Lynn & George's Farm at Raven Brook Engagement Session

Lynn and George booked me for their intimate Berkshires wedding and decided that they wanted to do an engagement session as well (which I ALWAYS recommend to my wedding clients - especially those who say they aren’t comfortable in front of a camera). Lynn and I discussed some good options for Massachusetts engagement session locations, and she decided that she wanted to do their session at The Farm at Raven Brook, a Christmas tree farm in Halifax, MA. The staff at the farm was incredibly accommodating. The owner even gave me a tour of the grounds before Lynn and George arrived so that I could scout out some good locations for photos.

As a Massachusetts engagement photographer, I know that March can be one of the toughest months for natural beauty in New England. Lynn & George hoped for a snow-covered scene, but 2023 turned out not to be the snowy winter we hoped for. Evergreen trees turned out to be the solution! The rows of green trees made for a great backdrop for March in Massachusetts when most of the world looks brown and dead. Lynn and George roamed through the rows and rows of evergreens, the sun-kissed meadows, and the quaint pond on the grounds of The Farm at Raven Brook with me.

Check out some of my favorite images from their Massachusetts engagement session below!

Newport Engagement Photo Session | Emma and Harry

NEWPORT ENGAGEMENT PHOTO SESSION AT BRENTON POINT STATE PARK

What’s better than photographing your best friend’s love and happiness? Photographing your best friend’s love and happiness in a stunning setting like Brenton Point State Park in Newport, Rhode Island.

Emma is one of my oldest friends. She and I became best friends in elementary school and have stayed close ever since. She and her fiancé Harry got engaged back in June and when she asked me to take some Newport engagement photos for them, I couldn’t have been more excited (although I did make sure that she knew I would be celebrating with her as a guest on her wedding day and not as her photographer) 😉. Both Emma and Harry have connections to Newport and are currently living close to the area, so Emma already had a location in mind when I asked where she wanted to do her Newport engagement photos; Brenton Point State Park.

I’ve visited Newport with Emma enough times to know Brenton Point pretty well, but I don’t think I’d ever been there at sunset. What a spot. It is on my list of top engagement locations that I’ve shot at for sure. It was a beautiful golden sunset and some of these photos look like I photoshopped in a perfect backdrop…sailboat idling by in the lower third…but I swear, it was really that perfect.

Here’s a little glimpse into Emma and Harry’s Newport engagement photos at Brenton Point State Park.

Why have your Newport engagement session at Brenton Point State Park?

Brenton Point is one of the best Newport engagement session locations for a reason. For a Newport engagement session, you truly can’t get more beautiful than sunset on the jetties of Brenton Point State Park. The pink and orange sky with the sailboats and rocks make it nearly impossible to take a bad photo. Even on a perfect evening with a fair number of people out enjoying the sunset, it’s a large enough area that you can find a private nook to claim as your own - and with the ocean behind you, it’s easy to avoid other people in your shots. Only a 15 minute scenic drive from downtown Newport, it’s an easy decision.

For any couples looking to find some outfit ideas for their Newport engagement session,

you can read my blog post about it or gather inspiration from Emma and Harry. Emma embraced her preppy, Newport style with her colorful, coral patterned dress and Harry balanced out the bold design with a coordinating, solid colored linen shirt and shorts. Not too matchy-matchy, but perfectly coordinated to make them fit together beautifully.

Emma and Harry made it easy and this session made me want to suggest Brenton Point State Park for all of my couples looking to do Newport engagement photos. I’m looking forward to ripping it up on the dance floor with these two in next July! Congratulations, Emma and Harry!

Boston Engagement Session at the Boston Public Garden | Lia & Ryan

BOSTON ENGAGEMENT PHOTOS AT THE BOSTON PUBLIC GARDEN

Lia and Ryan won an engagement session with me back in February and were excited to take a trip up to Boston to explore the city and take some iconic Boston engagement photos.

The couple lives in New Jersey so they made their session into a weekend visit. This was Ryan’s first time in Boston, so we discussed the finer things like '“where on the north shore does one stop for the best roast beef sandwich?”. It was a beautiful evening and we had a great time wandering through the public garden and discovering all of the landmarks along our way.

