Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Lindsay + Aaron: Engagement Session

Valentine's Day in Grand Rapids this year was classic: cold and snowy. In the week leading up to Lindsay and Aaron's session, Grant and I were a bit apprehensive about having a muddy field to work with, but the cold front came just in time. We woke up that morning to a beautiful blanket of snow covering everything. It was a perfect, romantic winter engagement session.





Editing these pictures, I couldn't get over how they both have such clear blue eyes!


One of our favorites.


The first half of the session took place on Aaron's grandparents' property, complete with pond, a stand of pine trees, and endless snowy fields.




From the snowy farmland we warmed up in our cars and drove downtown for some shots by the ice rink in Rosa Parks Circle.






We ended the session in the lower level of the Amway Grand Plaza, where Aaron proposed to Lindsay. He had arranged for a string quartet to play outside, but bad weather forced them indoors near this stone waterfall. The thought that went into the proposal was so sweet, and it was fun to do some portraits in a place that was so special to them.






Lindsay and Aaron, thanks again for spending your Valentine's Day with us! We really enjoyed getting to know you more as we visited places that are important to both of you. We're looking forward to the wedding in August!

Monday, February 23, 2009

Meghan + Brad: Engagement Session

As the weather slowly warms up, we have really enjoyed exploring new parks in the Grand Rapids area. When we asked Meghan if she and Brad had any suggestions for their engagement session location, she mentioned that they like to take their dog, Moose, for walks at Provin Trails. It turned out to be a perfect place to be on another beautiful February day.







There was beautiful light in this stand of trees.


Love this one.




Leandra and I were determined to push ourselves to try some different perspectives with the popular blue bridge downtown. Here are our "entries":

Mine.


Leandra's (she wins.):






And.... we ended the session with a few in the lobby of the Amway Grand. This was actually the first time we have photographed in there, and we couldn't believe all the photo opportunities! The building is absolutely beautiful.




Meghan and Brad both have such a sophisticated sense of style. They fit well into the setting.




Meghan and Brad, we are already so excited for your wedding in October! Thanks for making the session such a fun afternoon for us.

Lindsay + Aaron: Sneak Peek

Lindsay and Aaron were both kind enough to spend their Valentine's Day with us, so that we could hop on a plane the next day (when the shoot was originally scheduled) to head to Vegas for WPPI. We can't thank you two enough! Grant and I really enjoyed spending the afternoon traipsing through snow-covered pine trees and downtown streets, taking pictures of these two people in love.





More coming soon! Meghan and Brad's full engagement post should be up sometime tomorrow!

Friday, February 20, 2009

Summer + Jon: Engagement Session

We always love to shoot engagement session in a location that is personal to the couple. When Jon suggested shooting in Ada Township Park, we were excited to explore someplace new. We were even more excited when we found out that it was the same place he had proposed! The day was absolutely gorgeous-- one of those few warm, sunny days in February. With the combination of the sunshine and Summer and Jon's sweet relationship and quick smiles, Grant and I would have been happy to be in the park all day!

To begin, both of our perspectives: Grant's.


Mine.




Blue sky, anyone? The combination of that and their bright shirts makes me even more ready for spring weather.





Here is the bridge where they got engaged a few months ago.








A favorite.




Thanks for sharing such a beautiful afternoon with us, Summer and Jon! We are looking forward to the wedding in June.

Thursday, February 19, 2009

On the Strip

We've had such a packed few days in Vegas learning about photography everything, but made it out onto the strip tonight for dinner at Wolfgang Puck's in the MGM, dessert at Fix in the Bellagio, and "shopping" at Caesar's Palace (because, of course, we can afford a $50,000 Faberge Egg!). We were walking back at the perfect time to catch the fountains at the Bellagio, also! We've seen musical fountains before, and haven't been that impressed, but we certainly learned that in this case, bigger IS better. Anyways, we're on our way back to Michigan tomorrow with lots and lots and lots to think about, but wanted to share a few we took tonight first.









We'll be back in town shortly!

Sunday, February 15, 2009

Meghan + Brad: Sneak Peek

We're off to Vegas today, but wanted to get a few from Meghan and Brad's engagement session up before we flew off! Enjoy...



Saturday, February 14, 2009

Summer + Jon: Sneak Peek

Two favorites as we're working through Summer + Jon's pictures. Just looking at these makes me remember how wonderful and springy it felt that day...





Make sure you scroll down to see Tera + Rob's engagement session that we just posted last night!

Friday, February 13, 2009

Tera + Rob: Engagement

We met Tera and Rob at Grand Valley State (where they met!), and although I know we've noted the coldness of more than a few of our engagement sessions in the past few months, this one had to be the coldest. They were easy to talk to, easy to laugh with, and easy to photograph, even in the frigid cold. A few favorites...





The light was so wonderful here, in the arboretum.




In the stairwell of the library (warming up...)








A favorite.




Oh, and this one. Like this one a lot too!




We're off to Vegas this weekend (!) but we'll have some engagement sessions coming up (and maybe some on-the-road updates...)!