Here are a few of my favorites from Halley and Josh’s engagement session. I met the couple a few weeks after Valentines Day to discuss their wedding photography options for their upcoming Gallery 1028 ceremony and reception, and during our meeting, they mentioned that they would like to incorporate their dog Minnie in an engagement shoot. Hearing the name Minnie, I had to assume their dog was a petite dog, but I was thrilled to learn that they had a blue Great Dane. For the engagement shoot, they made the smart decision to incorporate their dog for a portion of the shoot, so I was able to focus on both the couple as well as the couple with their dog. I am very happy to have met Minnie and I cannot wait to photograph her as the ring bearer at their wedding ceremony.Halley wore a polka dot dress with an orange belt she picked out for this shoot from Anthropologie, red heels, and carried orange balloons. Josh wore a simple blue button down shirt and jeans.

Reasons why their wedding is going to rock:

They are such a fun couple to work with!
They have a super cool dog that they say is blue.
Their wedding is at Gallery 1028, one of my favorite Chicago wedding venues.
and Calihan Catering…… mmmmmm.
They will have Style Matters to DJ their reception.

For their shoot, some DIY props such as cutouts of their first intials and a heart were made.

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High school sweethearts in full force! They went to the same college, got engaged at a beach in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, currently live in Chicago, and will be getting married in Ann Arbor, Michigan, followed by a honeymoon in St Maarten. They love the beach, so the location was perfectly appropriate for their engagement photo session! We had a lot of fun using the available setting such as the boats, lifeguard chair, and skyline, early this morning before everyone hit the beach.

Scooter love, its something you often can’t shake. I’ve met few people who own just one scooter, in fact many scooterists have plenty of vintage Vespas and Lambrettas in their basement, painstakingly restoring them, or just trying to keep them running. I got sucked into the scooter scene and met some of my closest friends through attending countless scooter rallies in Boston, Las Vegas, Montreal and Niagara just to name a few. A few years ago, I met Frank through scootering. He has been riding scooters for years, and was overseas in Abu Dabi for work. Here is a great connection story: Frank met his fiancé Pattie in Miami in 1989, though over the last few years, reconnected with her while she was living in New York City. They kept a long distance relationship going before calling Boston home. Frank began bringing Pattie to vintage scooter rallies and now she rides with him on his vintage yellow Vespa Rally 180. In addition to getting a staffordshire bull terrier puppy named Ivy, I believe they are adding a Lambretta TV175 now to their family.

Meg and Nick had their engagement shoot at Nick’s family’s machine shop. When scheduling their engagement session before their wedding, sending dates and locations back and fourth, I was thrilled when I got an email from them before the shoot saying that they were deciding between “our backyard, a toy store, his parent’s machine shop…” I knew we were going to have a blast at either location. I had never met the bride or groom before this shoot but soon realized they have a magnetic energy that stands out, and it was very easy to connect with them.

Before work one morning, we all headed over to the machine shop and I wasn’t sure what to expect, but was up for the challenge of doing their engagement photography in a location that was significant to them. Inside the shop, the rhythmic sounds of machines making parts, the flicker of the fluorescent overhead bulbs, and the smell of machine oil loaded all my senses. It turns out, some of the machines at Nick’s family’s shop are old Swiss machines and Meg grew up in Switzerland. Meg is Irish, and the couple will be getting married at an Italian Catholic church. Their upcoming wedding (in about four weeks!) will have European influences.

Nick lead us around in various rooms, to the attic, on the rooftop and outdoors around the building. The raw, industrial nature of the facility provided a one of a kind background for the beautiful couple’s photos.

Spaces like these are a nice contrast and when you look at the couple in engagement shoots like these their beauty stands out. Sometimes you get a little dirty (I got oil on my hands) but it makes it all worth it. As a wedding photographer, are some of my favorite types of engagement photography locations.

Before their upcoming wedding at the Tower Club atop the Civic Opera House, I met with Charles and Dawn for an engagement shoot at Union Station and Carnivale. Dawn was a fan of the neoclassical architecture. If you have your heart set on taking photos at Union Station for your engagement shoot or wedding photography location, it is important to look into getting a permit. The station is an ideal space for an indoor location due to rain, but permits are required two weeks in advance. After taking some photographs at the station, we walked over to their wedding venue near the river. The Tower Club, which is operated by the same folks who run The University Club of Chicago, is located on the 39th floor, providing spanning city views. Our final stop was to Carnivale, the restaurant where they had their first date.

I will be photographing Beth and Scott’s wedding this autumn at Prairie Production, one of Chicago’s most prized modern wedding venues. I am noticing a lot of brides and grooms are looking to this wedding venue because it has so many great qualities. Prairie Production is truly a blank canvas, simple white walls, a bank of windows, slightly industrial and loft like… The wedding venue is unrestrictive and allows you to bring your own alcohol and caterer of your choice. They have fun lighting options in lots of different colors.

I met Beth and Scott for an early morning engagement session. It was perfect due to it being a cooler time of day, less humid, less crowds, and some of the best lighting. We journeyed from park areas, to nearby city street corners, and even to a plaza near an office building for varied locations.

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I always encourage my clients to brainstorm when it comes to coming up with an interesting location for an engagement shoot. Tara and Sam knew right away that they wanted to pick a venue that meant something to them. They called ahead for permission and chose a location with a bar, billiards, and a bowling alley that dated back to the 1940s. Rain or shine, a space like this works great. I love the idea of glamming it up at a fun location! Tara also used the date as an opportunity to do a hair trial before her wedding with Holly Kasprisin.

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Just for fun, here’s ANOTHER engagement shoot. It was a perfect morning, and e roamed around a park and spotted goslings! Another couple with ties to Boston and Chicago…. I will be the wedding photographer for Adrienne and Ryan’s autumn wedding which will be at an historic mansion. Adrienne is an artist and will be designing her fall wedding day theme around wheat and pumpkins.