Y'all, let me be real for a second: travel absolutely lights up my soul. Whether I'm visiting a new location, or returning to an old favorite, there is so much to be said for having a change of scenery and expanding beyond my home range. But where does it all begin?

My parents instilled a desire to travel into the core of my very being at a young age. Some of my earliest memories are of the three of us packing up our station wagon and heading west.

Rachel and Dane decided to take the weekend to get away, spend some time in gorgeous Door County with their daughter, baby Riley, relax…and do some wedding planning! This was actually exciting and stress-free for Rachel and Dane. We met at Northern Haus in Sister Bay, where Rachel and Dane saw their wedding venue for the first time. Owners, Sara and Nick at Northern Haus are incredibly warm and inviting, going above and beyond when it comes to hospitality and making sure their clients have everything they need.

On a perfect day that was not too cold and not too hot, but just right, Kara and Tyler prepared for their wedding day. Close family and friends gathered at Green Bay Distillery to share in the festivities of the day. Meanwhile, Kara stepped into her beautiful ball gown with a champagne under layer that was stunning on her. There were so many handcrafted and personal touches Kara and Tyler incorporated into their wedding to make the day personal and meaningful.

Friends, today I want to share with you something that has been lurking in the back of my mind for the past couple weeks, something I had a little bit of fear around how it would be received. Finally, I decided I had to share this because, as many of you know, I am in the middle of wedding planning right now! Andy and I are getting married this September, and wedding planning has truly been so easy and so fun. Before anybody says, “Well, okay, you're in the wedding industry, of course you've got this advantage that not everybody else has!” I will admit that I have a lot of insight on what goes on in the wedding industry, and who to work with in the area; but that doesn't mean that if you're not in the wedding industry, you can't also have a great wedding experience that's fun, stress free, and easy. For us, everything has fallen into place, and I realize that that's not the experience that everybody has.

On an overcast and misty morning, Courtney and Adam prepared for their Friday winter wedding. Courtney’s close friends helped her get ready and put on her stunning gown, while Adam’s close friends from college, brothers, and soon to be brother-in-law pumped up for the special celebration. Family members and friends gathered at Life Church in Green Bay, eagerly awaiting the ceremony.

When a new wedding venue comes to town, it is important for the venue to procure updated wedding images that show off the space even before there is a real wedding in the books. A stylized shoot is also a fantastic opportunity for a practice wedding-day-run for new owners to work out the wrinkles in a calm and fun environment. Even for well-known venues, organized photo sessions are a great way to update photos if changes have been made. In this case, we had the chance to celebrate the grand opening of the Vickery Village Venue!

Bubolz Nature Preserve in Appleton is a gorgeous, magical place even in winter. When Kirsten and Kevin wanted their engagement session to be amongst the pines at Bubolz, I was so happy to document this step in their journey in such a beautiful place full of amazing texture and contrast—truly a photographer’s playground.

We couldn’t have asked for better fall colors on the day of Crystal and Gabe’s photo session. It was perfect sweater weather as KLEM Studio’s associate photographer, Krista, walked around Voyageur Park taking photos of the very much in love Crystal and Gabe.

I couldn’t imagine a better way to start 2020 than with a beachfront wedding in Jamaica. This all-inclusive island getaway provided a luxurious and adventurous location for Kaylynn and Shane’s destination wedding. It was a special celebration of love with friends and family on the picturesque tropical shores of Jamaica.

Green Bay is a great place to start a new relationship, and even fall in love. There are lots of different first date options worth checking out. Here’s the breakdown of a couple of different categories.  

For all my outdoor peeps, I’d recommend going on a hike for your first date. What better way to get to know someone than hiking under a canopy along a creek? Fonferek’s Glen is perfect for just that. There’s a waterfall, a creek, and different pathways to hike up and down that are not too strenuous. For a date plus a furry friend, Baird’s Creek is great for walking dogs. A stroll along the Fox River Trail offers miles of scenic hiking.

The perfect place to elope and a photographer’s dream landscape, Denali National Park has a plethora of magnificent backdrops for anyone’s wedding. On a clear day, the tallest mountain in North America can be seen all the way from Anchorage. Denali’s snowy peak high amongst the Alaska Range is a breathtaking sight to behold, but the park also incorporates fabulous fall colors, crystal clear glacier waters, majestic lakes, and furry friends. This captivating terrain absolutely is one to consider for your elopement. Most of the National Parks allow elopements and ceremonies to take place within their boundaries, but many of them have rules/suggestions when it comes to getting married in their specific park.

On one of the coldest November days in Wisconsin’s history, Ella and Zach snuggled up for their engagement session. Having their engagement session by the water was important to Ella, just as being outdoors was important to Ella and Zach, as it represents them as a couple. The nineteen-degree weather (not including the wind chill!) at Bayshore, Wisconsin brought out how caring and supportive Ella and Zach are.

People often ask me how my photography journey started, but I don't think it can be pinpointed to one specific moment. Perhaps it was growing up in my childhood home, looking at the big, beautiful black and white Ansel Adams landscape prints on our walls. Or maybe it was when I was gifted a camera for Christmas and went through a whole roll of film that night. Or maybe it was when I was in college and I had completed the Intro to Photography course, but I wasn't sure if it was for me until the professor who taught the remaining black and white and digital photography courses convinced me that I had found my home.