I'm so glad you are here!
My name is Cristyn and one thing you should know about me is that I unashamedly love Jesus and strive to see the best in all people! I love a good caramel vanilla latte, Chicago deep dish pizza, nature, spending time with those I love, and of course anything chocolate!
I was a high school special education teacher for 7 years before I decided to take my photography full time! I have three beautiful boys who are my whole world and an amazing husband who has supported me in all I have ventured into with my business. I love all the people I get to work with, and hope I get to work with you!
Life is beautiful and so are you! This is why I am a lifestyle photographer. As a mom and wife I know how important these milestones are. I want to take these memories and make them tangible for you so that you can always have a keepsake of these milestones and precious moments.
I can't wait to meet you!
1 / 6
"A perfect experience!
I cannot recommend Cristyn enough. Before our wedding, Cristyn was organized and available and directed us to think through specific shots and parts of our day. Her advance thinking was a big help in the wedding day running smoothly! Day of, Cristyn was fabulous to have around: she's high energy and quick working but she encouraged us to slow down and enjoy the celebration. She had plenty of poses ready for us (we needed the help!) and made sure not to miss any of our requested group"
1 / 6
2 / 6
"“ We have worked with other family photographers in the past, but none made us feel as comfortable or at ease as Cristyn. She was great with our kids, easy to schedule, and really listened to what we wanted with our pictures. We could not be happier with the outcome and have so many of the pictures she took framed in our home.”"
2 / 6
3 / 6
"Best photographer EVER!!
Cristyn is an absolutely wonderful person and an extraordinarily talented photographer. She is detail oriented, has incredible follow up and follow through, and makes you feel amazing—even if you’re typically uncomfortable in front of the camera. She is a blast through and through and we couldn't give her a higher recommendation. All I can say is if you can have her shoot your wedding, you absolutely should!!"
3 / 6
4 / 6
"Cristyn is the absolute best!
Cristyn is not only extremely talented, but she is SO kind and so passionate about what she does. It shows through her work effortlessly.
I would highly recommend her to anyone who would like any special occasion documented.
We will definitely be using her for future photo ops:)"
4 / 6
5 / 6
"Cristyn is so incredibly talented at what she does! She came to set with props, multiple ideas for poses, and did an amazing job at helping my 6 month old daughter smile . She is the most pleasant person to work with and her fun, kind, and outgoing personality is infectious. When we received our family photos, I was in awe at its beauty. She is THE BEST! My go to photographer. I highly recommend her!!""
5 / 6
6 / 6
"Cristyn has photographed our daughter’s senior pictures last year, our son’s senior pictures this year and most recently our family picture and she is nothing short of amazing!!!! She finds the most incredible outdoor backdrops, has been extremely flexible and accommodating with our crazy schedules and has such a warm and welcoming approach to her clients. Her photos are simply stunning! Our most difficult task was finding our favorite out of the dozens she captured!! Cristyn is awesome!!"
6 / 6
"Cristyn is the absolute best! We have had her photograph our family for the past 5 years and the pictures she has taken are some of our most cherished. She is fabulous with our kids and truly captures their personalities in each and every picture. I love how she photographs us with great candid and natural shots, but also has some great “poses” that make for great photos too! Yearly family photos with Cristyn is a family tradition!"
-The Engelstad Family
"Cristyn is such an amazing person to work with, especially when looking for family photos. She is not only talented and extremely creative but very patient and understanding. We have had the opportunity to work with her on our family photos the past two years. The first year, Cristyn was so understanding with me as I was a new Mom and weather conditions were not ideal. She easily made accommodations so that we would feel comfortable. This year during our session, my son was his wild and playful self, who also refused (or so it seemed) to sit still for any photos. Cristyn took her time, gave our son time to be himself, and gave us a ton of great suggestions for photos. In the end, we thought we barely had any good pictures but there were SO many great ones. We are so happy with them and even love some of the "bloopers" as it was a great idea of what our lives are truly like at this time. Cristyn never rushes her sessions or tries to cram them into a specific time frame. She is truly there to get the best pictures and understands the craziness that comes with kids. I highly recommend checking her out for your next session!"
-The Menold Family
"If there were 100 stars on Google Reviews, I'd give Cristyn all 100! It was our honor to have this talented, patient, kind, wonderful photographer take our family photos to celebrate our 20th Anniversary. This was at least our fourth session over the years working with Cristyn and we will never have our photos taken anywhere else. Do not hesitate -- Contact Cristyn Cara Photography now and you'll see what I mean immediately!"
