Eliesa Johnson Photography

I love getting back to my documentary roots as a photographer and going on assignment. I’ve had a few gigs now with Twin Cities Business Magazine and this last story I photographed was awesome and I absolutely loved every last minute of it! The story brought me all the way out to Glencoe, MN to photograph the men on the railroad. My favorite subject was a man named Kenny. This is the only job he has ever had in his entire life and the quiet pride he has for this job is very telling when you meet him. Sometimes, we dream about ‘making it’ and ‘following our passion’ and it always seems to be doing something big and ambitious. For Kenny, his passion lies on this railroad, in this community and it’s simple. Here are some out-takes that didn’t make the spread, enjoy!

The latest issue of LAVENDER Magazine is officially on newsstands and I am SUPER happy to have been a part of this shoot! This issue is the 2013 Wedding Issue for the magazine, and I was chosen to collaborate with some AMAZING people to really elevate the presence of gay marriage in our city and photograph the fashion editorial. Obviously, same-sex marriage is a hot topic at the moment, and a movement that I really believe in. I was over the moon with the idea of creating imagery to promote marriage equality and I hope you are as pleased with the outcome as I! Below are images from the LAVENDER Online Issue and you can grab a copy in print – literally – all around town! The issue is only on newsstands for a few weeks, so check it out before they are all gone!

Of course, no shoot happens without an amazing team behind me. This was a major production, with two days of shooting, in two very different locations. We photographed the women at The Union Depot in downtown St. Paul and then moved the crew back to Minneapolis at The Bachelor Farmer to photograph the men.  Style Architects put together the wardrobe and set styling, which featured some fabulous companies, including: Ignite Models Inc., Gateaux Inc, Martha’s Garden, L’atelier Couture, Realia by Jen, On Solid Ground Vintage Rentals, Roe Wolfe, BeThings, Saima Says Design, Heimie’s Haberdashery, Martin Patrick 3, Hammermade and more!  In addition to the photographs, Chris Wegner also came along to create two amazing behind-the-scenes videos for you to check out:

LAVENDER Wedding Shoot // Day 1

LAVENDER Wedding Shoot // Day 2

This year, I was asked to photograph a fashion editorial for Lavender Magazine’s upcoming wedding issue. The prospect of legalizing gay marriage in Minnesota is on the horizon, so this is a very exciting project to be a part of! The shoot took place over two days, and we had an amazing crew of people to work with, including Style Architects, The Bachelor Farmer and The Union Depot – just to name a few! The issue is printing, as we speak, so I’ll share more when it rolls out on news stands. In the mean time, Thea Volk, took some awesome behind-the-scene photos of our crew that turned out to be so much fun…I simply had to share!