Lavender Field Summer Senior Pictures | Kiera | Benton Community High School

Lavender field summer senior pictures with Kiera

Newbo District | Pine Hill Farm | Pleasant Creek State Park

Kiera got the PRETTIEST day for her senior session! Her mom reached out EARLY to get her on the books for late July, the same time of year I did her sister’s senior photos a few years ago. Her sister’s session (her blog here) is STILL the hottest session I’ve ever photographed to this date! (Or it may be tied with the wedding I photographed in Aruba (that blog here)… So dang HOT!) So we were a bit worried that it would be a crazy hot day for Kiera. We met for her consultation, came up with some ideas that we thought would fit her aesthetic, as well as a mini family photoshoot we were going to do in the middle of her session. A few days later, I was looking at her questionnaire I had her fill out and I realized her favorite color is lavender and we have a local lavender field that allows photographers to rent the field for an hour. I emailed her mom and asked if they’d be interested in doing part of her session there, including her family photos. They discussed and weighed the pros and cons, and ultimately decided to go for it. And of course I was pumped to do something unique!!

Session day came, and almost the whole fam joined us for the day (remember, family photos were also happening later on). We met up for hair with Ingrid and makeup with Lindsey and Kiera LOVED how it turned out. And yes, that’s a spray tan for Bare Tones she’s sporting! And then we headed right outside our doors to hit my favorite spots around Newbo.

We spent a lot of time at the first spot, and hurried through the rest, as is typically with photoshoots with me - ha! And then it was time for an outfit change as we headed to Fross Park in Center Point to use their easy-to-access soccer net for some quick soccer photos!

After squeezing feet into a brand new pair a shoes, a round of bug spray and some fun experimental shots, we changed and headed out to Pine Hill Farm for the lavender field. It was mosquito-crazy out there but smelled oooh so good! We used half the rental time getting some SUPER cute photos of Kiera in the lavender and then Dad arrived and it was time for everyone to change into their family photo outfits. We snapped a few quick ones of the whole family, and then just the sisters. What a beautiful family! I’m so glad they did this - it sure can be stressful to plan for, but it’s worth it to have a quick update on family photos before everyone moves away and get busy with their own lives.

Time was up, so we headed out to Pleasant Creek Park where we would spend the remainder of the night. I chose this location because it had a few things that Kiera had gotten excited about: a willow tree, beach and long grass. We started at the willow tree. This area isn’t easy to walk into. The grass is LONG and thick. And we spent a lot of time getting there, got bitten up my mosquitos and left pretty quickly. But there were some wildflowers that we got photos with, of course!

As we waited for the sun to get lower in the sky, we headed to the beach area. I honestly thought we would have more sun on this spot at this time. So I pivoted and I decided to have some fun with the lighting here. It’s not my typical go-to style but after looking at my regular lighting vs this lighting, Kiera liked the vibes and uniqueness of this so we shot the whole location this way. I love it too - it just gives an ulta-summery vibe!

And then we went to head to my long grass location and the sun was just.. gone. So we turned around and tried to chase it down the hill and it just wasn’t happening for us. I later found out that there was a lot of extra cloudiness happening from wildfires up north and that would be why our sunsets were “off” that day and a few days following. But I honestly loved the unique vibes I was getting from this spot as well. Between the wildfire smoke and the campground fire smoke, we were getting hazy mountain vibes and I just enjoyed doing something a little different again! But we were still pretty bummed that the sunset was just gone.

And just like that, Kiera’s session was done! Isn’t she just a natural?!

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine does and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2025/2026 (or a parent of an upcoming graduate) - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!

Country-Cute Vibes | Natalie | Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Country-Cute Vibes with Natalie

Marion | Central City | Wanatee Park

I started this blog a month ago (and when I say “started,” I mean I created a title), which was literally 6 weeks after Natalie’s photoshoot. So now I’m 10 weeks post-photoshoot and am going to attempt to tell the story of Natalie’s shoot, when I often have a hard time remembering what even happened yesterday. BUT I have a feeling that Natalie’s session will be easy to recall because it was CRAZY. So let’s dive in!

I did Natalie’s sister’s senior pictures a few years ago (also an unforgettable session, you can read about Emily’s session here) so I knew Natalie’s would be coming up! I had posted about a Spring Senior Photoshoot Model Call and she (or maybe it was her mom or sister - LOL) signed up so we got to planning a late spring session. Natalie didn’t care TOO much about getting photos done, so she let me plan it all. When I learned that she was a country music fan and that she was interested in a country/farm setting, I was pumped. It’s been years since I had done one and even longer before that! And it feels like going back to my roots, where it all began for me with my sister’s senior pictures on my family’s and a family friends’ farm and land - very country-esque vibes. We planned her session and with no rain in the forecast, we went forward with our session. What I hadn’t checked for, though? Wind.

This has GOT to be the windiest photoshoot I have ever done. And for a senior with long hair, nonetheless. We had our work cut out for us. I told myself, if none turned out, we would just try again another day. But we gave it our best shot - despite LOTS of frustration and patience needed - and we were all surprised at the outcome!!

Our first stop was downtown Marion. REALLY quick because it wasn’t built into our schedule but once seeing her outfit options while she was getting her hair and makeup done (Meaghan on hair and Lindsey on makeup), we felt this outfit was best suited for an urban vibe. So we made a quick stop, explored the area, fought the wind and moved on.

