Taylor and Tony met us on a perfect golden evening out at one of their and our favorite open spaces in the area! What happened next was just awesome. We joked and teased each other like old friends and these two rocked it for the lens!
Meet Taylor & Tony, they're getting married next year!
Life partners. Business partners.
Mallory + Justin.
In a general description, we are a creative partnership providing photography in many forms for clients and brands all over the US; education, workshops, and gatherings for the like-minded and for university students; creating art and expressing ourselves in our own ways, for our own hearts. All while documenting our experiences in life, love, and travel.
Our early years together saw us dabbling in This and definitely in That. We bought a house and made it home; had more cats than you might suspect. Filled it with us and loved it well. We settled in but remained unsettled. Something stirred in the deep, gentle at first (as dreams are oft to be), until eventually it overflowed and we could not resist. Simply, we had to go there, wherever 'there' was. Turns out it's everywhere. With gusto and damned determination, we sold it, stored it and moved from our home, and took to the road. This brings us to Here.
Here is a happy life made full by family, by pursuit, by genuine sustenance — not without grit, and beautifully so. In becoming observers to nature's mysterious ways, we allow the space for chance encounter and discovery. We lean into things of substance slowly: a cup of coffee; a walk through the desert, unkempt and without a destination; a photograph, taken and kept; a day at home or a day out there. Idling long enough that we might remain available to the whim and wildness of the day. These are the keepings of a connected, good life. And so we find ourselves propelled ever onward—ever outward—toward that which makes us well.
If it's the unpaved roads and impossibly vast ranges of the west that expand us, it's the friendliness and tenacity of Ohio that forged us. The Midwest is a curious place—equal parts sagacious and unshowy—and we hope to reflect that in our own 'come as you are' approach to work and life.
With almost two decades of growing up side-by-side, we did just that: we grew up. And it illuminated what we're in it for; documenting and connecting with the raw, the genuine, the stuff that matters most (especially after living through a global pandemic) because without it you could not possibly be or imagine another way.
The road changed us in every possible way. We will never be who we were before we set our sights on that far-off horizon. It showed us who we are, who we always wanted to be and it continues to, even now as we settle back into a home in a town, on a road.
Andi & Ben.
Two people who saw the opportunity to have a wedding day full of intention and with so much personal meaning. The ceremony took place under the giant tree lovingly named "The Mighty Oak" by Ben's family. The ninety-some acre family property, that was owned by Ben's grandpa and has been passed down, is meadow after meadow who's edges are traced with thick tree-lines and trails. The estate; an eclectic and warm home where Ben grew up surrounded by gardens, kitties and chickens.
Ben and Andi saw each other early in the day, Andi in her bridal robe and Ben in his work clothes. The guys helped set up the ceremony just an hour before donning their suits for the festivities while Andi and her girls enjoyed a sun-soaked lunch on the breezy patio. Each moment an opportunity for us to sink into the background and document quietly. The morning folded into late afternoon and the perfectly orchestrated ceremony under the rustling leaves made way to the celebration at Hines Hill Conservancy.
This wedding was featured on Junebug Weddings
Ceremony Venue – Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Reception Venue – Hines Hill Conference Center
Catering – Old Carolina BBQ
Cake – Dancing Desserts
Ceremony Music – Adam Day
Reception Music – Bottom Line Band
Invitations – Mason Milani
Wedding Dress – Nicole Miller
Groom’s Apparel – Bonobos
Danielle + Eric planned a meaningful and patriotic wedding that just so happened to take place on July 4th this year. Eric is in the military and they're calling Savannah, GA home while he is stationed there... but Danielle calls Ohio home. We really got to know Danielle at her sister's wedding we also shot a few years ago. Her family is one of the most welcoming and loving families we've had the pleasure of knowing through our business. So this whole day felt like we were watching friends tie the knot on a beautifully sunny day in the country! Thought we'd post this just in time for Labor Day this year! GO USA!
Mara + Brad
Cleveland, Ohio
Mara + Brad had a lovely wedding planned with all their lovely families and friends from far and wide. The eclectic decor and handmade, really personal details only added to their obvious loving spirits towards one another and everyone around them! It's good luck to have rain on your wedding day and it poured buckets all day for these two... but just as we were going out for portraits, the clouds broke and the beaming sun shined down.
