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.

I love it when a couple is up for a winter engagement session because winter has so many options for fun, outdoor things to do. Ice skating with a break for hot chocolate? Or in this case- cutting down a christmas tree!

Kate and Eric really wanted an engagement shoot that wasn’t just cute pictures of them in different poses but almost like a storyboard with a fun activity. Doing an activity requires more planning but creates a very different feel and can be great for camera shy couples who want to be engrossed in doing something to relax. We all loved the idea of chopping down their christmas tree at a local family farm called Jones Farm. And days before our shoot, they bought their first house- so it would be their first Christmas in their first home. So we had to pick a good tree!

I have never cut down a christmas tree nor been to a christmas tree farm- little did I know how hard it is to find the right tree! They would look small and then Eric would stand next to them and we would quickly realize the tree would be too big to fit in the house. Or Kate would like a tree, but then it would be in a weird place to take photos because many trees had been cut before we got there and we didn’t want a billion stumps in the pictures. We wanted the photos to have a ‘middle of the forest’ feel. But we found one and I just loved the smell of the pine. And by that time, the sun was setting, our eyes began to tear up from the cold, but they were so happy carting off that christmas tree that the photos at the end of the session are some of my favorite.

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.

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!

Molly and Jesse are actually getting married in July but I was already booked for their wedding day. So we decided to have fun and do an engagement session here in New Haven. Since they met and fell in love here at Yale during their PhD programs, we of course had to sneak into the English building for a shot or two. And we happened upon a blackboard full of Italien- perfection! Then off to a secret beach location I know that I was super excited to finally get to shoot at!