12 Hours in New York City

We saw a lot of things in a very short period of time. Here is a quick look at what my eyes took in. None of this would have been possible without our driver, Allen, who would drop us off and pick us up wherever we wanted. He was incredible!

Hurricane Irene - New York City

new york city, hurricane irene
Here is a shot of New York a few hours before hurricane Irene was set to hit and the police were evacuating certain areas. Unfortunately the wedding I has here to shoot was also canceled by Irene :(

Matt and Michelle - Downtown Minneapolis Engagement Session

What a FUN session, it's not everyday I get to shoot someone getting punched in the face on purpose! We chose downtown Minneapolis for its mix of architecture, skyline and dirty alleys. Since we were going for a mix of grungy and fancy shots, it was perfect. The only down side was the Twins game, which made parking a little tricky.
I know this will be a very fun wedding, and can't wait for it to get here!

As a side note - I'm heading to New York to shoot a wedding this weekend, so it will be a little quiet on the blog until I return.

engagement, pictures, minneapolis
engagement, photographer, mn

engagement, photographer, minneapolis
engagement, photography, minneapolis


engagement, pictures, mn
pics, by, dan









OK, I feel the need to explain these a little. When you think of a typical engagement session, you might picture holding hands, kissing, sharing a bowl of spaghetti (see Lady and the Tramp), not fighting. But Michelle likes to box and REALLY wanted a picture punching out Matt, so what the hell. We even made a little series out of it (by the way, people really get edgy when you are taking pictures right outside a naughty toy store... who knew). Anyway, here are two shots from that series, the first one Michelle "accidentally" hits Matt (even though I told her she could be 4 inches away and it would still look real). Now picture getting one of those as a save the date!




Brian & Erica's - St Thomas Engagement Session

I had a great time following Brian and Erica around the St Thomas campus (and breaking a Frat house window.... I can explain!) last week. The weather was great, except for the 5 minute shower when we first started (taking away almost any seated poses). They have such great chemistry together, I can't wait for the wedding next year.



















tags: engagement photographer, photography, engagement, st paul, st thomas school,

Morgan's Senior Session - Northfield to Minneapolis

Meet Morgan, a 2012 Senior! She was looking for a mix of urban and rural shots (2 of my favorites :) She also wanted 2 different hair styles, but to accomplish that we had to split her session in two parts... a straight hair day, and a curly hair day. For the straight hair day we chose Northfield for the mix of "urban" and then into the rural area's for the fields and abandoned buildings. The curly hair day was all urban, and it was a toss up between St Paul and Minneapolis (duh), but Minneapolis won out with the option of the Stone Arch Bridge (and as it turns out, I'm REALLY glad it did).

I just want to stress - I DON'T have set locations that I use with everyone! It totally goes by what the client (YOU) wants. Of course, if you don't know exactly what you want, but have an idea of what you're after... we just bounce ideas around until something sounds good. I love a challenge, so if you have some bizarre concept you want to do... let me know!


Location: a random back alley loading dock

Location - the parking lot of a Bail Bonds shop.





Location - A random farm field in the middle of no where.





tags: senior portraits, senior portrait photographer, lakeville, savage, prior lake, apple valley, eagan, northfield, minneapolis, pics by dan.

Best of Photography 2011 - PUBLISHED


My brain just exploded! I was catching up on some mail and came across a letter from Serbin Communications who publish the Best of Photography Books. They receive over 15,000 images from 90 countries worldwide for consideration in their publication. As it turns out.... my image made it to the top 10% and will be published in the Best of Photography 2011 book! CRAZY!
Funny story - that exact same image was overlooked in the local Savage Art Show.

Brittany and Scott - another HOT one

This was one of the warmest, muggiest weddings I can remember (along with Karen & Kris's the day before). We spent a lot of time outside... about 75% at least, and I had to stay outside to keep my gear from fogging up. Even when we went to the waterfall and field, I couldn't use the air conditioning because it would fog everything up. Brittany and Scott were great sports about it, I felt bad for Scott in his suit, but they both were amazing to tolerate the humidity so well (I guess when you live in Florida for half the year you sort of get used to it).
Their ceremony and reception was held at the Wilds Golf Club in Prior Lake, most of these first few pictures were taken at the entrance and over at a field across the street. The ceremony, reception and food (they had 9 different meals to choose from) were fabulous.
I have to give a special thanks to Alica Mady for helping out that day, second shooting and stopping things from blowing away.

wilds, wedding, mn, pics by dan
pics by dan, picsbydan

pics by dan
pics by dan
wilds, wedding, pics by dan
pics by dan
pics by dan, mn
picsbydan, pics by dan,
dan buettner, pics by dan

wedding, wilds golf

wedding, prior lake


image courtesy of Alicia Mady








image courtesy of Alicia Mady


















tags: wedding, wilds golf, mn pics by dan, wedding photography, prior lake, july