CT Ryan Photography

We were traveling through rural Minnesota on our way to photograph Aaron and Andrea’s reception, passing by beautiful rolling hills, farm fields, and cow pastures, when we came to quite a sight. Their reception was at the Little Log House in Hastings, MN which is an amazing place filled with old pioneer buildings, an antique gas station, a spiral bridge, a working machine shop with vintage tractors, and the Village Hall which is a great space for a reception. Aaron and Andrea, who had their wedding in Cabo San Lucas, threw a great party… it was a lot of fun to photograph!

We photographed Erin Kate’s 30th birthday celebration at Cafe Lurcat in Minneapolis. “Hollywood glam” was the theme of the night and everyone was decked out in their finest glamorous attire. It was a great crowd and a lot of fun.

Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) of the Twin Cities teamed up with Rock the Cause to put on an awesome 80′s concert and event to raise money for BBBS. Guests came decked out in their most fabulous 80′s garb. The event also helped to create awareness of the current need for more “big brothers” and “big sisters” in the area.

To find out more about this great organization, visit their website: http://www.bbbs.org/site/c.drLRK6PELoF/b.1637475/k.BEB8/Home.htm

I recently photographed Ashley Tisdale (of High School Musical fame) performing at the Mall of America to promote her new album, Guilty Pleasure, and movie with Robert Hoffman, Aliens in the Attic. It was a lot of fun, and pretty entertaining… but I definitely need to remember to bring my earplugs next time I’m shooting up front.

Erin Kate and Ben invited us out to their beautiful home to photograph a backyard “white light” party. We did a fun mix of portraits and candids of their guests. We really enjoy photographing their parties– they’re such a mix of casual, class, and fun.

We had a great time photographing Erin Kate and Ben’s backyard bash… Their wedding was the day before and they wanted to continue the celebration with friends and family. The weather was perfect and the food was delicious.

Luke Stombaugh came home from Iraq after his second year-long deployment with the Army National Guard. His wife, Amanda, asked us to document the emotional event when Luke and others from the 34th Combat Aviation Brigade arrived home to St. Paul. It was a beautiful moment and I was glad to be part of it.

I recently photographed the Hamline University alumni gatherings at the Town and Country Club in St. Paul and the Minneapolis Club. These are great events for Hamline grads to get together to socialize and network outside of the standard class reunions. I had a lot of fun looking for nice moments to photograph.

I got to spend a couple hours this week photographing some of the coolest people I’ve ever met for the Special Olympics. It was their 2009 Spring Games and I did pictures during the swimming competition. What amazing people, both the competitors and the volunteers. I love the wonderful emotion and dedication I saw that day. If anyone has an opportunity to go to one of their events, or volunteer/donate in some way, I’d highly recommend it.

You can see the full shoot and buy prints here: http://ctryanclients.com/cart/. 100% of the proceeds go the the Special Olympics Minnesota.

I recently had a chance to photograph some kids involved in the HopeKids organization. HopeKids is an amazing nonprofit that provides events & activities for children with cancer and other life-threatening medical conditions.  These kids had a chance to go to a Minnesota Wild game, watch from Marian Gaborik’s private suite, and meet the NHL referees who were officiating the game before the teams hit the ice.

That was definitely the coolest part for me. These ref’s who were about to spend their evening breaking up fights and being cursed at by thousands were some of the nicest guys I’ve ever met. They were amazing with the kids, and were genuinely excited and honored to hang out with them for a few minutes before the game.