Kids on the brain!

Hi everybody! I hope you're all happy and well while reading this. I seriously cannot believe that it is December already! Things have been going really well for me and my family and the business, and although I am glad to get a "break" (I'm off from shooting until April) for the winter season as the wedding season has come to a close and I sit anxiously awaiting my twins, I am already amped up for a fabulous shooting season next year. I have some really fun wedding clients lined up for the season, and I have plans to work with Jon Koch on a lot of his weddings next season as well! I love 2nd shooting for him, it gives me a chance to be really creative and not have all of the responsibility of the principal shooter... Think about how stressful being the principal photographer on a wedding is - you are in charge of making sure that all of the important events get covered, that you're in the right place at the right time with the right light and the right camera settings.... Whew. I truly love it but it's truly stressful.

I am 28 weeks into my pregnancy with my twins, I'm feeling great, and, as you can imagine, I'm greatly anticipating meeting them and taking their first photos... I've gotten the comment several times from several people that my babies just might be the most photographed babies on the planet. And they just might be right. I am very excited for the opportunity for endless photo ops! I'll have subjects every waking moment of the day to experiment with! I have always loved the spontaneous nature of photographing children, and it got me thinking, I would really love to do it more. Photographing children and babies is fascinating and so rewarding to me - it's a gift to be around them as you get to witness the newness of the everyday world through their eyes. Children teach you patience and fill you with joy, and I simply cannot wait to meet my own. I am truly blessed. Jon and I are engaged in brainstorming right now about our children's photography campaign, and I'm really looking forward to diving into photographing a lot more children and babies and pregnant mommies this coming season... I'll certainly keep you all posted with the developments, scheduled portrait events, etc. Wish us luck!

I hope this holiday season is filled with joy, laughter and a little R&R for you all... Please pray for me and Kristian and our babies that the rest of the pregnancy goes as well as it has gone thus far, and that we're able to keep our sanity as we adjust to life with two brand new little ones! We're in for a crazy, beautiful ride. Love to you all! Joanna

Leslie and Christian!

Okay, these two are nothing but cute and totally comfortable with each other and in front of the camera.... I really can't ask for more than that. We had a great time with this shoot - thanks guys for going along with my random "chase the light" approach to an engagement session. Leslie you looked gorgeous and Christian, not so shabby yourself. And of course, I love your name. (For those of you who don't know yet my righteous husband's name is Kristian). :) Can't wait for the wedding on 11.15! I'm sure it will be beautiful and I'm really looking forward to playing such an important part. I hope everyone is doing well, thanks for stopping in!

I'm off to Minneapolis!

Hi everyone! Hope your holiday weekend was awesome.... I wanted to share some photos with you of my friends Anne and Kris, they will be getting married in Minneapolis (Wayzata), Minnesota next week and I'm so excited to photograph their wedding! While they were in town for a wedding recently, we took to opportunity to hang out at the Missouri Botanical Garden for a bit to shoot their engagement portraits. Anne and I were roommates at Mizzou, and we absolutely do not get to see each other enough since she and Kris live in Cincinnati - I'm definitely looking forward to spending her wedding day with her and to spending some time in Minnesota - I haven't been up there since my brother James was going to school at St. Mary's. And I'm even looking forward to the drive - Kristian and I haven't gotten to spend a lot of time together lately and I haven't taken a road trip in a while either! Can't wait! I'm sure the wedding will be amazing and it doesn't get much better than spending time with old friends....Congratulations Annie and Kris!

Stop the press!

Hey everybody! I really do love my job - sure, I'm constantly running around with my head cut off, trying to keep 100 balls in the air, but I'm becoming convinced that I wouldn't want it any other way. I have had some rock star clients so far this year and have so much to look forward to with the remainder of the season and far into the future. Things are going great with the studio space - although it has been a slow transition getting in there full time, being that money doesn't grow on trees and I'm waiting on some computer purchases that I need to make, and my new right hand man Jordan has proved himself quite the assistant at weddings - I'm excited to have him on more weddings and other projects in the coming months. I'll get posts made as often as possible, and please watch out for the new issues of Alive Magazine, and St. Louis Bride Magazine, as I will have new ads and in both and a featured wedding in Alive! Alive is trying to break into the wedding publication market and promises to be a premier local wedding resource and a force to be reckoned with in the market. Can't wait to see what the new issue (due out July) looks like! And propers to my friend and studio partner Frankie Peltiere (Festive Atmospheres) for all the amazing work he has done this season also - including winning the top two ribbons in the St. Louis Art Museum's prestigious "Art in Bloom" exhibit/competetion! Frankie, you got skillz! And, another shout-out to my friend Tina Brogi, an amazing photographer and mentor - Congrats Tina and Scott on your brand new baby girl, June, she's beautifu! And I have to mention also - stay posted to my Music Blog to see images of local shows and other music projects I have my hands in throughout the summer - and be sure to try to make it down to the Riverfront for Celebrate St. Louis's FREE concert series Live on the Levee running July through August - acts such as Joss Stone, Boys II Men and the Black Crowes are all putting on FREE shows, on a stage right in front of the Arch steps - check their calendar and get down there. Did I mention it's FREE?

Thanks for staying tuned everyone, what a fun summer it is going to be..... Enjoy it!

Meet me in St. Louis!

PLEASE CLICK IMAGES TO VIEW THEM LARGER - MAKE SURE TO BACK ARROW, NOT EXIT NEW WINDOW. THANKS!

Congratulations to Jill Fasca and Jerry FitzGerald as they were wed at SLU's college church, St. Francis Xavier on April 5th! This wedding day was a lot of fun for many reasons - I love shooting at St. Francis, (what a gorgeous church!) and Union Station's Grand Hall, both very large, beautiful, ornate and history-rich buildings in St. Louis. Guests from out of town were delighted, I'm sure, to get an intimate look at our famous Union Station, where they were served champagne and fine hors d'oeuvres by white-gloved attendants. Jill and Jerry had a beautiful ceremony that was delivered partially in Polish, (along with a portion of her father's speech before dinner), paying homage to Jill's ancestry. The wedding party was a lot of fun to hang out with and were good sports as we trekked all over Forest Park and SLU's campus for photos - it was a chilly day, but gorgeous nonetheless! Jill's sister Lisa took the role of Maid of Honor and Jerry's brother Patrick stood next to Jerry as his Best Man. Other family acting as witnesses in the wedding party included Jerry's sisters Molly and Bridget, and Jill's brother Chad and sister-in-law, having traveled in from New York City.

Jill and Jerry - thanks again for allowing me into such a special day, I was honored to play a part... Hope you enjoy this first peek at your photos!

News!

Please watch for my most recent ad that will be appearing in the Spring issue of St. Louis Seasons Magazine - out in April!

Hi everybody! I'm sure you're just excited as I am about spring finally arriving - although getting another few inches of snow isn't entirely impossible, as any of us who have lived in St. Louis for any length of time know all too well....We'll all be praying for those in southern Missouri and Illinois who have been so terribly affected by the flooding in the past few and coming days.

So, I haven't gotten the chance to post in a while because there's been mucho excitement happening at the Joanna Kleine Photography camp - including hiring my first employee Jordan LeMay, moving into studio space in University City with my friend Frankie Peltiere (owner of Festive Atmospheres), and most recently photographing the Langerado Music Festival in the Everglades of Florida! (Be sure to check both my Music Blog and Playback:STL to see my review and photos!). I will be posting a bunch in the coming months, please stay tuned! I'm very excited about the upcoming season for many reasons, including the upcoming projects I have with Jon Koch, my many fabulous wedding clients I have on the books, launching a new website and blog, and....last but certainly not least, possibly buying a new house?? Any of you who know Kristian please help me persuade him that now's the time! He's not completely convinced, and again, any of you who know Kristian know it's difficult to completely convince him of anything! Anyhow, as always, thanks so much for stopping by, and I always love to hear from people, so feel free to leave a comment, feedback, grocery list, anything! (No to-do lists please, I have an endless supply myself, thanks.) Thanks everybody, go play outside if you can today!

Better Together...

Introducing Dr. and Mrs. Jason Fennema! Congratulations to Erin and Jason as they were wedd in Terre Haute, Indiana this past Saturday 12.29. Thanks to the both of you for including me in your wedding in such a special way, I hope you enjoy this first round of your images and that you're enjoying your honeymoon! The whole day was beautiful, a heartfelt ceremony, gorgeous details at the reception and lots of love in the (chilly) air! I have known Erin for a few years having worked with her when she lived in St. Louis and worked for St. Louis Wedding Design , a premier wedding design organization here in St. Louis. I was thrilled when she called me after moving in with Jason in Chicago, informing me that they had gotten engaged and that she wanted me to photograph the event... I have never been to Terre Haute and welcomed the new experience, although besides the Holiday Inn, St. Mary of the Woods campus and St. Joseph's, I really didn't see too much of Terre Haute! I'm glad that the weather cooperated, and that the timing was so that we ended up with some pretty amazing light. I love winter weddings yet the potentially horrendous weather is always a source of anxiety. Erin looked fantastic in her dress, and I'm still very proud of myself for properly placing the gardenia she had set aside for the reception in her hair... normally I'm not too good at things like that.... You looked beautiful Erin! Congratulations again to the both of you, what a perfect way to ring in the new year!


(from left to right) Jason's gift to Erin (a sterling "f" necklace from Tiffany's) and Erin's gift to her bridemaids (a new fragrance from Philosophy).

Jason's sister Lauren (right) (ha ha) was hired on as bridesmaid for the day, along with Erin's sister Sarah and Erin's friend Jen, whom I know, although neither of us know from where. Hmmm.

Mr. and Mrs!

Like daughter like father.... Erin's dad Gene seen here with son Matt and wife Cindy directing the processional... :)

St. Mary of the Woods college campus is beautiful!

Must.... conserve.... body heat.......

Gotta love those little inconspicuous spots that pop up... what a cool red garage.

Erin and her florist worked together to create a warm, inviting, lush, woodsy-wintery feel to the beautiful Providence Hall at St. Mary of the Woods - complete with Christmas pines that made their way all the way to Terre Haute from Wisconsin, cut from Jason's dad's Christmas tree farm!

So, I pretty much cry, at some point, during every wedding I shoot, and Erin and Jason's was no exception, thanks to a simple yet incredibly sweet speech that Sarah prepared for her sister and new brother-in-law. Erin also could not hold back tears as her little sister candidly expressed to her that she was her best friend and how much she cherished all of the memories that they share.

What a clever idea for table numbers at a winter wedding!

Remember you can click on images to view them larger, however do not exit the new window, hit your back button. Little cyber side-note.

This is one of my favorite dancing photos I've ever taken... they looked so happy and cozy as they danced to Jack Johnson's "Better Together."