And this green wall was a heck of a find! It just made her eyes POP! (And blocked some wind. Win-win!)

Off to the country we went. I never know what to expect when I do photos on private property (with the owners permission of course) and just know I will make the best of whatever I find, because it’s going to look different than the last time I was there. And it was even better than we could have expected. So many “props” were out there this time- LOL. I laugh as I write that because I know that considering a cow pasture, corn stalk bales, and a livestock trailer as “props” is laughable to the average person. But we used them all. We arrived and realized that the wind was going to be MUCH worse than it was in town. We definitely got more outtakes than the average session, but we also got a lot more uniqueness with hair movement which I DO love! I wish we had some behind the scenes video or photos of Natalie’s mom trying to hold up my giant sun shade in an attempt to block the wind. She was essentially a human kite most of the time. Poor Mom!

The wind was working for us there, don’t you think?!

One idea Natalie had was to use hay bales.. and I thought “oh yeah for sure that will be easy to find,” but turns out those are seassssonal-ish. But also turns out that when I THOUGHT I was picturing hay bales, I was ACTUALLY picturing corn stalk bales. So when the farm owner regretfully said she didn’t have hay bales but sent me a photo of the corn stalk bales that we could use instead, I was like “YESSSS!!” But, ya’ll that WIND. WOULDN’T. LET. UP!! But I think we won the battle, although it didn’t feel like it in the moment!!

We even thought that breaking out a hat would help tame the wind-blown hair. And it did, but she wasn’t a huge fan of the idea of doing all of her senior photos in a hat - go figure - LOL!

Before heading out to our next location, we made a pit-stop on the gravel road to use the family truck - the same one we used for her sister’s senior photos. And AGAIN, these were some of their FAVORITE pictures from the shoot. It was decided that they could not sell the truck before all their sisters had gotten their senior pictures done with it! I think it’s such a fun idea!

Of course, after battling crazy winds all day and them finally settling down at our last location, a storm started brewing in the distance. The sunset was covered by clouds JUST as we were going to be able to start getting those gorgeous golden-hour pictures.. and it made the night end quite a bit quicker too. So now we were in crunch time. Last location was Wanatee Park, but we had a few spots we wanted to hit.

As we drove away for the night, it started to rain. Perfect timing and I’m so glad we ended when we did! The night ended in a bit of a rush, and Natalie had multiple ticks on her when she got home (YUCK! Ticks were particularly bad this year!), and it all just seems to fit the chaos that was Natalie’s crazy and windy senior photoshoot. Not to mention, I got a notification on my way home that I was being tracked by an air tag and I low-key was panicking that someone was tracking me. Like, when would someone have put an air tag on my car? Did they put it in my camera bag? I shouldn’t pull into my driveway, just in case! Why me? Maybe they meant it for Natalie?? Welcome to my anxiety brain. I promptly texted Natalie’s mom to warn them of the possible dangers, JUST IN CASE! Turns out, it was Natalie’s mom that had an air tag on her - LOL! Phew! But hey, I’m thankful that my phone noticed and warned me!

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine does and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2025/2026 (or a parent of an upcoming graduate) - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!

A Pastel-Summer Aesthetic Senior Photoshoot | Livi | Center Point-Urbana High School

A Pastel-Summer Aesthetic Senior Photoshoot with Livi

Culver’s Greenhouse | Uptown Marion | Wanatee Park

When Livi’s mom reached out to schedule her senior pictures, I couldn’t believe she was a senior already!! I had photographed her sister’s senior pictures a few year ago (her blog is here) and had only met Livi in passing when she was helping Madi choose her favorite pictures. When I met Livi for her consultation, she just had 2 requests: a field of flowers and for her pictures to NOT look identical to her sisters. But here’s the kicker, she loved many of her sisters locations and styles. So my challenge was to find locations with similar vibes, but not the same, and give Livi her own unique session! You can check out both Madi and Livi’s blog and decide if how we did ;)

We started Livi’s day with hair (with the wonderful Ingrid) and makeup (with the amazing, Lindsey, who let us use her house to get ready)! And honorable mention to our favorite spray tan place, Bare Tones, for hooking Livi up with a beautiful glow for her session!!

Livi LOVED how her hair and makeup turned out!! Next stop: Culvers Greenhouse! This is an idea we chatted about at her consultation and she loved the idea so we gave it a go. I think these ended up being her favorite images of the lot!!

It was super hot for Livi’s photoshoot and the inside of a greenhouse isn’t lacking humidity - phewy! We had to take several breaks to make sure Livi didn’t start getting over-heated and sweaty. But we loved her white outfit here and pops of colors from the flowers.

Our next stop was uptown Marion where we’d meet her sister who brought her puppy for some pictures!! THESE were SO hard to narrow down!!

Didn’t this sweet pup do SO GOOD!!!?

After puppy-pics, we did an outfit change and explored some new part of Marion that I haven’t been to before! I love this dress on her! Although it was windy this day and her sleeves and dress weren’t cooperating easily, but you could never tell! And we sure as heck weren’t going to complain about the wind we were getting because it was the only thing saving us on this HOT day!

We did a quick outfit change again before we headed to the other side of the main road for the more “urban” or “grunge” areas of Marion. (Ok, it’s not really grungy at all, but I can’t think of a better word - hah!)

