Ester Knowlen Photography
FAQs
Ester Knowlen Photography
 
 
I care deeply about my work, your experience, and the images I capture. What I do makes me smile. On a daily basis. I give my work my all (and then some), pour my heart and soul into it, and lose myself in it.  It’s absolutely exhilarating, and so humbling at the same time, to be entrusted to serve you with my talents, and my hope is to create timeless, authentic images that will fill your heart and your walls and remind you exactly how you felt. For always.
 
 
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Minnesota Wedding Photographer
 
A BIT ABOUT ME...

My name is Ester, I’m a Polish-born, Minneapolis MN based journalistic photographer. And since 2014 I’ve had the coolest job on Earth — I get to watch people make out for a living! ;)

I am married (16+years now) to the most amazing guy I know, who believes in me, more than I do sometimes, and brings out the best in me. He’s my world, and my way back to myself when my compass loses North.

If we’re not day-dreaming about our next Europe travel adventure, we’re probably binge-watching Bull (or NCIS), re-watching Harry Potter for the nth time, or trying to keep our crazy Rottie Surly Burly from destroying the house one garbage can at a time. Sarcasm is my love language, and let’s be honest, you probably won’t get most of my jokes - not that that’s going to stop me from trying… 

My passion is to create authentic and natural images that capture you in your element. I’m a big fan of movement (big or small, wherever your personality or moment feels right), and I’m ALL about play rather than stiff or awkward posing. I love creating an authentic, full of expression and emotion environment where you can be you, and the connection between you can overtake the moment for me to capture those real bursts of laughter, the nerdy wrinkle-nose smiles, the sweet hugs, and all the other feels, so you remember just how you felt, even years down the road, and even when you might need a reminder…

If what you read and the work I share are tugging on your heart strings, welcome to “My Tribe” - (the type of people that will fall in love with me behind the camera, and fall in love with each other all over again in front of it. ) — Let's connect! — Ester

 
 
 
 
TO me A storyteller is a keen observeR, keeping a pulse on what's unfolding in front of her, with a creative eye for detail, preserving some mystery, and aiming to capture genuine emotion and candidness of the moment. Capturing stories is what made me fall in love with photography to begin with, and it's what keeps me hooked.
 
See some of My Work - In Imagery + Words
 
Minneapolis Lifestyle Newborn Photographer

LIFESTYLE Portraits

Maple Ridge Farm Taylors Falls

WEDDINGS + ELOPEMENTS

Sarasota Florida Wedding Photographer

Helpful Articles

 
 
 

Journalistic Style

 
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“Elegance is the balance between proportion, emotion, and surprise"
 - Valentino Garavani
 

MY STYLE is moody, romantic, very camera-unaware, and to me a perfect photograph can be far from perfect or perfectly posed. I love the carefree spirit of wind-blown hair, an impromptu dance, and I don’t shy away from chaos. I tend to have a 6th sense for awkwardness (sometimes even my own ;)) so stiff poses are not my thing. No “cheese” either!

My favorite moment is likely on the candid side, showcasing your quirkiness, and sweetness, with genuine connection, tapping into your unique mood and personality.

Now, don't worry, on a wedding day there is the Family portraits part, where you do get the traditional grinning shots with mom and grandma for her fridge, but even then I often go off script to create a few sweet moments for me to capture rather than just focusing on the “photo checklist”. And, if you are part of "My Tribe", those likely will end up being some of your favorite shots down the road. 

 
 

Recent + Featured Work

Love Notes from “My tribe”

Testimonials
ANDREA + RYAN
ANDREA + RYAN

Ester, where do I begin? Simply put, you create ART. We cannot thank you enough for the time, energy, and talent that you put into the gorgeous images that you captured for us. We love that the images beautifully tell the story of us and our wedding day - we will undoubtedly treasure them for a lifetime! Your knowledge, skill, and passion for your craft shines. Thank you a million times over Ester! - Andrea & Ryan

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HANNAH + PAKER
HANNAH + PAKER

Ester, working with you was such a great experience, we were blown away from beginning to end. You were so laid back and just went with the flow the whole time. You have such an eye for detail and it truly shows in each photo, everything is pure magic! Parker and I are SO pleased with our session. You captured us perfectly and we couldn’t be more grateful! We’re in love with the entire gallery. We could never thank you enough! (…)
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AFTON + JAKE
AFTON + JAKE

Ester, you went above and beyond on our wedding day! I truly am sooo glad I found you & chose you to photograph our wedding. You are simply AMAZING!! The best of the best! We will definitely be reaching out again in the future!! Until then... we wish you all the best! <3 - Love, Afton and Jake Blix

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MEGGAN + JOE
MEGGAN + JOE

We really can't describe how wonderful and FUN you made our experience. From start to finish we had such a blast working with you! We were nervous for our engagement shoot (mostly out of fear we would be SO awkward and the pictures would turn out awkward), but you made it so fun and relaxing. After that session we knew we had chosen the perfect photographer for us. (…)

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KAYLA + ALEX
KAYLA + ALEX

Ester, thank you so much for being the absolute best photographer at our wedding! You made us feel at ease & were so great at organizing our crazy friends / family!! :) We absolutely LOVE our photos & know that we will cherish them for the rest of our lives!! You are so extremely talented and we are so grateful that we had you to capture our day!! - Kayla & Alex

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OLIVIA + PAIGE
OLIVIA + PAIGE

We cannot begin to thank Ester enough, the photos she took were beyond amazing. From the start Paige and I knew we would be nervous in front of the camera, which also made us nervous the pictures would show that. At our engagement session, Ester helped us by keeping it fun and energetic which made it effortless for us. She was able to break us out of shell (truly not an easy feat). Our engagement pictures turned out incredible (and didn't show a single bit of our awkward/nervousness). From that moment on we knew we had made the right decision. Her itinerary for our wedding day was truly a life saver, we would have been so lost without it. (…)

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KELLY + RYAN
KELLY + RYAN

Ester did our wedding and we just got our first peak at some of the pictures and WOW!! She captured EXACTLY who my husband and I are as a couple and she worked her a** off (in the freezing cold) to get the very best shots. She has the most amazing eye when it comes to taking photos and she goes above and beyond her expertise to make sure you have the most amazing pictures of one of the most important days of your life. She makes you feel so comfortable and so relaxed and she really LOVES what she does. Thank you Ester for making our most perfect day even more perfect! - the Nybergs

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