Photography by Megan Sneak Peek Blog!

A Look Back

Well, that's it, folks. An entire month on the road and I still had enough blog posts to last the entire trip! I'm now 100% caught up for the first time in ages, although I'll start right back up again this Saturday with a destination wedding in beautiful Sedona, Arizona! I leave the harvest crew (and my husband, so sad!) tomorrow for Fargo where I'll be right back on a plane by 5 a.m. Friday morning heading west! Crazy to think not more than a week later I'll be flying again, this time south east to sunny Florida for yet another destination wedding. I can't WAIT to share pictures from these adventures, though! August will be another month jam packed with sessions and weddings so there will definitely be tons more pictures coming. I'm officially booked until November!

I had a great time out here exploring the Midwest and experiencing life on the harvest run, living out of a camper and eating every meal outdoors. In addition to the hot days in the wheat fields we've also had a chance to go whitewater rafting in Fort Collins, Colorado, and water skiing in the Missouri River in South Dakota! Its been an amazing adventure traveling over four states and taking too many pictures to count! Even my adorable niece and nephew, Kajsa and Quin, came to visit so I even managed to squeeze in a little photo session with the two of them.

Another important milestone this month is my THREE YEAR business anniversary! Back in July of 2005 I decided I wanted to make my photography hobby something a little more serious, so that's when I took the steps to officially create "Photography by Megan"...three years later I never dreamed it would be this amazing, fulfilling, successful, and FUN! It's also almost been ONE YEAR since I resigned from my day job and decided to do this full time. I've never regretted that decision and it's been so incredible to be my own boss and take pictures for a living!

With that, I'll leave you with a few random shots from the last couple weeks on the road, including Kajsa and Quin, fun with fellow harvester's daughter Ali, and whitewater rafting...did I mention we fell out of the raft??

John Deere Kids...gotta represent!

The whole family!

Fun with Uncle Nathan and Auntie Megan!

Ali at Napa Auto parts...I love the blue!

Having fun in downtown Julesburg!

Ali took a picture of ME!

Can't believe he is almost 9 months!

The 2008 Sugden Harvesting Crew

The whole load lined up and in action!

And last, but not least.... check out the whitewater rafting photos!

Yes...we made it to safety! Just a few moments of panic, as you can see on my face. :)

And so, I'm off again for my next adventure. I hope to check in from Arizona, otherwise you'll see me next week with plenty of images from the wedding. I'm still behind on e-mails so be aware that response times are a little delayed with me being out of state and now traveling for the next two weeks again. I'll be contacting everyone soon about Lake Bronson sessions which are going to be held in September, as well as scheduling my Minneapolis/St. Paul sessions again. It's definitely time to get back to work! :)

Jason and Allison - 6.28.08

If you thought the last wedding was rainy, check out these guys!  It not only rained constantly all day, but it was also windy!  That still didn't stop this outgoing and fun wedding party...they were up for anything, including braving the crazy weather.  Luckily the wedding was held in Allison's parent's yard and her father even built a little chapel for the occasion!  I'm told he found some old windows, pews and woodwork from a hundred year old church that was going to be torn down, so he saved it. Because he was into architecture, he decided to build something special for his daughter's wedding...it turned out AMAZING!  Fully functional with electricity and everything.  Originally it was supposed to be a backdrop for an outdoor ceremony, but they obviously ended up going inside and filing all the guests in too.  I don't know how they did it, but it worked, and the wedding went off wonderfully!

 

Cullen and Jennifer - 6.27.08

Cullen and Jennifer had a gorgeous outdoor wedding planned at the Plymouth Millennium Garden, but the weather decided to play tricks on us!  When I first arrived it was sunny and a bit humid.  Literally ten minutes before the wedding was supposed to start, a huge storm cloud rolled in and started dumping rain down!  The ceremony was moved inside before the guests arrived so nobody got soaked.  As soon as the wedding was over the rain started to let up a little so I asked if Cullen and Jennifer still wanted to do outdoor pictures together and they happily agreed!  Just goes to show you that a little rain still doesn't mean you won't get amazing outdoor shots!  I even love the tiny little flecks of raindrops that show up in some of the pictures.  And the skies were amazing!

 

Here's where the ceremony was supposed to take place...just look at those ominous clouds!

 

Maylie and Kinzie

You may remember Maylie from a memorable session last spring, where I photographed her at my grandparents former farmhouse where she and her family now live.  It was a lot of fun to see all the changes they made around the place.  This year, an ever bigger change--a new baby sister named Kinzie!  We explored a different part of the farm this time and ventured deeper into the woods along a trail that let in the most beautiful trickling of evening light reflecting through the leaves.  We then headed into town for a couple shots near the Gazebo, which was all decorated for the 4th of July!

James and Alex, Summer Edition!

It was finally time to get outdoors with James and Alex, just in time to celebrate James' first birthday, too!  Our last couple sessions were a little chilly to say the least!  We headed over to the golf course which was a fabulous spot with giant trees and plenty of shade.  Even the family dog, Teeder, joined in on the fun.  I loved how Teeder wanted to be in the family photos too...it worked out perfectly for this first shot.  They even all match!  We ended the session with a first birthday cake smashing!

Sophie and Sam

I had so much fun with this adorable, photogenic family!  Little Sophie is definitely a natural in front of the lens with her sparkling eyes and curly hair, and baby brother Sam gave me lots of shy grins!  As much as I love outdoor summer shots, Sophie had SUCH an adorable bedroom with fantastic light that we grabbed a few indoor shots as well.  Here are my favorites of these two sweethearts (and their parents!)

Ben and Maria

It's hard to believe I'm still blogging sessions from before I left on my trip--and there's still more to go!  I appreciate the patience of my clients as I work through loads of photographs from my mobile office (and sometimes spotty internet signals) from the wheat fields of the central Midwest!   I only have about 10 days to go, but as soon as I head home I'll be off to back-to-back destination weddings in Sedona, Arizona the first weekend of August, and then off to sunny Key Largo, Florida the following weekend!  Whew!   And so, here are more of my patient clients for your viewing pleasure.. Ben and Maria!  I photographed them last summer and they were ready to smile again as we did a session at Grandma and Grandpa's shady backyard and they had plenty of smiles for me! 

Molly and Brody: Friends!

I haven't seen Molly since this past winter, and I think her hair has grown the most!  I loved her new style... fun and straight up in the air!  This time Molly's new friend Brody (and mommy Ashley) joined in on the session (as well as Molly's mommy Patti) for a fun backyard session.  These photos will definitely be fun to look back on as these two grow up.  My favorite is when at the end of the session Molly decided to give Brody a kiss...which in her world meant licking his head! :)

Matthew, Ariana, and Sophia at Lake Bronson

First--a quick update!  For those of you who inquired about my day of Lake Bronson mini-sessions, I've narrowed down the possible date to either the 4th or 5th of September.  I've received a huge response so as soon as I send out the e-mail with details I'll be booking on a first-reply basis so be watching!  And if you're wondering what the location offers for photographic backgrounds, look no further!  Here's a sneak peek of Matthew, Ariana, Sophia (along with Mom and Dad!) at Lake Bronson State Park a few weeks ago.  We met up at the park around 6:30 p.m. and the lighting was perfect.   Like I said--tons of shady trees and trails, tall grasses, a beach, water to splash in--how good can it get?  I can't wait to come back and shoot here again!

I love this picture below for so many reasons, most of all it is a little girl just being a little girl...love her pout, little swim bottoms peeking out, and those scraped up knees!!

Julian and Aliyah

It's been over a year since I've seen these two and man, have they grown--especially Aliyah!  Considering she was only a month or so old the last time I photographed her and now she's running around the yard like crazy it's definitely a change.  This time everything was green and colorful and there were plenty of little kittens in the yard to play with!  The kids also had a trampoline but I think Dad's toss was more fun and they definitely got much higher in the air!  I also got to use this old truck in their yard I've been eying every time I drive by--plus they matched! :)

Teagan, Almost One Year!

