They both love to read so we had fun with some books we picked out from Babbitt’s books downtown Normal (and a couple they brought along).  We had a great time.  Here are some from their session!

Since Denny’s was a particularly fond restaurant to the two of them, we hit up a milkshake for the first part of the session.

These first few that we took ended up being some of my favorites…. they were quite easy to photograph with how relaxed they were with each other.

One of my favorite trees in Bloomington.  Love it.

We were planning on doing a little drive by shooting but ended up settling at this old barn.  A new spot for me that I fell in love with.

Alan & Kara…. what a joy it was to get to know you both!  I look forward to your wedding next year!!

As you can tell….. these two just ooze FUN.  I’ve known Amy for a few years now (since she was a wee little freshman at ISU!) – and now she’s all grown, graduated, and getting married.  CRAZY!  Right from the very beginning of this session though, I knew it wasn’t going to be hard to capture their goofy, quirky, fun loving relationship.  They (especially Luke) was hamming it up the entire time.

They definitely got in touch with their serious side too.  Pure love.

The next few are some of my favorites… the light and the sweetness of these just make me smile

After a quick outfit change we were off for some more…. a little more classy for these.  But it was a lot harder than it looked to get Amy up on that log.  :)

Thankfully Luke was there to help her down.

Luke’s a heel-clicking kind of guy…. so we had a little fun with the next one!

And for all you office fans.  Here’s a little planking.

I love you guys….

I loved how much fun they had together.

Halfway through we went inside for an outfit change and I got to meet Sislyse’s dad and his wife.  They had a beautiful home and offered me some hot coffee…. will never refuse that

Sislye thought she couldn’t pull off the serious face… but honestly, the one below might have turned out to be one of my personal faves.  You rocked it dear.

It was sooo great hanging out with you guys for the morning!  Hope you love your photos and I can’t wait for your wedding next year!

Downtown Normal there is a newly painted mural on the side of one of the shops.  mmmmm… love it.

And since Ryan & Mackenzie’s love story began at the famous Pub II…. snagging some shots around there was a must.

Finally, we headed out to the country to get some fun and romantic shots of the two of them.  Mackenzie told me previous to the session how much she loved the sunset and wanted to get some of the colors.  These ended up being some of my favorite from the day.  The sun was just setting and the colors were perfect…. the light was gorgeous… and the two of them looked amazing together.

The running joke throughout the session was how much Ryan liked to show off his (ehh hem) chest hair.  Trying to politely avoid too many dark and curly locks in the photos – we finally just let loose and they had a little fun with it.  I love the sequence below….

The one below is one of my favorites from the day.  I think I love every last thing about it.

Oh Mackenzie and Ryan… you guys were a blast to hang out with.  I  enjoyed laughing with you both and am definitely looking forward to your big day

Loved Courtney’s ring….

I had to work a little harder to help Drew and Courtney loosen up.  But by the end…. tah dah!  They were pros and even Drew seemed to be having a good time

Drew and Courtney… it was so great getting to know you both… what a sweet couple you are!  Good luck with all the wedding plans – and I wish you all the best for your April wedding!

These two were so much fun and one thing I particularly loved about this couple was the ease of their relationship.  It just worked.  I could tell by how easy Denny could make Tara laugh, and an amazing laugh she had.  The kind that got me going as well!  They brought their pooch along for the first round of pictures…. loved it.

Check out that gorgeous ring….. oh my.

Then we switched it up a little bit and headed over to a park for yet some more.  Denny was being such a good sport… although secretly I’m sure he was loving every bit of our session.  We ended up scheduling the shoot on Tara’s birthday, so Denny was smiling a little extra for his bride-to-be

Denny & Tara.  It was such a privilege to meet you both and I completely enjoyed getting to know you both.  I wish you all the best next year with your destination wedding!

Brian brought along his Harley.  YES!

Paige!!  You’re GORGEOUS!  Look at her amazing dimples – a little jealous over here

Sometimes I ask my clients to do things even when I’m somewhat afraid they’re gonna be like “no way you’re crazy”…. as it was in these couple pictures.  This grass was long and a little dewy from the morning and to be honest probably swarming with snakes or something  But I’m always so appreciative when they do it with a smile for the sake of the image.  And I LOVE what came of it….

And then we busted out the Harley for a few more shots!

Paige and Brian… you guys are fabulous to work with and I LOVED getting to know you guys!  Can’t wait for June!