I found my love of photography when we lost our identical twin boys over 18 years ago. Finding beauty through my lens and seeing the world through a different perspective became a sort of healing for my mind and heart. We lost our Joshua Paul and Kaleb Stephen to a very rare genetic disease and it was just devastating. My heart was raw but like so many others who have experienced trauma, art became one place of healing for me. I didn't realize at the time how much giving people memories to treasure helped me find redemption in my story, but this is now something I strive for in each of my sessions. Giving my families and couples something tangible that will hold precious memories. I believe my heart will always ache with their loss, but so many things have helped me heal. We had three healthy children (each child had a 25% chance of having the same disease), we were surrounded my amazing friends and family that held us up, and God's faithfulness to walk us through the grief is what sustained us and got us to where we are today. I believe that is where we saw our miracle.
Paul and I are high school sweethearts and have been married for 20 years. We met in a small high school in Junction City and dated for 4 years before marrying at age 20 and 21. I have loved growing up with such an amazing man and learning all about life with him. The difficult and the beautiful. Our girls comment about how weird it is that we dated so young, but we just so very lucky. :)
These are the reasons that brought me to Story Telling Sessions. Using a photo to say something beyond what we perceive to be perfect, and instead tell us about who we are, who are family is, and that those seemingly mundane moments are actually the ones that we gather up in our hearts and treasure when that time has passed.
I want to capture those for my families. Tell YOUR story. Gather those moments for you. Reveal your family to you..
You can read more about what a Story Telling Session is and what to expect to see if these are a fit for you. :)
What is a Storytelling Session?
Do you ever dread your yearly family photo session? ALL of you are stressed out looking (and shopping! ugh!) for clothes that match, fixing hair that that looks like it's 2 months past a fresh cut, and then threatening happy attitudes or else?
Yeah. Me too. ;)
A Story Telling Session involves none of these things, well happy attitudes are always a plus. ;) And who doesn't love a fresh hair cut, but you get what I'm saying. ;) These sessions take so much pressure off and you can just relax, knowing I'm going to take care of the candid photos and you don't need to worry about clothing colors for the posed family photo (I do take a posed photo at the end of all my story telling sessions).
Prior to your session, we chat about activities to do as a family (I help you decide this based on your family's interests and things you do together consistently), if you would like to go somewhere together (hiking, a day at the coast, pumpkin patch, choosing your Xmas tree, etc). The activity part is only part of your session so I can document your every day moments that seem mundane, but are actually beautiful and worth capturing.
When I arrive at your home, I try to make the littler kids feel comfortable with me by asking them about their toys and what they like, and I just begin photographing your family.
I know it seems odd to have someone in your house and in your space, but I promise, if this sessions feels like YOU, then this won't be weird. :)
Meet our family :)
Isabella is 17, Gracelyn 15, and Lincoln is 12
These kids are absolutely amazing! The love they show for others floors me every day. I love getting to know them. :)
I also threw in some throwbacks of Paul and I, and added one of our twin boys Joshua Paul & Kaleb Stephen. They passed one day after they were born, and will be missed and treasured forever.
