Blog— 2021 —
Roger Williams Park Engagement Photos
Jessica & Phillip
Roger Williams Park, Providence, Rhode Island
October 13th, 2021
If I'm being truthful, one of the chief reasons I can never see myself leaving Rhode Island, or at the least New England, is that for maybe three weeks each year, you're treated to an absolutely spectacular streak of fall weather and colors that simply can't be beat.
Every year during this time period, all I want to do is be out and about photographing weddings and engagement sessions and, thankfully, my couples often feel the same way.
Then there's Jessica and Phillip. As beautiful as their mid-October engagement session date was, they wouldn't have cared if we were taking the photos in the winter, spring, summer or fall. For this couple, it was the location itself that mattered most as we got together at Roger Williams Park, the site where Phillip first told her he loved her and where he proposed.
But it's hard to deny the fall colors certainly helped on this afternoon. And it's one of the reasons this was one of my favorite engagement sessions of the year ... halfway through us even shooting it.
Jessica and Phillip's engagement session began, as most of my Roger Williams Park sessions do, in the Japanese Gardens and it's always with good reason. For most of my couples, the first 10 minutes or so can be a bit awkward so I like to start in a place with a variety of little locations as we find out what works best.
For these two, though, they were not only comfortable right from the start but super into the shoot and easy to pose/work with.
That helped in a big way as we were able to spend a good chunk of time really exploring that part of the part. So much so that I almost forgot they had brought two other outfits and I'd need to eventually move things outside of that one area.
While I could have worked with these two at the Japanese Gardens until the sun literally set on us, it didn't take long for me to nod my head and smile when we went elsewhere and Jessica and Phillip changed outfits. I actually loved their second look even more than the first, especially when we made our way up to the Iron Footbridge and saw how stunning the foliage looked on this beautiful fall afternoon.
I think my favorite of Jessica and Phillip's outfits was actually the one we spent the least amount of time with as the pair donned Patriots gear to wrap up their session. I'd admit ... this felt the most like "them" and it led to some really cute photos, particularly because I think we all knew by this point that we'd gotten everything we could have asked for from this session and so much more.
By the time Jessica, Phillip and I headed to our cars and called it a wrap on their engagement session, I couldn't wait to get to work on their photos and that is ALWAYS an amazing sign of a shoot gone well.
I have a sneaking suspicion the same will be true for their wedding day and not just because it's almost a year to the date of their engagement session and might just have the same beautiful foliage waiting for us. But that certainly helps.
So thanks once again Jessica and Phillip on a lovely fall shoot and a beautiful way to spend a picture perfect afternoon. I can't wait to do it all over again. See you in 2022!
-Paul J. Spetrini
