If you haven’t heard me talk about the Rising Tide Society and TuesdaysTogether before, let me give you a brief recap.

The Rising Tide Society is a movement started by Natalie Franke and Krista Jones, two leaders in the wedding photography industry, and their mission is to cultivate a society of creative entrepreneurs who believe in community over competition and have a desire to lead with love. TuesdaysTogether are our monthly gatherings for small business owners who want to share their knowledge, learn from their peers, and grow together. The meetings, coordinated by local industry leaders, are designed to be approachable, authentic, and up lifting. Every second Tuesday of the month, all over the world, local groups meet. Separated by distance, but beautifully united by a hashtag and a shared desire for community!

I am the leader of the Appleton group, which we call #920tuesdays, and I am so proud of how far our group has grown together! We use to be able to all fit in my living room for meetings and now we have outgrown that space with an average of 20 to 25 attendees each month! When I applied and agreed to be the leader, I really had no idea what to expect. However, it has brought so many more connections, opportunities, and friendships than I ever imagined!

Last week, we hosted a styled “shoot out” at Homestead Meadows. Local business owners and vendors came together and donated their time, talent, and products! Months of planning went into this event and leading up to it, it was hard to imagine and visualize exactly how it would go. I have been involved in a single styled shoot before – where I was the only photographer, but never one of this size and caliber. I didn’t know what my expectations were or anyone else’s, but I knew that I wanted to blow them out of the water!

The day of was a blur. I almost forgot my own camera, as taking actual photos was not my priority. I wanted to make sure everyone got to where they needed to go, that vendors knew where to set up, and that each detail was in place. I could not have done that without everyone’s help and for that I am so grateful! To pull an event off of this size takes a village and while I might have been the “coordinator”, everyone else pulled their own weight and committed themselves to get their individual tasks done. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

We had four “stations” – a bride/groom model and wedding scene with the beautiful pallet wall that Folk and Fancy Rentals provided us with, an engagement session in the back woods at Homestead Meadows, three senior models who totally rocked it and looked amazing in their outfits from Vintique, and a details/tablescape/dessert station where the photographers could practice styling props and other fun details. We then rotated around the station in small groups and learned from others as everyone posed the models and walked each other through their process. Talk about #communityovercompetition, huh?!

The next day, my heart could not have been more full. I got to take it all in and see people start to post beautiful, amazing images and received so much positive feedback from those involved! The day might have come and gone so quickly, but I can’t wait to start putting together the next one already!

Are you a creative? Are you a small business owner? A hopeful entrepreneur? New to town? Looking for a safe place to ask questions and feel like you aren’t alone? Join us! Please reach out to me if you would like to be added to the Appleton TuesdaysTogether Facebook group and attend our monthly meetings! We would love to meet you and have you be part of our tribe!

Please take a look through the images below and show some love to the vendors and models involved. They would love to serve you in the future and have you follow along on social media! At the end, you will find some fun behind the scene photos and what it really looks like when we all believe in #communityovercompetition.

Thank you to all our vendors involved:

Venue: Homestead Meadows | Florals:  Branching Out & Company | Rentals: Folk & Fancy Rentals | Wedding Paper Goods: Brummond Design | Bridal Gown: Erika’s Bridal Couture | Custom Ring: Alyssa & Anna Fine Jewelry | Make Up: VAMP by AJ Artistry | Chalkboard Art: Casey Hurley | Baked Goods: Town Hall Bakery & SAP | Hair Stylists: Kristine – Prismatic Salon, Star Valo, Yana Palazzo | Senior Paper Goods: KL Creative | Glassware: Ooh Shiny Art Glass | Videography: Michael Gehrman | Food Cart: NourishArt | Models: Jessica Heidemann, Jef Behnke, Dani Valentine, Mitchel Ott, Charley Carniglia, Nermana Turajlic, Jo Saindon

Pallet wall & marquee letter from Folk & Fancy Rentals in Fond du Lac! We made sure to have the “B” set up, since Jessica and Jef’s future last name will be Behnke!

Chalkboard art by Casey Hurley!

The team at Branching Out & Company totally blew us away with their creativity and skill, not to mention their generosity! They provided SO many beautiful florals for us!

Thank you to SAP & Town Hall Bakery for helping us set up the dessert table! You can never go wrong with a “naked” cake and those macaroons are pieces of art!

We had an entire “station” set up for details. Boxes of pretty items to style and trinkets to photograph. Paper goods created by Tiffany at Brummond Design and rings custom designed by Alyssa & Anna Fine Jewelry.

Glass plates (above) and custom champagne flutes made by Ooh Shiny Art Glass. That’s the Rising Tide Society logo you see!

Wood letters hand crafted by Folk & Fancy Rentals!

Again, Branching Out & Company blew us away with their floral design work! This bouquet was amazing!

A lil peek of the Senior portion of the shoot out. More chalkboard art from Casey Hurley, tablescape and florals from Branching Out, wardrobe provided by Vintique, and paper invite by KL Creative!

The engagement session models, Mitch and Dani, are two of my favorite people! I am so glad they got to join us. Homestead Meadows had the most gorgeous spots on their property to photograph them together.

Marquee letter from Folk & Fancy Rentals.

Here are some behind the scene shots of everyone coming together and celebrating #communityovercompetition! Each person put so much work into this event and I cannot  thank all the vendors, models, and participants enough for all their help!

Ali photographing the bridal gown from Erika’s Bridal Couture before Jessica put it on!

Tammi at NorishArt Food Cart served up some great food and had such a cute set up! Everyone was raving about the Fish Tacos! I hope to see her again soon!

Hard at work setting everything up! Thanks guys!

Michael doing video! Can’t wait to see the film!

Details!

Thank you Homestead Meadows for hosting us! What a wonderful venue for our first group shoot out. We appreciate all you did to make our experience with you a great one and for welcoming us to use your gorgeous property!