Tara Lyons (me!) is a 30 something gal who absolutely loves taking pictures. But there are a few other things I like, too! I have two amazing kiddos, and a dumb pug named Bissy (aka Anubis, guardian of the dead). Turns out, my hobbies overlap a lot with toddlers. (You wanna swing? heck yeah! You wanna dance to Moana for the 5th time this week? heck yeah! You wanna eat some ice cream? heck yeah! And btw, I'm stealing your Halloween candy when you go to sleep.)

I love pizza, beer, and warm chocolate chip cookies (did someone say Tiff's Treats?). I also love sitting in a hot tub, lounging in a hammock, and roller blading. In the Summer I live to be in or near any body of water. I love to cook (if you follow me on instagram 75% of my stories are about food). I'm the WORST singer, but I will always karaoke "friends in low places" if it's an option.

let's talk about me!

Okay, clickbait title. But I did test out of high school a year early! I knew I wanted to do photography and didn't particularly love high school, so I started college early! After a couple of years of being a photography major, I switched to marketing and business. I made the switch because I planned to run a photography BUSINESS and understood that the photography part is learned by doing, while the business part didn't come so naturally. I eventually ended up with an MBA focused in marketing, woo!

high school drop out.

I've done tons of different types of photography over the years and none of them really slap like weddings do! I started doing standard portraits as a hobby, and that was just okay. Then I switched to boudoir, which involved too many hours of fine tuned editing work (which got a little boring). I occasionally do studio newborns, but I've realized I love that just because I want to snuggle the babies.

I NEVER thought I would do weddings, I thought it would be too stressful. Fun fact, I studied weddings over a YEAR before attempting to shoot one, and that was with ten years of other types of photography under my belt already! They are a completely different beast.

Once I learned the ins and outs of wedding photography, I realized it's my JAM. You get to capture such a broad range of photographs; one minute you're doing a landscape, the next you're doing a macro of a ring, then a portrait... it's so fun and rewarding! Not to mention I get to work with people who are just fricking GLOWING with love. Everything is beautiful and everyone is happy and there's cake involved. Like, come on. Weddings are the best!!

but like, why weddings?

I am a single mom of the most amazing four year old girl and two year old boy. My kiddos are my world and my everything. One of the best things about my career is that I am able to stay home with my littles during the week and provide for them without having to work a structured nine to five job.

Thank you so much for supporting me and allowing me to live this life that I love so much. Seriously. Me and my kids would not have the life that we have if it wasn't for the incredible couples I have the honor of working for.

Wait, did I mention I'm a cryer? Because now I'm crying.

mom life.