Post by Leslie

Happy Monday! How was your weekend?We had the whole day ahead of us on Sunday, so we decided to drive south along the St. Croix/Mississippi Rivers to the National Eagle Center in Wabasha. We'd never done that before, and we'd heard the river was full of eagles on the hunt this time of year (yup!), so we woke up late (thanks to the time change), made some pancakes, hopped in the car and we were on our way.We saw probably 10 eagles or so in the wild on our drive, and then at the center itself, they have some rehabbed birds who can no longer fly that they have on display and you can see closely.Today's post will feature the drive and the bleakness/beauty of our region right now. I am not gonna lie, I am ready for SUMMER. In fact, we spent a good 45 minutes of this drive talking about what we were most excited about this summer (grilling out, corn on the cob, watermelon, eating outside, planting the garden, summer walks, riding bikes, I mean the list just goes on).But we also talked about what we would miss once winter was gone. We decided fires in the fireplace were the top of that list. And snuggling with the warm dog. Summer is clearly winning right now. That bluff up there with the painting is a touch controversial right now. You can read about it here.And for your internet shares of the day:+ We made this for dinner last night and it was A+++ and so, so easy.+ This makes me think (or realize) we are living in Orwellian times. Rich republicans are just as terrifying as the politicians themselves.+ I want to make this for dinner soon! 

Post by Leslie

Well let's just enjoy this beautiful creature a little more, shall we?Here are a few highlights from my shoot with Lincoln last weekend. He was such a charmer -- so sweet (so many kisses!) and so well behaved. I hope I can photograph him again some day. In the meantime, enjoy these shots. And how about some internet shares of the day?+ This Trader Joe's breakfast hack looks amazing. Saving for Sunday.+ I love the art of quilling, but this woman is taking it to another level (sidenote: I hired this artist years ago for a vita.mn cover and watching her evolve is FABULOUS).+ Are you old and saddled with children forcing you to lose touch with new music? Just me? NPR has a player that will introduce you to 100 new artists at SXSW this year. Thank God because the idea of attending that festival at this point in my life makes me want to fall asleep standing up.

Post by Leslie

Wednesdays are pretty busy around these parts. I've got piano, Ezra's got swimming and today I had a shoot in the morning and lunch with a friend. Not to mention the emails and meetings! But I started the day off with that adorable boy up there, who is 18 mos. old right now.Those curls on the back of his head! Aren't they adorable! I was so happy to capture those and his sweet shoulder blades.For your internet shares of the day:+  So I was also on the phone today with my government representatives discussing my displeasure about ALL of these republican bills. Getting rid of the EPA. GIVE ME A BREAK, PEOPLE. Trump's national portrait should just be this.+ Why getting your news from a newspaper instead of the internet or television is better.+ Those two links are pretty heavy, so here are some pretty pictures.

Post by Leslie

Yesterday was a snow day in Minneapolis, which was weird. Why, you ask? Because it didn't start snowing until 3 pm, but they declared it a snow day at 9 pm the night before. They might have been jumping the gun a bit, eh?But by 4 pm, this is what it looked like in our front yard. Ezra's buddy Elliot came over to play, and the boys had a blast "shoveling" the front yard. Shortly after snapping this image, I talked them into coming inside and warming up by the fire (or rather, ME warming up by the fire while they played with toys in the basement).It continued to snow last night, but thankfully we got less than 6 inches and everyone is back at school today.For your internet shares of the day:+ Do I need another dog? Probably not.  But YOU might! And isn't he adorable??+ This book review is amazing.+ Crap. Now it looks like I want to go to New Zealand.

Post by Leslie

This weekend, I got to spend an hour photographing that lovely Dalmatian up there. I have so many wonderful photos of him, but not the time to fully edit/process them all right now. So this is your sneak peek, and I'll post a fuller set later this week. But those flowers around his neck are exactly what I need on this cold, icy, snowy day when school has been cancelled.My adorable and wonderful husband took the morning off so I could escape to the coffee shop and get some things done. I'm now closing up shop and heading out to relieve him so he can head into the office and I can spend the afternoon parenting (and hopefully building snowmen). The irony of all of this is that... it's not snowing. It hasn't started. It's supposed to hit any minute now, so I'm out. But first? A few internet shares.+ I didn't know much about Tiffany Haddish before last night, but I fell for her immediately and found this amazing clip this morning.+ Since it's cold and icy here, I'm gonna dream that I can afford to stay here.+ This homeless project is wonderful. People are people. They are kind and funny and sometimes scary, but really we are all people and deserve to be treated as such.

Post by Lucy

Hello and happy Friday!! It has been a busy, busy week here at Shuttersmack. We've had a couple of big days with our newish client Creative Memories - both in our studio and out on location at a *gorgeous* house, you'll see a bit of the kitchen in photos below. I've had a whole lot of fun styling and propping the sets. Maybe this lovely spring weather influenced my shopping, but both sets ended up incorporating LOTS of beautiful flowers - it just felt like the perfect springtime vibe. And, while Leslie has the photographer role on these shoots, I can't help but bring my camera along and capture a couple details whenever we have a bit of downtime - these flowers are just too stunning.I hope everyone is able to get out and enjoy a bit of sunshine this weekend.Fingers crossed we have some, but I've not been checking the weather -- too afraid we'll get snow again and I just can’t handle that.

Post by Leslie

This morning, my buddy Carl stopped by the studio for some photos. And he brought me coffee! Friends are the best, yeah?Because he is my friend, I wanted to do some darker portraits because a) it's not exactly my style but it's the kind of portrait that I am drawn to  b) who better to practice on than friends?!? and c) he's a great model.It was a blast, and here is an outtake.For your internet shares of the day:+ This is real and it makes me love Minnesota EVEN MORE.+ Five things parents need to stop saying to non-parents. This kind of stuff made me INSANE before I had spawn of my own, and I try really hard not to do this for so many reasons, but mostly because I am A-OK with people who don't want kids. It's exhausting and not for everyone and you do you.+ Our government is making me super angry these days. If they want to get rid of something, how about daylight saving time? Why are we still changing our clocks? Please go after that instead of our health. Thanks.  

Post by Leslie

You want to know what might be harder than learning to play a musical instrument when you're as old as I am? Taking a photo of it with your left hand when you are right handed because the light is better on that side of the piano.But I digress.Jamie and I have been in piano lessons for almost two months now, and it has been challenging for sure, but also a total blast. The hardest part of it all, if I'm being honest, is finding the time to practice. There is not enough time in the day to run a business, be a good mom/wife, keep up with a clean house/laundry, EXERCISE, walk the dog, keep up relationships with friends/family AND find 30 minutes to practice the piano. I'm working my hardest at it all, but man oh man my days are too short. Thank God I have Jamie to help with it all.Anyway! We have recitals in a few months! So now we have to practice not just because we want to learn, but also because we have to perform and we don't want to look like fools. We think we are going to each perform a song from Sound of Music, and I'm leaning toward this one.For your internet shares of the day:+ Who knew I could be this happy with Dick's Sporting Goods! They are willing to kiss money goodbye for the good of our nation even if our politicians aren't.+ These conversations and thoughts from Indigenous people were super informative and thought provoking.+ On a lighter note, people can be really fantastic. I love Nos. 20 and 22.