Lisa and Jim

Meet Lisa and Jim -- guess where they met?

When I first met Lisa and Jim, they told me they were not really photo people; they didn't know much about photography, and they didn't have many photos of themselves, etc. I can totally relate to not having many photos together -- either Rich or I always have the camera on any family outing, so we really don't have any nice photos of ourselves as a couple. That's why I love doing engagement sessions -- it's really fulfilling to be able to give a couple beautiful photos of themselves, especially in places that mean something to them!

Lisa and Jim are downtown people, like us, so they decided that since most of their important moments (meeting, first date, engagement) happened in the Elmwood Village area, that would be the perfect area to do their engagement portraits. And I totally agree -- if I were having them done, I'd probably do some cool urban portraits too. I love this city!

Then we headed over to Bidwell Park to that funky Griffis piece that's there.

Okay, so these are my favorite photos of the day. Seriously, aren't they gorgeous?? I cannot wait to shoot Lisa in her wedding gown!

My favorite of the day, period. I think it's smoldering!

I love a couple that's willing to get dirty for me!

I've been absolutely dying to shoot someone under this lion on Delaware Ave. A little more of the plaster is gone after each winter, and I don't think the Lion is going to last all that much longer. Anyway, L+J were up for it - so we shot!

Rich and I always shoot the same thing in very different ways...and I guess I must have popped up in a few of his frames :) He'll get over it. This is me and my very, very favorite lens working in close!

The rock shot...

And here's some cool, Rich "hand geometry" :)

So, since we were in the neighborhood, we had to stop off at the first date location! I love this shot of Rich's!

So, we're walking past this door, and I just yelled that I loved this shade of blue and that we should come back and take some photos in this doorway. Lisa was like, I guess that would be pretty appropriate, since that's where my mom works. Crazy, right? And that would be insane and random in any other city, but there's that weird Buffalo thing here where everyone's connected.

Thanks, guys, for hanging out with us -- I know it wasn't super warm, but we had a blast with you two, and we're really excited about shooting your wedding next year. It's going to be fabulous!

Carolyn and JT

When I was 13, my dad handed me my first camera -- his old Pentax. He was a photographer and artist, and he taught me the basics of photography. After my mom died, I spent hours in our basement looking through his old photos of her, and one of the best photos of her, now a family classic, is of her kneeling in a field of wheat. It's got that early-70's-yellowish-hippy thing going on, and it's my favorite photo ever. So, when we asked Carolyn what kind-of feel she was going for in her engagement photos, and she replied, "70's record cover in a wheat field," I knew I was going to love working with her. While Carolyn is very into vintage (she's been antiquing for her wedding centerpieces for months), we did want to do some slightly more modern shots, as well, so we headed to Niagara Square to start our shoot with her and JT.

After we hung out for a few minutes, we headed down to the waterfront for some more photos. I think we're dangerously close to the end of fall (I know -- I hate to say that in October!!), so it was really nice to be able to shoot some outdoor photos without heavy coats (or, I should say, without coats AND without freezing anyone).

Then we went to Tifft Nature Preserve for our awesome 70's field shoot. We were waiting for the sun to get a little lower in the sky, so we walked slightly in to the preserve and took some shots by the water.

I love this shot of Rich's! Even though we shoot the exact same event, it's always a really cool moment when we get to see each other's shots from the day. When I saw this photo, I literally clapped! I love it, ridiculously so.

Then the light was about where we wanted it to start rocking the field shots.

We absolutely loved shooting you two, and we can't wait for your wedding. Without a doubt, it's going to be seriously unique. We hope you love your photos, and we'll see you soon!

Bethany and Adam's Engagement Session

Back in May, when we shot Ryan and Danielle's wedding, we met Bethany and Adam, an adorable couple who were secretly contemplating the big E. When Adam proposed to Bethany a few months ago, they contacted us to shoot their wedding. We were totally excited to see them again when they popped into town this week, and we hung out with them and shot some engagement portraits. We started out in Bethany's parents' gorgeous yard.

We shot a few before heading over to the hammock where Adam first told Bethany he loved her. Of course, in keeping with the romance of the spot, Bethany and Adam climbed into the hammock, and promptly fell over.

We shot a few more portraits at the house before heading over to Woodlawn Beach.

Bethany and Adam are really a very personable couple -- you spend a few minutes with them, and you feel like you've known them forever. They also have a great sense of humor. When we hit the beach, we gave them a suggested pose, and then asked them to do what felt right.

We didn't have long at the beach before the sun started to go down, so we shot a little while and then started playing with the gorgeous sunset.

A lot of the time, things go perfectly during shoots -- the light, the personalities... and then some times, a helicopter flies into your neck.

Thanks for hanging out with us guys; we're really looking forward to your wedding. You clearly have a lot of friends and family who love you a lot, and it's going to be a beautiful day.