From the moment I met Danielle for coffee to discuss her wedding plans and get to know her a bit, I felt like we had been pals for ages. She is such a warm, compassionate lady with these beautiful deep brown eyes that simultaneously draw you in and put you at ease.

She and Steven are truly the perfect match for one another.

When Dave contacted me about capturing his surprise proposal to his beautiful girlfriend, Kaycee, I was all about it. When he told me he was going to pop the question in front of Jeni’s Ice Cream Shoppe on Southport Avenue where they had their very first date I just about lost my mind with excitement….

Thinking about bringing your dog along on your engagement session? Here are a few reasons why you absolutely should (plus some tips and tricks to make the whole thing run smoothly)!

Paula and Jaime are so much fun. They could seriously teach classes on “how to have a good time during your engagement session” (heck, I would sign up for that class!) and just be all around rad in general.

I took three things away from Dana and Nick’s glorious Chicago summer morning engagement session….

What do you get when you mix a sweet and beautiful couple, a moody morning along the Chicago River and a photographer with a brand new camera? Magic, my friends. That’s what!

Let’s be honest, having a chick crawling around in the bushes (oh yes, literally!) with a camera focusing solely on you is……not your average Thursday night’s activity (or maybe it is? If so it’s probably best you keep that to yourself ;-).

Alex and Tom were so natural in front of the camera. And it doesn’t hurt that they’re gorgeous, obviously. These people are basically Good Humans for a living (she being a nurse and he being a fireman/first responder) and that force of good definitely shines when you see them interact together.

Claudia and Izzy have one of those sweet stories that everyone dreams of: high school sweethearts introduced via family and mutual friends who have been together through thick and thin for years.

Every now and again I’ll get to a shoot location and be completely bowled over by how perfect everything is: the lighting, the way the gray sky seems to melt into a pale lake as fresh pools reflect the seagulls overhead. A calm, dark forest that is straight out of an enchanted Grimms Fairy Tale (minus all of the awful stuff, obviously!).

The morning of Brian and Kelsey’s engagement session was definitely such an occasion.

Baylie and Conner are perfect together.

I met this lovely young couple on the shores of Lake Michigan just outside of Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium on a perfect day in May. What had started out as a gray, foggy morning suddenly transformed into a glorious, cerulean and golden morning that couldn’t help but put you in a cuh-razy good mood. ..