Just a day after one of the worst storms to hit central Wisconsin in years, I headed east to Lake Michigan to shoot was was soon to be one of the most epic engagement photo shoots I've ever taken part of! Upon arriving the sky was clear and the temps were perfect to create a beautiful sunset over the wooded area where we were taking this session.
We started out by shooting in front of the unpainted barn quickly you could see the love that Kari and Luke Shared with each other. Luke is truly the definition of "don't judge a book by it's cover". He really is a happy and playful person hidden behind the beard and quiet demeanor!
Just off the right side of the barn was one of the best looking hay wagons I've ever seen! The faded red pain was a perfect backdrop for the darker clothing they were wearing!
After shooting at the wagon we jumped in Luke's truck (driven by Kari, as Luke lead on the Ranger, we got out just past the field to the edge of the woods and shot some photos in front of a deer stand. Of course I had to take a few with the Ranger as well!
Facing the opposite direction of the deer stand was a perfect sloping hill that created a great change to take a photo with negative space! This is where Luke really let his "glam life" come out! Haha
We Kari and Luke had fun in the field, we all hopped on the Ranger and headed deep in the woods. At this time is when I ALMOST broke my flash bulb on my NEEWER NW600BM, but luckily my umbrella saved it (RIP Umbrella but more on that later).
After getting deeper into the woods we stopped at yet another deer stand. Instead of using it as a backdrop I had Kari and Luke hop into the shallow creek and shot through the ladder framing them in the middle.
I also caught this shot too while I was changing lenses and they were "just hanging out". (The shots between planned photos are often my favs!)
After playing in the creek, we jumped back on the Ranger and headed back toward the barn. At this time we shot a couple quick shots of the most photogenic puppy ever!
We said goodbye to Ellie and went back to the barn. At this time I started thinking about sunset. As there was a lot of moisture still in the air and the cloud cover was just enough that it should create a perfect backdrop for this Wisconsin engagement photo session. While I waited for the Sun to set just a little more I put them next to the barn and put my Octobox up high and shot at almost full power so I could capture the colors of the backdrop from the heavens!
And then this happened!
After we had a good laugh it was time to really play with the sunset! Oh yeah, and also, the wind blew my lightstand over and snapped my octobox umbrella. So from this point on I was shooting with no modifier, just straight up strobe! (I think I handled it well).
One of my favorite shots at sunset is the silhouette shots!
So after about 2 hours of laughing and enjoying some good stories from the party the night before, (and Luke being a creep, lol), the sun was at the perfect location to break out my wide angle and make THIS!
To say I'm excited for their 2020 wedding is an understatement! Their love for each other is obvious and I already know now that their wedding day is going to be EPIC!
The Couple:
Kari and Luke The Location:
Private Property, Kewaunee Wisconsin
Gear Used:
Godox 48" Octobox with a grid