I really loved this color on Livi and especially loved it with the brick! She’s so dang cute!!

Another one of Livi’s requests was a willow tree. WOW! These are hard to come by post-derecho (in a public space, with a good backdrop behind it). But a friend told me about this one the morning of our shoot and I rearranged our whole photoshoot layout to make this one happen!

Remember that wind I was talking about earlier?! THIS is the point that we were starting to get a little sick of it. LOL! It kept blowing the willow tree branches everywhere, across Livi’s face as we tried to take her photo, her hair across her face. Livi’s mom definitely got put to work holding onto branches and fixing Livi’s hair as we attempted to get the cutest pictures! You couldn’t even tell, could ya?!

According to my calculations, we were running out of daylight since the sun sets earlier in the part of Wanatee Park where we were headed for flower pictures. Spoiler alert: my calculations were wrong. But luckily I had miscalculated because the smoke from the Canadian fires started to roll in and blocked the sun and sunset for the remainder of Livi’s session. I was bummed, but she didn’t seem to care at all!! We got there just in time and I LOVED this purple dress in the purple flowers!

Ironically, the lack of sunset is exactly what happened at her sister’s senior pictures, too! It has been super sunny all day and then the clouds rolled in at the end of her session. But still so perfect!

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine does and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2024 (or a parent of an upcoming graduate) - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!

Colorful and Summery Senior Pictures | Lauren | Prairie High School

Colorful and Summery Senior Pictures with Lauren

Newbo District | Pinicon Ridge Park | Wanatee Park

I’m writing this blog at 6:30 a.m. and for those that know me… this is highly unusual! But, I’m almost 37 weeks pregnant and fighting insomnia so here we are! I have a list of “work stuff” that I want to get done before Baby comes, which includes writing this blog on Lauren’s AMAZING senior session! I can’t wait to share the images with you all - she is stunning!!

Lauren’s mom reached out to me last October, if I remember right! My memory has not been serving me very well lately, which the insomnia/lack of sleep doesn’t help. But according to my emails, we’ve been chatting since at least last October. Talk about being ON IT for senior pictures! They were specifically wanting July or August photos because Lauren really wanted that full summer-y, flower-y goodness that summer brings! We chatted for a bit, got them on the schedule and then a few months later, I found out I was pregnant and due a week before her senior pictures were scheduled. I knew that I simply couldn’t do the July or August dates they were wanting - it would be too risky and probably too much heat/strain on my body at that time. I decided when I would be comfortable taking my last sessions before Baby came (considering that senior sessions are usually 2-3 hours, outdoors and usually involve at least a little hiking while carrying around my gear/ladder, etc) and I reached out to Lauren and her mom with the option to reschedule for mid-June or a refund. To my surprise (and excitement) they opted for rescheduling!

So we set Lauren’s new session date for the latest possible date in June before I started my “maternity leave” and I just prayed for good weather and for the FLOWERS to bloom early! (Last year, they were barely blooming by June 29th and Lauren was scheduled for June 11th - eek!! Talk about pressure!) We set up a few back-up dates and watched the weather as the day got closer. I wasn’t going to settle for anything less than perfect weather for Lauren’s session after she took a leap of faith with me and rescheduled for mid-June when she really wanted later summer.

The morning of her photoshoot, the forecast called for partially cloudy all day until her photoshoot was set to begin. So we banked on that. Lauren had already gotten her nails and spray tan done (perks of doing a senior photoshoot with me!) and was already feeling cute with her summer glow. (Shout out to Bare Tones for the BEST spray tans in the area!) We met at Moxie Salon for hairstyling with Justine and makeup with Kasya and had a great time just hanging out while Lauren got all dolled up!!

As we wrapped up, the skies still were cloudy and we were slightly worried but held out hope. We headed to our first location in the Newbo area and started shooting. We noticed a cloudless sky in the distance and got excited. Before we knew it, we were surrounded by sun and we all breathed a sigh of relief!! Also, because it happened to be a chill 70 degree day in mid-June and Lauren’s outfits were planned for, like, an 80+ degree day. She was FROZEN! Who would have thought!? But her bright, colorful top brought allll the summer vibes to this location and you couldn’t even tell she was cold!

I’m obsessed with the pops of colors - her outfit, the door, the platform! So cute!!

We started roaming around the area, stopping at my favorite spots that Lauren had requested!

I wasn’t planning on taking her back behind the old firehouse/Airbnb but we spotted these flowers and she mentioned how much she loved them, so we swung by them quick - GREAT choice on our behalf! They matched her shirt perfectly and are some of my favorite images from her session. How dang cute!!

After a quick outfit change, we headed to our next location. Yes - we were already running late.. no surprise there LOL! We set timers to keep me on track, but I use them as more of a suggestion and we always end up running a little behind. Luckily Lauren could change quickly and (spoiler alert) everything worked out fine, as always!

While I LOVE pops of color, I extra-love neutrals in a space like this. Lauren ROCKED her urban vibes and ultimately chose this outfit/setting for her large framed print to hang up next to her sister’s senior pictures at her house! We moved through these locations FAST and then it was off to Pinicon Ridge Park for her requested bridge and pictures with her DOGGIE!!

