Abby & Ollie: Mackinac Island Engagement Photos

I am so excited because today I'm sharing a little peek Abby and Ollie's wedding weekend on Mackinac Island in Michigan! I loved having the opportunity to photograph these two the day before their wedding on the shores of Mackinac. We traveled from The Inn at Stonecliffe (about two miles back into the island) by horse and buggy (this island is the coolest!!) to find the perfect spot along the coast. And on top of that - the midday light even cooperated so it wasn't too, too bright! I'm so excited to share more from their beautiful wedding weekend, but for now - here's a little peek into their day-before session!

Sam + Anthony: Moraine State Park Engagement Photos

I met up with these two on one of the most beautiful days in all of May at Moraine State Park! Anthony is a golfer, Sam is a Disney lover (which of course I love!), and they both have a mutual love for Wendy's (which I think is where they went to eat after our session!). These two laughed through their entire session and were absolute pros in front of the camera (though they kept trying to reassure me they were not!). I love seeing couples have a fun time during their engagement session - and I think you can tell from these photos that these two certainly did!

Congratulations on your engagement, Sam and Anthony! We can't wait for the wedding!

Elisabeth + Nazari: Downtown Pittsburgh Anniversary Photographer

Every once in a while, various wedding professionals in the Pittsburgh area hold get togethers for other vendors in the industry. The first industry even I ever went to took place at the Renaissance Pittsburgh and was hosted by local wedding blog Lace & Loyalty. Upon arriving, we (me, my husband, and friend Sara) were introduced to a couple who had THE best ice-breaker story about the husband, Nazari, and his middle name (which is Megatron, BTW - talk about an epic story!). We quickly connected with these two and learned that they were the videographers (and photographers) behind Dorosh Documentaries (which you should go check out RIGHT NOW because their work is AMAZING!).

Now - there is one thing you need to know about these two, and I can't over exaggerate this: they are the kindest, most humble and genuine people you will probably ever meet. Their love for each other and desire for growth, encouragement, and authenticity in their life, their marriage, and work is so prevalent in everything they do. And because of the amazing people they are and the amazing work they do, I was so honored when they asked me to take 6 year anniversary portraits for them!

You might've heard the famous saying "the shoemaker's children go barefoot" - well, the videographer/photographer husband-wife team go without photos of themselves! During their session, Elisabeth told me that they hadn't had a professional photo session in nearly 6 years (since their wedding day!!) - which I can totally relate to! It's so easy to think "I'll wait until I have kids to have photos taken," or "I'll wait until my kids grow up to schedule a photo session." Heck no. Your future kids deserve beautiful photos of their parents - in love! They deserve to see the way you interacted, the way you looked at each other, the way you were goofy and silly with each other. And your future grandkids? They want to see those photos, too, because deep down, we all want to know where we came from and whose legacy we are continuing.

To Nazari and Elisabeth - I hope these photos are a reminder of your love. I hope they encourage you and remind you of all of the ways that Christ has so richly blessed your love, marriage, and faithfulness to him. You guys are inspiring!

4 Tips for Preparing Your Groom for Your Engagement Session

Are you a bride who’s wondering how your groom will react to having his photo taken? You are most certainly not alone! One of the biggest questions I am asked by my brides is how to prepare her groom for the engagement session. So many of my couples who were nervous before their session walk away saying: “Wow! That was actually fun.” And that’s what it’s about – not just getting some great photos, but actually having fun while doing it!

So if you’re a bride who’s a little bit nervous about how your groom might react to the engagement session, here are a few of my top tips:

1.  Sit down and show him a couple of your favorite blog posts or galleries by your photographer.

Sometimes the scariest thing about going into something new is the unknown – the same is true for going into an engagement session! In most (not all) cases, the bride is the one looking for and booking the wedding photographer, which means that she will already be very familiar with the style, look, and posing associated with a particular photographer by the time the engagement session rolls around. However, if a groom hasn’t been involved in picking the wedding photographer (or has only seen a few samples of work), they could be a bit blind-sided going into a session by what to expect. By looking at a few blog posts or galleries the night before your engagement session, a bride will give her groom realistic expectations for how the session will pan out!

2.  Leave early to arrive ahead of schedule!

This tip might not seem like it fits quite as well, but I know from photographing many sessions (and from being in a relationship myself ;) ) that timeliness can sometimes be a point of contention between any two people who love each other! Be sure to leave early enough to arrive on time to your session. Starting off your session in an argumentative manner from tardiness can put a damper on the beginning of the shoot!

