Photography has always been about more than photos for me
hi, I'm sophiE!
It’s the little things.
The way you reach for their hand without thinking.
The laughter that makes your sides hurt.
The way people show up when they feel safe being exactly who they are.
Long before this became my job, I was the kid flipping through family scrapbooks — tracing my fingers over my grandma’s handwriting, and wanting to know the stories behind the photos. Our history, and all the feeling held within it, meant so much more to me than the image alone.
When I started documenting weddings and families, that same feeling kept showing up. I saw how different everything became when people felt comfortable. How beautiful it is to be fully seen, not just photographed! I saw how much the experience mattered. How comfort and trust changed everything. And how meaningful it is to preserve moments that might otherwise pass too quickly.
That’s what continues to shape my life and my work today. Creating space for connection. So your photos don’t just show what your life looked like, they take you right back to how it felt.
For me, the best photos come from comfort — not perfection.
At the heart of my work is a deep belief that your photography experience should feel just as good as it looks.
They come from trust, from feeling at ease, and knowing you don’t have to perform for the camera. Because meaningful photos are built through connection! That's why I take the time to know you, and show up as a calm, supportive presence throughout the day... so you can be fully present and actually live every moment as it unfolds.
Every couple and every family I work with is truly one of a kind, and I believe that deserves to be honored! This work isn’t about surface-level trends or forced moments for me. It’s about what’s real.
It’s about the way you look at each other when no one’s watching. The way you scrunch your nose when you laugh. The way you light up around your people. Those are the moments I’m always watching for — the ones that bring you right back when you look at your photos years from now.
So you can feel it all, again and again.
My husband and I run a family-owned food truck (Magoo’s Pizza 🍕) and YES, we cater weddings. 😉
Grandma energy > nightlife. garden tomatoes for BLT’s, making my own candles, trying to keep my houseplants alive, and falling asleep mid-movie? Say less.
I LOVE slow traditions, like our annual anniversary sunset picnics. romanticize everything.
We eloped six months after getting engaged with just our people and zero pressure. 10/10 recommend intimate days and doing your wedding your way.
I have 18 tattoos (I think, but who’s counting? we don’t do math.)
some fun facts:
think we might get along?
I am a Des Moines-based photographer with over 10 years of experience documenting weddings, families, and the moments that matter most.
I’m known for being easy-going, empathetic, and deeply invested in the people I work with! I’m good at reading the room, value connection above everything else, and truly believe that life feels most meaningful when we show up for one another.
I’m sentimental by nature — always drawn to the little details, and endlessly inspired by the way people love: their people, their stories, and their everyday moments.
When I’m not photographing, you’ll find me spending quality time with my people, late-night editing with my dog curled up in my lap, gardening in the backyard, making cookies, thrifting for the perfect vintage frames, lighting too many candles (and turning off all the big lights in our house haha).
I love experiences over things, traveling, collecting film cameras, and using polaroids as bookmarks. As my husband would say, “That’s the most Sophie thing.”