After our quick stop in Central City, we actually headed back to Marion to chase down the wildflowers at Wanatee Park. The sun was still high enough so we made a stop at my favorite tree-filled area and these turned out to be some of my favorite images. SOOO bright, colorful, summery and ahhmazing!

How gorgeous is she?! As we headed over to our flower area, I convinced Lauren to trek into the white flowers across the street to get a few more pictures in this outfit to give it some more “camera-time” AND because I wanted to use my favorite chair for some different poses that my seniors and their family LOVE! After seeing the pictures, Lauren decided that getting those multiple tiny scratches from our long trek was worth it!!

And then we hopped over to the purple flowers - the main event - the scenery that Lauren was wanting the most!

And that golden hour we were worried we weren’t going to get?? Perfection!

What a perfect senior session!! Everything we could have hoped for. At her ordering session (where they see the photos for the first time and order their images), we matched a frame to her sister’s senior picture that they had in their living room and I love how hers turned out! And her album is just GORGEOUS!

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine does and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2024 (or a parent of an upcoming graduate) - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!

Trendy and Unique Urban Senior Portraits | Lydia | Iowa City

Trendy and Unique Urban Senior Portraits with Lydia

Downtown Cedar Rapids | Penningroth Barn

I have to be honest. When Lydia first reached out to me, it was through my non-business email address and I assumed it was probably a spam emailer. (I get a lot of those - lol!) But I responded anyway and realized I was talking to Lydia, the senior, and not her mom. Which happens from time-to-time, but not often. And usually my emails get lost in their junk mail, forgotten about, etc etc. To my surprise, she responded and I scheduled a phone call to chat with her mom! And the rest is history as they say.

We scheduled Lydia’s session date and I met up with them for their consultation. I learned so much about Lydia - she’s so open and inviting! We chatted about all her ideas for her session, and came up with a game plan. Her first stop - professional outfit styling with Radiant Boutique by Rhi! Lydia was SO excited about this service and I’m SO glad, too! Rhi and I started collaborating a couple months ago (when I found out she existed) and what a PERFECT service for my seniors. Lydia ended up getting ALL her outfits from Rhi. And as you’ll see, she looked AMAZING!

Fast forward to senior picture day! Lydia’s mom decided to get a quick family photo taken at the beginning of her session (it’s an add-on I offer) so she dropped off Lydia at Moxie Salon and took her sister to go find a last minute outfit during Lydia’s hair and makeup. I had Lindsey on makeup and Justine on hairstyling, and we just had a blast chatting with Lydia!

We met Lydia’s mom and sister (who was the SWEETEST by the way) back at the salon, changed outfits and off we went. We got to our first location, snapped some family pictures and they realized they had left a cell phone in the bathroom at the salon. So while mom went back to the get the phone, Lydia, her sister and I started in on Lydia’s photoshoot day!

And she was SOAKING IT UUUP!!!!

I knew she would be a model and comfortable in front of the camera for me!

We took SO many gorgeous photos! And riiiiight about here is when mom returned. Right in time for an outfit change. And we ventured further into Newbo!

This outfit on these stairs was my FAVORITE combination! STUNNING!

We were moving pretty quickly, because we were running a tiny bit behind, per usual. (ha!) But I knew from our previous conversations that Lydia’s really wanted some really good pictures showing off her pretty blue eyes. As we were heading back to the cars to head to our next stop, I spotted this door and HAD to stop. I knew it would really make her eyes pop!! So gorgeous!

Next stop was the old barn out at Indian Creek Nature Center. Our FAVORITE outfit was next and were were about to spend a good amount of time exploring this spot!

This hat was part of the styling that Rhi at Radiant Boutique styled her in and it was the PERFECT mix of trendy and natural!

I LOVE these yellow stairs! I don’t know why! Next up was the bridge - the specific reason we chose this location.

Can you tell we loved that spot!?! SO pretty!! Then off to the flower field that Lydia picked (with a pit-stop in the trees that was too nature-y for her, so we only took a few lol!!)

! I haven’t photographed this kind of flower field before so it was fun to try something new.

Can you tell we didn’t spend ANY time at this location or LOVE this outfit at alllll!?! (sarcasm, just in case you couldn’t read that through text lol.)

Our last stop and outfit was one I was really excited for because I had always wanted to try this location. And her outfit was perfect for this spot!

Since we were at such a high point in the city, the sun set more slowly and we were able to get creative and shoot a little longer. But Lydia was definitely getting tired out and we were all ready to wrap it up! What a great end to a stunning photoshoot!

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine does and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2023 or 2024 (or a parent of an upcoming graduate) - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!

Casual Country Rustic Senior Pictures | Elisabeth | Center Point-Urbana High School

Casual Country Rustic Senior Pictures with Elisabeth

Newbo District, Cedar Rapids, IA | Center Point, Iowa

I met Elisabeth’s mom and sister several years ago when I did her sister’s senior pictures!! When her mom reached out about me doing Elisabeth’s pictures AND wanting to fill a last minute opening for me, I was SO excited!! Her mom told me how different she and her sister are, that’s she’s super low-key and doesn’t typically get dressed up/do hair and makeup. Honestly, I LOVE that! That just means that this would be an extra special experience for her!! When my client’s see “professional hair and makeup” included in my package, they tend to get a little worried. They worry that the makeup will be too much for them. The mom’s are worried the senior won’t look like herself. But that’s not the case at all!! (Then I show them all of my gorgeous seniors with their hair/makeup all done so naturally and perfect.) And that was definitely a concern for Elisabeth’s mom. We met for our consultation one night at Apple Creek Coffee and we chatted about hair, makeup, spray tans at Bare Tones, outfits and location ideas. She wanted something I hadn’t done in a while: a rustic red barn and a country vibe. Heck ya!

