Each year is a chance for us to grow. To expand and better our craft, vision and ourselves. But this year, we also grew our family! So, naturally, the most incredible part of this year for us was when we welcomed our first child, Forrest Nolan, into the world on Oct. 25th! Looking back now, we’re not exactly sure how we made it through this year. Two months into 2015, we found out we’d be growing our family. Feelings of excitement and that nervousness of the unknown sank in quickly. After almost 5 years of marriage, we were both beyond ready to start to our family. With all of the excitement and love that had already begun to fill parts of our hearts we had yet to know existed, we were naive to the challenges we’d face with having a rather busy year with weddings and some editorial, commercial and lifestyle work juggled with pregnancy throughout it all. We travel from coast to coast starting with a trip out to Portland, Oregon early on. This was our first time either of us had been out there. We went out to Cannon Beach for a shoot, traveled the Historic Columbia River Gorge a few times, visited Mt. Hood and ate too much amazing food. It was a great way to start our year. Beyond that, we got to travel and shoot in NYC, Minneapolis, Detroit, Shenandoah Valley, West Virginia, Washington DC and of course, a lot of trips to Asheville and Boone. I (Brett) must admit, Jessica was an absolute champion throughout it all. Hiking mountains to 7,000 ft. while 6 1/2 months pregnant, shooting a wedding for 10 hours at 8 months and then giving me all the support I needed, and then some, when I had to leave and go shoot by myself.
We certainly grew this year. We grew a lot, as individuals, partners, artists and now, parents. Along with that, our priorities shifted and we became more intentional. The day we saw Forrest on the ultrasound screen, our mindset changed and our values toward life and family became more aware of the importance of what we do as photographers. We are striving to be present with him while also wanting to document everything he does. Finding balance is hard, but it happens quickly when someone you love more than you could of ever imaged changes even fast and changes day by day.
The way we want to document a couples love has evolved so much this year. Wanting to create images that really show who the couple was during that season is life so that when they show their children those images someday, that child can visually see the love they are a product of is now an even bigger and more profound part of why we do what what we do. And to us, that is one of the biggest symbols of our growth this year.
And so for that, this year is dedicated to our sweet and beautiful baby boy, Forrest. Thank you for blessing our life and opening up parts of our hearts we didn’t know existed. Thank you for showing us there is more to life than sacrificing real relationships with friends and family in exchange for success. Thank you for creating more of sense of responsibility and dedication in us. Thank you for choosing us to be your parents.
Hope you enjoyed some of our favorites images from the wild journey we took this year.
It’s always hard to top the previous year, but somehow, we’ve managed to do so each year. And this year is no exception. It’s going to be an incredible year as well. We’re scheduled to visit Maine, California, New York and hopefully make our way over to Europe this year. If you’re getting married in 2016 or 2017, get in touch with us! We would be honored and love to be a part of documenting your life and your story.
And of course, here are some cute shots of our baby boy, Forrest Nolan. But be sure to follow us on instagram to see more! @brettdonar | @jessicadonar
You guys! You’re so talented. Seriously- what a great lunch break today just looking at your photos and admiring the beauty here, both in the subjects, the landscapes, the creativity and your process. and i’m glad you threw in some forest pictures at the end ! can’t wait to see where you two (or three!) will go from here! xo