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 Session
Katie & Andrew’s Engagement Session at Mentryville
We have known Andrew most of his life and were so excited to meet Katie—the sweet, fun-loving girl he is going to marry.
Their engagement session at Mentryville was a blast! Andrew’s parents brought along Paul’s vintage ’29 Ford Model A as the ultimate prop, and they also helped protect the adorable pup from a waiting mountain lion. (What a story!)
We can’t wait for their beautiful wedding next May at Walnut Grove!
Fountains & Architecture Are The Theme For Casey & Mauricio’s Engagement Sessions And Look What They Had to Say About Us
Casey really loved the idea of going to downtown Los Angeles to capture her engagement portraits with honey Mauricio-we explained that some buildings could be strict about permits-she was determined and did all the leg work and got permissions from the spots she wanted to go to – last on her list was the light installation outside LACMA on Wilshire Blvd. in the Miracle Mile District. Casey’s day started with expert hair and makeup by Samantha Singer- and wow! what a knockout she was!
Here’s a peek at the fun we had, however, we didn’t know that we would have the most fun reading this email from Casey AFTER she saw the portraits last night:
“Jody, I know you guys get this all the time, but we are sooo in love with the engagement pictures. David heard me repeat myself at least a half dozen times about how I had no idea we could have pictures that look so amazing. The combination of the photos and the editing are just unbelieveable. Never could I imagine they would come out so amazing.
the yelp review is being created… “if they can’t make you look good, you ugly” =)
He heard it, but we didn’t get to see you, I wanted to thank you for the editing. it is amazing, soo love it!!!
I have it narrowed to 39, I’ll get it squeezed down again by the end of the weekend for the engagement photo book.”
Casey and Mauricio
I still giggle every time I read it…we just can’t wait until their wedding day!
Marine Robert Returns Home From 16 Month Tour in Japan in Time to Wed Beautiful Princess Ashley This Weekend Near Disneyland
Talk about a romantic story…we first met Ashely several months ago when she came into the studio with her mom, sharing her wedding plans with us. Since her fiancé was a U.S. Marine stationed in Japan for the past 16 … 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. 
R & R Creative Photography 