Minneapolis Family Photography | Gravel Family

Fine Art Studio Family Photography

Matt + Kristi Gravel found me through a mutual friend of ours. Their daughter Eliza was turning one in Feb of 2020, so they wanted a photoshoot to commemorate her big day. Not only were they celebrating her birthday, but they were also celebrating their newly built home in Lauderdale MN. Naturally, I was so excited to work with this cutie and her family, we had such a great time!

MN Family Photography

Matt, Kristi + Eliza met me at my St Paul MN studio on a cold February morning. We spent lots of time hanging out, singing songs, playing with stuffies, and having fun! We captured photos of Eliza alone, as well as with each of her parents, and then all three of them together. Eliza was so curious and excited, we had a blast! Once we were finished with their portrait session, we took a short break so I could organize their photos, and then we held their Cinematic Reveal + Design Presentation shortly after their session. They narrowed down to their favorites, and ordered beautiful matted prints for the walls of their new home.

Thank You!

Thank you, Gravel family, for working with me as your family photographer. I had so much fun working with you three, and I loved seeing your beautiful matted prints in person! I hope they look amazing on your new walls.

Make sure to take a peek at other family sessions I have photographed: Huntwork Family, Samolytz-Brossoit Family, Novak-Nadeau Family, and Ford Family.

If you’d like to work together for your family photography, contact me soon!

Minneapolis Newborn Photography | Kelzer Family

By Joanna Carina Leave a Comment

Fine Art Studio Newborn Photography

I met Addie several years ago at a wedding vendor event. We became friends pretty soon afterward. I was so excited when I found out that she and Kory were expecting a new addition to their family in a few short months! And then I was lucky enough to be able to work with them for their maternity photography as well as their newborn photography at my St Paul studio.

MN Baby Photography

Addie and Kory brought sweet little Genevieve to meet me at the studio. We worked together for just about an hour, which was plenty of time for baby snuggles, swaddles and photos. Little G was the perfect level of sleepiness with curiosity mixed in (just long enough to open an eye to see what we were up to, then she could go back to sleep.) We captured photos of the three of them together, each parent with G alone, and then little Genevieve herself. We even had a few photos with grandma who was visiting from Idaho!

After their session, I had them out to my St Paul studio for their Cinematic Presentation + Design Consultation. A number of photos that were their favorites, it was a tough choice to narrow down. They ended with a set of digital files – excited to create holiday cards and birth announcements!

Thank You!

Thank you, Kelzer family, for working with me as your newborn photographer. I had so much fun working with you three, and I am thrilled that you love your photographs!

Make sure to take a look at other newborn sessions I have photographed too! Ford Family, Svendsen Family, Troldahl Family, Gangl Family, Ranheim Family

If you’d like to work together for your newborn photography, contact me soon!

Fine Art Studio Family Photography | Samolytz-Brossoit Family

By Joanna Carina Leave a Comment

Fine Art Studio Family Photography

Angel has been one of my closest friends for years. I was thrilled in the past to be able to take engagement photos of Angel when she was engaged to Aaron, and then even more excited when they asked me to capture their maternity photos a few years later. Recently, I was lucky enough to be able to capture family photos of them and their sweet little boy Asher while they were in town visiting from their home in California. We had such an awesome time at my St Paul photo studio!

MN Family Photography

Our family session went pretty quickly. They are pretty good jokesters, so we captured a number of “silly” photos of them too – fits their personalities perfectly! It helped to keep the laughs going and their session time just flew by. We captured all three of them together, as well as photos of Asher with each parent, and then some of Asher alone.

After their session, I had them out to my St Paul studio for their Cinematic Presentation + Design Consultation. They had a number of photos that were their favorites – Aaron even decided to use one as an updated business headshot for his company!

Thank You!

Thank you, Angel, Aaron and Asher, for working with me as your family portrait photographer. I had so much fun working with you three, and I am thrilled that you love your photographs!

Also, make sure to take a look at other family and child portrait sessions I photographed: Ford Family, Novak-Nadeau Family, Huntwork Family

If you’d like to work together for your family or child’s portrait photography, contact me soon!

