Abby + Matt: A Gorgeous Rooftop Wedding at MMoCA

Abby + Matt’s wedding was vibrant and filled with joy!

And the views of the Capitol building and the Orpheum on the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art (MMoCA) in the heart of Downtown Madison didn’t hurt either. ;)

Their wedding day theme was world-building, with the colors of the sea and sky worked into the details of their wedding day. Abby’s bouquet was made of paper flowers which were in turn made out of pages of The Hobbit (no one knows more about world-building than Tolkein), and instead of a unity candle, they symbolized their union with two adorable little birds making a nest together.

Help me wish Abby + Matt a hearty congrats, and enjoy all the lovely details and big moments from their wedding day!

-Sam

Here are all the vendors (with links) that helped make their wedding day awesome!

Ceremony & Reception Venue: Madison Museum of Contemporary Art (MMoCA)

Officiant: Dana Pellebon (friend of Bride & Groom)

Bridal Gown: Vera’s House of Bridals

Hair & Makeup: Where it's At Studio (Bride’s hair) & Brideheads for other Hair & Makeup

Wedding Jewelry: Jeweler's Workshop

Paper Bouquet & Boutonniere: Made by a friend

Florals: DIY

DJ: John Frerick (DJ Senseless)

Catering: Fresco

Wedding Desserts: Batch Bakehouse

Rentals: Projector from Game Crafter

Winnie + Fiona

I got to spend a lovely summer day with Winnie, Fiona, their parents, and their grandma!

Fiona’s 1 year portraits (check them out here) were the last family portraits I did before the pandemic, so it was nice to get to see Fiona 18 months older and to meet her new little sister, Winnie, for my first family portrait session post-vaccination!

Welcome to the world, Winnie!

-Sam

Caitlin + Nick: An Elegant and Beautiful Wedding at Harvest Moon Pond

Caitlin + Nick performed an amazing ballroom dance routine for their first dance!

Which makes total sense since these two met through ballroom dance competitions. (How cool is that?!)

Their wedding day was hot as all heck, but absolutely gorgeous and filled with tons of laughs, delicious food, great music, and that was all in addition to the beautiful ceremony and amazing dancing!

Congratulations to Caitlin + Nick, and help me wish these two all the best!

-Sam

Here are the vendors (with links) that helped make Caitlin + Nick’s wedding day awesome!

Ceremony + Reception Venue: Harvest Moon Pond

Officiant: Eric Whaylen (friend of the couple)

DJ: Kuhl Entertainment

Bridal Gown: Love Couture Bridal

Groom Tux: The Black Tux

Wedding Bands & Engagement Ring: Washington Diamond

Hair & Makeup: Arch Apothecary

Florist: Sunborn Gardens

Wedding Pies: Hubbard Ave Diner

Catering: Blue Plate Catering

Decor Rental: Black Sheep Events (formerly Eventfuls) for the Wedding Arch

Aubrey + AJ: A One Year Anniversary Session

Aubrey + AJ revisited their wedding ceremony venue, the Field Reserve for their one year anniversary

And it was awesome! They even busted out the smoke bombs again! Check out their Engagement photos here and Wedding photos here!

Happy anniversary to Aubrey + AJ!

-Sam

Matt + Drew: A Willy Street Summer Engagement Session

Matt, Drew, and Olly had a great portrait session on Willy Street!

Matt + Drew and their furry son Olly joined me for an engagement session on a not too hot summer day, and we had a blast, as well as a great walk up and down Willy Street! Enjoy the photos from this sweet summer session. I can’t wait for the wedding in 2022!

-Sam

Charlie's Newborn Portraits

Chelsea, Doug, and Charlie had a Pride-themed family session to celebrate Charlie’s birth!

Charlie’s newborn session was filled with cuteness (obviously), matching outfits, and Pride-themed apparel. I was so happy to get to celebrate Charlie with Chelsea.+ Doug! Enjoy this adorable family and welcome to the world, Charlie!

-Sam

Jena + Nick: A Golden Hour Engagement Session

Jena + Nick wanted to celebrate their upcoming wedding with an engagement session at the beautiful UW Arboretum

And my goodness was it a gorgeous day!

A big, hearty congratulations to Jena + Nick!

-Sam

Cat + Sam: An Intimate Olin Park Wedding Day

Cat + Sam had their first look at the same spot where they first said “I love you”

And if that isn’t the sweetest thing you’ve heard today, I don’t know what to tell you. Their first “I love you” came at the first metal bench on Picnic Point, so on their wedding day, that’s exactly where they wanted to do their first look. It was a little rainy, and a little cold, but absolutely gorgeous, and I’m so happy I got to photograph them at such a special place!