When photoshoot day came, our first stop was hair and makeup with Ingrid from Aurora Blush and Lindsey on makeup!

After wrapping up hair and makeup, we headed to Newbo. Side note: I had a whooooole photoshoot day itinerary all planned out. But Elisabeth sent me her outfits the day before her shoot, I changed it all. LOL. Mostly because of this ONE rock-tee outfit that I felt like needed it’s own grungy-ish vibe. There were a few favorite spots in the Newbo district that I LOVE and felt like they’d match the aesthetic well. So after a changing up the game-plan for the day, we started there!

It worked perfectly!!! I knew we were in a bit of a time crunch because of my addition of these locations to our plan, so we hit up those 2 spots and did a quick outfit change for some cute urban photos with this adorable dress!

We couldn’t stay long, but she looked so dang cute in this dress! I was gladded I had planned for her to use it more in the next location: the Cedar Valley Nature Trail in Center Point! This is one of my favorite spots to incorporate nature without going INTO it - I love the mix of city and natural aesthetic here. But also! We did some of Elisabeth’s sister’s senior pictures in this exact spot! So that’s special!!

After wrapping up in this spot (that I had only planned to spend 15 minutes at… ha! I should know myself better), we headed to a friend’s private property for the requested red barn! We got SO many cute ones here and I LOVED how the sun hit on this vine-y fenced area! Isn’t she GORGEOUS?!

And then it was off to our last stop of the night, which happens to be another favorite spot of mine in Center Point.. and another spot we did her sister’s senior pictures! Elisabeth wanted to incorporate her love for show choir so she brought her shoes and sheet music and I thought this was the best way to showcase it all - and the perfect spot!!

And the sun setting across this field is just my favorite thing! Awwww, I love me some golden light! And I LOVED this dress and hat combo on Elisabeth too! Although we were THIIIIS close to heading down to the river for more pictures (…but this time of year, brrrr!), this is how Elisabeth’s senior session ended! Perfect weather, bathed in golden light and crickets. :D

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine does and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2023 or 2024 (or a parent of an upcoming graduate) - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!

Unique City Night Lights Senior Portraits | Emily | Jefferson High School

Unique City Night Lights Senior Portraits with Emily

Culvers Greenhouse | Pleasant Creek Park | Downtown Cedar Rapids

Where do I even start with a blog about Emily’s session?! I had made a post on Facebook about opening up two new August dates after my vacation plans had changed and Emily’s mom reached out immediately. They were on vacation, so communication was tricky but they for sure wanted to book my last open date and we made it happen! And I’m SO glad they did! I actually know some of Emily’s family members because I’ve photographed her aunt and uncle’s exciting events over the past few years (engagement, wedding, maternity, newborn and baby milestone pictures) so it was so fun to get to meet more of the family! When they were back from vacation, we met for a consultation and I learned that Emily has a creative side and had some non-traditional ideas for her pictures: she wanted to use a greenhouse and wanted nighttime pictures with the city lights downtown. The greenhouse has been a popular request this year, but I have never done nighttime senior pictures before - I was immediately excited… and let’s be honest, nervous.

I had an idea on how we were going to pull it off, but wasn’t sure if it would get us the results we both had in mind. A few days before Emily’s photoshoot, I went and scoped out the downtown Cedar Rapids area at night to see what locations I could find with the most lights and sent her some pictures and found some she loved.

Fast forward to photoshoot day - we had Nicole at Onyx Salon doing Emily’s hair and makeup and had a blast just chatting! And then we were off to Culver’s Greenhouse (with their permission, of course!)

It was HOT in there, but it was so fun getting to try some new things and get Emily warmed up.

We changed outfits and our next stop was downtown Cedar Rapids for some more modern-looking city pictures AND pictures with her puppy, Isla!! We met with Emily’s dad and got ADORABLE pictures with her sweet pup who was verrryyyyy pregnant at the time. We moved to our second spot and it was way too sunny so we used another area close by and had fun trying out new ideas.

We wrapped up, changed outfits and headed out to Pleasant Creek State Park. I picked this location because it had a lot of things Emily wanted: willow trees, water and long grass. I’ve been here before but it turned out better than I imagined! We started in the shady road area, and Emily decided to throw on her sunglasses for a few AND use their truck for some pictures, too! SUPER cute and fun!

Then we changed outfits, and waded through the weeds and flowers to get the best lighting with the willow tree. I am OBSESSED with this light! She was a natural in front of the camera, too!

As the sun set, we headed further into the park to catch that amazing light in the long grass. And again, I was obsessed! I LOVED the light from this session so much, and Emily made my job easy.

And then we rushed back to water area, got a few on shore and then attempted to get IN the water. I had completely forgot that she had told me she actually wanted to get IN!! So we carefully tip-toed into the water and decided it would be safer to just sit down in it! hah!! So fun!

