I fell in love when I was 7 years old. My mom bought me a pink point and shoot camera and it was all over for me. We were so cute together. I took my camera with me everywhere. On weekends, I would take pictures of anything and everything: people, animals, planes, skydivers, buildings…if I saw it, I would snap a picture of it.

The first half of my college experience was anything but typical. I spent 2 years at the University of Kansas drifting in and out majors. I changed majors at least one time per semester. I thought that I had to have a normal 8-5 job like being a child psychologist, a teacher, an advertiser or even a nurse. I tried them all and they were all great professions, but not quite right for me. I remember sitting at Old Chicago in Lawrence, KS with my mom one night and she told me that I needed to get my act together – to figure out what I was going to do and how I wanted to go about doing it. I knew I didn’t want to stay at KU so I moved home for a semester to figure it out. Not once did the thought go through my mind that I could have a job doing something that I loved.

After a little soul searching, I packed my bags and headed to Warrensburg, MO. One of my favorite aunts is a professor at Central Missouri State University and she had urged me to visit the campus and consider the small school environment. While I was touring and meeting students/staff, I learned that they had a photography program! What I loved about the idea of majoring in photography was that the school also required you to have a minor. So I chose Marketing – the combination of photography and marketing was perfect for me! I found a place where I could study my passion and learn how to promote and market myself at the same time. Even better, CMSU was ranked the top photography school in Missouri. During my time at CMSU, I became very involved in the student life… I was a photographer for the college paper, President of the Photo Society for 2 years, and ultimately graduated with an emphasis in Sports Photography! Yeah, that’s right... sports photography! I spent most of my Saturday’s during the fall taking pictures of my boyfriend’s (now husband) college football team from the sideline. Since graduation, my passions have changed, but sports photography will always hold a special place in my heart.

I graduated in December 2000, and I had 2 friends getting married the following summer. They asked me to be their photographer. By 2007, I was shooting, on average, about 200 weddings per year. In December 2007, I decided to take an extended break from wedding photography. I felt like my schedule was taking me away from my family on the weekends while I was shooting for up to 12 hours a day. I was missing my boys and I needed to regain a healthy work-life balance. In late 2008, I had an epiphany of sorts… I was pregnant with my second son and I really missed my work. After countless hours talking about it with my husband, family and friends, I decided to re-open with a renewed focus and energy, Children!

I absolutely love looking through the lens into a child’s eyes and capturing their innocence. I love the softness of a newborn’s skin, the chubby little legs of a baby learning to crawl, the clumsiness of a baby taking steps for the first time, the missing teeth from a 1st grader’s mouth, the broken arm of an adventurous child, or the daintiness of a little ballerina.

I love that I am able to earn my clients trust, not only with their photos but with their babies and children as well. I feel like every client that walks through my door is a friend for life. I take great pride in seeing the love, joy, and admiration on a parent’s face when they see the photos for the first time. It is this thrill that helps make my job the best job in the world.

Thank you for being a part of the Boonie Sunshine Family. I’ve been working towards this since I was 7 years old. I’m just as passionate now as I was back then. Please take a few moments to check out my portfolio. In addition to children/family photography, I also do senior pictures, Professional headshots, Quincenera’s, Engagements, Trash the Dress, and yes, even the occasional wedding.

I will forever be, “Capturing your heart through timeless innocence…”

Denise

P.S. “Boonie Sunshine” – this is the nickname that my husband gave me back in 1996 before we even began dating... Over the years, the name stuck with me and I have many little kiddos that call me Boonie