it rained, it poured, we were soaked. then the most heavenly light came through and i drank in that wild, crisp air that only comes after that kind of drench and it was one of those moments…
the kind you want to die of happiness.
Flowers by Flower Afternoon
morning holds a magic that leaves after you peel off the pj’s.
when there are still dreams in your eyes and tangles in your hair, gosh i want to be there seeing it all. before you rub it off, paint everything else on. of course you gotta get out there and go after life. but the minutes before, when errand lists melt into the sheets and you drink in that sleepy smell long and deep…those are the ones you savor.
zooey magazine gets it. she interviews rad families about what mornings are like in their world. i got to take a peek inside becky kimball‘s am, which includes snuggling, laughing, and finally, getting dressed and facing the day. becky said some true blue stuff about mornings + mothering, which you can read in the feature here.
If you are bogged down with all the hugenormous weight of motherhood, let’s make photos together to hang on your walls and remind you why you keep diving into this gorgeous, beating ocean every day.
I honestly never dreamed this would be me.
I got the email, supa casual hey, shoot my family?
From the first photographer I ever followed, years before I became an actual photographer. His work influenced mine more than anyone else’s. This was B-I-G. Call all your people and scream big. Giggle/self pep talk in the car on the way to the shoot big.
Most of my days aren’t filled with big dreams coming true. Most of my time is spent quietly, reading books, filling up sippy cups with milk, changing diapers, enforcing bedtimes and coaxing smiles. So this day, finding out that this family is just as cool as they seem on the internet and making images of them–watching the ways they are normal, chaotic, loving, patient–it filled me up so overflowing to come back to the quiet, unglamorous days that stretch out in all directions.
welcome to dream town, schultz.
jonathan canlas and family, everybody.
Brooke Schultz is a wild-hearted family and wedding photographer who adores the ocean, writing, and telling love stories, based in Orange County, California and available for adventure worldwide. She can be found snuggling her two baby girls, hating on crocs and reality tv, and raging against the machine.
If you want to get out from behind your life and have photographs of your family that you and they will treasure for all time, let’s chat about your session.
Also! If you’re a photographer, I created a snazzy facebook group for photographers with heart who care about making fabulous photos and making a living while doing it, in a non-slimy way. come on in, it’s freeee.
Day three of little Lulu’s life was pretty fine. Sleeping, snuggling with the people who love her most, and just a little bit of dress up.
Kay, yes, that’s the worst possible description of newborn life. There are hormones, people. And your body is doing all kinds of weird things. And their body is doing all kinds of weird things. There is poop everywhere. There is milk everywhere. You have nothing to wear, you feel like you got hit by a truck, and then another truck bursting with heart emojis and the purest love on the planet, and then you want to curl up and die because you’re so tired, and then you want to freeze everything and never sleep because this little being is so insanely magic.
So if you can manage all that with poise, like this family? You’ve made it.
So you have a new little bundle of perfect wonder coming to your home? And that home is in Orange County? Or anywhere in Southern California, really. Or in Utah (I go there a lot.) And you want natural, candid photos of you and your people being you? Let’s chat about your family session.
hi friends!
SO stoked to tell you what I’ve been working on.
It’s a facebook group.
Don’t worry, not the annoying kind. There will be no passive-aggressive updates about drivers, or photos of my every meal, or anything else that made me loathe the fb starting in like, 2012. Nope, it’s a cozy corner of the internet for heartful photographers committed to making fabulous photos and making a living while doing it in a non-slimy, authentic way. We’re there to support each other, help each other out of ruts, rock our next big thing, and save ourselves from burnout. It’s photographers of all levels, so I’d love to have you.
Come on in, it’s free!
