Rachel’s Bridal Portrait
I think these photos speak for themselves. Head shots taken at Aldersgate United Methodist Church in Wheaton, IL Full length shots taken at the Elmhurst Art Museum. Congratulations, Rachel! You are a truly beautiful person! <3 Liesl Diesel
Fall in Love
A few of my favorite things? Fall Love Falling in Love LeRon & Gro Anita were visiting the US from Norway and asked me to photograph them while they were here. I split their session with part of the shoot near Market Commons, Myrtle Beach and the other part of the session was at Boone Hall Plantation in Mount Pleasant, SC. It was inspiring →
Nikkah Wedding Portraits Part Deux!
After Artist's Cafe and The Vermillion, Shahzeen, Prem and I stopped by the Chicago beach for some scenic shots! After a day of rain and clouds then sun beamed through and it was blue skies all around! We had such a perfect day for their Nikah, I can't wait for more celebrations this weekend with them! See you both soon! <3 Liesl Diesel
Say Less and Do More
Prem and Shahzeen were married on September 11 in the Downtown Islamic Center in Chicago, IL. Afterwards we went around the city to some locations that were meaningful to them in order to get some fun and playful portraits to commemmorate their Nikkah before the big celebration this coming weekend! Our fist stop was the Artists Cafe and then we →
American Leather Woman
Back in July I was flying for work and got stuck in the very back row of the plane where the seats are not even adjustable. Luckily I was next to two super friendly ladies and we started chatting about why we were traveling. I was flying to a wedding shoot and they were flying to a charity event for →
Ben & Becky Jekyll Island Extravaganza!
I met Ben and Becky eons ago when I was in college and have kept up with them via facebook over the years. I was incredibly humbled when the contacted me to photograph their destination wedding on Jekyll Island, Georgia! Below is a short slideshow I put together from some of my favorites, you can see still shots on Ben & →
Triumph Motorcyles; Like Wind, Ice, and Freedom.
I recently was asked to photograph Jeff and Michael on their Triumph Mortorcyles. Light was falling fast so in order to get some sky we sped up to the rooftop of a Whole Foods in Chicago for the shoot. If you are a fan of Triumph bikes, check out Triumph Motorcycles on Facebook And if you are a fan of me making ridiculous →
Rachel & Tyler at Millennium Park, Chicago
I always ask my clients what type of shots they want from their sessions, and when Rachel & Tyler picked Millennium Park, Chicago, I knew we could get a good variety of images in one location. She told me she likes architecture, so I had fun taking a lot of city scene shots during their shoot! You can see some of my other favorites →
Justine & Michael ~ Romantics!
I met Justine & Michael a few weeks ago at their engagement session at Montrose Harbor and knew instantly that their wedding would be a lovely mixture of romanticism and playfulness! They prepared for the wedding at Bishop's Hall, a spacious bed and breakfast in Oak Park with beautiful manicured gardens. Then they had a traditional Greek promenade through the town →
Shahzeen & Prem at Chicago Botanic Garden
Shahzeen & Prem chose The Chicago Botanic Garden for their engagement session location, the grounds were beautiful with a lot of variety! We had so much fun walking around and finding spots to shoot, and I quickly learned that not only are they both super sweet people, but they have a great sense of humor! I cannot wait to photograph their →
Down by The River
So once the rain stopped, Sunny and Cameron joined me by the water on the Jefferson Landing, NC premises for some fun portraits! It was hard to get their entire wedding party into one shot, but I managed! I really enjoyed their playful mood, and Cameron had NO difficulty making Sunny laugh and smile, an excellent quality in a husband ;-) Party →
Dharna & Samir’s Wedding Portrait
There are so many fun things about cultural weddings, and Hindu weddings are so exceptional. I think one of the most fun parts of being a Hindu bride is that you get two wedding outfits, and not just one! Dharna & Samir prepared for their weddings and met up for a quick portrait session in their first outfits before the ceremony, →
Samir & Dharna Chicago engagement photos!
Last week I was in Chicago and had the awesome opportunity to meet Dharna & Samir, whose wedding I will photograph in less than two months! I shot their engagement portraits by the Adler Planetarium to get a super view of the Chicago skyline and then we headed to Millennium Park to finish off. What a gorgeous evening! See all my →
Joshua & Mary Anne Pittsburgh Wedding!
Joshua & Mary Anne had me travel up to Pittsburgh, PA for their March 30, 2010 wedding at The Sisters of The Holy Spirit. They were incredibly hospitable! Mary Anne helps her sister Jane with some finishing touches. This scene is very precious because Mary Anne's mother made the wedding gown by hand. It was, of course, a perfect fit! The sweet couple! Thank →
Pieces of Portraits
It really doesn't take much to make me happy. In this instance, it only took a half of a face. I love taking creative portraits. It doesn't take a whole face to describe a person! I also love clients who have no idea what I am shooting but trust anyway. Thanks Sven! <3 Liesl
Adding Shadows to Compositions
Off camera lighting is a very useful way to define a subject more clearly as it adds shape. When creating a composition in this way, it is important to envision how the shadows will become a part of the composition and plan accordingly. Sven's company, Happy Viper Integrated Designs, was featured in Vanity Fair, so we thought we would pull a little →
More Viper Action!
A few more of my favorites from a recent portrait shoot with Sven from Happy Viper! Sven is clearly one slick designer! Check out his design portfolio! Thanks for being such an awesome poser! <3 Liesl Diesel
Happy Viper Portrait
Last weekend I had the super opportunity to photograph Sven, owner of Happy Viper Integrated Design in Manhattan, NY. I talked with him about shooting the portraits to go with the name of his company. I love the contrast in the name of his company, so we went for a similar contrast in his expressions. Viper. Happy! Happy Viper! So fun working with you Sven! →
Prep Time at The Sutherland
This past weekend I shot in Wake Forest, NC at a beautiful private venue called The Sutherland. I was very impressed with how Ashlee ran the place, it was beautiful and everything was on time! Candace watches the girls getting ready. I shot this wedding with Lacey Gadwill who is an amazingly sweet and talented photographer based out of Fayetteville, NC Jason gets ready in the →
Blinding Light
My sweet son, such a willing model when his mom gets excited over light :) His eyes are blinding to me. Eben sits in blinded light Love you crazy boy! ~Mama Diesel
DJ Elixir Does Hotlanta!
When I was recently in Atlanta, GA shooting Amy & Jon's wedding I had the opportunity to photograph some promo portraits for DJ Elixir! We scouted for some colorful graffiti and scored big time! Elixir gives his vinyl some love. Gentlemen, to answer your question: 70-200 2.8IS lens ISO 250 1/1250 sec. Ladies to answer your question: No. He is not single. You rock my friend! See you →
Self-Dorktraits Explained
A lot of people ask me how I do my self-dorktraits and, instead of writing it out to every person who asks, I decided to make a post so I can just link it whenever I get a new query ;-) I keep it super simple for these quick snap shots and use all available light. The key is to keep →
Scott, The Drummer™
Scott, The Drummer™. What can I say? The minute he got lost in the parking lot driving me to the photo shoot was the moment I just knew we would get along smashingly. Smashingly being the key word here, as we nearly wrecked his little Prius when he made a left turn into oncoming traffic the wrong way on a →
