Stephanie Karen is a wedding photographer located in Plainwell, MI, specializing in Modern Photojournalism and Artistic Portraits. Stephanie Karen believes that beautiful images narrate and capture the intimate story and unique personalities within.
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A long drive across the lovely state of Michigan brought J and I to one of the most beautiful weddings we have had the pleasure to photograph this year. Matt and Jayme were married at Mystic Creek Golf Club in Milford, MI. I can’t wait to share their full post with you…..
stephanie.karen
Jake and Brooke were married August 14th 2010 at Trinity Methodist Church with a reception that followed at the Ingham County Community Center. I am excited to share Brooke and Jake’s wedding details in their full post but for now I will tease you and leave you seething for more!!
stephanie.karen
Today is a golden day. At 3:57 a.m. I officially entered late twenties and had my 27th birthday on August 27 (today).
Years ago I would talk about golden birthdays and my husband (who was then my fiance) thought it was just one of those crazy things I made up, obviously I come from different stock then he does!
Here is the definition of the Golden Birthday via wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday
A person’s Golden or Grand Birthday, also referred to as their “Lucky Birthday”, “Champagne Birthday” or “Star Birthday”, occurs when they turn the age of their birth day (e.g., when someone born on the 25th of the month turns 25)
That being said I want to thank all my friends and family for the sweet birthday wishes today, I am so very blessed to have such amazing people in my life.
stephanie.karen
**thank you to my amazing husband J for the photo 
Rachel and Curtis were married at Grace Reformed Church in Kalamazoo, MI with a reception following at the Kalamazoo Country Club on August 13th, 2010.
Rachel and Curtis were such a sweet couple to work with and it was such a pleasure to be their photographer for their wedding. I can’t wait to share more details from their beautiful event
Stephanie
So I admit that I might have an addiction. It is a weakness but I can’t help myself. Ladies and Gentlemen I am Stephanie and I am addicted to TV.
One of my favorite things to watch is “So you think you can Dance?” I have watched nearly every season and I am obsessed a little. One of my favorite dancers on the show was Twitch and I was pretty thrilled to see they brought back some amazing dancers as All-Stars for this season (7). I would also like to admit I am a little envious that I can’t even dream about moving my body in twenty different flipping directions without pulling a muscle!! I hope you watch the FINALE tonight It is down to Robert, Kent and Lauren who are all amazing!
And now another confession….today I was at my mother and father in laws house with the kids for a visit. Lily likes to watch Paula Dean and of course I am certain it stems from the fact that I can sit and watch some cooking shows for what might seem like hours…if I had no life! Paula Dean is my favorite and I am not kidding when I say I wish this woman could be my adopted grandmother. I love her voice and her decadent dishes she serves on her show….Ya’ll.
stephanie karen
I love senior sessions. I remember ten years ago a young woman sprouting her wings with wide eyes and big dreams. Yeah, that was me. I love photographing seniors, especially the young ladies. I feel like it is a milestone where they begin to make a statement of adulthood and who they are. It makes me smile to think when I was that age, I thought I knew everything and what to expect.
This Friday I had the chance to photograph Claire for her senior session. To say a few things about Claire, well to start she has stunning eyes, a nice smile, a sweet personality and seemed so mature. Claire is a high school senior at Holland Christian High School and will be graduating next summer. I had the honor to photograph her senior session which was amazing and so much fun.
I had a difficult time narrrowing down her senior teaser, so I decided to splurge a little with a couple extra photos!! Claire is very beautiful, so trust me it won’t pain you to take a peek…
stephanie karen
Being a woman I don’t pretend to know a thing about purchasing Menswear. Being a wedding photographer I do know what looks good and what just looks frumpy. That being said, J and I have a fabulous wedding to attend this August for his step-brother Rob and beautiful fiance Joisan; and an awesome trip to Italy in March Considering J hasn’t been properly fitted for a suit since he was 17, it was time for a makeover.
Not knowing where to go or who to see was frustrating. Three weeks ago when I was photographing Lilian and Dan’s wedding, I could not get over how amazing he looked. Dan was wearing a simple but modern black suit that looked incredible and tailored. Lilian told me that she was very picky about Dan’s suit and how it should fit. She shared with me that I should take my hubby to see Joe at Men’s Wearhouse in Grandville.
Today we went to meet Joe and get J fitted for his suit. I was a little worried because I knew I was going to be picky. The best most random part of it? Well I am a huge Kardashian junkie and a recent episode clips Scott (Kourtney’s beau) talking about how a suit should fit properly; with a wide shoulder and a high armpit…blah blah. I then mention this to Joe and he totally gets it and starts pulling out suits that would yield the best results. Joe proved to be just as awesome as Lilian said, 2 suits, 2 pair of shoes, 3 shirts, 3 ties and a package of socks later Thank you Joe for your help.
Surrounded by their close friends and family, Brad and Leesa were married yesterday at The Silo in Allegan. The ceremony took place outside in the gazebo next to a lovely pond and surrounded my tall grassy fields. The rain never did come and for that I was so very thankful. God surely blessed Brad and Leesa with a beautiful wedding day. I am excited to share a couple photos with you but stay tuned for the full post.
Stephanie Karen
Brad and Leesa are fun to work with, this is one of my shots and I think my favorites
Love this one that J took…he rocks!!!
Yesterday I sat watching “Are you smarter then a fifth grader” on CMT and I admit there were many times I would watch the show laughing at the people who could barely make it through the second grade answers. So here I am listening to the question it is 4th Grade Geometry. He asks if a perfect hexagon can be divided to make two trapezoids, well I answer False…the answer was TRUE! So there I sat, the person who can’t even answer a 4th grade Geometry question correctly. I sat in shame feeling like an idiot!
Later that night, J and I went to see the Sorcerer’s Apprentice. One of the main characters is a physics nerd played by Jay Baruchel. Watching the movie only reminded me of my insecurity within my own intellectual mind. I admit that growing up I faired quite well in school but it did not come without a lot of hard work. I never felt like I was ever very smart and I continually envied those who it seemed to come so naturally. Here I sit nearly 10 years after graduating high school and I still feel insecure over my report card and feeling that I will never create some formula to save the world or cancer.
Maybe it seems so crazy for me to even run these thoughts in my mind and I wonder why I let it bother me so much. The truth is, we all have insecurities. Unfortunately like my grandmother and her fanny pack I tend to carry mine around with me 
On a positive note…good thing I married a nerd
stephanie.karen
and just so you can see what I am talking about…..and to humiliate myself further…
Sterling and Sandi were married yesterday
The beautiful wedding took place at Riverview Church in Holt, MI with a reception to follow at The Commonwealth Commerce Center in Jackson, MI. J and I had a blast shooting this wedding. Sandi and Sterling definitely know how to throwdown a party….more details on that later!!!
To leave you aching for more I wanted to share a couple photos that my AMAZING husband and second shooter took:
…and yes that is Mrs. Raehtz getting welcomed into the family with a swift spank to the rear with a sword. Welcome Sandy!
Can’t wait to share the rest!
{stephanie.karen}