August, like a whole month of sundays
an update from Jess at jessica love photography featuring current work from family sessions of summer 2024
It’s no surprise, if you’ve been here a while that we live for summer around here, but as summer winds down, the air takes on a different quality, hinting at the approaching school year. Mornings that once began with leisurely breakfasts now become a rush of packing lunches and tying shoelaces. The excitement of new classrooms and friendships mingles with the bittersweet feeling of shorter days and fading sunlight. Striking a balance becomes essential; it's a challenge to carve out family time amidst the responsibilities and commitments that fill the calendar. Each evening is a reminder to savor these last moments of summer, whether it’s gathering for a simple dinner or lingering outdoors a bit longer, cherishing the laughter and stories shared before the school bus routine begins anew. As the leaves start to turn, it's a time to reconnect and reflect on the joys of family togetherness, even as life takes on a more structured rhythm.
This summer is the first that - GASP - I did not book a wedding from June 16-August 4. It feels wild to say, being a wedding photographer and all, and it was quite scary….but here’s what I found: JOY and BALANCE. I sense the privilege here, to even get a chance to be choosy about my bookings and work, and I know I wouldn’t be here without the support of awesome people like you who hire me to work together!
What got me through the summer - because to me, the balance of HOME and WORK is important as the balance of not working too much, if you know what I mean! are some pretty amazing families who had me over to capture some important milestones in their lives.
As the summer lull comes to an end and the days begin to shorten, I am filled with anticipation for the upcoming wedding and family sessions that this fall promises to bring. The quiet moments of the past few months have afforded me a wonderful opportunity to reflect on my craft, and now I find myself eager to capture the beautiful memories that will undoubtedly unfold during this enchanting season. Whether it’s the vibrant colors of autumn leaves painting the landscape or the cozy gatherings filled with laughter and warmth among loved ones, my ultimate goal is to document the genuine emotions and deep connections that define your special event. I sincerely hope you consider having me as your photographer to preserve these treasured moments for years to come, ensuring that they can be revisited and cherished in the future.
spring flowers on flowers on flowers
daffodils on flower crowns
continuing my instagram series of wearable flowers! spring flowers: daffodils and a few tulips on 3 of my kids. Almost all my loves into one blog post!
Authentic Family Photography
Just bopping in here to remind you: I primarily shoot weddings, but my heart + eyes are trained to capture your family moments in ways that are as authentic + beautiful as they can be. I’d love to get you in front of my camera this fall.
This’ll be the first year I won’t shoot any “mini session” day - but I will make time to get your family on my schedule in a way that works for both of us!
a return to myself
You know how, in life, you never know what you’re missing until you find it? Being a mom felt like that, for me. Finding a film camera (obviously not to the same extent) felt like that to me. When I picked up a film camera and shot ALL THE THINGS in 2016, it felt like I had finally started living a true version of who I was supposed to be. As I type it, it’s weird to feel such a sense of self entangled in this job that I do…but here we are.
I feel most like myself when I can tell a story. My mode isn’t paper and pencil or computer..it’s my camera. Not my phone, man I hated when the pandemic hit, and I stopped shooting film. It’s the dark ages of our family’s history. And there’s nothing wrong with digitally recording life, it just isn’t my mode of doing it. As I’ve been feeling something shift in the past few months, it’s felt like home. Picking up a camera and working to get the light reading in my head, getting the shutter stop and aperture set before I look through the viewfinder..that is a meditation sort of exercise that keeps me present in moments, in ways I didn’t even begin to understand!
from a “work” point of view, what I love about film is that it lets me feel like I’m capturing the feel of my clients. It doesn’t have to always be clean and bright…because sometimes life, and love, are blurry and fuzzy and remind you of the way the warmth was in that moment…plus, now that I’m developing at Midwest Photo Exchange (vs. sending to a lab across the country, holla for supporting local!), I have my film scans back the next day. THE NEXT DAY! WILD!!
So while I know digital is still queen, I’m so glad to once again WANT to see your world through a film camera + hope you see the light in that, and bring me along!!
Andrea and Andrew | a spring engagement session
it’s equal parts scary and exciting that this feels like yesterday (why once you pass 30 does time literally fly?). It was one of the first warm days of March, and we’re So Close to being back to spring already. A + A were married in a small ceremony last April + I’ll be with them (for my first time at COSI) this august!
these are the days
A while back, I blogged to ask you guys to vote for a photo in a contest. wellll! I won 2nd place, THANK YOU! With that came a sweet little vintage Canon film camera. Being me, I hate asking for help, but I did it anyways, and since have been thinking of ways to pay it forward.
When we lived in our first house, our, then just two boys, were 2 something and 1 something, and we had hanging on a wall a piece of art, made by me, that read, "the best is yet to come." And, I thought it was the truth. Not that I looked desperately forward away from today, but just that good things were about to be.
Fast forward another baby, another house, and I decided the mantra for this current life should be, "these are the days." Probably largely because I've learned, the future is always coming. These fleeting moments of NOW are so precious. SO fast. And over before you know it. I now, desperately try to stick to TODAY, this very minute, as much as I can because it seems like tomorrow is threatening to come before I'm ready! (yeah ok, it sounds a little apocalyptic but I'm a mama, what can I say).
What I want to do, to show my gratitude for all the support is give away a session that salutes this notion of these moments making our lives. The not always poetically beautiful. The chaotic. The moments you're knee deep in (what you see today) as the .... craziness of raising babies, or puppies (!), but what you'll see in 10 years as the moments that have made you, and your family, who you are.
So how do you enter!? I'd like to propose a hashtag on instagram: #thesearethedayscontest you'll tag your photos that you think represent your crazy, your moments of your life, to show me, and I'll pick one as a favorite, and we'll schedule your session.
Now, of course, I want the session to reflect this notion, too. A true documentary storytelling session. I get to spend 2-3 hours with you capturing the beautifully mundane. YES! clean your house, put on your makeup, get ya hair did...but then, just be. Let it happen how it happens.
There you go! There's a lot of rules, it seems, but if you think you're down for it, please, hashtag #thesearethedayscontest (make sure you're public, or DM (@_jessicalovephotography) me on instagram so I can see it!), and let me see your beautifully normal moments. If you don't have instagram, I'll say it's ok if you use the contact me link via my website, too. I want to be all inclusive.
Looking to let this go for a month or so, with the session to be scheduled in the first week of April or so.