Minneapolis Family Photography | Huntwork Family

By Joanna Carina Leave a Comment

MN Family Studio Photography

I met Maddie years ago when I started working as a wedding photographer. She is a phenomenal wedding planner, and once we worked at our first wedding together, we became fast friends. A few months ago, I was lucky enough for the chance to work with Maddie and her family right around the time her daughter Freya turned one year old.

MN Children’s Photography

Maddie, William and Freya came out to my St Paul photo studio and we worked together for just about an hour. Freya did an amazing job! She is a curious, happy, dancing, bouncing little darling! We captured photos featuring all three of them together, some with each parent and Freya alone, and then some of little Freya alone dancing, playing with her stuffies and having fun. They all had such a great time, and little Freya was a champ!

Afterward, I had them out to my St Paul studio for their Cinematic Presentation + Design Consultation. They had a number of photos that were their favorites – they even ended up highlighting the photo of Freya having a melt-down on their 2019 Holiday Card! Lol!

Thank You!

Thank you, Maddie, William and Freya, for working with me as your family portrait photographer. I had so much fun working with you three, and I am thrilled that you love your photographs!

Also, make sure to take a look at other family and child portrait sessions I photographed: Ford Family, Novak-Nadeau Family, Samolytz-Brossoit Family

If you’d like to work together for your family or child portrait photography, contact me soon!

Long Lake Regional Park Family Photography | Novak-Nadeau Family

By Joanna Carina Leave a Comment

Long Lake Park Family Photos

Mary and Lisa knew that life doesn’t slow down, and their girls were growing up so quickly in front of their eyes. They contacted me to update their family photography last fall. They really enjoyed working at Long Lake Regional Park, the location of our first family session. So we decided to head on over to the beautiful park one more time. We had so much fun together!

St Paul Family and Child Photography

We happened to luck out and get a day of beautiful fall weather last October, during a time when the weather had been really uncooperative for awhile. (Lots of rain and freezing temps). We met up in the early morning and the light was so beautiful! Between the perfect sky and weather and the best fall colors, we had such an amazing day!

Mary + Lisa came back out to my studio to review the gallery of photos from their session. They loved them, and had a tough time narrowing down their favorites! They settled on a number of fine art matted prints. They were so beautiful, and I loved the look on their faces when they saw their prints for the first time!

Thank You!

Thank you, Mary, Lisa, Amelia and Eliza, for choosing to work with me as your family portrait photographer. I had so much fun working with you all, and I am thrilled that you love your photographs!

Also, make sure to take a look at other family and child portrait sessions I photographed: Ford Family, Huntwork Family

If you’d like to work together for your family or child portrait photography, contact me soon!

MN Landscape Arboretum Family Photography | Ford Family

By Joanna Carina Leave a Comment

Minneapolis Family Photographer

As a Minneapolis family photographer, I love getting a chance to work with my clients again after their big day. Whether headshots, portraits, or even their growing family, I’m open for most anything. In 2017, Safiyyah + Rory asked me to photograph their maternity session and their newborn session once their son Remy made his debut. (I had previously worked with them on their 2014 Aria Mpls wedding photography.)

Safiyyah + Rory contacted me this summer to schedule Remy’s first birthday photo session. When deciding upon locations, they gravitated toward the natural beauty of the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum in Chanhassen. Anytime I can work at this beautiful location, I jump at the chance. So I was naturally super excited not only to work with my awesome friends and clients, see how big Remy had gotten (wow!!!) and also to see how things were looking at the beautiful Arboretum.

Family Photo Session

Our family session was so much fun! In the year since I had seen him, Remy had grown into a running, laughing, babbling little munchkin! It was a warm and humid day, perfect for him to explore every place he could reach. We meandered through several of the gardens and photographed Remy taking it all in with mom and dad.

Viewing and Ordering Session

Holding our Viewing/Ordering session, it was a tough choice to narrow down the images to Safiyyah + Rory’s “best-of-the-best”. They selected an Heirloom Portrait Box – a handmade copper-foiled glass box filled with gorgeous heirloom matted 8×10 prints. Their final box was absolutely stunning!