For their wedding at Olin Park, they wanted to keep things casual with their closest family in attendance, and to celebrate with pizza and donuts afterward. I loved the purple and lavender accents they used for decor, and also of course the heating lamps because brrrrrr was it cold out!

Congratulations to Cat + Sam!

-Sam

Here are all the vendors who helped make Cat + Sam’s wedding day awesome:

Ceremony + Reception Venue: Olin Park

Officiant: Judge Jennifer Nashold

Bridal Gown: Lulus’s Bridal

Wedding Jewelry: Brilliant Earth (Bride’s necklace was her dad’s wedding ring)

Hair Stylist: Kismet Salon

Florals & Decorations: Ling’s Moment

Wedding Dessert: Level 5 Donuts

Wedding Pizza: Roman Candle

Shake Rag Alley Family Portraits in Mineral Point, Wisconsin

Shake Rag Alley in Mineral Point, Wisconsin is a magical place for family photos

When Kat mentioned Shake Rag Alley, and said how magical a place it was, my first thought was “I could use some more magic in my life, I’m in!”

Kat was not wrong, it’s a freaking magical place and was so sunny and gorgeous when we were there on Mother’s Day weekend! It was awesome to see how big the girls have gotten since the last time we did family photos (check those out here!) The girls also got to make fairy houses after the portrait session!

Enjoy these fun family photos, and if you get the chance, go check out Shake Rag Alley sometime!

-Sam

Rachael + Sam: A Madison Lakeside Park Wedding

On a beautiful and windy Spring day in Burrows Park, Rachael + Sam said “I Do”

I love small and intimate weddings, and Racheal + Sam’s wedding day was just that. Small, intimate, and full of life and love. As most wedding days do, it started off a little stressful, but everything came together by the main event, which of course was the wedding vows!

Rachael + Sam had a wonderfully short and sweet wedding ceremony (where Rachael was holding their youngest) and then were able to relax and celebrate with their closest friends and family and enjoy the weather! Just what a wedding day should be!

Help me with Rachael + Sam a big congrats, and enjoy the wedding photos!

-Sam

Alisha + Nathaniel: A Black Earth Rainy Day Micro Wedding

Alisha + Nate may have had rain on their wedding day…

But like everything else about getting married during a pandemic, they rolled with it!

Alisha + Nate met during college through mutual friends, but they actually fell for each other while playing trivia together (Remember trivia? And places? And other people?) and like many of our clients over the last year, they had originally planned on a larger wedding day, but when COVID still wasn’t over in early 2021, they made the decision to have a small ceremony with immediate family this year at Nate’s parent’s house in Black Earth, WI, and then celebrate with a bigger crowd in 2022.

The wedding day was simple and lovely and in addition to immediate family, the wedding day was also attended by Alisha + Nate’s dog, Laverne. After a short and sweet ceremony, we went outside with some umbrellas for a bit to take full photo-advantage of the drizzle (I love rainy day wedding pics) and before we knew it, it was time for them to head to a celebratory dinner!

Enjoy the wedding pics of these two love birds, and join me in congratulating them on their wedding! I can’t wait for more celebrations with these two and their families in 2022!

-Sam

Here are the vendors (with links) that helped make Alisha + Nate’s wedding day awesome!

Wedding Dress: Lulus

Catering: Pig in a Fur Coat

Hair: love + light hairdressing

Makeup: Julia Grace Salon

Suit: NL Suits

Flowers: Sweet Pea Floral

Terry + Leah: A Rainbow Wedding at the Goodman Community Center

Terry + Leah had a happy and colorful wedding day, complete with Ring Bear!

Terry + Leah, like a lot of folks getting married during the pandemic, decided to do things a little differently on their wedding day. They had a very intimate ceremony in March, and are planning a bigger reception celebration in October.

Small and intimate doesn’t mean boring though, and Terry + Leah’s wedding day was fun and joyful, and full of little touches (beautiful lights and rainbow accents and so many sequins!!!!) and big touches, like having a Ring Bear (I still giggle about this every time I think about it)!

Congratulations, Terry + Leah, and we can’t wait to celebrate with you for round two in October!

-Sam

Here are the wedding vendors (with links where available) that helped make their wedding day wonderful!

Ceremony Venue: Goodman Community Center

Officiant: Eldonna Hazen, Senior Minister, First Congregational UCC

Wedding Jewelry: Jewelers Workshop

Hair Stylist: Serena of Serena's Hair Now

Brunch Catering: Lily Kilfoy

Cupcakes: Daisy Cafe and Cupcakery