Gorgeous floral by - Molly Taylor Designs
Catering by - Dino's Catering / Pine Ridge Country Club
Cake by - A Cupcake Day
Mara's Dress - Signature, by Justin Alexander
Church - Saint Colman, Cleveland Ohio
Reception - Pine Ridge Country Club
Photo Location - Miller Nature Preserve, Avon Ohio
We turned off the computers and the cell phones on Thursday for what we planned to be a long and great weekend celebrating the end of Justin's summer and our anniversary. I sometimes find myself stifling my enthusiasm for how exciting and awesome I feel like my life is because I know that there are more important things for me to write about, share and spend time talking about but this weekend was one worth noting. What a great, long weekend Justi and I just had!
We watched the legend, Willie Nelson, perform on stage at Nelson's Ledges after an interesting adventure camping under the trees. It brought me to tears. Escaping into the wilderness was such a reminder of how simple life truly is.
Then we headed into Pittsburgh for the portion of the weekend that Justin planned. He bought tickets prior to them earning the title of the WORLD champions of women's soccer so his excitement level probably tripled after that. We watched them dominate 8-0 over Costa Rica and sat among nearly 45,000 other fans while that number made us a part of history. We sat for 90+ minutes in the 90+ degree weather, back dripping in sweat and we loved every minute of it.
We headed back to have, what we planned to be, a quiet and intimate night enjoying food and craft cocktails at the Monaco Hotel only to find the entire women's team would be gracing us with there presence there, too. What an experience. Justin was speechless and elated. We bought them a round of drinks but gave them their space and didn't ask for a photo or an autograph but I hope they know how much of an inspiration they've been to so many girls, women and to my husband. I couldn't have given him a better anniversary gift! Sadly, our weekend ended bright and early this morning when we got up at 6:30am to drive back to Canton. I dropped Justin off at his office and I came home to mine and I've been struggling to stay on task ever since! But, we're mid-way through our wedding season and have a few more adventures on the calendar before off-season. There's work to be done and long days to be had. I just wanted to share that bit of excitement so we'd remember how legendarily happy we were celebrating our 3rd anniversary and the end of summer 2015.
And here's a photo of my niece because while we were out celebrating we missed her birthday. She's 7 and she's totally awesome!
Long hugs every morning. Spending time taking in the sunshine. Good food. And family. That's what's important to Corinne & Justin. To these two life is, as Corinne put it, either a daring adventure or nothing at all. The why is important to them. They never want to forget the experiences and people that brought them to where they are, they never want to forget all the love that surrounds them as they embark on a new journey together.
We all but begged these two to let us shoot their wedding. They were in the wedding party for Tommy's brother's wedding which we shot a few years ago and we really took note and enjoyed the way their love radiated. Fast forward a couple years and we got our wish and joined the family for another round of wedding fun. This wedding was seriously full of surprises and so much excitement. These two are so full of love for each other that we rarely took our eyes or cameras off of them! They had a beautiful June evening at The Jessing Center in Columbus, Ohio surrounded by so many of their loved ones, some from as far as Sweden. It was such an honor to document it all for these two!
El Matador Beach Editorial
El Matador Beach is one of three cove and cliff beaches along the Pacific Crest Highway in the Robert H. Meyer Memorial State Beach. It's one of the most beautiful places we've ever been. Although it's beauty is no secret, this beach draws photographers from all over, all of the time. In the summer and at golden hour the small portion of beach is peppered with photographers and awe-seekers trying to catch that moment when the golden California sun sinks low enough to just barely touch the mountains behind, creating a magical glow over the cliffs that drapes around everything and turns into a blue and white emulsion of sparkles off the water. It's a busy and bustling place but if you time it just right, you'll find a bit of solitude. Once the road-rippers have made their way back to their cars and the picnickers have headed back to LA, it's then that this place can really been seen for what it is.
This editorial shoot came together without much planning at all. My high school friend Crystal lives near Malibu and her two girl-friends had been on holiday that week visiting her. We planned to meet at sunset with cameras and a cooler full of snacks and this is what happened!
Rachel (above) is an aspiring model and would love to be hired for future editorial, commercial and fashion shoots. Get ahold of her at rjrufener@msn.com
Kaylen + Jon had a lovely wedding day in Columbus at Dock 580... full of family moments and fun friends.
See the full story here.
Memorial Day 2015
In, above and around Malibu, California
This is a story of sweet southern beauty.
