When couples ask me where they should have their engagement session, my answer is almost always the same: Choose places that feel like you.
Of course, I love photographing couples in open fields, on the beach, or wandering through beautiful gardens. Those locations are timeless for a reason. But my absolute favorite sessions are the ones that tell a story. That’s exactly what MP and Saige did.
Instead of choosing one pretty backdrop and calling it a day, they built their engagement session around the places that have become part of their relationship. We started among the gorgeous June blooms at Elizabeth Park, headed to the tennis courts where they regularly play together, and finished the evening with a Taco Bell date because it’s one of Saige’s favorite places to eat.
It wasn’t just an engagement session. It felt like spending an afternoon living a little piece of their life together.
Your Engagement Session Doesn’t Have to Look Like Everyone Else’s
One of the biggest misconceptions I hear is that engagement photos have to happen in a field at sunset or on a beach. And while those locations are beautiful, your engagement photos can be so much more personal when they’re built around your story.
For MP and Saige, tennis is a huge part of their relationship. Watching them rally back and forth, laugh at missed shots, and naturally fall into conversation made for some of my favorite images of the day. Nothing felt forced because they were doing something they genuinely love together.
Then we wrapped everything up at Taco Bell. I know that might sound unexpected for an engagement session, but honestly…I loved it. The hot sauce packets, the laughs over dinner, the casual moments sitting across from each other. Those are the kinds of memories that make a gallery feel personal instead of posed.
Variety You’ll Never Get on Your Wedding Day
Another reason I loved this session so much is because it gave MP and Saige something completely different from what they’ll receive on their wedding day.
This August, they’ll be getting married at the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Their wedding gallery will naturally feel elegant, refined, and full of celebration.
Their engagement gallery tells a different chapter. It’s playful, relaxed and full of inside jokes and favorite places. Years from now, they’ll remember not just what they looked like before they got married, but what this season of life actually felt like.
I always encourage my couples to think about their engagement session as an opportunity to document their everyday love story, because your wedding day already tells the story of your biggest day. Your engagement photos can tell the story of everything that came before it.
Counting Down to August
Spending the evening with MP and Saige made me even more excited to photograph their wedding this summer.
If their engagement session is any indication, I know their wedding day will reflect exactly who they are. And after seeing how effortlessly they laugh together, I already know it’s going to be a day worth remembering.
MP and Saige, thank you for trusting me with your story. Sessions like this are exactly why I love encouraging couples to think outside the box. Because sometimes your favorite engagement photos aren’t taken in the most beautiful place. They’re taken in the places that mean the most.