Since Teagan's actual birthday is in August (and I'm out of state all of July and destination wedding-hopping in August) we decided to do a photo session a little early.  We had a gorgeous sunny morning and even visited the puppies next door and tasted some lollipops!  I still can't believe this little lady is almost a year... you may remember a few sessions from throughout her first year, too!

Taylor and Megan

I had a colorful backyard session with sisters Taylor and Megan, where the girls explored and climbed and played on the swings and read books with Mom.  I think I even found a little assistant when I left one of my cameras on the ground for a bit and then saw Taylor carrying it like a pro!  I quickly took a shot of her and had to share it here!  Check out the rest of these little matching cuties.

Mitch and Terah - 6.21.08

Mitch and Terah had the perfect day for a wedding...the weather was phenomenal!  We were even able to do ALL the posed pictures outside at Terah's parent's farm in the backyard!  Needless to say I was in photographer's heaven.  I also had an abundance of fun backgrounds I found throughout the day, from an old chicken coop to a fantastic banana-yellow brick wall downtown... even an old gas pump was used in a silly shot!  In addition I had a great group of people to work with and they were up for anything!

Pat and Sarah - 6.20.08

Pat and Sarah have an interesting story of their wedding date...they had to change it four times!  When they first planned their wedding it was scheduled for last June, but Pat was given "no-notice" deployment to Iraq and they had to postpone.  Every time he planned to return, they would book another day, but then he would have to stay longer!  Finally, June 20, 2008 was the lucky day.  It ended up being a beautiful afternoon, except for the crazy wind!  Here are my favorites from the most patient couple ever!

First Week in Kansas!

I promised I'd do an update or two of MY photographs while I'm on the road with the harvest crew--so here it is!  It's hot, it's dry, it's dusty--but it sure is FUN! From gorgeous skies to the 4th of July fireworks show that made it feel like we were back in our own hometown, we've been enjoying our time in western Kansas. Check out a few of my favorite pictures from the first week of my month long vacation on the road with Sugden Harvesting!  Next stop: Nebraska and Colorado!

Just finishing up a field getting ready to head to the next one.

That's a grain elevator in the distance...the sun was just right for some dramatic light!

I love photographing abandoned houses...Kansas is full of them; even entire farms are virtually left to disappear.

One of the MANY oil wells!  I captured this one at dusk and it made an amazing silhouette.

Another interesting sight--that's a tree growing right out of the back of this tractor!

Kasnas isn't all abandoned houses and open fields--this was taken at the local fireworks show on the 4th!

More fireworks!

A few the crew shot off in our lot!

Home sweet home away from home... everyone waiting to eat some steaks!

A parting shot... we "live" on Bison road.  This week, at least.  :)

The Wilson Family!

This post will be a LONG one... but that's because this session included 16 adults and 13 children... and a few dogs, too!  You may remember some faces from this fun session, which is how I ended up doing the whole entire family a month later!  The Wilsons run a beautiful greenhouse in town, so I'm sure my local readers will recognize them.  I loved capturing the interaction between all the kids, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, and even the four-legged friends who are also a big part of the family.  We did the session at the family farm which included a fabulous red barn and lots of great backdrops. One of my favorite shots from the day was a little moment I captured between Great Grandma and Grandpa, who I'm told are 89 and 90 years old!  It was hard to narrow down pictures, and with so many people involved I figured I'd just go for it and share a LOT!

Brooklyn and Jadyn

When I arrived to take pictures of these two little ladies, they were just finishing up getting their toenails painted, so I thought it fitting to get a snap of their cute pink piggies!  They then showed me around their house and I immediately spotted the front porch swing which was perfect for a sisterly picture.  As usual, we ended up at the park which is always great for beautiful backgrounds.  I love how green and colorful it is there this time of year!