Hi, friend! I’m so excited to introduce you to the three-person Alyssa Lund Photography team today. Wedding and lifestyle photography can be a lot of work, and I’m so grateful to get to take it on with Tyler and Gillian by my side -- together, we make a really fun, dedicated, and happy little team!

Alyssa

1) What's your name + role at Alyssa Lund Photography?

I’m Alyssa, I use she/her, and I am the photographer and owner of Alyssa Lund Photography. I photograph weddings, engagements, and lifestyle portraits (including family sessions, newborn sessions, and couples sessions). I wear lots of hats as a small business owner and enjoy it all!

2) How long have you worked at Alyssa Lund Photography?

This is an interesting question -- technically, I started using the name “Alyssa Lund Photography” when I was in high school! I started doing photography when I was 14 years old (and I'm almost 30 now!) working as an apprentice of another local photographer. By the end of high school, I was doing quite a lot of photography, taking senior portraits for my friends and doing family and newborn sessions.

I think I started considering myself a professional photographer in college - I'd come home during the summers and assist other wedding photographers, and started taking on my own clients. During those years, I soaked up as much practice and education as I could, really built my portfolio and learned what my passions were.

Alyssa Lund Photography became an official full-time business in January 2015 when I quit my day job to focus solely on photography! I focused my business on wedding photography since it was what I loved to do most at the time. That feels like so many years ago -- it’s really meaningful to reflect on how far I’ve come as a photographer and small business owner!

3) What's your favorite thing about working at Alyssa Lund Photography?

I still adore photographing weddings! I love people, I love communities, I love seeing how people interact and all the moments and emotions that happen on wedding days. I still cry at wedding ceremonies and heartfelt toasts! I just love seeing couples surrounded by their loved ones and having these really meaningful experiences on their wedding days.

I also really love art delivery days -- passing off a beautiful wedding album to a couple, hanging a gallery wall in a client’s living room seeing physical artwork in my clients’ hands and homes is so deeply satisfying to me as an artist.

I also enjoy running a small business! I love all of the organizing, doing big picture planning, getting to meet and support other small business owners, and especially all my time meeting couples, getting to know them, and working with them.

And I love photography! I love that I get to do something so creative for a job. When I was younger, I always thought it’d be a dream job to be a photographer but I didn’t believe that people could really make a career out of it. The fact that I get to do this as a job is really special to me, and I have a deep sense of gratitude for it.

4) What fuels you as you work -- tea or coffee (or something else?!)?

Coffee 1000%! Tea is nice, but I’m a huge coffee person. One of my daily rituals is taking 30-90 minutes of “quiet coffee time” every morning, a routine that really starts my day off on the right foot.

5) What's your favorite place in the Twin Cities to explore or spend time with family and friends?

During the pandemic, I’ve loved exploring parks. One of the reasons I love living in Minneapolis so much is its connection to nature and how much nature is in the city. I lived out in Boston for a while after college and liked it a lot, but I missed Minneapolis’s nature, the lakes, what a green city it is, all of the bike trails… and especially during the pandemic, being in nature has allowed me to be near friends and family while still being safe!

6) Favorite restaurant in the Twin Cities?

Oof! That is such a hard question! One of my favorite restaurants is Hola Arepa, which has the best patio (and I love their slushie cocktail!). I also love Kyatchi, which has the most amazing sushi and ethically-caught seafood. When it’s nice out, all I want to do is have a glass of white wine and a big ol’ plate of sushi!

I’m also a bit of a pizza monster and I could eat Young Joni every day of the week.

7) What's your secret, non-work-related talent?

Can I just say eating? I’m great at eating! I’m also a very fast typer. I can type 120 words per minute, sometimes even more! I can also set up a baby pack-and-play with one hand (a lingering talent from my days as a preschool teacher haha).

8) When not working at Alyssa Lund Photography, you can be found...

...enjoying food with my community (in covid-conscientious ways)! Pre-pandemic, my close friends and I would have a potluck every other week! Gathering together, cooking food, and having long, lingering dinners -- that’s my happy place for sure.

