Kelly Prizel Photography » Engagement

U Street DC Engagement

admin — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 15:46:24 +0000

Shiami came back to DC for a very good reason- Andy. She had been here before, but after a crazy-busy job in NYC, she found herself in DC and planning her wedding. We shot at Meridian Hill Park and around U street which used to be her old stomping grounds.

With an easy sense of humor, they happily cracked up and I snap-snapped away. It seemed like every time they looked at each other, a smile popped up on both their faces. And I did a double take when Andy showed up with those awesome glasses- they looked exactly like mine before I got my eyes zapped. And it wasn’t just glasses they showed up with- chalkboards, pinwheels, and Andy’s guitar. Who doesn’t love being serenaded in the middle of a park?

Oh- and the whole mathematical code on the chalkboard? Business school equation for why their love works. Yes, we geeked it out.

Rock it!! I love this purple dress for an engagement session. This is Example A of why you should wear bright colors to your session.

DC National Mall Monuments Engagement Session

admin — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 14:30:11 +0000

Christy and Jeff endured a spontaneous rain shower and thousands of DC tourists to have their National Mall engagement session. Thankfully, the rain thinned the crowds out…a little. And we romped from the Lincoln Memorial all the way to the World War II memorial. I just met with them this weekend to go over their timeline for their wedding and can’t believe their getting married in a month!

Rocky Neck Pavilion Park Engagement

admin — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:56:02 +0000

Kevin and Kate knew they wanted beach engagement shots. But they are also avid campers, hikers, and generally way more familiar with how to setup a tent or build a fire than I am. So, I suggested we combine the two. They were willing to setup camp if I was willing to wait and wait and wait for the fire to be juuuuust right for some smores shots. But we got them! I’ll admit that I’m really falling in love with CT the more I do engagement shoots. It *makes* me go to this awesome places and have fun. I have discovered more about my new home state just by having couples speak up and say ‘Well- what about here? Or we love here!’ So little by little, I’m making my way across the state. And Rocky Neck Pavilion is now high on my list of ‘must revisit’ places.

Collinsville CT Engagement

admin — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 10:18:47 +0000

Johanna and Kamran wanted something slightly different for their engagement shoot. Not too pretty. Not too broken down. So they discovered Collinsville CT. It was so cold that day, Johanna’s lips turned blue. Like, for reals blue. She assured me this happens all the time. Still. Freaked me out.

But Arthur, their labrador, kept tugging us along and the wind made for some great photos. Arthur even braved the bridge (with a lot of sweet words from Kamran). And Johanna’s vintage green polka dot dress, ribbon shoes, and hat made me swoon. We then broke out the picnic and they helped me lay out the blanket for our last minute pictures. After about 10 minutes of the picnic pictures by the river, my hands were so cold I was having trouble adjusting my camera settings. So it was a wrap. Somehow Kamran had enough dexterity to drive us all back to New Haven. I’m sooo excited about their wedding in August!

Meatpacking District New York Engagement

admin — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 18:54:14 +0000

Having Lisa and Alex to help guide me in the meatpacking district was essential. I had only been there once for Pride in 09, so I had no idea where all the cool spots were. But Alex, living mere blocks away, knew the area well and quickly showed me some amazing locations. Sometimes we would be walking down the street and I would just stop and go ‘Ohhhh’ and stare into space. Lisa and Alex realized this was my way of figuring out perfect spots to shoot at…apparently my verbal brain shuts down when I see something I like. Ha! So switching my brain back on, we got to the shooting part

Meridian Hill Park and U Street DC Engagement

admin — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 18:50:16 +0000

So remember when I had that contest for a free engagement session to celebrate DC legalizing gay marriage? Well this is the couple that won!! I can’t talk about who they are exactly because they are not showing anyone the engagement pictures because they will be used for the Save The Date cards they are making. I’m not going to have someone google their names and spoil the surprise!! So I’ll just let you enjoy the pictures.

West Rock New Haven CT Engagement

admin — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 20:01:35 +0000

So the main place I like to hike is West Rock. It has a gorgeous lake that’s enveloped by trees and you can’t see until you practically fall into it. So Mari, Jared, and I took a little walk and did a mini engagement session in the woods. My favorite thing they brought by far was the banner that said “Beshert”. I just love that word. So the cute banner got my heart a-flutter. They also told me ahead of time they were bringing a saxophone because Jared plays. Yes, a saxophone in the middle of the forest. But it actually became one of my favorite photos.

Union Station DC Engagement and U Street

admin — Thu, 27 May 2010 21:19:09 +0000

Becky and Jonathan are what I dream of: they follow directions!! They brought buckets full of amazing props, dressed in killer outfits, and had the balls to sneak into Union Station in DC with me. They have such love for DC as they bought their first house and have been renovating it themselves. Jonathan even laid down flooring (um…ya…I’m DIY but that’s a whole other ballgame).

And may I say HIGH FIVE to us for going into Union Station and getting some photos. I was nervous. I kept eyeballing the security guards. Nothing (if you don’t know, the security guards usually kick out prof. photogs in 5 seconds). So we went further in. I was foaming at the mouth excited as we got more and more photos in there!!

Union Station DC Engagement

admin — Fri, 21 May 2010 10:29:07 +0000

Vintage suitcase from Goodwill + a train station. Yum.

LightHouse Point Park New Haven, CT Engagement

admin — Thu, 20 May 2010 11:48:02 +0000

So Emily and Sean are already happily married but they ended up not having any professional pictures for the ceremony. Flashforward and Emily meets Natalie (my wife) at an awesome group called WGSS- a group that will be run by both of them next year. It’s basically Yale PhD students coming together to talk about Women, Gender, and Sexuality topics. They read papers. They read books together. I sometimes wish I could join in because they always have amazing stuff to talk about. I want to get my nerd on too!

So Emily, Sean, Natalie and I all headed out to Lighthouse Point Park in New Haven, CT. How is it I live 15 minutes from this awesome beach and 10 minutes away from gigantic mountains that I hike on? And they got dressed up in their wedding outfits- Hello?? Is the universe on a purple binge or something? Another awesome purple wedding dress and detailed purple suit.

Apparently it was freezing cold. EVERYONE was freezing. I honestly didn’t feel it until we got in the car because I get so excited shooting my adrenaline keeps me toasty and warm. But finally, enough was enough, and Emily and Sean broke out a blanket. I got the message. It was time to go, ha!