For the Illume Retreat styled shoot, I wanted to focus on capturing different scenes that creatives from across the spectrum could relate to. From photographers, to artists, to floral designers, to writers, I wanted people to look at this shoot and feel as though they saw their creative interests represented well. So when it came to styling the photography vignettes, I wanted to showcase the amount of work that goes into capturing peoples’ memories in such a beautiful way. And what better way to represent the legacy that a photographer helps to immortalize than through the act of compiling a tangible photo album for a client or friend?

Now before you get too technical on me, I fully understand that archival quality photo albums are professionally printed and assembled. But when I came across Blue Sky Papers and their line of artisanal, hand-crafted books, albums and journals, I knew we had to incorporate one of their albums into this shoot. Made through traditional bookbinding techniques and covered in soft velvet in deep hues, these albums feature the most beautiful paper with a deckled edge. Lovers of fine details, wonderful textures and an heirloom quality piece of handiwork can all recognize how swoon-worthy these albums are!

Although these albums can serve a variety of purposes, I can easily envision a bride using these as a guest book, a place to store heartfelt photographs, or an incredibly beautiful sketchbook. It was almost too difficult to choose just one piece to feature in this shoot, simply because every product in their collection is so beautiful.

Many thanks to the incredible team at Blue Sky Papers for their willingness to collaborate for this shoot, as well as their dedication to creating beautiful books through time tested methods! I’m already plotting a way to get my hands on one of these beauties again.

Photos by Lauren Carnes Photography & Jade Reilly Photography | This post is part of a special feature series highlighting the incredible vendors who contributed to the Illume Retreat styled shoot