Minneapolis Portrait Photographer
lauren baker photography is a
I’m Lauren Baker - a professional dancer turned Minneapolis portrait photographer who has learned that embracing inner awkwardness and letting go of expectations is the key to leading a love-filled, happy life.
This is why I love serving clients who say they're a little camera shy and kind of awkward - they're 100% my people! The clients I serve like to laugh and have fun, tell bad jokes, and don’t sweat the small things. My unique photography style is a blend of the light and airy, film, and true to color styles - I call it "Romantic Realism."
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My business initially grew out of my friends’ need for dance audition headshots. I always loved photography and took a camera with me on all of our family trips - I wanted to remember EVERYTHING - so when my best friends needed headshots I thought that would be a fun way to supplement my dance career.
From there, I fell in love with photographing couples and individuals who were embarking on big, transitional life milestones. Being around their excitement and joy is intoxicating. And the fulfillment I get from photographing and celebrating others is a satisfaction I never felt with dance. Capturing celebrations of life and love while providing a fun, stress-free, full-service experience for my clients has given me a whole new purpose in life.
My journey in photography began in a dance studio
My Philosophy:
your wedding or portrait session is a celebration of you, and i'm here to support you, make you laugh, and make you feel beautiful!
I'm a fantasy nerd...
I'm a huge fantasy/sci-fi nerd. I love anything related to Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, and Harry Potter. I self-identify with Pippin Took and am in house Slytherin.
my enneagram is...
I’m an enneagram 1w2. If you ask me, that’s the perfect enneagram for a wedding and portrait photographer! What's my Myers Briggs type? I'm an INFJ.
My tattoo is of...
My tattoo is an ogham of the word “eagna”. An ogham is a medieval alphabet primarily used to write the early Irish language. Eagna is the Irish word for “wisdom.” It's my one and only tattoo and I don't want more.
I love sudoku puzzles...
I don't know why but I love sudoku puzzles. My favorite thing to do when I fly, is buy a new sudoku book and spend the entire flight solving puzzles. It's become a game I play with myself to see how many puzzles I can solve before the plane lands.
Traveling is my fave...
While I'm a homebody at heart, I love to travel! My dream is to travel all over Europe by train. Professionally, I dream of photographing a wedding in Tuscany or The Scottish Highlands! If you want to get married at either location, let's talk and make it happen!!
Associate : Danielle’s wedding photography journey began with Lauren, strangely enough, in the dance realm as one of Lauren’s dance students. In addition to weddings, Danielle loves photographing nature, portraits of friends and family, and has a killer knack for macro photography. In her own words, “I fell in love with capturing memories and emotions. When you look at a photo, you want to remember how you felt in that moment and remember that feeling forever.”
Associate : Brittany has been around photography since she was a little girl and began shooting film photography in high school. After she got married, Brittany took the leap and turned her favorite hobby into a career! She values memories, human connection, and dreamy golden hour light. When asked what advice she’d give brides who are currently planning their wedding, she said, “It is so important to hire a professional photographer to capture this season of your life. You can trust in them and their ability to bring out the best in you.” Brittany believes there is no such thing as “awkward” and would love to show you how much fun being in front of the camera can be!
Second Shooter : Ellen first found a love for photography in middle school and became more serious about it in high school. In fact, she was so serious about photography and refining her skills that she quit her high school job in order to spend more time behind the camera. Ellen is currently an art major and loves that she can directly apply her art, color, and light expertise into her photography. What does she love most about being a photographer? Being able to capture people's spontaneous movements and unique expressions!
Second Shooter : Nicole has always loved capturing memories. One of the first gifts she remembers getting was a Kodak camera. She used it constantly and consequently kept getting into trouble for going through film too quickly! Nicole went to school for Psychology and is a licensed therapist. In 2018, she wanted to do more with photography and, in addition to photographing weddings with Lauren, she decided to use her photography and therapist backgrounds to help women heal from trauma, ED, and body image struggles. Nicole also loves traveling, food (which she says needs to be its own love language), spending time with family, and playing strategy games!
Intern : Emma's bio coming soon!
We’re free spirited love and adventure seekers who know the value of having a game plan while allowing room for flexibility in order to embrace the unexpected, joyful moments life throws our way.
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Working with Lauren was easy breezy and FUN! She gave us our most treasured photos ever!
- GRACE AND NICK
There was a chunk of time in our wedding planning when we thought we'd go without a professional photographer to save on cost (terrible idea!) but once we met with Lauren, we knew we'd be in good hands. She checked in often and asked questions that got us thinking about other parts of the wedding that we probably would've missed. Lauren captured exactly who we are as a couple!
Lauren's enthusiasm and passion make the photo-taking process so fun – she made me feel like a star!
- Alisa AND Adam
Lauren and her team are so much fun to work with! She made us feel so comfortable on the day of our wedding, providing both silly and helpful cues to help us relax and be ourselves in our photos. Lauren’s background in dance is super helpful in recognizing simple posture changes that make a big difference, too. Oh, and the photos we got are just stunning!
Lauren was pivotal in making our wedding day perfect!
- Emma AND Erik
My husband and I looked FOR MONTHS to find the perfect photographer and after meeting Lauren we knew was the best fit for us. She made our day so much fun and easy. She found little opportunities to make the perfect photo all with a calm ease that comes from someone who has an artistic eye along with experience in understanding the flow of a wedding.
Not only is Lauren an amazing human being, but she is an awesome photographer!
- Haley AND Erick
I've been in several weddings and have worked with a multitude of photographers and I never felt as confident as I did with Lauren. I love how professional she is. She helped with the timeline way in advance and we stuck to that timeline the day of. She was also able to professionally and firmly keep unruly family members settled and focused and navigated family drama beautifully!
