BFFs.

It’s probably fairly well known at this point that a large portion of my business is focused on weddings. But did you know that all of my business is centered around love? People in love, people loving on their four-legged babies, people knee-deep in their passions.

What I wish got more attention and hype is PLATONIC LOVE. In the photography industry, romantic love and familial love dominate. I’m not mad about it. Familial love is the first we experience and romantic love is what many of us search for (hey, if you’ve ever downloaded a dating app - here’s looking at your Bumble - you know what I’m talking about).

But what about your friends? When was the last time you had your picture taken with your best friend that wasn’t taken on a cell phone? When was the last time you intentionally celebrated your friendships?

Last year (yeah, if you read my first post, you know this blog has been a long time coming), I met up with Laura and Lauren at their Portland apartment. I had first pitched the idea of a BFF session to Laura after she and I connected earlier in the fall. I chatted with her about her best friend, Lauren, and what a session together could possibly look like.

We started at their apartment, listening to their favorite records and sipping on some non-alcoholic beers. Laura lit some palo santo and poured a bowl of Cheez-Its which she ate with a pair of chopsticks, sitting cross-legged on her kitchen floor.

They decided to change their clothes and reemerged from their bedrooms in eerily similar, unplanned get-ups.

We headed to the porch which is the epitome of coziness and home. Their cats Zora and Jelly joined us outside, too, finding the sun spots in the driveway.

They blew bubbles (Lauren and Laura, not the cats) on the front stoop and posed in the street.

We decided to end our session at Arcadia, Portland’s very own arcade bar. They played skee ball (turns out there’s a whole freaking league) and drank Topo Chicos (which Nate and I are now officially hooked on). There was pinball and Tetris.

But most importantly, there was Laura and Lauren. Together like so many days that come before.

There was nothing fancy about their session. They didn’t drop hundreds of dollars on hair and make-up or new outfits. We just agreed to show up and be present and to see where our time together took us.

The session was Laura and Lauren.

And, just for fun, here’s a picture of two of my best friends and me at my thirty-second birthday this past summer. I asked all my friends to dress up like one of their grandparents and bring a favorite dish their grandparent made (sup, bread pudding?). I’m on the left, dressed as my grandmother, Juanita.

As always, thank you for being here for what’s real.