Engagement sessions are such an important tool for us, as wedding photographers, to get to know the couples who trust us with their wedding memories. Continue reading
Malibu Creek State Park Engagement Session Focuses on Love!
Tag Archives: Engagement Photographs
Jennifer & Al’s Story: Romance at Spanish Hills Country Club Wedding
When Al and his fiancé, Jennifer, came in to meet with us, we knew we would have fun with this couple. We have known Al since he was in elementary school with our son. Al and Jennifer too, go far back… They started as neighbors, then friends, and eventually that turned into a romance. Their love story started right here, in Newhall. Nine and a half years of dating, and Al finally popped the question in Big Bear while snowboarding.
When it came time to do their engagement photos, they had tons of ideas. The first part of their session was at their condo with their cute little Yorkie, Ace. Jen is quite the baker so they wanted to incorporate her love for baking and Al’s enthusiasm for her sweets into their pictures. I don’t think Al minded eating the cupcakes for multiple shots! The next stop was at TPC to take some photos near the lake and catch their love for country by rocking some cowboy boots and hats. We then moved onto their old stomping grounds: Hart High School. Here we caught them kissing in the bleachers, tossing a softball on the field, and throwing around a football. We were able to get to know them even better and capture a lot of their personalities in these photos! We couldn’t wait to hang out with them again at their wedding.
When their wedding day arrived, we knew exactly how to get these two smiling for the camera. The bride and groom got ready at Hyatt Westlake where we captured some great getting ready shots and special moments, especially the first look with Jen and her dad. It was a priceless moment. Thanks to the Friday night traffic on the 101, we risked losing precious shooting time, so I took the bride, her matron of honor and maid of honor in my car so we can get all the pictures we would need, and not have to wait for the limo to make the round trip back after dropping off the guys. Luckily my cooler was loaded with cold water and snacks for everyone. Once we arrived at Spanish Hills Country Club, we went right into their moment to remember. It was such a touching exchange for these two. These intimate moments for a couple are a memory to be cherished forever, and we take that very seriously. As we shot the ceremony and moved into the reception, there wasn’t a detail left undone. There were personal touches everywhere. With the intimate group they had, you could see all the love for one another throughout the room. Everyone knew each other and had a great time. This was one group that sure knew how to party! We were so happy to be a part of this beautiful day and go home with a yummy cookie for the drive home.
Thank you so much Jen & Al for sharing your day with us, and for all the nice posts on Facebook. We love your album too…that’s why it became a sample book at the studio.
Disneyland is the Place for Romantic Engagement Portraits of Hillary & Anthony
One of the things we stress to all of our wedding couples is the importance of an engagement session for us to get to know each other before the actual wedding day. We can personalize the experience by going to … Continue reading
Your Perfect Engagement Session
Whether you love hiking and frequent the trails around the Placerita Nature Center, spend every free moment at the beach, love to explore the little shops in Solvang, consider your black lab to be an important family member, want to recreate your proposal, love and collect classic muscle cars, need save the date cards to announce your wedding to family & friends, have never had a “good” picture of the two of you together, enjoy strolling the gardens around your favorite restaurant, have a fiancé works for Edison and you love the light post exhibit at LACMA, or have no idea what you want to do for your engagement portraits, we can help you.
We feel there is no better way to express your individuality, get acquainted with your photographers, feel comfortable in front of the camera, and allow us to capture the chemistry of your love and relationship than with an engagement session in a natural, relaxed setting. That is why we include this important session in all of our wedding coverage. Besides, we love getting out of the studio and exploring all of the great places Southern California has to offer.
We hope you enjoy looking at some of the places we have been recently with our couples. Planning for these sessions is the most fun because it really lets us brainstorm and let our imaginations wander. Some couples are more serious, others romantic, others fun loving and silly… that’s what makes it so interesting for us. It’s a great way to set us up for success the day of your wedding, it breaks the ice, and it gives you lots of great shots which you can display at the wedding, or you can use them to create a guest book or sign-in board for your guests to enjoy. It also builds your confidence in yourselves and us and makes the wedding day even more enjoyable as far as picture-taking. Don’t miss out on this important part of your engagement!
