favorites from their session :)

Sarah and Terrell's engagement

Sarah and Terrell have been together for a long time and joke that they are doing things backwards since they already have a house kids! They finally decided to tie the knot and are having a small destination wedding combined with family vacation this winter someplace warmer then Michigan :) A group of friends decided to gift them an engagement photo session and since the wedding will be out of state they wanted to get photos at some of the iconic spots downtown Grand Rapids. Sarah and Terrell were such good sports when it started raining and I ushered them into the nearest hotel very quickly! We weren’t the only ones taking photos in the sky walks and hotels that afternoon though, I saw at least 3 wedding parties in the same spots :) I’m grateful they were willing to be so flexible- here are some of my favorites from the engagement session!

Aupperlee Family 2021

Another returning family, the Aupperlee’s have added a baby since I last saw them in 2019 and it was so fun catching up with them again! The day we chose for photos was raining on and off but they didn’t let that get in the way of walking around Hager Park in Jenison looking for fall colors. The kids explored the woods and it was so cute watching how the little sisters wanted to do everything big brother did :) Here are some of my favorites from their photo session!

Johnston/ Foley family 2021

Another group of familiar faces to feature this fall- I love photographing every fall are the Johnston/ Foley family every year and seeing how the kids have grown (and meeting the new kids that have been born).! Claire and Andy live on a beautiful dirt road and have a great yard that makes for lots of great background for pictures. The kids are old enough this year to respond well to bribery (or young enough for it not to matter) and because of that we got the pictures done in record time! Here are some of my favorites :)

Still Family 2021

I’ve been photographing Chris and Sarah longer then most of my other “regular” fall families. These two were my neighbors during their engagement and early marriage and I am so grateful I’ve been able to keep in touch with them over the years and document their growing family. Along with Emma and Joshua, they will be adding a baby sister into their family in just one more month, plus they just moved into a new house. So much to celebrate and I’m glad I was able to document this moment for them :)

Alexa - class of 2022

On the last nice fall weekend I met up with Alexa and her mom at “golden hour” at the Grand Ravines for her senior photo session! I’ve taken photos of her family many times over the years so Alexa was not shy in front of the camera when it was time for her to get solo pictures. She did a great job and I could’ve taken pictures of this beautiful girl at the beautiful location for another hour if the sun wasn’t setting. Here are some of my favorites - have a great senior year Alexa!

Sophie- 3 months old

My niece Sophie is growing so much and I was happy that my brother and sister in law wanted to document her 3 month milestone with a photo session. A couple weeks ago, we met at Spring Grove Park and though the fall colors weren’t very vibrant yet, we still found some good scenery. Sophie was so good the whole time and didn’t fuss at all when I stuck the camera in her face :) I can’t wait to watch her grow and take more photos of this sweet girl in the future!

Mary and Matt's engagement

These two are not getting married until next October, but I’m so glad I was able to meet them last weekend for an engagement session! Mary and Matt both attend my Alma mater, Grand Valley, so it was lots of fun for me to be back on campus and see how much has changed since my time there. We had great weather and though there was not a ton of fall color yet, GVSU has some great architecture and landscaping that make for great photo spots. Here are some of my favorites from Mary and Matt’s engagement session!

Baby Ozzy

Taylor reached out to me before Ozzy was even born to inquire about doing newborn photos at their home and I was thrilled to find out she and I have many mutual work friends in common and a very similar work history (in my day job as a social worker)! Little Ozzy was just two weeks old when I met him last weekend, but as a preemie he wasn’t even to his actual due date yet, and he slept though almost the whole session. He had us laughing with the way he kept returning his arms to the same position when we moved him and though we would’ve liked to see him open his eyes it was agreed that sleeping is better then crying for photos :) Taylor, Will and their two dogs were in love with this new addition to their family and I’m so glad that they let me capture these sweet moments in their house. Here are some of my favorites from their session.

Ross and Shanna's Wedding

On a beautiful fall evening I had the chance to photograph Ross and Shanna’s intimate wedding ceremony at their friends house on a small lake in Hudsonville. This wedding was more then just a celebration of the bride and groom, but also a joining of two families. Small weddings are so special because the couple gets to spend time with all of their guests and enjoy a more relaxed atmosphere. After the ceremony everyojne headed to the nearby Hudsonville Winery for dinner, drinks and even a game of touch football for the kids. Congratulations to the new happy family, thanks for letting me be part of your special day!

Soraya's senior photos - Class of 2022

On Saturday I met up with Soraya and her mom at one of my favorite locations in Grand Rapids, Millennium Park and I even got to discover some new trails thanks to Soraya having previously scouted out photo spots she liked! Not very many teenagers would agree to having their pictures taken at 8am but she had to work later in the day and showed up early ready and willing :) Here are some of my favorites from her session.

Miss G Ballet summer recital

This was the second recital I’ve been able to photograph for the kids of Miss G ballet and even though it was a super humid day they were a joy to watch! Miss G, or Gia as I know her, runs an awesome dance program from her home which instills self confidence in kids while teaching them the foundations of ballet. Her group continues to grow each session and I absolutely love being an honorary member of the club/ official photographer. Here are some of my favorites from their summer recital two weeks ago!

Kevin and Meriah's Wedding

Last weekend I drove across the state for Kevin and Meriah’s outdoor wedding. This couple has been together over a decade and it was immediately clear how much they are loved by their family and friends. Many tears were shed during Kevin’s vows (which were a surprise to Meriah) and I heard so many people say that they were so happy to be celebrating the marriage of these two. Despite the humidity and the mosquitos their guests were partying on the dance floor all night. It was such a joy to be a part of their special day, here are some of my favorite images!

Baby Sophie

This is the summer of babies and I love it! So many of my friends are having second (or third) kids and my sister in law gave birth to my first niece. Sophie was born at the end of June and after a week long stay in the NICU, I finally was able to meet her on the 4th of July when she was 10 days old. She was very tolerant of me sticking a camera in her face which is great because I anticipate this will be the first of many times I’m taking her pictures :) Here are some of my favorites from her photo shoot last week.

Baby Ivan

I’m lucky enough to live just a mile from this family and get to spend time with them often (especially during the last year of COVID). I was so excited to meet their latest addition, baby Ivan and see how Olive was adjusting to being a big sister! He was just 11 days old and wide awake during the photo shoot (despite all attempts to get him to sleep), but we managed to get some great pictures anyway. Here are some of my favorites!