Last weekend I met Regan and Matt for an engagement session in Chicago.  I hadn’t been to the city since I was a kid, and I must say, I fell in love with it. Maybe because it was a new and different backdrop for a photo session, or perhaps because we took a break mid-afternoon and wandered through the galleries of the Art Institute of Chicago (Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Seurat, Picasso, Klee, Hopper, Mondrian, Chagall, Giorgio di Chirico…that place is PACKED with works by some of my favorite artists!!).  I’m sure it also had something to do with all of the wonderful food I ate while I was there (peanut butter cupcake filled with nutella at Molly’s Cupcakes…YUM), and of course, having a blast getting to know Regan and Matt while taking their engagement photos.  Here are just a few of my favorites:

To anyone who may not know, Lakeside is an amusement park in NW Denver.  It was built in the early 1900s and  is one of the most visually fascinating locations in northern Colorado….with its old signage, vibrantly colored buildings, and charm of a true amusement park.  I was thrilled beyond words when Sarah and Paul suggested it as a location to take their engagement photos.  I already knew they were awesome, but that suggestion left me with no doubt.

A couple of favorites:

 

They hopped onto the HEART FLIP for a wild spinning ride…

 

The angle I wanted for this shot was RIGHT where the girl selling frozen lemonades was standing…

Thank you, kind lemonade stand girl, for letting me sneak in and grab these shots…

 

Everyone knows that I love me some shoe/feet shots….

Right before Jim and I headed out the door last week, James asked where we were going. “Fort Collins”, we told him, “to take pictures.” His eyes lit up, “Fort Collins!! That’s where Colin lives!!!”   Hmmm….not quite. But it is where we met Annie and Josh to take their engagement photos.  

Tons-o-fun….

 

My view….

Jim’s view…

I love Jim’s angle on this one:

Viney walls….I LOVE LOVE LOVE viney walls….

Right as we were wrapping up, a train (which was…REALLLLLY LOUD) blazed passed.  At first I stood there just staring at it, and FINALLY I realized that a moving train + Annie and Josh would be the COOLEST SHOT EVER!!

Last week Jim and I drove up to Aspen to shoot Alexis and Steve’s engagement session–where they will also be having an amazingly beautiful mountain-top wedding this summer.  Our weather, throughout the shoot, alternated between semi-blizzard snowfall and sunny with clear skies….crAAAzy….I know. .. :) 

Here are a couple of my favorites:

During our freshman year at BYU, JP and I lived in the same dorm hall. Our rooms were across from each other, in fact, and JP was one of the few people in the hall that I remember being up at the same ridiculously late hours as my roommate and me.

Last weekend I headed out to Spokane Washington to shoot JP and Brian’s engagement photos. I hadn’t seen JP since before she knew Brian, and I must say, she looked more radiant than ever!

Here are a couple of my favorite shots from the weekend:

 

We started the session at the park with their always-on-the-lookout-for-a-squirrel-dog Rudy (who is also going to be the ring-bearer at their wedding!!!):

 

 

Colorado is a little lacking in the “green backdrop” department these days, so I enjoyed taking advantage of Washington’s lush greenery.

 

 

 

 

 

Orange shoes = awesome shoes

 

 

 
JP and Brian have a thing about kissing in elevators:

 

 

 
By afternoon it was raining…

 

 
We had five minutes in this deserted office space before security found us and kicked us out.

 

 
Parking garage, orange paint, interesting light…LOVE this one!

 

Last weekend Jim and I shot Jill and Darin’s engagement photos. We shot the session in Estes Park at a place of special significance to Jill and Darin–Mary’s Lake Lodge. Between the fresh mountain air, super-friendly staff, and the aroma of amazing food coming out of the restaurant’s kitchen, I was convinced that Jim and I need a getaway weekend up there. Perhaps sometime soon. :) But anyway….

Here are a couple of favorites from Jill and Darin’s session: