Yup, Bill and Harry got to play around Capitol Hill again with me- only this time, the weather was bright and sunny. We found some great painted walls and a cafe I wanted to live in with syrup dispensers. Why do I love syrup dispensers so much? And gourmet poptarts were served fresh. With plenty of sprinkles, which is how it should be. I wanted to post this before Bill and Harry get hitched this Saturday. Can’t wait to see you guys!
In what feels like a million years ago, Natalie and I got married at Woodend Sanctuary in Chevy Chase, MD. My dream is to do a wedding there. I may be partial because I got married there, but seriously, I love that venue with all my squishy, wedding-loving heart. But until I do a wedding there *hint hint* I love going there to do actual engagement shoots. It’s close to Rock Creek Park and has plenty of variety of scenery to shoot.
LaKesha, who did her own hair (can you believe it? if I ever attempted a sophisticated updo like that, someone would run away screaming that something died on my head), showed up in a stunning purple dress that I refused to let her change out of. Nope. Sorry. Too bad change of clothes. AJ didn’t start off as well. AJ must be a beakon for every bug within a 2 mile radius. So our first location was quickly abandoned because every bug in America was trying attack him. All I have is pictures of him trying to keep flying bugs out of his mouth and eyes. Not exactly romantic engagement shots.
So off we went, hitting up Rock Creek Park, playgrounds and winding down at Woodend. When I asked them to snuggle, AJ grabbed hold of LaKesha and didn’t let go till I forced them to. They just naturally knew what would make the other laugh and weren’t afraid to use it to make for some amazing shots. They are getting married this weekend and I just know they are going to be the kind of couple I love to shoot: freakin’ excited to be getting married and so happy their cheek muscles will be sore the next day from all their laughing/smiling. The best kind.
The big thing I love about NYC engagement shoots is that there is soooo much variety in such a small amount of space. You can go from Washington Square Park to amazing Brownstones to the water front pretty darn quickly. Kara and Chris knew the neighborhood well, keeping me from getting lost. Which, I’m inclined to do very fast if you don’t staple a GPS unit to my head. The super overcast day had us all looking to the sky to ensure rain didn’t spill and cause us to cancel the shoot. But it held out and even decided to grant us some lovely sunset light as we made our way to the Piers. However, this shoot had me thinking. Kara and Chris plus apparently all their attendants are *super* tall. Like, woah tall. And I generally like being slightly taller that the couple to get a good angle- with my 5’7 1/2 – 8 given the day and nurse measuring me, I’m usually ok. But I’m thinking the whole shoot about Go-Go-Gadget legs. Remember Inspector Gadget? Is it just me? He could say whatever he needed and his legs would extend or arms or neck or all kinds of stuff. I for real need that for the wedding. Or 4 inch heels. Cause Kara is walking around like a runway model and I’m well….trying to get on objects to make myself taller.
Stephanie is a teacher and I promised her I would blog that she got an A+. After doing my engagement preparation questionnaire and talking about exactly what kind of shoot they wanted, we nailed down a few things that felt perfect for them. Like the bright color of Izzy soda or peonies. And when I drove up to their house, I was met with everything we had talked about. It was like an inspiration board come to life! And their home was my dream home come to life. I kid you not. A wrap around porch? Check. Hammock. Check. A river running behind the house so it felt like a high quality spa. Check. Moss and ferns (be still my heart, be still). Check.
Charlie was really really upset, jumping up and down, leaping from car seat to car seat. She wanted oooooout of the car and to be playing with her mommies. And those weird things making noise didn’t help. What were those guys riding on? Giant noise machines?
We had stumbled upon a few abandoned barns but also on the trail of dirt bike enthusiasts. And Charlie, poor puppy dog, was having none of it. I was pleading with Lauren and Leah to ignore the dirt bikers for a few moments because the light was sooooo perfect. It was just making me jump for joy inside. I wanted to put a big X on the spot I was shooting at and come back everyday, just to see the light play off of things, people, the grass. But I hurried knowing a very unhappy dog was sitting just a yard or two behind us, waiting for us to come back to play and be comforted.
And that’s just what we did. Charlie was released from prison, hahaha, and we played in a field and got some barn shots before the sun officially left. Lauren gave a very firm talking to the dirt bikers. And we left, getting to talk and laugh on the roads of CT (which we didn’t know as well as we thought).
