ASHLEY & ZANE engagement

PNF…PNF…PNF…”Pure Natural Fun!” Those are the words I choose to describe my engagement shoot with Ashley and Zane. I laughed…I smiled…I giggled and I had lots & lots of PNF…PURE NATURAL FUN! When I first met Ashley for coffee, she was beautiful, she was sweet and most importantly to me, she was excited about every aspect of the photography for her wedding. I talked with her about my style of shooting, my past clients, my products and the importance of an engagement shoot. As a courtesy, I offer all my brides a “complimentary” engagement shoot or day-after shoot. I love shooting either of these, it is simply my client’s choice of what they want.

There are wonderful benefits for both these shoots, but in this post I will touch base on what makes an engagement shoot so awesome. This mini session allows me to get to know my clients and gives them an opportunity to get to know me. During an engagement shoot I make my clients comfortable with me as a photographer…I laugh with them and get to know them as friends. As the engagement shoot progresses, I try and get them to relax because most people are not use to having professional photos taken. I’ve heard it can be nerve racking…ha.ha. Plus I like to get up close & personal and I want my clients to be ok with this. During an engagement shoot, I love just hanging out and spending time with my clients. I talk with them, laugh with them, eat ice cream (if necessary…smile smile) and most importantly I watch their interactions. I simply allow them to be themselves and I am along to observe and document. Engagement shoots also make it easy for my clients to trust me, that way on their big day…their mind is at ease because they know what to expect from me, their photographer…their friend.

Here are some of my favorite images from Ashley & Zane’s shoot…

Ashley gets “two thumbs up and a big high five” for her style. Clothes are very important and she had her stuff together. I love that she mixed up her wardrobe…dressy attire and casual clothes. I always like to encourage my clients to bring multi outfits. This makes the shoot more interesting with a variety of looks.





I love green stuff…plants, shrubs, palm trees, etc. Anything green makes me smile because it makes for a nice background, but does not distract from my gorgeous clients.



Ashley loves to laugh too…just like me.


This is one of my favorite shots of the day. Ashley kisses Zane with such tenderness and emotion. This was not a shot I planned…this is Ashley and Zane just being themselves and me paying attention. I love the way her foot is drawn up and I love the way she is gently kissing him. Perfect!




I always try to throw in some casual settings to make the guys feel relaxed. Zane has clearly accomplished this look.


I had to get a shot with Historic Riverstreet in the background.

Ashley & Zane are getting married at The Westin, so we took the water taxi over to Riverstreet to get a couple shots from there. I love this photo because you can see The Westin in the background. This was planned…ha.ha.



This is the fountain at Forsyth Park. Look…no tourists in the shot…yea!

I really get happy when my clients have some “PNF” during a shoot. This makes me smile.

Zane smiling at Ashley…nice!


Ashley and Zane were amazing. They trusted me and were open to all my ideas. Thank you guys. Oh and I got this shot without falling on them….ha.ha. LOL.

and this one too…Oh yea, I’ve got some balancing skillz. 😉



These last images are awesome and I had to share all three. Ashley brought a cowboy hat and I had to get a couple photos because she was just that cool. I wanted to tone these specifically for a western look…all three images were processed differently.




To see a slideshow of their engagement shoot…CLICK HERE.

Ashley & Zane…Thank you both for allowing me to capture some of the most special moments in your life. Thank you for an engagement shoot that made me smile during a difficult week. I am excited about your upcoming wedding…my mind is already getting creative with some fun ideas.

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