A collaboration of creatives came together for this and it was lovely and darling.
The morning was warm and balmy, the salt in the air was sweet
and the earthly charms came alive for us to take in.
Location: Shipyard | Sonesta Resort | Hilton Head Island, SC
Kristie made as good a bride as she does a wedding coordinator which is her passion and her business | Weddings by Kristie
Florals | Urban Poppy
Gown by Sarah Seven provided by Ivory & Beau
I'm no place with out you....
That's the song lyric. That's the thought I've been finding myself thinking as each day and each adventure comes to it's end. Today, I'm 30. This summer marks our 10th anniversary together. We're feeling a bit excited about this new chapter. Getting older is never easy because it's just one less day...one less year that we get to spend doing life this way... but I'm so thankful for my 30 years and especially that the last 10 of them have been spent with Justin at my side every. single. step of the way. This next chapter is going to be quite a story. It took us 10 years to figure things out but this chapter is going to be the best one yet. This chapter looks a lot like this: Us, together, loving life, living with intention, traveling when and where we want, staying an extra night just because, drinking bloody mary's at every opportunity and cuddling, always cuddling. My birthday advice today is to find your people and love them hard, do what you want and find what makes you crazy passionate, forget the norm, the standard, the socially acceptable...do you and do it with someone who loves you and makes you feel like the best human you can be!
This chapter looks like a lot like this....
(HUGE hugs and thank you's to our new friends Nate & Amanda Howard for capturing this adventure for us in Malibu last month, we had the raddest time, learned so much, saw the dopest sunset over the coast and made new adventure friends...thanks guys!)
A few weeks ago we had a pretty sweet time hanging out with these two and their airplane. Jordan is a flight instructor at the Akron Fulton International Airport and he got to show us around the hangar, the airport and even took us for a taxi to the tarmac in his instructor plane.
Next time, we'll take off somewhere!
Every so often we get a unique opportunity to travel for work. It's been becoming more of a frequent thing and we love that. It's been a goal of ours to have our work serve as a way for us to see the world. We love to travel to begin with but when we can travel AND document a story for an awesome couple like Holleh & Tim, well that's exactly what we want to be doing with our business and with our life.
This is a unique story for me to share because the groom is family. It's a long and involved, coming of age story that Tim and I share as cousins. We shared laughter, shared friends and shared tears over fond memories. But over the years, as adults do, we got busy with our own lives. Miles between us and a collection of life events shared over facebook but I've always looked up to Tim as a beacon of positivity...and comic relief even in hard times. To say that I was ecstatic when they agreed to let us shoot their wedding in California would be an understatement. I was honestly jumping. We had the pleasure of meeting Holleh when we got to California and she's literally the sweetest, most sincere and loving person ever. She was complimenting US the whole time we were doing her portraits. Ha! And I saw so much joy and so much love between these two. As always, it's an honor to document such a joyful day for two people but especially more so when they're your family.
Adventures of this magnitude always take time to put into words. Those words are coming. And so are many, many
more photographs from our travels from the East to the West coast and back home!
For now, this...
We like the way these two think. We met at their apartment, up above the trees and streets of Highland Square in Akron, Ohio. They live in the corner apartment on the top floor with a wrap around balcony. Woah. That's rad. As if that view wasn't enough, they took us on a perfectly lit by the golden setting sun stroll through their hood. The very theater that marked their first date as an official couple, where they walk to get ice cream and listen to the drum line that gathers on the weekends. Perfectly them. Documented by us.
Kirsten + Byron
Highland Sqaure, Ohio
I knew when we met Kaitlin & John that their wedding would be one that fits right in with our vibe of living and documenting the most authentic stories. They're a laid back, loving couple that planned a day as equally laid back and loving. The timeline was slow and casual and left time for them to spend the day with all their favorite people. Their joy shines in every single photograph and it was real. They made memories and we were honored to be the ones to witness and savor it for them!
"Because there's nothing more beautiful than the way the ocean refuses to stop kissing the shoreline,
no matter how many times it's sent away"
- Sarah Kay
The winter season is way way over. We woke up this week and it's summer and we're wasting no time getting around to adventures of all kinds. We're road tripping east with our friends for their wedding on Hilton Head Island next week, then a quick stop in Savannah and Charleston before we set off the California coast for a wedding and a week's worth of exploring and shooting.
The mountains AND the ocean are calling and we must go!
