There are a lot of reasons why I'm thrilled with how this June engagement session turned out. The contrast of Katie & Justin's playful, romantic energy and a dramatic, New England summer thunderstorm; their love for L Street Beach, and the rarity of having it completely empty and to themselves; and how easy it was to capture their joy & love for one another. Not to mention a lot of New England summer is riddled with thunderstorms, so to capture one in a portrait session felt only fitting!
Katie & Justin are really special people. In our initial meeting, they'd said something that stuck with me: they wanted to spend their engagement focusing on preparing for marriage, not just a wedding. This sincerity is reflected in their love for one another, their intentionality in wedding planning, and the grace infused in their relationship. It was a real treat to spend the evening with them.
Katie and I had gone back and forth all day about whether or not we should try to photograph that night - we'd already had to reschedule twice for weather, and it had been thunder storming on and off all day. We were excited to photograph at the L Street Beach, one of their favorite places in the city, but it was a bit of a gamble with the weather. We were also just a month away from their wedding, and working around travel dates. So we said a Hail Mary, full sent it, drove to the beach after sunset, and were blessed with twenty glorious, rain-free minutes - and then graced with the biggest lightening storm I'd ever seen! Were we playing a risky little game, shooting by the water during a lightening storm? Yes. Are these some of our favorite images ever, which perfectly capture their strong & playful love? Absolutely. Am I beyond excited for their wedding? You bet.