WE ARE CHRIS AND JEANNETTE

Though it’s definitely not a fairy-tale, we’re excited to share a few chapters of our crazy story.

Click through to learn more about our story as a couple, a family and a business.

Woah, those years were definitely 'dating' in more than one way! When we met Jeannette was a student at Idaho State and Chris lived near Portland, Oregon. We spent that year writing lots of letters and making the 12-hour drive waaay more than any two rational people should. After graduating, Jeannette landed a graphic design job right across the street from where Chris worked! We were finally able to spend time together on a regular basis. Chris proposed that winter and, after much deliberation (she's never been a quick decision maker), Jeannette said “yes.” We set the date for the following fall, but as it grew closer and plans were dragging. Chris could see the timing wasn't right and reluctantly suggested we call off the wedding.

Crazy as it sounds, our relationship actually improved over the following few months as we grew closer and more prepared for the challenges that would soon come. Chris asked again later that winter and this time, without hesitation, Jeannette gave a definite and immediate “YES!” and we set the wedding date for that coming summer.

A few weeks later, Jeannette's family was in an auto accident that sent all of them to the hospital. Thankfully everyone made it through, but not before Chris spent two weeks at Jeannette's side in ICU. Through the following months of additional surgery, recovery, and wedding planning there was no doubt how incredibly blessed we were to be together, for better or worse. We are thankful for that to this day!

Our wedding day was one of the best days of our lives! The event was very simple, but still beautiful. Jeannette was a pretty nervous bride, knowing how life would change forever on that day, but all she remembers about walking back down the isle as husband and wife was how incredibly happy she was.

We only have two regrets from that day. 1) For some reason yet to figured out, Jeannette didn’t hug her dad after he walked her down the aisle. For real?! He holds such a special place in her heart and she still cringes when thinking about it! Ugh. Blame it on the nerves? And 2) not putting a bigger priority on our wedding photography. We ended up getting only a couple nice portraits of the two of us. There are lots of family group images, but both of us now really wish we had more of the details, special moments, and emotion shared with each other, friends, and family on that life-changing day. Our photos are really all that remains of that day and we realize now how great it would be to have photos capturing more of the emotion and story from a day we hold so dear.

Chris and Jeannette both grew up with photography in the family. Chris’ dad was a wedding photographer for a while and Jeannette's dad owned a camera/photo finishing store. (Yes, back in the days when you had to take your film rolls in to be developed and printed!) So, it’s really no surprise that we both loved taking pictures. It didn’t matter if we were on one of our outdoor adventures or just driving around the countryside at home, we were always photographing God’s awesome creation.

In 2003, with encouragement from family and friends, we decided to try selling our images. We set up our first booth at a local craft fair and thus began our journey as photography business owners. A few years later, Chris photographed his first wedding as a professional. He’s actually a softy at heart and also does his best work under pressure, so it’s really no surprise that he fell in love with the experience. With all the excitement, challenges, and the joy in helping each of our couples preserve their day, the position of wedding photographer has his name written all over it!

For 13 years we enjoyed living life together, just the two of us, certain that was exactly how it should be. Although we treasure that time we had together, the amount of joy added to our world when our son, Zachary, was born is impossible to put into words. His sister, Heidi, joined our family a few years later and the two of them added so much meaning and purpose to our lives. They bring smiles, laughter, and wonder to every single day and increase the amount of love in our home exponentially!