Vintage Western Engagement Portraits for Nikki & Jeremy Capture The Look of Love at Mentryville
We first met Nikki and her mom at the beginning of the year, and had a great time planning for Nikki’s upcoming wedding to Jeremy at Gardens of Paradise in Agua Dulce. We always stress the importance of an engagement session before a wedding, and we feel it is so important to the overall success of the wedding photographs, that we include the session in all of our packages. There really is no better way to get to know your clients, how to best photograph them, and instill confidence in you with them, then to actually create portraits for them that they love. We pay close attention to what our couples tell us about what they are looking for. Over thirty years of experience has taught us how critical this is, and it also keeps things fresh and interesting for us. Every session is different, even if the location is the same, because of this interaction and exchange.
Since the actual session was our first time meeting Jeremy, we made sure his voice was heard. We could tell Jeremy was an artistic, creative, individual and welcomed his input. We processed the images in lots of different black and white and sepia variations, and these were their favorites. We also had a chance to utilize some of the cool, old, rusty equipment in Mentryville as props. The most important thing to us, was that Nikki and Jeremy were able to relax and enjoy the session, and we really could see the love they had for one another. It was in their eyes!
We can’t wait to explore Gardens of Paradise with them, meet their bridal party, and the rest of the family. We will keep you posted.
USC Sets the Stage for Kellie & Craig’s Engagement Portraits
One of the traditions in Kellie & Craig’s relationship is attending USC football games with Craig’s family. When they told us about this we thought the campus would be the perfect spot for their engagement session. We carefully checked the calendar to make sure it wasn’t orientation or the beginning of the school, hoping we would find a pretty empty campus in the early evening hours. I (Jody) was really excited to visit the campus again, since I had been a freshman there myself when I moved to California from New York. We had done Crystal & Ryan’s engagement portraits there a couple of years ago, and I was more than ready for another visit. There are some new buildings on the campus, and lots of cardinal and gold flowers everywhere, but, for the most part, things are the same.
Kellie & Craig had their own game day traditions and favorite spots on campus that they shared with us. We recreated Craig’s game day “kick” of the California flag pole, picnicking in Doheny Park, and added a few of Kellie’s touches like the white frames she had bought to pose with. Aside from the NCAA commercial they were filming at Tommy Trojan keeping us away from that popular spot, we got to do it all. And it was all lots of fun for us. Kellie and Craig are fun loving and compliment each other perfectly. Their wedding day will be an amazing one…we can’t wait. Enjoy!
Kandis & Matt Explore Mentryville for Romantic Engagement Portraits
We braved the heat, dirt and even a bee sting (Matt was a real trouper) last week with Kandis & Matt and Adriana as our very able wardrobe consultant, stylist, helper, and sister to Matt Farrell; the groom to be. We had lots of fun and wanted to share these right away. Enjoy this fantastic couple…we certainly did!
Westlake Village Inn is the Perfect Settting for Taylor & Robert’s Romantic Engagement Portraits
Wow…talk about making the photographers look good. Thank you Taylor & Robert, your natural beauty, tall, handsomeness, and enthusiastic personalities made your engagement portraits so much fun for us. We loved exploring every nook and cranny of the Westlake Village Inn and taking advantage of the amazing light at the end of the day, with a sunset that made us feel like we had gone on vacation.
Alison & Tony’s Fun Engagement Session at 3rd Street Promenade & Santa Monica Pier
You know it’s going to be a great engagement sitting when the couple is on time, in the right location, wearing coordinated clothing, and brings along with them a file folder full of ideas-including an ampersand that Alison custom-created and made-by-hand to execute a shot she had in mind. What more can your photographers ask for? It was a beautiful evening in Santa Monica and we got to window shop, listen to street music, people watch, drink Starbucks, eat cotton candy, play on the beach, and create these incredible images. That’s what we consider FUN! We hope you enjoy these romantic images that captured Alison & Tony’s personality along with the surroundings of one of their favorite places to hang out. 
Photos from Erin & Dari’s Engagement (Part 2: Angeles National Golf Club)
The romance continues at Angeles National Golf Club, in more traditional clothing, but with no less style and passion. We cannot wait for their wedding day — we are sure this elegant couple will further delight our creativity.
UPDATE (3/11/11) from Erin: We are so incredibly pleased with the photos. They have far surpassed our expectations. I couldn’t be happier. Thanks to you and Dave for all your hard work and time.
R & R Creative Photography 