Spring in Wisconsin!

 Springtime in Wisconsin!

New Website and Blog :: Central Wisconsin Wedding Photography

I am beyond thrilled to announce that I have a new website and blog

Laura Schmitt Photography will now be on the new website:
 www.lauraschmittphotography.com.

 I will still be using this blog, but more for personal photography posts. I wanted to have one cohesive look, name and site to share my professional work, as well as a place for blogs and clients. My wedding, engagement and portrait photography will now be featured primarily on www.lauraschmittphotography.com/blog/

Stop by and check it out!

Spring is in the Air!

 Spring is in the air! I know this because it is 70 degrees and I did not see much snow today!

Here are some leeks. Not mine.... I have never started my seeds early due to lack of sunlight and space in my apartment. But the bright green of fresh shoots makes me happy!

Newborn Vivianne :: Marshfield, Wisconsin Baby Photography

Last week I was able to spend an afternoon photographing 18-day-old Vivianne. She is such a sweet baby and was still so tiny! I am sure she has already changed in the past week. It was a really fun photo session; Vivianne was a great model :) Congratulations Craig and Brenda!

WNA Awards

This past Friday I had the honor of attending the Wisconsin Newspaper Association Better Newspaper and Advertising Awards in Middleton. The Marshfield News-Herald won 21 awards in our division and picked up some nice hardware for our new office.

We received a First Award for the Creative use of Multimedia for the project about Colby's show choir that I worked on with Ashley Smith. This was a really fun project to work on. I did a couple audio slideshows to go with the daily stories and photos in the paper.

I received a First Award for Feature Photo from Farm Tech Days.

We also received a First Award for All-Around Photography

I got to spend the afternoon at the pool for this one. Brought back memories of being a former "pool rat" and then lifeguard.

I received a Second Award for Spot News Photo

And I received a Third Award for General News Photo

We also received a Third Award for Photo Essay with  "Yipes, Stripes!"

Hungry?

Hungry? I usually am :)

Taking pictures of food is one of my favorite things to take pictures of. Why? I just like setting up photos and lights and it is something totally different than what I normally do. I photographed food recently for the Marshfield and the Stevens Point You Magazines. Here are a few photos from the shoots.

For Marshfield's magazine, we took photos of heart-healthy ingredients on white backdrops.

Dark Chocolate

Blueberries

Olive Oil (the good stuff:))

Fish

Red Wine. I went home and made a great salmon and cranberry salad and then drank the wine. Perks of the job!

For the Stevens Point You Magazine, I went to the restaurant to take pics. The restaurant was @1800.

 I got to eat this chocolate bourbon tart. It was delicious :)

Now I am off to eat lunch!

All photos copyright Marshfield News-Herald and Stevens Point Journal.

Featured in A Northwoods Wedding :: Iowa Barn Wedding

This wedding is sure getting a lot of love!! I was so surprised when I woke up on Sunday morning to see that Amanda and Christopher's Iowa barn wedding was featured on A Northwoods Wedding! How fun! And what a great thing to wake up to! If you haven't checked out A Northwoods Wedding blog yet, do :) They have such fun features and it is great inspiration for planning a wedding in the Midwest.... and beyond. I recommend this blog twofold.... I have gotten a lot of inspiration and planning ideas for my own wedding and May.... and they always have pretty pictures :) If you want to see more photos from Amanda and Christopher's wedding check out my blog posts: Part 1 and Part 2.

Project 365

This year, like the past two year, I am doing a 365 project. A 365 project is where I take a photo every day for the whole year on Flickr.  Well, I try to. In 2011 I got to day 133 and in 2010 I got to day day 178. So the results have been.... incomplete. I have no idea how far I will get this year, I have already missed two days. For me though, the point isn't how far I get, it is just to make myself be a bit more creative with my day-to-day photographing. And to stop and go a bit slower and notice things that I would normally overlook.  I also like to look back and see what I was doing the first half of the year.

Here are a few from the past few weeks.

 4/365

A drive home from Colby after shooting show choir practice

 11/365

It finally snowed a bit here. Starting to (finally) look like winter

 13/365

I acquired a lucky bamboo plant that requires purified water. So far... that hasn't happened. But I am trying to keep it green!

19/365

I had to go look for animal tracks at McMillan Marsh, so Dan went with me on a morning hike. Apparently animals don't like -10 degree weather. We saw no tracks.

 21/365

Dan is building a cedar strip canoe for our wedding. This past weekend I helped strip it. Which means putting the strips on.  I am also looking forward to sanding.... I don't know why, that seems like the most tedious part, but I always have liked sanding, like in metals in college. It is nice to see something rough transform. 

22/365

The woods at Wildwood Park. I put a vintage action on this. I like the look of pines and the sun streaming through them. They also made me thinking of my wedding invitations.

Emily + Mark :: Wausau, Wisconsin Wedding Photography

No January chill could dampen Emily and Mark's wedding day :) They snuggled in close and let the warmth of their love and the love of their family and friends warm their Wisconsin winter wedding. Emily and Mark were married at Saint Ladislaus Church in Hately. The church was still decorated from Christmas and the winter light streaming through the stained glass window gave the church a cozy glow. After their lovely ceremony and exchange of vows, they headed to their reception at Stoney Creek Inn in Wausau. Emily and Mark cuddled in close for photos on the red covered bridge behind the reception hall as the January sun set. To complete their perfect day they danced the night away to a polka band. Can a Wisconsin wedding be any better? Probably not :) Congratulations on your marriage Emily and Mark!!!

 

Emily and Mark met a at polka band.... were engaged at a polka band.... so of course they had polka music at their wedding! It was such a blast watching everyone dance - they were all so good!
 

2011 News-Herald Photo Favorites

Every year for work at the Marshfield News-Herald, I put together a slideshow of my favorite photos from the work year. I don't include wedding and engagement photos, but I do include some vacation photos.... for some reason, those always find a way into the paper :) It is hard to go through a year's worth of daily assignments and I am sure I missed quite a few photos that I would add to the gallery.

This year marked a lot of changes photographically at the newspaper. One big thing was shooting football with a Canon Mark IV. That pretty much was a 110% improvement for me this year. It is amazing the difference between a first generation Canon I-D and a new Mark IV can make when shooting fast sports in low light. I actually got the camera at the end of 2010, but this was the year I reaped the full benefits of it. The News-Herald also lost a staff photographer, so now it is just me. This has been an adjustment. This summer we were also down a second photographer in Wisconsin Rapids. These changes made for a hectic summer and a busy year.

I had to choose my favorite photo from the year for the paper and I chose Mutton Bustin' at Farm Tech Days. It was pretty much a sheep rodeo for little kids. And it was awesome :)

 Here is a link to a slideshow of the rest of my favorites from this year