Hi there, I'm Jess Denton! I'm the photographer, owner and passion behind monroe+co! Here's a little bit about me and my journey to owning this tiny little piece of heaven in uptown Marion, IA.
Experience: I'm super well rounded in grilled cheese making and photo documenting. I'm also decent at Mommy-ing and Wife-ing. :) I've been taking pictures since I was young, but didn't really find a passion for it until college. I went to school at the Academy of Art College in San Francisco, where I majored in Illustration. I took a Photography elective class and fell head over heels. I started as a fine art photographer, and quickly found my place in the world of portrait and wedding photography. I've been a full time photographer since 2010, owning Kazoo Photography from 2007 to 2017, when we became monroe+co. I've continued my education with workshops, conventions, wonderful online collaborative groups and my awesome photog friends that know how amazing community over competition can be for everyone. My WHY: Loving other's through self expression. I'm CRAZY passionate about creating art and self expression, even in the tiniest of ways. Photography allows me to express myself and create something, while giving someone a wonderful gift at the same time. I'm able to show my clients their lives, their kids, their beauty, their experiences through my eyes, from my heart. It's pretty incredible. Photography is my therapy, my baby, my best friend, my outlet... I'd be totally lost without it. The fact that I can love and celebrate others by doing what I love is just the icing on the cake. |
Favorite thing to photograph: I REALLY love photographing ALL the things, for different reasons. I've been told so many times that in order to be successful I need to focus on ONE style of photography, and specialize in a certain genre. Unfortunately, photography is not only my form of income, but also the way I express myself and feel better on a funk-day. I'd say that Seniors and Weddings/Engagements are my favorite, but if I'm being honest, I LOVE seeing my little baby clients and watching them grow. I love how unpredictable they are, the little faces they make and silly things they say and do. And weddings, I mean come on. Who doesn't love being a part of two people's dream come true?! I love everything about weddings and documenting two people so in love. Seniors are a whole other experience. I basically get to dress up cute girls in cute clothes and watch them come alive in front of the camera. I love watching shy girls come out of their shells, and insecure girls realize how absolutely gorgeous they really are. "I look so pretty" is something that never gets old to hear. Fact About Jess: I do handstands when I get stressed. I should own stock in Jimmy Johns. Comfy sweats, tank and top knots are my signature style. I'm dyslexic and have the memory of a fish. (I actually don't know anything about fish memories, but I've heard that saying before so I'm going with it.) I LOVE fashion and watching styles cycle. In the rare moments of alone time I get, you can catch me cross stitching or ADHD hyper fixating on a new hobby. Live music can cure anything, if even for a moment, and you can't convince me otherwise. I have the most adorable, funny, wonderful husband (Tyler) and amazing three kids (Riot-16 OH MY GOSH SHE'S DRIVING, Early-13 and Navy-11) on the planet. We are a family that loves to BBQ outside on fall evenings with a bonfire going, we love car rides to Starbucks for yummy drinks and cake pops, we love giving, we love how fresh snow sparkles and how freshly cut grass smells. We talk often about whats important in life, though Early's opinions vary slightly from the rest of us, as she's a pretty big fan of fruit snacks. We encourage our friends and family to see beauty in everything, especially in the hearts and warm actions of others. We are silly and sarcastic and would drop anything for those we love or those in need. We love the Hawkeyes (but don't discriminate against our Cyclone and Panther friends!), and we're a house divided between the Vikings & Packers. I'm beyond blessed. 
Me with my handsome guy, Ty!
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