Norah and Nick had to change their plans a MILLION times, and this was not unusual for couples in 2020 during the entire year. They were struggling to figure out what to do, from Glen Sanders to Renaissance Hotel to now to On-site Vendors on a Property that they finally were able to purchase and call their own. The day started with both of them in separate locations, Norah at her Mom’s home in Averill Park, and Nick on the property of where their wedding ceremony and reception would be held. Norah was BEAUTIFULLY beaming, she was excited, but also a little nervous. She was hoping the day would go smoothly, and that everything would work out. Let me tell you that when she told me her plan and everything was thought about, I had NO DOUBTS that things would be fine, I didn’t even give any suggestions because her plan was fool proof. I obviously didn’t say that last part outloud because I didn’t want to be the one to jinx it, but really though, it was unjinxable.

So when we FIRST met, Nick was a bit reserved and I knew that we might have some warming up for the session, but MAN was he completely different come Engagement day! Nick was ready to have some fun and be COMPLETELY INVOLVED in this process and man did he make Norah laugh so hard. The entire time he was energetic and happy and was doing EVERYTHING in his power, to make Norah happy. This man is the real MVP. Norah, this sweet girl with her bright blues and warm smile and infectious laugh is always thinking and planning for other people, and all Nick wanted to do, was do something for HER. This pretty much summed up how I began to fall in love with these two Love Bugs!

When they first reached out, their lives were BUSY they were making a lot of life changes so they were both a little nervous about things going on in their lives and wedding planning - on top of planning for a wedding that is going to be on New Years Eve! These two during their session were not sure what to do, very common with people who have never gotten pictures taken before let alone Engagement Photos so Do not fret! The whole purpose of the engagement session is to get you ready and boy, once they were ready, we had some more fun. Nervously and shyly they held hands and gave peck kisses and laughed because they felt awkward. Then they started getting brave and started teasing each other and making jokes, and of course they were comfortable enough to share intimate quiet moments together while I was snapping away with the camera.

Asheville North Carolina is such a beautiful place, and Hidden River is one of those beautiful venues in this beautiful place. Tanya and Kyle’s morning started low key, and I was able to stay the night before to get myself acquainted with the land and I just couldn’t help but adore the landscape as the sun rose. Since Kyle’s Family comes from the west coast, they got to do a fun family road trip across the country just for the best wedding ever! Even though I got to see Tanya super early in the morning, I was starting with Kyle in the morning with him getting Ready before going to Tanya for her Shenanigans. Kyle and his family were so cute, were super organized for family photos and they just loved being together. Weddings are the best for Family Reunions!

Karissa is this super chill, down to party, excellent planner and visionary who is extraordinarily smart and compassionate - did I mention she was a teacher? I love all my teachers! They are always the most organized and prepared ;-) John is this kind, soft spoken, means what he says, dutiful and super considerate man who would do ANYTHING for Karissa. He’s such a nice guy, he’s the type of guy who wants the best for everyone, especially for Karissa on her day. Part of his considerateness is that he got White Claws and had it delivered to her room in an ice bucket to keep cool, like... come on how much nicer than to be thinking of making sure you’re soon to be spouse to properly hydrated AM I RIGHT?!

Aneedra and Mark are the type of souls that when they meet, they can not be apart, They energize each other and push each other to be their best. Aneedra the strong, boisterous and highly intelligent women, and Mark the kind, inquisitive and supportive man are two sides of the same coin. Sometimes we forget that people are multifaceted and that when we posses one human trait, we also often possess the other. But enough about cerebral discussions of the human personality psyche and how love binds them (maybe That should be a book title!) lets talk about the amount of FUN we had on the Brooklyn Bridge, at The Brooklyn Bridge Park, and DUMBO.

This week’s blog has been about couples who save each other, and when we talk about couples who save each other, I think of these two love birds who long ago decided to save each other. These two quirky, smart, compassionate and AMAZING people are gaming nerds that are always going to be saving each other in and out of the digital space. There’s a calmness to Alex and an excited Bubblyness’ to Alyssa that when you put these two together in a room, they radiate like magnetic waves in the upper atmosphere. You can tell they are always constantly thinking about the other’s well being, happiness and quirks while also giving each other the space and agency to grow and make their own decisions.

So if anyone knows me, knows that I am on time if not early so I like to get myself presentable and head on out to the venue as soon as possible. Little did I know, that I needed to run an ERRAND this particular day! I get a phone call asking for a favor, apparently… the couple was already at the venue, but the groom forgot his dress shirt in the apartment in Albany. Good thing I was ready to go! So I decided to drop by Downtown Albany and pick up the dress shirt, no fuss, no muss, Thank goodness for good roommates and landlords!

What can I SAY about these two, Quiet, Dry, Witty Humor mixed with Boisterous, Confident and Intelligent, these two love spending their time together making comments, jokes, being silly and laughing. Felicia is so FULL of LIFE, she laughs and is happy and her smile overpowers the sun. Even when making shadows from the sun, you can tell there is laughing going on. Karl is a perceptive and quiet man who loves to surprise people, I was NOT expecting to start off the session so silly, but his ironic and witty self just went ahead and took the leap, and all you could hear was the echoes of laughter from Felica, and we all knew it was going to be a great and FUN day.

Haley and Henry have known each other for a very long time, grew up in the same neighborhood and separated by collegiate endeavors but even distances apart couldn’t separate these two for long before they decided to be with each other again. When I think about these two, I think about two people who have been married for YEARS. The subtle inside jokes, the quirky smirks and side eyes, the reminiscing of when they were kids, the ideas of the future together, these are just a few of the things that make up Long Term Love.

