Kaden + Keely • Surprise Proposal

OH MY GOSH!!! This shoot is one of my favorites for a couple of reasons. One, I'd never photographed a surprise proposal so it was definitely a thrill for me. Two, my aunt, Darcy (Ruby Plum Photo), was with me for the shoot. She actually was the one who mentored ME back in 2013. It was such a blast having someone there to get creative with. Three, I'd never been to The Monument. I've been to Grand Junction plenty of times to visit family and I can't believe two weeks ago was my first time at The Monument. I highly recommend checking it out if you haven't already. 

Huge shout out to Kaden for reaching out to me and making this happen. This shoot could not have been any better!

THE STORY A.K.A HOW KADEN PULLED IT OFF

When I found out I was going to take a trip to Colorado, I knew I had to shoot something epic there. I asked Darcy what was close in the area and she mentioned The Monument. Once I saw photos, I was hooked.
I then ran a couple model call for the area of Grand Junction and there was only one day we could do it. Keely and Kaden were tagged in my post by a friend for my model call and that's when Kaden messaged me. He asked if I shot proposals and how they turned out and if I would do his. I asked him if he could make the date and time work that we needed and he agreed. I was so stoked!
But Keely hadn't applied yet even though she was tagged. I told Kaden he would need to mention it again to her and have her apply so she'd have no idea. Keely applied, the date and time worked, and they were up for our creative shoot! 
I prepared for the shoot talking to BOTH Kaden and Keely. I told Kaden I didn't want to direct his proposal. I wanted it to still be his own and how he imagined it. I just wanted us to be ready when the time came. He said the ring was in his boot and he would mention something about his socks, which would be our key to be ready when he knelt down to fix them. And Keely had no idea I was talking to Kaden about his plans.
When we arrived to the shoot I saw Kaden and Keely's chemistry right away and it was exactly I wanted. We were able to just have fun and they laughed at our jokes which was a plus. :) Keely wore the most gorgeous white dress that just popped with the red rocks of Colorado. We were getting AMAZING shots while getting creative with our posing and shooting techniques. 
We moved to a spot with the full view of the monument. It was breathtaking for me as I had never been there. That's when Kaden mentioned his sock...
I hurried and backed up, pulled out my phone to start videoing, AND photographed as I was videoing. Kaden had such a thoughtful proposal and I could tell how much it meant to Keely. And she said yes!!! :) 

Thank you again Keely and Kaden for such a memorable and epic night!

Jaiden + Beau • Kelly Canyon

I had been looking forward to shooting Jaiden and Beau for awhile, especially with how awesome their first engagement session was. You can view it here. So when Sunday came around and the forecast predicted rain for the whole afternoon, I was pretty bummed. Jaiden mentioned trying a few hours early to miss some of the rain so that's what we attempted. 

When we got up to Kelly's we shot for about ten minutes before in started to completely pour. I asked Jaiden and Beau if they'd be alright waiting it out for a few minutes which ended up being more like 30 minutes. But I'm so glad we did! Once the rain stopped we had a nice overcast afternoon. 

I asked Beau during the session if he wanted a couple shots with his truck and his face instantly lit up! I was so happy to get some images that Beau was stoked about. And Jaiden had mentioned she really wanted fall colors which we sort of had. But right as we finished up we spotted an area where all the leaves were bright yellow! Me and Jaiden about died when we saw it! So we ended up shooting there for a couple more minutes. 

Then we headed back out from Kelly's in our separate cars. Right as I passed Heise Pizza and went over the hill, you could see a view of all the colors and the deep blue sky. Luckily Beau and Jaiden spotted me pulled over and stopped as well and we had another 5 minute session there as well! It was so gorgeous!

I'm so thankful for these two. And I am so stoked for their July Wedding in Island Park! Enjoy just a few of my favorites from their Fall Engagement session.

Re-Branding • Instagram Giveaway

When I attended Michelle and Meghan's Retreat last month, we had the opportunity to be mentored one-on-one with each of them. My first mentoring session was with Michelle and her initial questions was, "What is your story?"

I honestly had no idea. I didn't know what my story was. Michelle starting digging deeper and I realized what I wanted my business to be all about. 

Couples in the mountains. 

I told her my dreams of traveling all over the U.S. and photographing authentic love in National Parks. Thanks to Michelle, I got down to the core of why I love the mountains and why they are so important for my couple sessions. You can read all about that here. (You'll want to read it.) 

Meghan and I got to chat the next day and she helped me come up with a simple sketch for a logo which had the mountains in between my business name. It was exactly what I wanted and I didn't know it until she put it on paper for me! That's when Ali came in. 

Ali's one of those girls who is amazing at everything she tries. One of those many things is branding and website designing. Ali branded, designed, and gave my site a complete overhaul and I LOVE IT!!! It is seriously everything I ever wanted in my site plus more! She took my very small, simple idea and figured out how to make it me and my business. Seriously, go exploring through my website!!! It is phenomenal! And anyone thinking about getting a logo, re-branding, website designing, get a hold of Ali! She was so easy to work with, figured out what I wanted, and  made sure I was happy with everything she did. You can contact her HERE.

With this huge new and improved brand, I figured it'd be a great time to do.... A Giveaway! I want to give a couple an awesome session full of laughs, slow dancing, and time away from the real world. Not to mention, some gorgeous images too. Want to enter? Head over to my Instagram here and read all the details on how to enter on my most recent post.