andy stenz photography | waukesha wedding photographer » sunset

rails to trails half marathon (or why norwalk, wisconsin rocks)

andystenz — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 13:58:24 +0000

Jess and I headed up to Norwalk, Wisconsin this past weekend for the Rails to Trails Half Marathon (her first half marathon since her knee surgery back in January). She was excited to be out again and to have a goal to work toward. We walked the majority of it to not stress out her knees – and they held up! We probably ran about two miles total (in little spurts) but overall her knees did well.

If you haven’t had the pleasure of being on the Elroy-Sparta bike trail, you are missing out! The trail is actually built on top of an old railway line and so doesn’t have more than a 3% grade at any point – nice for biking and running for sure.

The coolest part of the trail are the three tunnels that were hand carved through the hills in the 1860′s. The third tunnel, the one we ran through, is the longest (3/4 mile long). It’s dark, wet and amazing! They did setup some lanterns but normally it’s just pitch black so make sure to bring a flashlight. After we finished the half we drove back closer to it and walked to the entrance to the tunnel so I could grab some photos – it’s so unreal and I wanted to capture it (and share it here, of course).

I really have to recommend the Rails to Trails race for anyone looking for a great half or full marathon in Wisconsin. It’s really neat – the whole town comes together to put this on. From helping with the spaghetti dinner on Saturday to manning the aid stations to a lunch after the race – everyone is involved and is SUPER friendly. Props to the whole crew – you did a wonderful job and really exemplify Wisconsin hospitality. And a shout-out to Pearl Street Brewery in LaCrosse for sponsoring Sunday’s delicious lunch – complete with their microbrews. I will be stopping there when I’m up there next (LaCrosse is where I’m starting my Walk for Clean Water – walking across the state!).

After the half we made our way home enjoying this beautiful state of ours. Besides the snow we are supposed to get today, I have to say that I love this place.

(And for the photo geeks out there: everything was shot on the X100)

molly+steve's waukesha wedding

andystenz — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 14:50:09 +0000

Molly + Steve both serve their country and I’m honored to have been part of their wedding day. This fun loving couple basically had a destination wedding in Waukesha (for them at least, some family and friends where here already). They did a great job planning from out of town and everything came together perfectly. The weather was great but the mosquitoes were horrible (sorry guys!) The secluded park I choose for photos was fine the week before but then some rain in the days between brought more mosquitoes than you could count. We abandoned that plan shortly after and headed into downtown Waukesha for more photos.

Some of my favorite shots happened after the evening was over and I was leaving. I noticed that the sun was low in the sky and saw a beautiful location close by. I turned around and came back to get them for some shots. I couldn’t pass up that perfect setup. A great way to end a wonderful day.

Thanks to you both for letting me hang out with you guys all day. It was a great time!

So again, we’ll run a little giveaway contest. If we can get a total of 75 people commenting below, I’ll give Molly + Steve $75 in print credit! Spread the word (after you share a few below!)

After this next shot, her veil blew off and the Best Man and Maid of Honor ran it down for us…

what i did this weekend…

andystenz — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 12:31:56 +0000

Took pictures! Actually, I put my camera down for most of the weekend to spend time with my lovely wife, a good book, and nature. We have had some absolutely amazing weather the past few days and Jess and I took every advantage of it we could. Long walks, kayaking on three lakes, laying on a dock looking up at the stars – it was a truly beautiful weekend.

Here’s to a beautiful fall! May you get every chance to enjoy it!

jessica + yaser’s waukesha engagement photography

andystenz — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 07:27:07 +0000

I had the pleasure of shooting Jessica and Yaser tonight. They came to me for an engagement session, although they’ve been married for a few years already. Theirs is a fun story of a courtroom wedding and an upcoming wedding ceremony. This was a really nice couple, who was a pleasure to shoot. I wish them the best in the (continued) marriage.

butterfly mountain at sunset

andystenz — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 01:13:59 +0000

Another photo from Arizona. We headed west from Chandler onto a reservation to get close to Butterfly Mountain. We got too close and the sun set too fast so we drove back east and that’s when I got this shot. A fun note: we saw a roadrunner dart out in front of us that night (no coyote was following though).