Tyler

1) What's your name + role at Alyssa Lund Photography?

I'm Tyler, I use him/his pronouns and I'm Alyssa's second shooter for weddings. Also, we're married which is pretty tight.

2) How long have you worked at Alyssa Lund Photography?

For quite some time! I think the first wedding I worked was back in 2013 after we graduated from college, and I've been working weddings with Alyssa since that point.

3) What's your favorite thing about working at Alyssa Lund Photography?

It's fun getting to meet couples after hearing Alyssa rave about them during the months leading up to their wedding. I enjoy getting to go behind the scenes and tag along with the couple during their wedding day -- lots of fun family and goofy friend moments.

4) What fuels you as you work -- tea or coffee (or something else?!)?

H20 is the way to go.

5) What's your favorite place in the Twin Cities to explore or spend time with family and friends?

My favorite part of the Twin Cities is all the parks, trails, lakes, creeks, and the river! Take me to some green space or some water and I'll be happy.

6) Favorite restaurant in the Twin Cities?

Boludo has a piece of my heart that borders on an obsession.

7) What's your secret, non-work-related talent?

Pottery! Thought talent might be stretching it...I love getting muddy and making tableware.

8) When not working at Alyssa Lund Photography, you can be found...

...hanging out with our dog Luna, on a bike ride, throwing pots on the wheel, playing bass guitar, or learning harmonica.

Gillian

1) What's your name + role at Alyssa Lund Photography?

Hi, I'm Gillian! I use she/her pronouns. I wear many hats here at Alyssa Lund Photography -- content creator, marketing assistant, copywriter -- but you can just think of me as Alyssa's right-hand woman.

2) How long have you been working at Alyssa Lund Photography?

I joined the team in March 2020! My onboarding meeting with Alyssa actually took place just a few days before the covid-related shutdown began in Minnesota. It was a somewhat challenging time to start a new job, but I've loved every second of it!

3) What's your favorite thing about working at Alyssa Lund Photography?

I have two favorite parts! First off, I write most of the content here at Alyssa Lund Photography, and a lot of my work involves turning clients' stories and sessions into blog posts (with their permission!). This basically means I get paid to write love stories -- the stories of couples starting a new chapter together, families welcoming a new member, and people celebrating their love for one another. It is an incredible honor, and I feel super lucky to get to do this work... even though I don't have the chance to meet most of these clients, I feel so much admiration and awe towards them from afar!

Second, I absolutely love getting to work closely with Alyssa! She is truly just as delightful, thoughtful, and uplifting as she seems. She brightens my day every time we talk and encourages me to dream bigger constantly -- it is truly a gift to work alongside her (and Tyler — I just don’t get to see him much!).

4) What fuels you as you work -- tea or coffee (or something else?!)?

Coffee in the morning, tea in the afternoon. (If you haven't tried Yogi Tea's Raspberry Passion Perfect Energy blend before, trust me — it is legit.)

5) What's your favorite place in the Twin Cities to explore or spend time with family and friends?

Oh, such a tough question! I love spending time with friends at any of the lakes, as well as at Minnehaha Falls. A body of water, some greenery, my loved ones, and maybe a snack or two, and I'm a happy woman!

6) Favorite restaurant in the Twin Cities?

I love Due Focacceria and Hot Hands Pie & Biscuit. Also: Hola Arepas, Pizza Luce, Bar La Grassa, and Aster Cafe. And can't forget Milkjam and Sebastian Joe's! (We have such amazing restaurants here!)

7) What's your secret, non-work-related talent?

I am weirdly good at guessing people's lies when playing that "Two Truths and a Lie" game -- a skill that is useful maaaybe once every five years!

8) When not working at Alyssa Lund Photography, you can be found...

...taking naps with my dog, working as a mental health therapist, going on walks and having bonfires with friends, running very slowly along the Mississippi River (go team Mill City Running!), taking classes at Alchemy 365, and watching bad reality tv!