For any couples looking to find some outfit ideas for their Boston engagement session, you can read my blog post about it or gather inspiration from Lia and Ryan. They coordinated their outfits beautifully with warm golds and blues which played nicely both together and with their warm summer sunset surroundings.

Here’s a little glimpse into Lia and Ryan’s Boston engagement photos at the Boston Public Garden.

Why the Boston Public Garden?

The golden hour light reflecting off of the pond mixed with the branches of the willow trees surrounding the water made for a gorgeous backdrop for Lia and Ryan. The Boston Public Garden is one of the best Boston engagement session locations for a reason. There is so much to explore in a relatively small space - from natural beauty to city streets all within a few steps. The trees, pond, bridge and flower installations make for a gorgeous natural landscape and if you want to mix in some city vibes, just walk outside the garden gates and over to the bustling Newbury street area.

A fun, unexpected element that we came upon during our session was these installments of tropical flowers and palm trees within the Boston Public Garden. I’m always looking for new, unique things like this to add some interesting flavors to my Boston engagement photo sessions and this absolutely fit the bill. When they made the trip to Boston, Lia and Ryan probably didn’t expect to end up with engagement photos that looked like they were on a Hawaiian vacation, but that’s what they got (along with lots of more typical “Boston” backdrops, of course)!

Congratulations, Lia & Ryan!

Gyasi & Maddie's NYC Engagement Session

Gyasi and Maddie met me at Grand Central Station (Gyasi’s favorite place in NYC) to begin their engagement session. Despite the bustling crowds, we managed to find some spaces without too much traffic and incorporated the crowds into other shots. I have been inside GCS at least 100 times commuting when I lived in NYC, and there was so much about the details of the architecture and the decor inside that I had never truly appreciated. I’m so glad I was able to explore the space in a new way with these two!

From GCS, we drove up 9A to the couple’s neighborhood of Washington Heights and explored another area that was brand new to me. The Met Cloisters was closing by the time we arrived, which we knew would be the case, so we spent our time exploring the beautiful architecture surrounding the building as well as the paths leading from the Cloisters into Fort Tyron Park. There were lots of intersecting paths jutting out from the original one, and because of our limited sunlight, we did not get to explore all of them, but what we found was perfect for our session. The museum and this park are #1 on my list to explore further when I return to Manhattan next.

Congratulations, Maddie and Gyasi! I can’t wait to photograph your wedding in (less than) 8 months!

Want to look as fabulous as these two for your engagement session or couples lifestyle photography session? Check out my post on What to Wear to Your Portrait Session for some helpful advice.

Katie and Matt's Engagement Session (Smithtown, NY)

I met up with newly engaged Katie & Matt at Blydenburgh Park near Katie’s hometown on Long Island. This was my first official photo shoot after the pandemic began and it felt great to be out with my camera. Katie and Matt were so much fun and Katie’s sister Kelly joined our shoot and was an excellent assistant, helping me get natural smiles and laughs from the couple. One notable moment from our day was when I was photographing Katie and Matt out on a dock and a beautiful swan swam up alongside it. Katie bent down to say hello and it got very defensive and honked loudly in her face scaring us all half to death (see photos below). Luckily, we managed to avoid getting physically attacked by any wildlife so it was a success overall. Congratulations, Katie & Matt!

The swan interaction caught on camera.

Dori and Joe's Engagement Session (West Village, NY)

Dori & Joe’s engagement session began where their relationship started, Solas, a bar in the West Village. I always recommend incorporating special locations like these into engagement sessions as it brings an added layer of depth and meaning to the images. From Solas, we ventured through some of the beautiful cobblestone streets in the West Village including Washington Mews, one of my favorite locations to take photos in NYC. Some history on the street via good ol’ Wikipedia: “it was originally part of a Lenape trail which connected the Hudson and East Rivers, and was first developed as a mews (row of stables) that serviced horses from homes in the area. Since the 1950s the former stables have served as housing, offices and other facilities for New York University.” Interesting stuff! As the sun was setting we made our way towards the Hudson River for some gorgeous golden hour photos. Congratulations, Dori & Joe!