-Koch Family
"Cristyn is literally the best. We had Cristyn out to do our engagement and wedding photos and I couldn't have imagined anyone else there to capture our perfect day. She is so positive and calm which makes the stressful day less stressful. She is constantly lifting you up so that you feel confident and beautiful. Even my husband who hates taking pictures felt comfortable with her. He made many comments about how positive and easy to work with she is, which is 100% true. I can't wait to use Cristyn in the future to capture more of our memories!"
-Kailey & Brad
"Cristyn was so easy to work with! She’s super outgoing and made my fiancé and I feel super comfortable during our engagement session! It was our first time getting our pictures taken so we were a little nervous once we arrived. She made it so easy, natural and fun! I’d definitely recommend her to anyone who wants professional photos done! I can’t wait for our wedding to see how she documents our magical day!"
-Paige & Thomas
"Cristyn captured every moment of my wedding day (and engagement photos) perfectly! I was so worried there wouldn't be enough time for family + bridal photos since I was not doing a first look and Cristyn was able to move the process along seamlessly. She is so kind and makes everyone feel so comfortable!
I'm so thankful I had Cristyn there to capture all of the emotions and happiness and turn them into beautiful pictures, I'll look back at my gallery forever. Thank you for all of my gorgeous photos Cristyn!"
-Chandler & Jack
Cristyn Cara Photography is AMAZING & truly such a pleasure to work with. Crisytn really cares about her clients & shows it. She went above & beyond for my Husband & I on our special day. She called us a few days prior, got an idea of what we wanted & recommended other ideas to capture special moments we weren't even thinking about. She arrived to our venue early & worked with the owner to ensure the room & décor was set-up perfectly to get the best shots. Cristyn helped pose my husband & I for all the best, most-wanted couple photos. There seriously not a thing she missed or moment she didn't capture.
On top of her special talent, she was SO KIND to everyone. I really loved how Cristyn engaged with us as she edited our photos by posting sneak-peeks on her Instagram. Also, the turn around time in receiving our album was such an amazing surprise. My husband & I LOVE how Cristyn created our gallery, providing ease to download, share & purchase prints. We highly recommend Cristyn Cara Photography to capture any special moment!!
-Kalie & Gage
"I cannot say enough about how happy we are with Cristyn Cara Photography and the work she did at our daughter’s wedding! Cristyn is professional, organized, talented and one of the sweetest people you’ll ever meet!
The gallery arrived quickly and we can’t stop looking at the photos! They’re beautiful and document the day perfectly. Should you decide to hire Cristyn you will not be disappointed. She does a fabulous job!" -Lucia N
"Cristyn is literal magic with a camera! My fiancé and I are not photogenic, nor do we like taking lots of pictures. Our first session was actually our first time in an actual photoshoot. But Cristyn did something to us and she created truly such an amazing engagement session! An experience to remember!! She made it so special for us!
Cristyn had never been to the venue and the minute she saw us, she said she already had so many ideas! She made us feel so comfortable with her (and in public doing a photo session!). She was also flexible with timing for that day! With storms coming in, she found a pocket in the weather with no rain and we were able to still do our photos. They turned out amazing!! I can’t thank Cristyn enough for this and I’m beyond excited to have her for our wedding day too!!"
-Rebekah & Kevin
"Cristyn did our engagement pictures for us last week and we could not be happier! She makes you feel comfortable and beautiful every step of the way!! If you need pictures done look no further! This is your girl!"
-Allie & CJ
"Cristyn was an absolute joy to work with! My fiancé and I loved our engagement session with her and cannot wait to work with her again on our wedding day! Despite our difficult schedules, she was flexible and worked with us. We received our photos back sooner than we expected and are beyond happy with all the gorgeous moments she captured. Cristyn is very professional, but also super friendly and easy going that made everything relaxing and comfortable. If I could give more than 5 stars, I would!"
-Alexandra & Cody
"Cristyn has done family photos for us and just recently photographed our wedding. She is AMAZING! So much fun to work with and does phenomenal work :) we love her!"
-Brett & Jennifer
"Cristyn did our maternity shoot and we could not be happier with the pictures she took! She captured our love and joy perfectly and gave us such a keepsake for years to come. She is great at explaining how to stand and pose - and she makes it all look natural! We can’t wait to work with Cristyn again after our sweet baby is born. Thank you Cristyn!
-Alyssa & Jeff
"Cristyn has done both our engagement and maternity photos. She is super easy to work with and knows what she's talking about. She makes you feel very comfortable every step of the way, and her pictures are wonderful!"
-Lindsay & Anthony