Then the sun had set and we still had the last part of the session left. But we WANTED it dark, so no more chasing the sunlight for us. We headed back to downtown Cedar Rapids, we met in the first location and got out my wayyyyyy too big 86” umbrella and lighting combo (but it’s all I’ve got). We definitely got some strange looks but that’s to be expected. And a huge shout out to Emily’s mom for carrying that huge thing around all night. We had planned to only take 30 minutes or so… but it took a lot of trial and error. We walked around, tried some funky things. And found a spot that almost impossible to light with an 86” umbrella but it was worth it! We LOVED the results and ended up wrapping up at 11pm!!! Needless to say, we were ALL tired!

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine does and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2023 or 2024 (or a parent of an upcoming graduate) - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!

Trendy Summer Senior Pictures with Kitten | Olivia | Jesup High School

Trendy Summer Senior Pictures with Olivia

Newbo District | Center Point | Jesup High School

I met with Olivia and her mom at Jam’s Coffee Bar, a new coffee place in Urbana that I had been wanting to try! I still get blown away when I think about my seniors coming from outside of my surrounding areas of Cedar Rapids, Marion, Center Point and Alburnett. It’s always feels a little extra exciting knowing that they SOMEHOW found me through Google and decided to pick me! Anyway! I met with them and the first thing I noticed was Olivia’s beautiful blonde hair. And I felt like I clicked right away with the both of them - they were so down-to-earth and easy to talk to! I was excited to plan Olivia’s session!

We decided on using Newbo for a downtown vibe, and she wanted wildflowers (and she noted that she especially loved purple flowers) and water. So after scouting some locations, I decided to try a new patch of flowers I had found outside the CPU High School and use the boat ramp area in Center Point, too! This worked out extra-well because we got SO much rain leading up to her session that the water was high, but I knew the boat ramp would have treads and a gradually decline so she’d still be able to get IN the water if she wanted to! So we started with hair and makeup at Onyx Salon where Nicole did both her hair and makeup! We LOVED how it turned out! And then it was off to Newbo.

I LOVED Olivia’s outfits and the vibes she was wanting. She had a couple more trendy outfits and a more classic outfit that would fit with a few spots in Newbo that was more casual. We started by exploring one end of the area and slowly making our way to the other with a few outfit changes in the crazy, popup tent in between.

After our first outfit change, and as we were heading to our next location I realized I had left my ladder at our last location. That was a first for me! A big thanks to Olivia’s mom who volunteered to go grab it while we continued on. We were heading to one of my favorite spots at Newbo and knew she wouldn’t have any trouble finding us there - I knew I’d take wayyyy to many pictures.

We walked around a little more in this outfit, heading to the blue and white mural at Newbo for some pops of color!

After changing into the outfit that Olivia seemed the most excited about, we started our last venture at Newbo. We stopped at my last few go-to spots that I thought would pair well with this outfit. And they turned out SO GOOD!

We were perfectly on time the whole day… with a little time to spare thankfully. It was HOT on Olivia’s senior picture day and we had to take some air-conditioner breaks in the car. We left for Center Point to hit up the natural trail first.. and to meet up with Olivia’s dad and KITTY!!! To tell you I was excited for this part was an understatement. Anyone who knows me knows I LOVE kitties, and I was SO excited for Olivia to get some sweet pictures with her baby, Millie.

We made it as quick as possible with Millie because cats don’t love new places and there were a lot of walkers/bikers on the trail this day. We probably only had her out there for 10 minutes and we got SO many cute pictures!! We finished out with some more pictures of Olivia in this super-cute outfit, and then some volleyball pictures!

Next up was the wildflower fields. I had happened to find PURPLE flowers, too! Which made me extra excited, but also a bit nervous since I had never used this spot before. We showed up, walked all the way out to the front of the field, started shooting and I realized the sun was still too high for the lighting we were hoping for here. (Although, after some editing tweaks, they were FIRE!!) I knew we had a little extra time to spare, so I had Olivia go get cooled down for a bit in the car. After a few minutes, we used the shaded parts of the field for the pictures were she’d need to be laying/sitting down. The long grass and flowers would’ve been too long anyway. All the while, the CPU volleyball girls were starting their outdoor practice RIGHT next to us. I thought for sure that Olivia would be thrown off her game, but they were hyping her up and she was ROCKING it!

After a little more cooling down, the sun was finally low enough for the PERFECT lighting inside the flower field. So we trekked back out there and started doing our thing! And HOLY COW! It was PERFECT! We are obsessed with these photos!! Isn’t she STUNNING?!

After wrapping up this hot, sweaty part of the photoshoot, we were all looking forward to the water portion of her session. So we headed out to the boat ramp, changed outfits and spent the last few minutes of the sunset taking these images of the gorgeous Olivia looking SO summery in the water. And they are soooo cute!!

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine does and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2023 or 2024 (or a parent of an upcoming graduate) - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!

