I think this session takes the cake as most unique engagement shoot spots. I mean I’ve shot at some cool spots but nothing like having all of Petco Park and all of The Midway to ourselves. So fun fact about this couple; Bobby is my husband (David’s) very good friend like he was the best man at our wedding good friends. Before I even met David for our first date at The Living Room in Point Loma almost 4 years ago, my sister had already been aware of Bobby in that they both worked together. Which I found out about that connection pretty soon after I met David when my sister was creeping on David’s Facebook and was like “Wait! He’s friends with Bobby?!” So it’s a small world and San Diego always impresses me with how small and connected it is for a large city.

Anywho back to the couple- so due to fact Bobby and Alyssa both work for the Padres and further more due to the fact Alyssa’s super popular and has the most impressive VIP connections we were able to have all of Petco Park and the Midway to ourselves to shoot. Why these two spots you may wonder? Well Petco being the obvious of the two in that they both work there and if given access who wouldn’t want to shoot on the field! And The Midway because that’s where they first met at a concert so naturally wanted to showcase it in their engagement photos.

Something I didn’t think could happen happened for the first time at this shoot…I met someone who rivaled my love of cats. For real Shannon and I basically cat ladied out hard during this shoot. I mean I’ve met people who love cats but I always felt I may be on a bit of a different level (I mean one of my cats has an Instagram with more followers than me) and Shannon was right there with me. “Do you like to just stare at them and think how cute they are?” I asked her, her response “YES!” “My phone is basically full of photos of my cats” I shared to which she responded by showing me the photos of her cats on her phone. So ya basically we’re the same person in regards to this, which is pretty fantastic if you ask me. Not to be overlooked Rez is a cool dude in his own right, while maybe he does not share the heights of our love for felines he is such a down to earth guy who is so easy to chat with. In fact the two of them are so great to chat with that during the shoot I had to keep reminding myself “oh ya I’m suppose to be shooting not just hanging out.”

I actually met with these two for our first meeting the Saturday before my wedding earlier this year – sure I had a laundry list of all the tasks I needed to get done before the wedding day (spoiler I got everything done) but we ended up chatting for almost 2 hours. Which I love because I like to know the couples I work with deeper than just when’s the wedding date and what time do I need to show up. I like to be invested in who they are, what they love, and actually be friends with them. So I’m very glad that with Shannon and Rez I was able to do that!

We had a very successful engagement shoot starting in downtown San Diego, then over to Little Italy to take a photo outside of the bar they first met at: The Waterfront (AWWWW). And then over to the bay which is basically one of my favorite spots to shoot when it’s just about sunset.

Enjoy!

I met Carla and Sean through a mutual friend and I couldn’t be happier to be shooting their wedding later this year. For real they were so amazingly kind throughout our shoot, and made my job easy. We had so much to chat about (her telling me about their venue cancelling on them last minute, me telling her about my not so positive experiences with my wedding dress fittings) that after our shoot I was easily enticed to get dinner with them. I mean they really had me at burritos… how can a girl say no to a burrito let alone with two very lovely people?

We started our shoot out at their adorable home in Los Feliz, which if you’re not familiar is one of the most super hip areas of Los Angeles. Recently I’ve been asking couples I photograph if we can start off at their home from some shots. I love in home sessions! The lighting is always killer, the setting is familiar to the couple so their comfortable, and it lends a very personal touch to your engagement photos. David and I had our engagement photos start off at our house first for all those same reasons.

From there we made our way over to a cute park located near their house, and then Ubered up to one of my all time favorite places in Los Angeles: Griffith Park, and more specifically the top where the planetarium is. This spot is too perfect, the views, the history (Rebel Without a Cause anyone?), the nature.

This wasn’t my first time shooting there and crowds can always be a concern but Ubering and doing the shoot on a Thursday I think helped a bit with dealing with that.

Ok enough talk! Enjoy the photos from Carla and Sean’s Los Angeles Engagement:

This engagement shoot brought together two of my favorite spots to shoot; downtown san diego and the cactus garden near Balboa Park. And a fun fact, the cactus garden is where I had my first look on my wedding day a couple months back… That’s how much I enjoy it!

Sam and Brandon found me through the venue where I got married: Moniker Warehouse. Which is where they will be holding their wedding, good choice if I do say so myself!

Sam works the graveyard shifts at her work so this shoot for her meant she had to get up early. I must say that I would be terrible at doing what she does! I can stay up late but ask me to work through the night I would never make it!

I bonded with Sam over a shared love of all things cute coffee shops, and with Brandon over a shared love of WWII History. For real both those topics were covered in detail when we first got together. I love finding shared interests with couples I work with, it’s more than just chatting over wedding details (which are obviously very important). I like to get to know each couple I’m working with and hipster coffee spots and WWII history are two things I can get behind!

Here’s a sampling of some of my faves from our shoot: