I absolutely loved working with Liz and James!  They are such a fun couple and I think they made me laugh more than I made them laugh!  I can’t wait for their intimate wedding in June!!

I have been working a few rolls of film into my sessions lately and the photos above are a few of my favorites from Liz and James’s session.  Like a lot of the photographers out there… I see the difference in the photos and I see a difference in what/how I shoot with it.  The photos have a depth and artistic feel to them that can’t be matched by a digital camera.  I love the colors film creates and the watercolor background.  I also love the proportions of the Contax.  Sometimes with my Canon 5D I find myself having a hard time filling the frame with the type of composition I want… and the Contax is perfect!! Most of all, I love what it does to me as a photographer and artist.  I love the Contax 645, and Fuji film, and hope to keep it as part of my process from here on out!

Jennifer McCarty - Wedding & Portrait Photography. You can read the original blog post here Liz & James – Madison WI Engagement | Madison Wedding Photographer.

I recently had the pleasure of working with a true color expert earlier this month, Jessica Colaluca of Design Seeds.  This is our second shoot together and I love working with her!!  Everything we do, whether it is an outside shoot or a studio shoot… she always fills the frame with color!  I can’t help but get inspired by her fun personality, her clothing choices, her color schemes… basically everything!  Check out her work here, Design Seeds, and her Pinterest boards here, Design Seeds Pinterest.  You will be amazed by how she sees color!!  She was recently named one of the Top 10 Pinterest Influences by Refinery 29, and is someone you will definitely want to check out!

Jennifer McCarty - Wedding & Portrait Photography. You can read the original blog post here Jessica Colaluca – Design Seeds | Madison Portrait Photographer.

I am excited to share this post today because I get to reveal a little more about me and my family…  Kurt is my nephew!  I am the youngest of 5 children and we range in age from 31-51.  So naturally I have a few nieces and nephews and some of them are close in age.  I introduced my niece, Nina, to you a few years ago when I photographed her wedding in Jamaica, and my parents when I did a tribute birthday post.  Now I introduce Kurt, my brothers son.  He is an only child and we spent a lot of time together as children.  We traveled and did many cool things together but it was some of the everyday things that I remember most… like everything Ghostbusters and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Nerf fights, playing rock band in my Dad’s junk pile and making forts.  Well… he is all grown up now and he came to Madison last fall to visit and we went out for a quick portrait session.

Jennifer McCarty - Wedding & Portrait Photography. You can read the original blog post here Kurt | Madison Portrait Photographer.

I am so excited to finally share this engagement session with you!  Emily is a good friend of mine and we have had “many of a long” conversations about guys when we were single.  Emily would describe what qualities she was looking for in a husband… and I would tell her not to give up.  And then… just when she felt like there was no hope… Brad came along!  She started describing him and the things they loved doing together… and essentially how she “found the one!”

Emily… Brad… I am so excited for you both and I can’t wait to celebrate your big day with you in Milwaukee!
Have fun with your last month of wedding planning!

Jennifer McCarty - Wedding & Portrait Photography. You can read the original blog post here Emily & Brad – Madison WI Engagement.

I am so excited to announce that Becky and Alex’s engagement session is featured on A Northwoods Wedding today!!  Becky and Alex are so much fun and so sweet… they played around and tried to keep each other warm during the whole session… I loved it!

Thank you to the really sweet ladies at A Northwoods Wedding, Britt and Jenna, for sharing Becky and Alex’s engagement!!

madison and milwaukee wedding photographer

Jennifer McCarty - Wedding & Portrait Photography. You can read the original blog post here Becky & Alex Featured on A Northwoods Wedding.

Over New Years Michael and I took a trip to Chicago to have fun with the camera that Michael’s Grandpa gave me for Christmas, the Graflex 22.  It took me a while to get used to how to compose the photos because everything in the viewfinder is transposed!  Michael had a few good laughs watching me move around!  I love this camera and the photos it takes!  Thank you Grandpa Wendell!

