I couldn't be more excited about this engagement! My wonderful sister in law got herself a perfect gentleman and they plan on tying the knot next summer. To celebrate their engagement, we took a drive to the Annual Dahlia Festival at the Swan Island Dahlias for a photo session.
​I adore pairing this girl's hair with popping colors, as seen in early blog posts, Autumn Grace Part 1 and Part 2.
These two are the sweetest and I can't wait to be a part of the big day next year! Enjoy these engagement highlights!

In the third installment of Hood To Coast introductions, I'd like you to meet my super cool brother in law, Josh. He became a part of the team in 2013 as a volunteer with his new wife (daughter of Gary) and started running with us the following year.

Josh has always had running in his blood and casualy enjoyed it, but really picked it up in recent years. He's participated in 9 half marathons and finished his first full marathon, the Blooms To Brews this past April. Josh quickly became one of the fastest runners on our team and has tackled difficult legs, such as #5. He plans to run the Boring Marathon in the month following Hood To Coast 2018.

​You may have seen him in previous blog posts with portraits of his sweet little family, like the image shown above. Josh works hard for his family and builds beautiful tables with Jewell Hardwoods. Each of their creations is a unique work of art.

​Josh trains very hard and is sure to rock this relay.
As a fantastic runner, artist, and family man, this is one to look out for!

A Hood To Coast team needs 12 runners, if each is to run 3 of the 36 legs it takes to get from Timberline to Seaside. When your team has been participating for almost a decade, things don't always line up for the same 12 people every year. Because of this, we often get to introduce new participants to the 200 mile relay. This week, I'd like you to meet our 2 latest recruits!

Johannah is a little new to the running scene, but has picked up a fantastic pace, joining Dad (Gary) and I at local running events like the Shamrock and Starlight.

Watch out for these fierce new runners in Hood to Coast 2018!

Tune in next week to meet more of the Chasing Destiny team!

Here's a throwback to a fun shoot I did with this lovely lady a while back!
​We went to a nice little spot on the Sandy River and soaked up the sun.
Glenn Otto Community Park has been a favorite spot of mine and makes for great pictures.

I recently had the pleasure of working with three very talented cosplay artists. It can be an enjoyable challenge finding locations that suit whatever characters my models represent. 
The characters portrayed here are from The Evil Within, A third-person survival horror game, developed by Tango Gameworks and published by Bethesda Softworks.

It's hard to make these artists look bad, but a typical flowery portrait location could certainly make them look very out of place. For the dark and gritty vibe of this game-world, we took to the streets of downtown Portland.
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Check these artists out on Instagram!
Pictured from left to right:
​@thefaustianspider   @camcccos   @jackwyan

Do you have an awesome cosplay that needs showing off with portraits like these?

The week before last, I shared a throwback of some portraits I got to take of my sister's growing little family. In those photos, she was sporting an adorable baby bump. Guess who just turned one?

Sweet little Joseph got his own photo shoot to celebrate his first trip around the sun and boy did he rock it! Have I told you how much he loves the camera? You can see his first feature on the blog in "A Baby and his Pumpkins", in which he was just seven months old.
Being such a super, little dude, he and his parents dressed for the occasion! Joseph wore his favorite beanie from Bombay Crochet and a shiny red cape! (a rectangle of fabric from Joann's)
​Enjoy these highlights from our super shoot!

The sun does still exist and it graced us with its presence during a recent (and very adorable) portrait session.
I was recently honored with photographing this little cutie to celebrate his first year! He was a joy to work with and very talkative. Here are some highlights from his session. Happy Birthday little dude!

The newborn portrait being held is the work of another talented photographer.
Special thanks to my friend Heather for the recommendation.
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It's been a minute since I last blogged. Let me make it up to you with this adorable throwback!
This week, my sweet little nephew will be celebrating his first birthday (which I am very excited to share with you soon). Before he was born, I had the honor of photographing his parents as they showed off their cute baby bump.
Congrats to these two on their first year as fantastic parents, and congrats to the little guy on handling life with such joy thus far! <3

I got to hang out with these cuties while visiting one of my favorite places in the world, The Columbia River Gorge. People in love, make for beautiful pictures. 
Not every one of my favorite spots are accessible after last year's fire, but hope is blooming as the weather brightens up and the land has time to recover. We stopped at the Women's Forum Viewpoint, overlooking the Vista House, and took a walk under Latourell Falls.

There may have been some tree climbing as well, because it's good to indulge your inner child.

​Enjoy the cuteness and beautiful views!

It's important to have a good assistant and boy have I lucked out with this one. Not only is he extremely helpful with making beautiful images happen, but he also happens to be the love of my life. We are coming up on being together for three years and being married for five months, but shortly before those he has a birthday!
This post contains images I've taken of his handsome face during a couple jobs together.
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Babe, you bring such a light to my life and work. I'm so thankful to have you in my life. Happy Birthday Week!

Enjoy the cuteness. (He's all mine.)
Keep an eye out on social media for highlights from our first wedding shoot of the year!