Courtnie & Richie
Boston Public Gardens & Charles River Esplanade, Boston, Massachusetts
May 4th, 2018
In the time since I began shooting weddings and engagement photos, I've taken a simple approach to how I want to interact with clients: I want them to feel comfortable and want to be as relaxed and laid back as possible.
I've found, generally speaking, that people appreciate that attitude and it brings out the best in the folks I'm photographing and nowhere was that clearer than on a sunny May afternoon in Boston as I shot the engagement session of Courtnie and Richie.
Courtnie and Richie are a lot like most of my couples. They met through a shared interest (in this case church), hung out as friends and fell in love quickly. I knew the two would be fun when they described Richie's proposal on the Charles River Esplanade so it only made sense to hit Beantown for their engagement session and, man, was it a fun shoot.
I don't think I've ever walked around as much for an engagement shoot as I did with Courtnie and Richie but we simply couldn't help ourselves. There was so much to see and so much to shoot that what started out as an hour-long session turned into three hours and a four-mile trek around the area.
Believe me when I tell you, though. It was totally worth it.
Courtnie and Richie's engagement shoot started out in the Boston Public Gardens and after a slight traveling mishap led the couple to be a bit late for their shoot, I could tell they were initially frazzled and out of their game.
Thankfully, I specialize in relaxing folks and after 15 minutes of so, I could see their natural smiles come to life as Richie playfully teased Courtnie and kept her giggling as people mulled around us everywhere we went in the busy park area.
My favorite photos in the Public Gardens were definitely the ones we took on a small bridge overlooking the area.
This would prove to be a theme as the entire Charles Street section of the city is filled with bridges but this one,, in particular, caught my eye because of the greenery behind them, how comfortable Courtnie and Richie looked together on it and the beautiful lighting that was soft and really brought out the colors in the outfits the future bride and groom chose to wear.
After a little over an hour in the Public Gardens, the three of us made our way through the streets of Boston as Richie had a special place in mind for the rest of the shoot as he wanted to return to the site where he proposed to Courtnie: The Charles River Esplanade.
I adored the photos Courtnie and Richie took on the streets of Boston but it was the esplanade area where I really enjoyed watching them interact as the two switched outfits and brought out some Beauty and the Beast-themed props that go along with the theme of their upcoming wedding in Abington, Mass this August.
By the time Courtnie, Richie and I departed near the Charles/MGH Red Line train station, I was absolutely exhausted from a long day of trekking through one of the busiest cities in the world. But I was also incredibly excited to see the results as I knew the three of us had taken some really cool photos that told Courtnie and Richie's story perfectly.
It wasn't until afterward that I really reflected on how much fun we had and, if their engagement session was any indication, their wedding day in three months is going to be one of my favorite shoots of the entire year.
So thanks for being so great Courtnie and Richie. I hope you enjoyed the shoot half as much as I did. See you soon!
-PJS
