Trash to Treasure

The wedding was over. My wife and I had returned from our blissful honeymoon. And yet, we were left with a dilemma: what to do with all of this wedding stuff?

You know - the flowers, the centerpieces, all the little personal touches we worked so hard to make special. Well, now that the wedding's done, we can't just throw them away, right?

If you're like me, you held on to the stuff knowing someday you'd think of something to do with them — anything but putting them in a glass shadow box (it makes me think of funerals).

Sometimes you have to wait a long time for inspiration to come along. For me, it was seven years! That's when I met jewelry designer Heather Lawrenz of Lawrenz Jewelry. She makes amazing beads, charms and intricate pieces of art all out of stuff most people would throw away. You wouldn't believe how beautiful she can make a discarded bottle cap or a spent A1 steak sauce bottle look.

After seeing her work and getting to know Heather, she mentioned to me that she can make a piece of jewelry out of old photographs — the wheels started turning. If she could take a three-dimensional object and turn it into a charm the possibilities were endless.

Finally, I knew what to do with all those boxes of wedding dodads taking up valuable shelf space in my basement.

With Heather's talents, I could have her preserve those memories in an exciting new way. I turned my box of "stuff" over to her and let Heather work her magic. (Of course, I photographed everything first, just in case I wanted to look at it later). Within minutes, Heather was taking pieces of the materials and constructing tiny compositions.

It was great to see the way Heather thinks and not to give her too much direction. I knew I could trust her to do her thing and the results would be spectacular. What I didn't expect were some of the happy accidents along the way, like when Heather realized the newspapers stuffed around the dried wedding bouquets to protect the delicate flowers were from the newspaper I worked at during the time of our wedding. In fact, the newspapers had some photos that stick out in my mind since they were from meaningful assignments.

"I'm going to use that as a background for one of these charms," Heather said.

I couldn't believe it — fishwrap to some, colorful interest to Heather, a significant memory for me — and now it would all be preserved on this hip piece of jewelry for my wife to wear every day.

And the best part, my wife and I could finally part with all that wedding clutter. Meaningful, yes, but clutter still the same.

If you want to have one of these ah-ha moments, definitely visit Lawrenz Jewelry.

Perfect in every way

Newborn Gallery: Asher

Having become a dad for the first time only six months ago, I was interested to see if my paternal instincts would come into play while photographing another baby boy. I think it may be too early to tell, but I can say for certain, proud papa Brandt received a little more time in my viewfinder than he would have before as I sought opportunities to capture him bonding with his family's latest addition, Asher.

When families are blessed with new life, I work with them, in their home, in their newborn's most familiar environment, not only focusing on the creating images of the baby's portrait, but of how the entire family reacts to his arrival.

It was wonderful to see the excitement of Asher's big sister Reeve as she found someone new to read stories to, and with whom she'll soon play. And Amy's and Brandt's love for their son was plain for anyone to see. It's amazing to bear witness as these families grow and strengthen their bonds. I can't wait to see what Asher will do next.

Happy Father's Day, Brandt!

Love in Bloom

Engagement: Steph and Wes

Wes has been working at the Montgomery Orchard since he was a teenager, so it was a no-brainer when it came to picking a location for engagement photos with Steph, his bride to be.

With those years of experience, Wes also knew when it would typically be the peak moment to capture all those rows of apple trees in full bloom. However, with an unusually cool Minnesota spring, much of the orchard was behind schedule this year.

When it came time to create engagement pictures the apple trees were far from being at their showiest. However, the orchard's vast stand of plum trees was in full bloom and helped to set the scene (and perfume the air) for a dreamy photo session.

Steph and Wes will be married at the orchard in September, when the landscape will be ripe for even better pictures.

Win-win photography

Katie sounded genuinely excited when I relayed to her the news that she was the winner of Anthologie's "No Foolin' Spring Photography" promotion. Truth be told, I was just as enthusiastic to make for her some great family pictures. That's because Katie is just the sort of person I love to work for — she's a  photographer.

Does that mean I relish the idea of a fellow shutterbug critiquing my creative work with a fine-tooth comb? Not exactly, though it does help to get constructive criticism. No, the reason I enjoy having photographers as the subject of my pictures is because, like me, they're never in any of their photos!

Katie and I go way back, probably 15 years or more. She was actually a classmate of mine in high school, a photo classmate to be specific, as was her husband, Stephan. I hadn't talked with the couple regularly in some time, and hadn't even seen them face to face in about a year, so it was a welcome surprise when their names were selected at random to win an Anthologie custom photo session.

We chose the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden as the backdrop to their lifestyle portrait session. There, the couple's three children would be free to explore the grounds while physical space provided some meaningful context to the pictures, since the Stombergs live in the neighborhood.

It was a challenge to balance catching up with old friends while at the same time doing my best to be a fly on the wall for the kids as they did what they did best — play. What impressed me most was just how close all the siblings were despite their separation in age. When I'm working, posing for pictures is kept to an absolute minimum. All the images of the kids walking together, holding hands and enjoying each other's company was all real! And despite the ever-plummeting temperatures and bitter wind, everyone had a picture-perfect disposition.

Thank you, Stomberg family, for being such great models. This photography session was a win-win for all of us!

Four days left to reserve your session

Just like spring, this deal won't last forever. The No Foolin' spring photography collection absolutely ends this Friday, so be sure to contact us today and reserve your time at a special price. You then have until May 31 to complete your session.

Our No Foolin sessions are the perfect opportunity to get out and have fun with your family while we make the pictures. Planting flowerbeds, playing frisbee, or simply teaching the newest member of the family how mow the lawn are just some of the many ways to celebrate this time of year through photos.

Anthologie specializes in capturing your family interacting with one another without staged portraits. So sit back, relax, and let us do the work for you.

Learn more about this promotion HERE.