Kristal and Steve have been together FOREVER, and they just can NOT wait to be officially married, but sometimes life takes you in different directions and we learn that there are no set of rules that are made for everyone AND THATS OK. Repeat after me, Someone else’s steps are not the same as your steps in life. Don’t come for these two because LOOK AT HOW FREAKIN’ adorable they are. People talk about the Passion they feel with someone new, but not a lot of people talk about the subtlties of love with someone you’ve loved forever, the freakin’ stupid phrases they say that make you shake your head and laugh, the faces they make when no one else is watching, and the revisiting fun times together that remind you why you two are together. Can we talk about that more? can we talk about how great a team couple’s are when they are together? Because those things are important in love, and in marriage! Kristal and Steve, we are SO CLOSE, I can’t wait to see you two again soon!

Kat and Kevin were WAITING for this day forever! When I got to the room to see Kat, she was glowing, she was super excited and a little bit nervous but the loved ones in her life were more than happy to surround her and remind her that things were going to be great and that today, was going to be AMAZING (spoilers, it was!). She got into her dress that she said felt amazing, and her cute mom couldn’t help but squeeze her cheeks right after! We even did a small first look with her wedding party and the tears had already started. Afterwards I went over to the boys and you could tell shenanigans afoot, but these boys pulled together and we got ready, you could tell there were people who had already been in weddings helping the other boys with Ties and even BOUTINEERS (Usually me or my 2nd photographer is doing this!) NOW we were ready to do a first look!

When I think about Mia and Rob and their engagement session, I think about sweet Mia and her ever protective and loving Partner in crime Rob. Rob is a quiet, fiercely dedicated and secretly soft man who would do anything to protect Mia and make her smile. You can just see it in the way he looks at her, and the way he holds her tightly as if time is fleeting and there is just never enough of it. Mia’s eyes glow every time she looks right into Rob’s eye, there just this little glisten that happens when they talk, and they both speak so softly to each other I can honestly tell you that I don’t know what they’re saying! This engagement session at Mount Greylocke was magical, and the only other thing that made the day more magical was the magic between these two love birds.

A hot summer Wedding was exactly what we needed on this day as the sun beamed on everyone’s excited faces. John in his usual goofy self was so excited to be marrying Sarah today but you could see the little bit of nervousness peek through when he wasn’t focusing on not being nervous. to ease up the getting ready tensions, his side of the party got to play some lawn games and hang out on the property while Sarah also prepared for the day. Did you know she is a jewelry maker? What better way to commemorate the day than by making your own jewelry on your own day. She was BEAMING with beauty, and she was definitely a little nervous about the details of the day and hoping that it just goes well. More importantly, she was excited to see John.

What a day this day was for Kate and Erik’s Wedding! There was an upcoming rain storm that was going to hit at sometime close to ceremony and there was so much left to do and things to plan for! When I arrived at the prep area for Lord Howe Valley, the ladies were almost done finishing up and the boys were quickly on their way, so we took this opportunity to take a couple of photos of the dress in one of the empty prep areas before they came. Everyone was in great spirits, ready to party and ready to celebrate and Kate looked absolutely GORGEOUS with her hair and make up done. First Look was going to be an amazing time!

This was definitely a day of new experiences, new adventures, lots of anticipation, and lots of family (chosen and related)! Kristin and Tj are two sides of the same coin - they both love a good ski adventure up a mountain and they love to party with their friends. The only thing that would make it better would be to have their wedding on top of a mountain, OF WHICH THEY DID. Kristin was a little anxious and ready to see TJ in his full attire and TJ was nervous as all heck - lets just add that they’ll go up to the top to do their first look and some photos and the wait time in between everything. THE ANTICIPATION WAS KILLING ME.

I love adventures when doing engagement sessions, and this one in particular was a super fun day, with GOATS! We got together at Into the woods Farm for a nice team activity of Couple’s Yoga, + Goats - A Couple’s Goat Yoga! Kat is a healer of the body and mind, Chris is an everyday public super hero and they both powerlift and train together. Their synergy together is amazing, a Man who doesn’t take himself too seriously and a woman who cares and nurtures deeply, both who are always looking for fun silly laughs together. THIS DAY was a day for a TON of laughing, and lots of intimate moments.

These two highly intelligent and fun loving couple just could not stop swooning and laughing and being silly with each other. You could say we had some fun times in Downtown Troy NY making some Engagement Photos, but what we were really doing was just being crazy kids hanging out in the rainy and cloudy day - perfectly overcast for some photos. It was a perfect day for an indie band cover photo against a shrub! Throughout the day they reminisced on places they used to go to, Schools they used to attend and all the memories in between.

Tanya and Kyle are SO silly, Tanya is boisterous and silly and loves to have fun, Kyle is quiet and cerebral and loves to laugh - who am I kidding, they BOTH love to laugh! There was just so much laughing in this session! They laughed the kind of laugh where you’re belly aches one second, and you take the long deep breath to catch your composure and you just melt in someone’s arms as the wave of appreciation fills the atmosphere. THIS WAS THE TYPE OF SESSION I WAS HAVING… IN MAGICAL PORTLAND. Honestly, the day couldn’t have been any better.

The day starts with A TON of laughing, perfect - that means we’re in for a PARTY. I get to Katie’s room and one of the bridesmaids is DEFINITELY keeping the party vibes on high (You the true MVP). There was no shortage of laughing, champagne, beautiful details and loving family in this room. Before her mom gets to put on her dress we take a couple of photos of Katie and her Bridesmaids on the balcony and a small champagne toast. When Katie is all buttoned up in her dress, we did a quick first look with Dad and then I moved into Ryan’s room to capture some details as he gets ready. His sister helps him put on his jacket and a family friend/florist help pin the flower and we quickly whisk ourselves away to get ready for the First Look before it starts to have the IDEA of rain.