Des Moines Winter City Engagement Session - Laura & Derek

I photographed Laura’s older sister wedding at the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden and was so excited when Laura reached out to me for her own wedding day at Toast Ankeny!

All of Derek and Laura’s major relationship milestones happen in the winter and in the city, so it made sense they take their engagement photos in the winter in the city as well. They also brought their mini Bernedoodle Norman for a few pictures which I loved! If you have pets, engagement sessions are a great time to get family photos 😊

Their engagement session is a great example that you can have vibrant photos even in the winter time when things aren’t quite looking like the winter wonderland we all envision and see on Pinterest. See for yourself below!

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10 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Your Engagement Session

1. Do I feel comfortable in my outfits?

There is nothing worse than tugging/adjusting your outfit every few minutes. When you feel comfortable you will be naturally more relaxed and get professional photos that feel like you. Just to be clear, comfortable doesn’t mean you can’t dress up. If you feel super comfortable in a form fitted dress - rock it!

2. Am I picking out my outfit to please someone else or because I love the outfit?

Trends are fun and who doesn’t love being complimented on your outfit? But if you are so focused on pleasing others you most likely will look back on the photos and be disappointed in what you chose. Don’t try to please your mom when picking out an outfit. My advice is think of what you enjoy wearing within your closet and pick what feels like your best self/the most confident in.

3. Does my ring need cleaned?

Getting your ring cleaned is free at the store you purchased it from and most jewelry shops and will make a big difference in close ups!

4. Do I need/want to order anything for my session?

Maybe you have your eye on a specific dress or want to order new shoes - be sure to order it enough in advance so you aren’t scrambling the day of because your package hasn’t arrived yet.

5. Do I want to get my hair and makeup professionally done?

If you don’t enjoy doing your makeup and hair yourself save up and treat yourself to getting them done professionally. Or you can use this session as a time to trial your wedding day hair or makeup. Or if you have a friend that loves doing hair and makeup reach out to them and see if they’d be willing to do yours!

6. Do I want to include any props?

Props could be champagne for a champagne pop, a piece of furniture, flowers, your favorite snack/food, or your favorite drinks and are a fun way to incorporate your personality in your session.

7. Have shared my expectations or anything special I want to include in my session with my photographer?

Maybe you have a specific vision or want specific photos. Be sure to tell your photographer this! The worst thing you can do is assume they already know what you are thinking - this always leads to dissapointment.

8. Do I want to include my pet?

Your engagement session is a great time to include pets and get a few quality professional photos with your furry friends. Or if you want to have an in-home session a great way to include your entire life into.

9. Are there any sentimental spots I want to include in my engagement session?

Where you met/first hit it off, your first date spot, go to date spot, or proposal site are all great places to incorporate your engagement session

10. Do I want to take off work and make an afternoon/day of my session?

Make an entire day of it or go on a date after your engagement session. Use the engagement session as an excuse to take the day off and get some extra quality time together. Life is too short not to 😊

I'm Engaged: Now What? | Tips for Newly Engaged Planning a Wedding

So you are officially engaged, told your family and closed friends, shared the happy news on social media and now are thinking where do I start?

First of all, congrats! 🎉🎉 Getting engaged is so exciting and is a special time of your life. Now that the initial shock and checking your hand every minute to make sure this is real life has set in you may be feeling overwhelmed. The following are a few tips to help ease the where the heck do I start feeling after you’ve told all your closest friend and family, scrolled through Pinterest and realized there are a million options.

NAIL DOWN A BUDGET

Although it’s not the most fun part of planning, setting a budget is the most important part of wedding planning. It effects nearly every decision you will make when wedding planning. Talk with your fiance, talk with your parents, talk with anyone who is chipping in. If you don’t plan on hiring a wedding coordinator I highly recommend downloading a free wedding planning app that will help you budget and track everything as you go. Setting a budget will help you make countless decisions for your wedding day.

SET YOUR DATE + BOOK YOUR VENUE(S)

These two steps go hand in hand. Venues fill up and even churches seem to book more in advance than they used to. So be sure to find a venue that is available for your date or be willing to change your date! The worst thing is booking a different vendor and having to go back and tell them the date has changed and they are no longer available. So to prevent that heart ache - book the venue first.

RESEARCH & HIRE VENDORS

During this time, decide what aspects of the day you want to hire professionals for and what you plan on doing yourself or having family help with. Below is a list of just about every wedding vendor out there:

• Event Planner/Coordinator

• Rental Company (decor and anything additional the venue doesn’t supply)

• Photographer

• Videographer

• Wedding Attire

• Florist

• Caterer

• Baker

• DJ

• MakeUp Artist

• Hairstylist

• Save the Date and or Invitation Stationary Designer

• Wedding Officiant (If your venue doesn’t include one)

• Transportation (If you want to have a party bus or a special getaway car)

• Fun Bonus Vendors to Check Out: Calligraphers, Photo Booth, & Live Wedding Painter

REMEMBER

When planning your big day remember that at the end of the day what really matters is that you are marrying your best friend. Having beautiful things at your wedding day is fun and I’m a sucker for the details, but it’s the relationships that matters the most. So when planning take your fiance’s opinion to heart and decide on things together ❤️

The Teachout Building Wedding - Zach & Tia

Zach and Tia celebrated their wedding day at the Teachout Builidng in downtown Des Moines. From Tia’s bold makeup to their surprise choreographed first dance they created themselves (that was amazing and so them) I had so much fun photographing every single element of their day. Throughout the day they radiated joy and it was infectious. One thing I loved about their day was how obvious it was that they were there to celebrate and fully enjoy the day. Photos were a priority for them so we scheduled 3 separate times for portraits with just the two of them: after their first look, after the ceremony and at sunset, which I loved. At each time of the day the lighting was completely different and we had the opportunity to go to 3 locations within minutes of one another for a fun different feel. Zach and Tia made their wedding day exactly what they wanted and it was a blast to to photograph.

If you are wedding planning and struggling with people pleasing look through these photos and take them as a not so subtle hint to make your wedding day exact what you want 🥰

Vendors

Location: The Teachout Building

Videographer: Sanders Visual

Decor: Borrow my Vintage

Dress: Perry Bridal

Hair: Oliver & James Salon

Makeup: Laynee Rietz

Dessert: Molly’s Cupcakes

Caterer: Cosi Cucina

DJ: Reaman DJ Services

Randi Kate & Brad Wedding - Decorah Iowa

Randi-Kate and Brad were high school sweethearts who said I do to forever at Decorah Lutheran Church in front of all their family and friends. The amount of support and love they had from their family and friend was so sweet and very evident throughout their wedding day. Although it was oddly warm and there was no snow in sight these two still had a beautiful winter wonderland wedding day 🙂

For their reception Brad and Randi-Kate celebrated at T-bocks located in the heart of downtown Decorah.