Jennifer McCarty - Wedding & Portrait Photography. You can read the original blog post here Chicago.

On this very day… Madison had a high of 19 degrees… brrrr!  Becky and Alex are such a fun couple that the cold cold weather didn’t bother them!  There were a few times where one of us would get a little numb so we would take a short warm up break in my vehicle… which ended up being perfect!  We were able to get some great photos… have some time to get to know each other, and talk about the wedding!  I always tell my husband that I shouldn’t do engagement photos in temperatures this cold for various reasons… but I always come home with photos I absolutely love!!

Thank you Becky and Alex for braving the cold weather… congratulations to both of you and I can’t wait for your wedding… its going to be beautiful!!

Jennifer McCarty - Wedding & Portrait Photography. You can read the original blog post here Becky & Alex – Madison WI Engagement | Madison Engagement Photographer.

I am so excited to announce that Saeng & Kevin’s engagement session is featured on A Northwoods Wedding today!!  Saeng and Kevin are so much fun and their love really is… a fun love!  They played around and had such great energy during the whole session… I loved it!

Thank you to the really sweet ladies at A Northwoods Wedding, Britt and Jenna, for sharing Saeng and Kevin’s fun love!!

Jennifer McCarty - Wedding & Portrait Photography. You can read the original blog post here Saeng & Kevin Featured on A Northwoods Wedding.

I absolutely loved everything about Andrea and Phil and their wedding!  First of all… they were the best bride and groom to work with!  They had two engagement sessions; the first engagement session was an outdoor winter engagement session that they wanted to do to have some photos for their Save the Dates and the second one was out in Kohler Wisconsin.  So we had alot of time to get to know each other!  Second, they asked about timelines and made sure to incorporate an appropriate amount of time for photos.  Third, their families were so welcoming that both Michael and I felt like we were part of the family!  It seemed like everyone at some point during the day walked up to us and complimented on the engagement photos/Save the Dates!  Fourth, Andrea and Phil have great taste and design skills!  They designed their whole wedding including the invitations!  I think I could go on and on about this wedding… the weather was beautiful, the bridesmaids were gorgeous, the groomsmen were fun… and lastly we all had a great time!

Andrea and Phil… thank you for everything!  Thank you for allowing Michael and I to be a part of your beautiful day… we wish you all the best!!

Jennifer McCarty - Wedding & Portrait Photography. You can read the original blog post here Andrea & Phil – Madison WI Wedding | Madison Wedding Photographers.

Happy 2012 Friends!!

I don’t like admitting it, but usually New Year’s Eve and Day are anticlimactic for me and I feel like sometimes the anticipation of New Year’s celebrations are better than the actual celebrations themselves.  Not this year!!  My husband, Michael, and I went to Chicago!  My Christmas present this year was a Contax 645 film camera!!  And… in an unexpected turn of Christmas Surprises… my grandpa-in-law (we will call him Grandpa Wendell from now on!), asked me if I would like to have is Graflex 22!  I was so excited and it ended up being one of the best surprise Christmas presents ever!  Grandpa Wendell then went on to say that he took photos of Richard Nixon with it for his local newspaper.  It means so much to me… and in addition to the vintage camera, there is an awesome camera box/suitcase, an old time flash, really fun to read instructions and best of all… there was a roll of film still in it!  I lifted up the little window to see what exposure it was on… and it looked like there were 8 photos already taken.  So Michael and I decided at 9:47pm on December 30th that we were going to drive to Chicago to finish Grandpa Wendell’s film off for New Year’s Eve/Day!  I haven’t sent in the photos yet… I want to finish off another couple rolls before I do… but I can’t wait to share what I have taken on one of the best of the best New Year’s yet!!

Above photo from my Canon 5d.

Jennifer McCarty - Wedding & Portrait Photography. You can read the original blog post here Christmas Surprises and Impromptu Vacations.