Keely and Nate

34 degrees + Splashing in Lake Michigan for a moody photo? Most possibly my bravest couple to date, and I LOVE THEM! We had so much fun exploring our beautiful city together for this session. I love making engagement shoots genuinely true to each couple, so that their personalities and love for each other come through authentically in the images. Keely and Nate have such a cool style, it's a mix of bohemian and polished, modern and vintage, yin and yang, a little this and a little that :) And I love how their day unfolded. Here are some of my fav moments!

Teresa & Bobby

Teresa and Bobby tied the knot at Milwaukee's Tripoli Shrine Temple (Check this place out, it's based on the Taj Mahal India- way to go Mke)! After the intimate ceremony among close friends and family, Bobby took Teresa to a skate park and showed her some of his sweet moves! It was pretty much the most adorable thing I think anyone at a skate park has ever witnessed. The beautiful day ended at their home with a backyard celebration to be sure their doggy was included in all the love. Check out some of my fav moments from their big day in the gallery below.

dress: Badgley Mischka // flowers: Teresa's garden // venue: Tripoli Shrine Temple

Stephanie and Tyler

Venue: Schlitz Audobon Nature Center // Flowers: Avenue Bloom // Dresses and headpiece: Miss Ruby // Hair: Stephanie of Charlie's Design Suite // Makeup: Jessica of Primp Beauty // Menswear: Jos A. Bank // DJ: Sound By Design 

Caitlin + Tommy

Caitlin and Tommy are one of those couples that radiate their love for each other, their family, friends, community and nature. So of course, having an intimate wedding at one of their favorite Milwaukee area parks was the perfect option.  They truly made their day genuine to who they are. From handpainted welcome signs, wild and bright flowers from Courtney Joy Flower Farm , and even specially brewed beer made just for the celebration (Tommy is owner of Enlightened, a brewery and tap room in Bayview, so check them out too and tell him congrats)!  Without further ado, cheers to this happy couple, and enjoy this little peak into their day!

Getting Ready: Freya Salon // The Muse Gallery Guesthouse 

Ceremony + Reception: Grant Park

Flowers: Courtney Joy Flowers

Second Shooter: Chad Hallblade 

 
 

Styled Shoot

I'm always looking for ways to break out of the box, even if it's just a little tiny bit :) I believe your wedding dayshould genuinely reflect your personality and style! Here's a little inspiration for my couples that want to do something a little different, with out losing the ability to have those timeless images for years to come. So when planning this shoot, I knew I needed to work with some of Milwaukee's most creative in the industry. I LOVE how this all came together.  Please enjoy some highlights from our day!

Dress: Mink Maids // Floral Design: Wood Violet // Bridal Accessories: Jaxie Bridal // Hair + Makeup: Sepideh Trotter // Tin Type by: Margaret Muza // Models: Laura Williams + Ian Charles

 

 

 

Wood Violet

One of my favorite Milwaukee area floral designers is Emily Watson and her dream team at Wood Violet. I recently had the honor of photographing their stunning piece designed for the one night only fashion show at the Milwaukee Art Museum's Art in Bloom event. I had met with Emily a week or two before the event and she shared with me her sketches and vision for their piece. I was immediately dying with anticipation to see this in real life. When that day came, OH.     MY.      GOD.   I was floored. It was even more incredible than I could have imagined possible. The garment was made from all floral and plant elements.  I have to share the experience with you. Here is a snippet of the process, as well as some gorgeous shots we took of our lovely model, Laura at my studio. Please enjoy! To find out more about Wood Violet, visit their website at: http://www.woodvioletmke.com/

Locations: Milwaukee Art Museum + Dana Dufek Photography Studio

Florist: Wood Violet (http://www.woodvioletmke.com/)

Makeup: Aesthetics by Cecilia (http://www.aestheticsbycecilia.com/)

Model: Laura Williams

Photography: Dana Dufek

Ellie & Alex, Engagement Session

As we all know, Wisconsin weather is not always one to cooperate. So when there's a random snowstorm after a week of it being 70 degrees in March, you have fun with it! Ellie and Alex chose to do their engagement session on her family's farmland. She spent much of her childhood exploring the acres and making memories. So why not make a few more as Ellie and Alex celebrate their new beginning together. Winter wonderland picnic inspiration right here <3

Dan & Oli

9-24-16

Dan and Oli's gorgeous Orthodox Serbian wedding was a day I will never forget. It was honestly SO hard for me to choose just a few highlights to share with you, because there were so many amazing beautiful moments through out the entire day. But here is a little sneak peak of it all!

Dress: Eva's Bridal (Oak Creek)

Flowers: Jaimer's Floral (Bayview)

Hair: Krystal Burns of Scottfree Salon

Makeup: Amee of Lovely Salon and Spa

Cake: Lisa Crum of C. Adams Bakery

DJ: Jason Vespalec from Bonus Track DJ's

Singers: Marija Mara Stojadinovic + Miki Dobros. Keyboardist: Cedo Zelenovic

Reception Venue: Muskego Lakes Country Club

Sarah & Brian

9.17.16

Sarah & Brian did their wedding day right! I'm all for sticking to our itinerary, but sometimes you just need to take a break from all the structure of the day and really LIVE in it! So we made an unscheduled stop at their favorite neighborhood bar before venturing to the ceremony. Every part of their day was thoughtful, from the woven rug that they stood on for their "i do's" (Sarah is a talented weaver and more! SHE MADE IT, she's the coolest, you'll love her too) to the forks they used to eat their wedding pies with. Everything was beautiful. Utilizing some of the best neighborhood venues such as the Polish Falcons! I'll stop writing now and let you just enjoy some of the highlights :) Congratulations Sarah & Brian! Cheers!

Venues: Polish Falcons (Ceremony and reception), Company Brewing (fav neighborhood bar, beer break:)

Flowers: Flower & Bee