3.  Plan to do something fun together afterwards.

So maybe taking photos isn’t necessarily your guy’s favorite thing to do – or maybe he’s nervous because he’s never had his photo taken professionally before! Whatever the case, plan to do something fun before or afterwards that you can both look forward to – whether it’s going out to dinner, seeing a movie, going out for ice-cream – having something fun to plan for after your session will give you both something to look forward to and will make your night for getting engagement photos done more into a date night!

4. Have patience & be an encourager.

Getting your photo taken can be awkward if you've never had it done before, or if it's been a while! Don't forget to have patience and grace with your groom, especially if he's feeling uneasy. It's completely normal to feel nervous before having your photo taken - the best thing you can do is continue to encourage and build up your groom throughout the whole process!

And just to show that it is possible for guys to have fun during the engagement session, here are a few of my favorite photos of grooms genuinely enjoying their session:

Lulu + Ricky: University of Pittsburgh (Oakland) Engagement Session

Lulu and Ricky (or "Lucky" if you were to refer to them by their couple name!) are two of the most successful, yet humble people I have ever had the privilege to photograph! These two met in August of 2011, both as new Economics PhD students at the University of Pittsburgh. Considering Lulu is from a small town in China, and Ricky from Cleveland, their meeting was meant to be (or shall I say - very Lucky! ;) )! After getting to know each other through studying together, in the spring of 2012, Lulu and Ricky officially started dating. Now, they both teach classes at the Pitt and have offices that reside directly beside each other!

There are a few things that stand out to me about this sweet couple, the first of which is their favorite date. To get an idea of who a couple is to photograph them in the most accurate way possible, I sometimes like to email a few questions before our session together. One of my favorite questions to ask is: "What was the BEST date you ever had together?" To which Lulu responded: "There is no one BEST one, but rather a bunch of them. If climbing the Great Wall can be considered as a date, it's definitely one of the great ones." I mean, how cool is that?!

One more thing that stood out about Lulu and Ricky is their love for each other. Another question I love to ask is: "If you could sum up your relationship in three words, what would they be?" To which Lulu replied "Happy, diverse, intellectual. Ricky's answer is 'I love Lulu.'" I mean, seriously?! How sweet is that?

When it comes to photographing these two, they were absolutely amazing and caught on to the whole process so fast! We started off at the Frick Fountain in front of the Henry Clay Frick Fine Arts Building and then worked our way around to the Cathedral of Learning and finished our session at the Mellon Institute with these two in their PhD caps and gowns. Lulu's mom was even in from China and makes a little guest appearance in one of the last frames of this blog post - she was the sweetest! 

I'm so thankful to have meet you two, Lulu and Ricky! Congratulations again on your engagement - we pray all the best for you two!

Chelsea + TJ: McConnell's Mill Engagement Photographer

Like many Saturdays in Western PA during the spring and summer months, the rain threatened Chelsea and TJ's engagement session until the very last moment - but luckily for us, we escaped the rain and were left with the beautiful scenery of McConnell's Mill!

One of my favorite moments during Chelsea and TJ's engagement session came towards the end. These two were doing a phenomenal job (and were getting to be pros in front of the camera!), so I asked if they would feel comfortable with doing a piggy back ride through a field. They both laughed and mentioned that when they visit TJ's grandma's house, he always gives Chelsea a piggy back ride to escape the groundhogs that live in her yard. If that's not true love, I'm not sure what is!

We can't wait to celebrate your marriage, Chelsea and TJ!

How to Choose Outfits for Your Engagement Session

You're engaged - congratulations!!! Now comes the next step - engagement photos! One of the most frequently asked questions I receive as a Pittsburgh engagement photographer is: what should I wear for my engagement photos? While there's no cookie-cutter answer (because style varies from couple to couple), here are a couple of suggestions for choosing the best engagement session outfits to represent yours and your husband-to-be's personalities!

1. Choose something you feel comfortable in!

Comfort is key while having your engagement photos taken. Being comfortable in your clothes will translate to comfort in front of the camera!

2. Don’t be afraid to go for something a little upscale!

It’s not often you and your husband-to-be have your photos taken, so dressing up can be a fun way to celebrate the occasion! One of my favorite options to recommend for dressy clothing (without having to buy something to expensive) is Rent the Runway. They have dresses of all styles that can be rented for just a fraction of the purchasing price!

3. Don’t be afraid to accessorize.

For brides – adding a scarf, necklace, or hat can be a great way to add some additional visual interest! For grooms – bowties, ties, watches, and pocket squares can do the same! For the photo below, Becca wore a statement necklace and an adorable pair of red shoes that are complimentary to Dave's bowtie and checkered shirt! Their outfits were some of my favorites to date because of the thoughtfulness they put into using such a variety of accessories and colors!

4. Coordinate colors, but don’t match.

It’s important to balance each other out. In the photo below, Jeff and Trina are wearing similar colors (navy) but have some tans, light blues, and pinks thrown in the mix to balance them out! (The photo above is also a great example of color coordination!)

5. Pick something that represents YOU!

Whatever you wear, don’t forget to throw your own style flare into your photos. This could mean wearing an outfit from your favorite designer, purchasing a dress from your favorite store, or incorporating a hobby/career theme into your session! Trina and Jeff, shown below, incorporated Jeff's long-time love of firefighting into his photos.

Timber + Zack: McConnell's Mill Engagement Photographer

I love when couples incorporate unique elements of who they are into their engagement photos (See this link for tips for choosing a unique engagement session location), and Timber and Zack's engagement session was no exception. These two are Missouri born-and-raised and met when they were twelve years old - but didn't start dating until just a few years ago. They both wanted a location that reflected their love of the great outdoors, so McConnell's Mills was the perfect fit! They also chose to incorporate Zack's truck, as well as a few bullets (a nod to Zack's love of hunting) for the ring shot! Congratulations on your engagement, Timber and Zack!

Kim & Darren: Myrtle Beach Couple Photography

Do you ever have one of those days (or... months?) where you just cannot wait to get away? February was one of those for me.

I have to admit, I'm not much of a beach person, but getting some sand between my toes in the off-season is one of my favorite ways to relax. While I'm not a big beach-sitter, I do love to walk on the beach and be reminded of my smallness (oceans will do that to you, I suppose). At any rate, Nick and I were extremely fortunate to be able to travel down to Myrtle with some of his co-workers and their spouses. We relaxed, walked, went the spa, hot tubbed (I think I made that up), and even had the chance to take some photos of Nick's coworker, Darren, and his beautiful wife Kim! You might recognize these two from their Geneva College engagement session last fall.

When Kim asked if I would be willing to snap some photos of her and Darren on our trip, I was THRILLED. If there's anything I know to be true about Kim, it's that she LOVES the beach. I'm not sure I know of anyone who loves the beach more than her, actually (quite a contrast to me!) - and I love the idea of taking photos of her with the person she loves most in one of the places she loves most. That's what it's all about!!!

7 Questions to Consider for Unique Engagement Photos

Choosing an engagement session location can be a daunting task. With so many options to choose from, especially in Pittsburgh, where do you even begin? As a Pittsburgh wedding photographer, there are a few specific clarifying questions I like to ask my couples to help them think outside of the box for their session to choose a location (or theme) that’s unique to them.

1. Where did you meet?

Let’s go back to where it all began. Having a session where you first met is a great way to incorporate your relationship history. Tess & Phil, in the photos below, met at Seneca Hills Bible Camp. They decided to go back for their engagement photos!

2. Where was your first date?

Was your first date in a restaurant? At the movies? In a theatre? At a bar? At an ice-cream shop or bakery? Let’s go back to that spot! In the photo below, part of Sarah and Steven's first date was at the Bartram House Bakery. Going back to that spot made for some adorable photos that have sentimental value!

3. Where was your favorite date?

Usually, there are certain dates that stand out above others. Is there an anniversary date that stood out above the rest? Did your fiancé plan an epic Valentine’s Day date that you wish you could relive? While discussing options for their engagement photos, Jess and Todd (below) mentioned that they love hanging out on the North Shore around PNC Park. The city made for a perfect backdrop - plus, with the added sentimental value, it was a no brainer for their engagement session location!

4. What do you do you love to do together?

Do you love to eat out together at a certain café? Do you have a coffee shop you visit on a weekly basis? Do you love to cook or bake together? Or maybe you love biking, hiking, or canoeing on the weekend. The options are truly endless!

5. How, when, and where did he propose?

Let’s go back to the start of your engagement.

6. What do you most admire about your fiancé?

Is your fiancé a police officer? In the military? A fire fighter? Trina wanted to incorporate Jeff's love for fire fighting into their engagement photos, and the results are stunning and so personal to the two of them!

7. What is your favorite mutual movie or book?

This one might sound crazy, but movies and books can be so inspirational. Do you love “Tangled?” Buy a couple of floating lanterns and set them off over a lake at sunset!  Love the movie “Up?” Buy a bunch of rainbow balloons for us to play with during your session!

Are there any questions you would add to this list? How did you choose your engagement session location?