Downtown & Beachy Vibes Senior Pictures | Grasie | Center Point-Urbana High School

Downtown & Beachy Vibes Senior Pictures with Grasie

Downtown Cedar Rapids | Pleasant Creek State Park | CPU High School

Grasie’s session was one I was looking forward to a little extra! I had met her (kinda-sorta) when I did her brother’s senior pictures a few years ago and so when her mom reached out again, I was SO excited! (It’s such a compliment to have client’s who return back to me!) I met with Grasie and her mom and learned that Grasie was really up for whatever I wanted to do for her session, which was SO nice, honestly! I DO love hearing and coming up with the PERFECT senior session for my seniors, but sometimes it can be a big struggle to fit it all in and time it all out perfectly. So when Grasie told me I could just pick what we did, I felt like I had ALL the options in the world to choose what inspired ME! Like, where do I begin. In the end, I decided to keep it simple so her photoshoot day was low-key and fun!

We were SO close to doing a sunflower field but there weren’t any close by us that were ready. So we veto-ed that idea. My goal was to find STUNNING backgrounds for her and somewhere she could get her feet wet, but also incorporate some downtown city looks and we nailed it - and then some!

We started with hair and makeup at my house with Chelsea on hair and Angie on makeup, then headed into Cedar Rapids. We decided to meet at Green Square Park so we could explore the areas I had picked for us! Once I saw her outfits, I knew the locations I wanted to try. As we were parking, I drove by one of the locations and it was gone - demolished - and a new building was being put up. So I had Grasie and her mom park while I took another drive around the block and found a NEW but perfect spot to try for her first outfit. I LOVED how the aesthetic worked for this outfit. And it was low-key without many people around so it gave us a chance to warm up.

We knew her Coe College outfit would be a quick one, but I LOVED it on her! She was already ROCKING her shoot and I knew it was going to be a fun, easy night. We changed outfits in my crazy pop-up tent and started venturing towards the “pretty” city look before we did the more “grunge” city look. I know there has to be better words to describe it, but oh well! hah! First stop was the Cedar Rapids Public Library. Which was the PERFECT location for this gorgeous dress!

Then we did a little more venturing, stopping at some of my fave spots! (They’re my faves for a reason, doesn’t she look gorgeous!?)

Grasie changed outfits again and I LOVED this outfit! I thought it was shorts when she had showed them to me, but this skirt was the best with her boots!!! Obessed!

We used this outfit as our “transition outfit” and headed to Pleasant Creek State Park after wrapping up downtown. I knew with the boots, it had a city vibe and without boots it would look perfect in a nature setting. Adding a cute yellow flower was the perfect touch and pop of color!

And then not unlike me at all - but I totally forgot that Grasie’s mom had told me she wanted a special picture of Grasie holding up her baby picture in the BLUE dress that we had already changed out of (we did this with her brother, too, so it’s really special and adorable!) so Grasie changed quick into her blue dress again for a quick few shots - sorry girl!

And then one last outfit for the night! With a cloudless sunset, this willow tree is AMAZING but of course the sun didn’t want to cooperate (hey - we’re not complaining, it wasn’t raining or overcast). I had stressed about the dang weather for Grasie’s session for a week. It was set to be overcast/cloudy and I probably asked her 12x if that was ok with her, because so many of my seniors REALLY want that golden sunset light that my photos are known for. She told me over and over again that she’s totally ok with it being cloudy. But the day of, everything cleared out! Hallelujah. Until the ONE moment I wanted that sunlight behind the willow tree - the clouds moved it. They turned out gorgeous still, and honestly made it WAY less of a hike through the weeds for us!

The clouds seemed like they were going to stay the rest of the night, which is ok - it’s what we had planned on anyway. I asked Grasie if she wanted a rock-water vibe or a beachy vibe (secretly hoping for beachy because I haven’t gotten to do beach photos in years) and she chose beach!! YAY! So we headed out and played in the water, fully expecting to end our night there early because of the lack of sun. We were splashing and taking some gorgeous beachy shots when the sun started popping out. We RAN to utilize the parts of the beach that were lit up!

We were wrapping up the session and the sun was still out. I asked them if they wanted to go try and capture more of the golden light in another area or just call it a night. They said we might as well go give it a try! We were already there. Oh my gosh, I’m SO thankful we did! As I showed them picture after picture of that magical lighting and how amazing Grasie was doing, they quickly realized my obsession with golden, cloudless sunsets and agreed that it was totally worth it!

Literally - how perfect is Grasie! She’s so dang cute, down-to-earth and I just LOVE her full laughing pictures the most! And I can’t believe this is the last picture of the night!!!

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine does and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2023 or 2024 (or a parent of an upcoming graduate) - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!

Greenhouse Summer Senior Photoshoot | Kenna | Kennedy High School

Summery Greenhouse Senior Pictures with Kenna

Culvers Greenhouse | Downtown Cedar Rapids | Wanatee Park

Wayyyyy back in the winter, Kenna’s mom reached out about senior pictures. I had started getting inquiries for senior pictures SO early compared to normal and I was impressed!! Kenna and her family were referred to me from a friend and past client of mine, which I always love to hear. We had talked about sunflowers, more of a modern urban look and a greenhouse so we set a date for August (when their friend’s sunflower patch was supposed to bloom) and then stayed in touch until our first in-person meeting.

When we met up, the sunflower idea had been veto-ed but everything else was a “go!” And what a small world it is, because when talking to Kenna about her spray tan, and professional hair/makeup I had set up for her (part of my senior package) she knew the spray tan artist (Katrina at Bare Tones) AND the hairstylist (Aubree at Moxie Salon) already! She had yet to meet her makeup artist, Krysta (Make Me Up) but I KNEW she’d be obsessed with her makeup. Spoiler alert - she was!