Safiyyah + Rory, thank you so much for choosing to work with me for your MN Landscape Arboretum family session. I always love working with you guys. It was a joy to see little Remy growing so fast, and I wish you every happiness as you grow together as a family!

If you would like more information about working with me for your children and family portraits, contact me soon!

Minneapolis Newborn Photography | Ford Family

By Joanna Carina Leave a Comment

Minneapolis Newborn Session

As a Minneapolis newborn photographer, I love getting a chance to work with my clients again after their big day. I especially love when they contact me to photograph their growing family. Naturally, I was ecstatic when Safiyyah + Rory asked me to photograph their Como Park maternity session AND their newborn session. (I had previously worked on their 2014 Aria wedding photography!)

First, we worked together in mid-July for their Como Park maternity session. Then, when the adorable Remy made his appearance in mid-August, we met again a few weeks later for their Minneapolis newborn photography at Safiyyah + Rory’s home.

Newborn Photography Session

Our newborn session was so much fun! Rory’s mom was visiting from Iowa so she was able to spend lots of quality time with Remy. And Maddox was there mugging for the camera whenever he could. Remy did a great job holding it together – either napping or else snuggling with mom, dad or grandma on cue. We were able to work both in his bedroom as well as their dining room with their awesome farm-style wooden table, sheer lacy curtains, and super cool “Ford Family” tub!

Viewing/Ordering Session

Holding our Viewing/Ordering session, it was a tough choice to narrow down the images to Safiyyah + Rory’s “best-of-the-best”, but we were finally able to narrow down and create a beautiful newborn/family photo album for them. I am so excited to see it in final form when it is sent to me from Graphistudio in Italy!

Safiyyah + Rory, thank you so much for choosing to work with me on both your Como Park maternity photography as well as your Minneapolis newborn photography. I always love working with you guys. It was a joy to meet little Remy, and I wish you every happiness in your new lives together as a family!

Take a look at a few of my other Minneapolis newborn photography blog posts here!
Svendsen Family
Troldahl Family
Gangl Family
Ranheim Family

If you would like more information about working with me for your newborn and family photos, contact me soon!

St Paul Public Library Engagement + Family Photos | Kelly, Joe and Ayla

By Joanna Carina Leave a Comment

St Paul Public Library Engagement Photos

Kelly and Joe might hold a record among all of my wedding couples. Most amount of years together prior to getting married. They finally decided to make it official. Their big day will be in the fall of this year. Instead of a simple engagement session, they wanted to incorporate their daughter Ayla and make it a hybrid engagement session AND family session. Such a great idea!

They decided on a Downtown St Paul Public Library Engagement and Family Session. (It’s also called the George Latimer Central Library.) Kelly chose it for her love of books, and Joe chose it for his love of classic architecture. It was the perfect spot! And even though it had been a rainy day, the rain stopped long enough for us to get a few images of them outside the library.

St Paul Engagement Photography

We spent time photographing Kelly + Joe alone, Ayla alone, and the three of them together. It was so fun being immersed in the stacks and rows of thousands of books. The structure of the historic building itself was stunning. There were so many rooms and areas to work in! We were unable to make it everywhere before the library closed for the day.

Image Viewing and Ordering

Once they reviewed their images, they chose to order an heirloom canvas wall art tryptic of some favorites: one image of Ayla, one image of Kelly + Joe, and one of all three of them together. I cannot wait to see the final artwork!

Thank You!

Kelly, Joe and Ayla, it was so much fun working on your St Paul Public Library Engagement + Minneapolis Family Photography! I’ve enjoyed getting to know you. I’m so excited to work with you as your Minneapolis engagement photographer. Best of luck with your wedding planning!

If you’re planning for library engagement or prewedding photography or family photography, contact me soon. I’d love to talk about working together!

ETA: Take a look at Kelly + Joe’s Theodore Wirth Chalet Wedding Photos too!

Downtown St Paul Public Library Photo Session