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!