We started our day at Moxie Salon for hair and makeup, and then headed to some cute spots around downtown Cedar Rapids for a clean, modern urban look.

(Enjoy some behind-the-scenes pictures, courtesy of Kenna’s mom and bestie)

I LOVE how this outfit looked in this library location!

Next, we hit up Culver’s Greenhouse (with their permission, of course) - which I haven’t been to in FOREVER, so I was a tad nervous about how that would go. The lighting was bright and trickier than I thought it was going to be but Kenna was patient and we LOVED how they turned out!!

I’m not going to lie- this close up was semi-accidental!! I was standing WAY to close for the shot I was trying to get, but snapped one anyway and it ended up being one of their FAVES!

Laying down on these empty tables was pretty much an after-thought. We had taken all of the photos we were wanting to, were walking out and I decided to give it a go! I saw them empty as we walked in but thought that Kenna would feel weird getting up there in a dress in a public space. They joked about using them and I told them my idea and they were down for it! I KNEW I’d love these!!

Our last stop for the night was the park for some nature shots and the wildflower field I had scoped out. We had a few outfits to do here, which was perfect because I have a LOT of spots I love at this park! Walking into our first spot, the grass was wayyyyyyy longer than it normally is. It was a trek, but it was definitely worth it! And extra-worth it to find flowers back there!

Next spot was the middle of the tree-lined road - a senior fave. Aren’t these shots the cutest!?

It was a beautiful day. The sun shining the whole day, until RIGHT as we headed to the flower field. Sunny flower pictures are my JAM and I was a little bummed, but Kenna assured me she was still loving the images and after I agreed - I loved them too! And they have such a magazine-model-or-something vibe to them, too!

Doesn’t she look darling in a hat, too? Kenna’s summer session turned out so pretty and ended with a few TikTok creations in the sunset. Does a senior session get much better than that?

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine does and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2023 or 2024 (or a parent of an upcoming graduate) - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!

Sunset Wildflower Senior Photoshoot | Olivia | Prairie High School

Sunset in the Wildflowers Senior Pictures with Olivia

Newbo | Wanatee Park | Iowa Senior Photographer

Olivia’s mom reached out to me and I was so excited!! I had photographed her older sister’s senior pictures a few years ago (see her blog here) and enjoyed their family SO much. I have a younger sister so I KNEW not to expect the sisters to be exactly alike. While they’re both super-duper cute (obviously), Olivia seemed a bit more extroverted than her older sis and seemed excited to be in front of the camera… and felt comfortable doing her own thing!

After we met for our consultation, Olivia expressed interested in doing something a little more unique and fun. So I planned out our locations and threw a sprinkle of fun into the mix… literally! We stopped at Almost Famous Popcorn for some ice cream halfway through. But I’m getting off track - let’s start from the beginning.

We started off our day with hair and makeup. Since Olivia lives out of town, we decided to get ready at the makeup artists and we all ooh-ed and ahhh-ed over her home and beautiful photos on the wall. With Chelsea on hair and Lindsey on makeup, I knew she would look perfectly natural and fresh-faced! Isn’t she a stunner!?

Our first stop was exploring the Newbo area. We stopped at all my favorite go-to spots and discovered some fun, gorgeous spots along the way. Right away, before we started taking any photos, I told Olivia to not worry about “holding a pose” and keeping still - to feel free to keep moving a little if she felt like it. And she immediately went into model mode and I LOVED it! Do you love this green as much as I do??!

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(Behind-the-scenes photos, courtesy of Olivia’s mom!) I love show examples of “what I see vs. what you see!”

And look at that ADORABLE ice cream picture!!

After ice cream, we changed outfits and discovered JUST how dang windy it was that day. Or maybe it had just picked up at this point. I don’t know, but I DO know that it was a struuuuuggle to get Olivia’s hair to stay where we wanted it. But you’d never know looking at her pictures!

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I had to keep the next image just because it was too funny not to! I was snapping photos of Olivia and her mom got curious about the grape vine behind her and went to check it out, without knowing she was directly in the shot. Of course I snapped this photo and included it in her slideshow during their ordering session (when I come to their home and show them their photos for the first time). There was definitely some laughs!

Have you noticed how GORGEOUS her eyes are yet?!

We were struggling with the wind but ended up getting some good shots just in time to leave. And off to Wanatee Park we went! We tried some new spots, and wrapped up with my favorite go-to locations. It was hot and sweaty but that lighting was perfect! And how cute does she look in that color??

My seniors LOVE the tree-lined roads out at Wanatee. I mean, I do too! So after an outfit change, we did some quick pictures in the road (you have to be quick here, because even though the cars go slow, the park is always busy).

And the last thing we had planned for Wanatee - the reason we were there - was the flowers!! Out at Wanatee, the sun seems to sink below the horizon faster than any other place. So to save time, we just jumped across the street to the little patch of flowers next to the road. And honestly, I actually LOVE how the sun looks filtering through the trees. Magical!

We actually had one more stop planned for Olivia’s day. We rushed out there as the sun was setting, but in the end, she just didn’t LOVE that location/outfit as much as these and we veto-ed them to keep these ones! So none of those are shared here, but it was worth it just for the crazy adventure.

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine does and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2023 or 2024 (or a parent of an upcoming graduate) - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!