I had the extreme pleasure and honor of helping my dear friend Svenja with the move she and her family made into their new home by documenting their first full day there. This house is absolutely incredible, and I can’t imagine a better place for this wonderful family to call home, especially after years (that’s right years) of painful searching. The house is a converted dairy barn, built in the 1920s (but I believe it was redeveloped for humans in the 70s) and it was even featured in Architectural Digest at one point!
I’ve never done real-estate type photography before, and my camera is far-better equipped for portraits since that’s where my interest lies, so this was a fun challenge! I ended up deciding to focus on the details that make the house so unique and wonderful, as opposed to shooting each room, and I think focusing on details actually ended up giving a much better feel of the house (and the unbelievable grounds, my goodness) in the end, anyway! I’ll have a separate post soon with some really fun shots of what everyone, especially the dogs, were up to that day, but I ended up taking over 900 photos throughout the day, which is far too much for one post!
The view from the pool. I love how tucked away this house is–it’s surrounded by incredible pines and you can barely see it as you drive by, even though it’s right there!
The house features some incredible landscaping and gardens–an absolute wonder.
It even has a treehouse! Though I don’t think anyone has been brave enough to test its structural integrity yet.
Svenja and Zac have two greyhounds, and in the past have had as many as eight, if I’m not mistaken, so I love that this friend stands sentinel outside the incredible entryway.
Svenja said this light plate was going to be one of the first things to go, but I think it’s pretty incredible/amusing. What a reminder when you turn on the bedroom lights! 
This mermaid was a fairly recent acquisition and was one of my absolute favorite parts (of many wonderful aspects) of their old home, and they got her at a tag sale to boot! She used to sit above the fireplace but I love how she’s tucked away, just taking it all in here. I like her so much in fact, she’s even in the novel I’m currently working on!
This is the view from what will become the guest bedroom. Definitely one of my favorite rooms in the house.
I got a kick out of the kids playing with the ‘old timey phone,’ though it was after I took this picture, so I guess I thought it was notable too!
When Nick and I moved into our house Svenja brought us bread and salt as is (apparently) traditional in Germany. I couldn’t not return the favor, but I was pressed for time so instead of home-baked bread I brought her Icelandic finishing salts and a stale bagel. One of us has their shit together, and it’s not me.
I can’t imagine a better place to relax and watch the sunset than this deck. Congrats Svenja and Zac, you truly deserve this magical haven and I’m so glad it found you!
