Married! // Harper + Trey Part 2

The wedding day has arrived! Harper and Trey’s wedding took place at Abella Farm Weddings and Events and on quite possibly the hottest day of the summer! The sun was shining and it was a beautiful day. Amy Zaroff Events and Design brought in the best of the best vendors to make this day everything that Harper and Trey could have dreamed of! It spoke to both of them - a small town meets the big city! What I loved about Harper and Trey is how thoughtful they were in planning this wedding for their guests. There were fun activities while everyone was getting ready, a popcorn and lemonade refreshment as guests arrived and one of the best bands in the country for entertainment. They focused on bold colors, including the entire spectrum of the rainbow. They wanted their day to be filled with joy, modern art design and the great Midwest.

The absolute best part of the day though was hearing Harper and Trey read their vows to one another. They are a couple who inspires everyone around them with their love. I think everyone learned more about Harper and Trey through their vows as well. Whether it was their story or how they support one another in their relationship, we all left the ceremony so excited for these two and their marriage!

I meantioned this in Part 1 of their blog post, but this is officially the longest blog post I’ve ever done! They day was filled with so many moments, I felt it deserved this many images. So, without further adieu, enjoy Harper + Trey’s wedding!

LOVEe

VENDORS//

Event Planning + Design: Amy Zaroff Events and Design

Rabbi: Rabbi Isaama Goldstein-Stoll

Photographer: Photogen Inc.

Video: Curtis Kennedy Films

Live Band: Jordan Kahn Music Company

Venue: Abella Farm Weddings + Events

Floral: Arts and Flowers

Catering: D’Amico Catering

Cake: D’Amico Catering

Hair + Makeup: Mae Vang and Andrea Holton

Photo Booth: Northerly

Installations: Girl Friday

Rentals: Haven and Gather, Chrome

Sound + Lighting: AVEX

Married! // Harper + Trey Part 1

Harper and Trey’s wedding was the event of the summer for all of their family and friends. The couple chose to come back to Minnesota, where Trey grew up and his family has roots! Harper and Trey live in Brooklyn and they were joined by friends and family who traveled from across the world to experience the Midwest. It was a weekend full of fun! From the welcome drinks to the Minnesota State Fair, an incredible rehearsal dinner and then a beautiful modern-art-meets-farm wedding, the weekend brought so many memory-making events for their guests.

Let’s begin with the rehearsal dinner. This gorgeous evening took place on the terrace at the Walker Art Center. With the iconic Cherry and Spoon in the background, Harper and Trey hosted an incredible night filled with some of the best speeches. I loved how throughout the night, Harper and Trey would check in on one another. It might have been just a soft touch or a glance from across the room, but they were always making sure the other felt loved and seen. This was a theme throughout the weekend and the chatter over how perfect these two are for one another was always buzzing about the room.

Another moment that I loved was the sunset. Harper’s late Grandmother always referenced a sunset as a way that she would make her presence known. During dinner the overcast skies parted and a gorgeous, glowing pink sunset appeared that warmed the hearts of so many. Love felt close on this night!

Full disclosure - this wedding might be the longest blog post I’ve ever posted! This wedding is worthy of the long scroll. While the wedding photos will come along in Part 2 of this post, below are some wonderful details and moments from Harper + Trey’s Rehearsal Dinner.

LOVEe

VENDORS//

Event Planning + Design: Amy Zaroff Events and Design

Photographer: Photogen Inc.

Video: Curtis Kennedy Films

Venue: The Walker Art Center

Catering: D’Amico Catering

Rentals: Linen Effects

Sound + Lighting: AVEX

Married! // Alyssa + Clarke

Alyssa and Clarke are a couple who embraces life and love to the fullest! Whether it is their careers, travel, family or friends, they always go big and their wedding was a true reflection of their love and passion for life! One thing I loved about their day was that their close friends surprised them by showing up wedding-party-ready. The couple wasn’t going to have a wedding party, but their friends knew they would appreciate the impromptu change of plans! All of the women showed up in fabulous red attire and the guys were as dapper as ever!

Alyssa and Clarke’s wedding took place on a perfect summer day at The Beach Club. Julia LaCroix transported the guests with her design through a series of rooms with lush, white florals throughout. To add a personal touch, the couple’s wedding cake was made up of classic story books. This was a nod to their last name, Story, and also their own adventures in life.

Congratulations to Alyssa, Clarke and their families. It was a pleasure to be a part of your day!

LOVEe

VENDORS//

Planner: Julia LaCroix Styled Events

Venue: The Beach Club

Photography: Photogen Inc.

Videography: A B Rich Films

Cake: Ink Sweets

Floral: Sadie’s Couture Floral

Officient: Flutterby Celebrations

Live Band: The R Factor

Champagne Wall: Girl Friday

Hair & Makeup: Primped

Stationary: Jill Elaine Designs

Lounges + Stage Wrap: Collected & Co.

It's Our Golden Birthday!

Today marks 18 years of business. Wow. What started as a little dream of being a photographer and working for myself, has turned into four separate but connected businesses. It has also required me to show up – every day – for 18 years; it has taught me tenacity, resilience, and just how believing in yourself (and more importantly, those around you) can lead to creating such beautiful things. 

I’ve always been an advocate of collaboration and building the businesses over the years has happened very organically because of it. I’ve been so lucky to have such talented artists come through our studio doors and be a part of the work. I’ve been even luckier to have retained such incredible talent for so many of these years. The work that we create together is what I am endlessly proud of.

So, where are we now? At Year 18, here’s an update on all of the things we’re doing at our NE MPLS studio:

The Restaurant Project™: This is the youngest but fastest growing branch of our business. Over the last 6 years, TRP has grown into a collective of photographers, creatives, videographers, brand builders and content strategists who make marketing easier for restaurants and food brands. This year, we're working to refine our processes, make space for artistic exploration and develop a few new packages to offer, particularly for businesses in the startup stage looking for a one-stop creative shop. We're very excited for what's to come here—for our clients and our team!

Rivets and Roses: Our wedding photography studio currently features the work of four AMAZING photographers. As Melissa, Jess, Ben, and Tara embark on this year’s wedding season, I am so excited to see the work that they will all create for our clients. Every season I am endlessly inspired by their work! Our mission at Rivets is to support all couples getting married. With PRIDE month coming up in June, our studio will be rolling out information on the ways that we are continuing to support the LGBTQ+ community. I am so very proud of this work and the impact it is making for our clients.

Eliesa Johnson Photography: I’m still rolling along with this work! Eliesa Johnson Photography encompasses all of the editorial and commercial work that I personally lead. It’s a beautiful place where I get to go on assignment with just me and my camera or even better, a large production crew of the best freelancers around. There are some very exciting projects I’ve been working on that I can’t wait to share once they are released! 

Photogen Inc.: This is the original company; the foundation of it all. It has been steady and strong over the years. Photogen Inc. is the space where I come to photograph luxury weddings, which have taken me around the world. I am so grateful for these opportunities! Photographing weddings is still something that I greatly enjoy and it grounds me. I have had the pleasure of working alongside some of the absolute best wedding vendors, who are true artists in their own right! While I only choose a select few weddings each year now to photograph, I am always excited to see where each season will take me and the amazing couples and families I get to spend time with! 

What are my hopes for the future? 

To empower our clients

To support our artists

To create iconic images

To continue to have longevity in our industry