You’ll get a link to join automatically when you enter your email below. 🙂 (Plus: you’ll get loads of juicy free content I’ve created just for photographers via email.)
gosh i miss utah.
it comes and goes in waves. usually looking at photos i took there is a surefire way to catch one of those waves.
i’m struggling, you guys. i know this california place will feel like home some day. but today it doesn’t. today it feels brown and dead and foreign and fast moving and unfriendly. (i parked my car kinda messily yesterday and someone felt the need to write me two notes calling me some choice words for my misdeed. not gonna get any slack here, mama.)
but it’s not going to be hard forever. i know that all i need is time. and that’s the hardest: something i have no control over. i’m beginning to think this whole life thing is really just all about giving up control, in a graceful way. and the whole test is to see if you will do it elegantly, or if you will kick and scream and make an even bigger mess.
i’m learning to go with this flow. to fight when fighting is right, and to let things wash in and out of me in their season when that is all i can do.
this session. the night was full of that clean crisp mountain air some people never even get to gulp into their lungs–but we did. with beauty and elegance and jenny + dustin’s soft love and the pines, we did.
Gown: The Bride’s Shop
Flowers: La Fete Floral
Headpiece: Lindsay Marie Bridal
It rained, it poured, we were soaked. then the most heavenly light came through and i drank in that wild, crisp air that only comes after that kind of drench and it was one of those moments…
The kind you want to die of happiness.
photographers are probably the creepiest breed of people alive.
we want in on the biggest days, the most vulnerable stories–we feed off of those tender, emotional moments. this wedding gave me my fix so huge.
their wedding was supposed to be outside, a romantic spring affair. the rain spooked everyone indoors, though.
but we made up for it.
after everyone had gone, just the three of us went back to the other spot. the one with the lights. we took turns singing la vie en rose, and scott mouth trumpeted it to louis armstrong perfection. they danced, the wind whisked cami’s dress into a perfect sail, and that space of time–i…oh my gosh. i can’t even describe it. to say it was magic sounds aggrandizing but really and truly, it was one of the most incredible moments of my photographing life. their love, so full and gorgeous and me, let into the middle of it with no else around.
cami and scott, you know how deeply i adore you. i can’t wait to see where that beautiful love carries you. thank you over and over from the bottom of me.
See the full event and order prints here.
Getting married soon to the love of your life? Brooke Schultz is a Southern California based wild-hearted wedding and family photographer who loves intimate homegrown celebrations oozing with romance, anything involving the ocean, and baking (read: eaaating). She’d love to be part of the big day. Let’s chat about your wedding.
We officially moved to southern California last week.
This whole being married and being part of a family deal means you support other dreams besides your own, and you dive into lots of beautiful, different oceans in the name of that support. This time it’s an actual real alive ocean–which couldn’t thrill my hippie heart more, but. You know. I lived so much life and felt so many feels in Utah over 10 years of living there. It was my place; it holds my people. It was attached to all my real growing up, my biggest choices, my most defining moments, the birth of my children and my business and my passions. I had to sigh all of that out.
Being here now feels good, though. I trudged through hard and there will be more but I’ve discovered the more deeply I let myself feel things, the quicker I’m able to move on. It’s an intense way to go through life but it’s the one that feels truest to me. (alternately: you thought I was emotional and dramatic and then i moved. and it got to whooollle different level. yup.)
Contact me if you’re interested in pricing + details and let’s do it!
And, for the record, because I hate ending on that seems-salesy note, can we all just agree right now that summer is the best thing on earth? drinking in that slow, thick pace full of sunscreen and too much frozen sugar. can’t think of anything more delicious. hope you’re soaking it up, friends.
(Like those beans from Harry Potter)
I’ve been trying to explain to myself how it is possible that Mikki is as nice and calm and centered as she is. She moves through the world so beautifully–scattering good vibes all over. And the kindness! There should be more words for kindness, the real variety that sloshes around in your heart until it flows out and over because people go above and beyond the regular requirements of pleasantry and cut straight to the middle of you because they actually. care.
The internet is weird, guys. One minute you can feel isolated and the next you’re supapopular with orange hearts lighting up your screen–and these weird things are kind of how I find myself measuring how people care. what they care about. who they care about. numbers.
Digging through those tunnels and out the other side I find reality. Humans who actually care about other humans for none of those internet reasons. And that makes my heart fly.
Thank you, Mikki and Braedon and family, for letting me in. On the comfort through tears, on the gentleness, and on the incredible fountain of sweetness that lives in your home.
Let’s make pretty, authentic photos of the people you love the most on earth. UTAH, I’m coming for you July 10-11 and still have a couple spots! California. I’m already here. So let’s do this.
