Dillon :: Senior

I had the wonderful opportunity this year to be an assistant basketball coach at Pathway Christian School, in Kalona.  One of the greatest joys as a coach was getting to know the kids, and watching them grow and improve as the year goes on.  


Of all the players on our team, Dillon was one of the hardest workers on the floor.  Besides his hustle, his long arms made it easy for him to pick off passes and knock the ball loose, and I think he was the first player in PCS history to successfully dunk a ball in a game! 


As of the photo session last week, he's planning to go to work for his dad's business next year and we wish Dillon all the best that God has for his life!

Amber + Jonathan :: Forever

It's true that I love outdoor weddings. I can't help it. Jodi and I had an outdoor wedding, and maybe I like them because it brings back memories of our wedding, I don't know.

We first started to get to know Amber when she would house-sit for us when we would go on trips and vacations. So we actually got to know each other thru notes left on our table. Amber always had something cool waiting for us when we arrived back home... either a very encouraging note, a hand crafted card, a small gift, or one time she gave us a cool little painting. That painting actually still hangs in our office to this day. She's also had a great eye for photography for a long time... even helped Jodi with a wedding several years ago.

And now, she's found a solid, good-looking man in Jonathan. They are a cute couple, as you can see, but the beauty runs very deep with these two. They love the Lord with all their hearts and it's cool to see how that translates into their love for each other.

We were only commissioned for a half day for this wedding, but were blessed to have Katherine Bowman join us as a second/third shooter. It was fun to get to know her better throughout the day, and she got some great shots! Thanks, Katherine!

The wedding was actually in Jodi's aunt and uncle's backyard, and the reception was at Amber's parents old barn which they must have done TONS of work to. It was gorgeous for the wedding!

Here's one of Katherine's shots.

•••

Well, hopefully by the time you're reading this, we will have left for vacation. I'll throw a post on the blog for Monday, but that's it for bloggin next week. Since I've been posting every day for the last two weeks, it's time for a break.

So, look for Nikki and Tyler's wedding post on Monday, but after that, it's Adios until the following Monday. Have yourselves a great weekend, and we'll see you on Monday!

Jill + Josh :: Forever

Here's Jill + Josh, a wonderful couple from our hometown. They have the coolest story of how they met, and it's easy to see that they very much enjoy each other's company. They had some cute kids in the wedding party, one of whom was carrying around a camera taking pictures of everything that moved, and a lot of things that didn't. :) Kids are great.

At Jill + Josh's reception, instead of a dance, people got up and performed skits! They were all pretty funny, and very entertaining.

Jill + Josh, thanks for allowing us to be part of your special day! We wish you guys all the best, and we'll see you around!

Flowers by: Empire House

Pathway Christian School :: Banquet

When Jodi was growing up, she attended a small Christian school near Kalona, called Pathway Christian School, and we were asked to come photograph couples at their banquet this year. They don't do a prom, per se, but they go all out in the banquet! This year's theme was "Hollywood" and it seemed to be focused on the 50's and 60's era. We set up a "photo booth", cranked some big band swing music, and after we got the formals out of the way.... let the fun begin!

We tore down all of the lights before we realized we didn't have any shots of us!

Shelley + Randy :: Forever

This wedding was very special to Jodi and I on a personal level, as well as a professional level, because Shelley + Randy have become very dear to us in the past year. Shelley started working for us as office manager last summer sometime, and it was great to get to know her better and become more involved in her life. During the course of work, she started to mention that she was seeing someone.... again. She had dated Randy before, and now their lives were coming back together!

So, she packed up and moved to Oregon to be with Randy and get to know his family better, and after a few months, she came home engaged!

We couldn't say enough nice things about these two... they were awesome to work with, and had a gorgeous day for the wedding. They were both so relaxed and fun.

There were several underlying stories to their wedding day, from Shelley's little brother not liking the color of his tie... to Randy's best man, his brother, being sick the night before and leaving both the family pictures and the ceremony to go throw up... to a bridesmaid getting stung by a wasp during bridal party formals... to Shelley + Randy jumping in a crappy old boat which had no paddles. We planned to keep them close to shore, so it should have been okay, but when Shelley put up her parasol, it acted as a sail! But Randy grabbed a board in the boat that worked as a paddle to get them back to shore!... And, rushing from the reception to our location for twilight photos with the sweet '57 Chevy truck, the newlyweds passed a cop without their headlights on, and somehow didn't get pulled over... it was a full day!

Anyway, without further ado, here is Shelley + Randy! Congratulations you two!! You have been a blessing to our family, and we are so happy for you! Thanks for letting us be a part of your lives! See you soon!

Singing to Randy...

Here are the some of the words of the song that Shelley wrote for Randy. 

The original song is The Call by Regina Spektor on Chronicles of Narnina

Shelley just changed the words... she sounded amazing

Don't wake me up if I'm dreaming, never had such a beautiful day.

Who would've thought I'd be standing here with the one who's swept me away.

God held the pen that kept writing and writing, just when we'd lost our way,

You found me, down a long road, no more goodbyes to say.

Today  I will make you a promise, on my own I will fail every time,

so I'll put my trust in our Father,  happy endings are His design.

I don't care what the world has to tell you, Love's only found in Him.

He walked down, down a long road, New life can now begin.

He found us, down a long road, new life can now begin.