Hi Everybody! It's me, Jen. Haha as if you couldn't tell by the crazy red hair :) Most of the time I use my blog as a place to showcase more images and give you an better feel for a whole session or wedding, but I decided to switch thing up a bit and share a bit more about me. Something that honestly isn't easy for me to do!
One cold winter day in November, my parents rushed to the hospital with the anticipation of their favorite child being born! Lol, okay I'm really not going that far back and I know my brother probably won't read this so he really won't be offended! All kidding aside, I did grow up in a super small town (like 500 small) in central Wisconsin and I am honestly so grateful for the idyllic little bubble we lived in when I was young. As cliche as it may sound, I really did love photography from a young age, and couldn't wait to get my rolls of 35mm film developed from my very not fancy point-and-shoot cameras. Fast forward past a degree in Accounting and one semester abroad that taught me that life is too short to not be happy, and that's when I made the best decision of my life to go to photography school in Massachusetts!
Did I ever think or imagine when I got to photography school that I would move back to Madison and start my wedding photography business? No way! I started second shooting weddings to make money and just kind of fell in love with being a wedding photographer. So how the heck did the girl that can't travel enough end up back in Madison? Well, I was spending a lot of my free time traveling back to visit, so I figured if I lived here I could travel more! And of course being closer to my family and friends was a perk.
So, here I am, in Madison, Wisconsin building a business as a wedding photographer! I've learned a lot about myself in the last few years and what I want for my life and my business. As much as I struggle with putting more of myself out to the world on social media, I've realized that I want to attract more clients like me! Lol, I mean come on, who doesn't want to hang out with people just like themselves ;) To do this I'm starting with this blog post and describing my ideal client and business which really describes me and who I am!
I love to work with couples that want to create an experience for their friends and family on their wedding day. I want to photograph people that are madly in love and want to celebrate their commitment to each other with all of the people that they love :) I have worked very hard to get where I am and after spending several years focusing on work, I've decided it's more important to focus on people, relationships, and experiences. Traveling, going on adventures, and being active outside are what I love to do and try to prioritize! This is also something that I tell to all of my clients, that you should prioritize what is important to on your wedding day and really make it your own to reflect you two as a couple and the type of day you want to have. I know that may be a very general description, but I really think it's as easy as that!
Speaking of being easy, you'll should also know that I try to keep things pretty easy, simple, and stress free! You'll notice I've kept my website pretty clean and simple and that's intentional! There are so many complicated things in life, and I don't think photography should be one of those things. I always tell my clients that I am here as a resource for them (seeing as I've photographed 125+ weddings and I don't even know how many portrait sessions) and I always feel so honored that they put their trust in me for these special moments.
To sum it all up, I never thought I would be a wedding photographer! I never thought I would be living in Madison after college. I never thought that I would get to preserve memories for people, but I truly am incredibly grateful that I get to!
ps - Photo credit to my talented friend, Katy Weaver