At-Home Engagement Photos take on new meaning when they are in California! It was so fun to be able to hang out with my friends Cat & Joe and their menagerie of animals! I was so delighted that they flew me out to San Francisco to photograph and document their elopement at San Fransisco City Hall! Be sure to look at our blog post recap of their City Hall micro-wedding. 

We spent the day before the wedding catching up over mimosas and getting them warmed up and camera ready. Their place was so perfectly styled for this shoot, and I love being able to freeze this part of their lives in time for just a short while. Like most of my portrait sessions and engagement sessions, this shoot was all film. Living on the East Coast has so many benefits but damn that California light gets me every time!

The details of planning an An At-Home Engagement Shoot

I’ve mentioned this in many of our blog posts, but engagement sessions can be so fun. And what better way to capture a moment in time rather than an at-home engagement shoot. Fortunately for me, this home was quite beautiful. And in beautiful, sunny California. There is so much to take in at this home. The lemon trees in the backyard. The dogs and a bunny rabbit. And the car with the red leather interior. We didn’t need any additional props at all. Since we had it all there.

You may wonder if you have the right setting for an at-home engagement shoot. In which case, just ask! Also, having tons of natural light is super important. However, it’s rare that we can’t make at least one corner of your home work. I’ll always encourage an at-home engagement shoot of some sort! Ultimately places like Colorado and California tend to be very favorable locations for these engagement or portrait sessions.

It has been a dream to photograph a National Cathedral wedding for me. And it has also been a dream of mine to be published on the wedding blog OnceWed. So when it finally happened last year I couldn’t have been more thrilled! You can check out the whole feature here: https://www.oncewed.com/featured/elegant-garden-inspired-indoor-wedding-ideas/

Having a beautiful setting like the National Cathedral is one of the perks of hosting an event at the National Cathedral school. It’s also a perk of living in Washington, DC. Being a wedding photographer we get to enjoy all these views. The buildings on the campus are stunning in their neo-Gothic style. And their grounds are spectacularly maintained. As the sun set over the limestone buildings, the colors of the atmosphere turned to beautiful shades of pink and blue. This is really one of the best wedding venues we have in DC. What a place to have your wedding ceremony!

Wedding Planner: Bright Occasions, Margo Fischer | Photography: Bonnie Sen Photography | Venue: National Cathedral School, Danielle Capecchi | Invitation Suite: The Dandelion Patch, Heidi Kallett | Wedding Cakes: Catherine George Cakes | Florals: Petals by the Shore, Kelly Shore |  Wedding Gift: Marigold & Grey, Jamie Kutchman | Hair & Make-Up: Amie Decker Beauty | Artist: Brittany Branson | Draping: Drape Kings, Meredith and Marybeth | Rentals: Select Event Group | Vintage Furniture: Something Vintage | Wedding Dress: Pas de Deux Bridal | Rings: Susie Saltzmen  | Groom’s Suit: Alton Lane | Models: Anastasiia Putkova + Sepehr Hajireza

A Studio Tour is exciting because you get to see inside the mind, and workspace, of other creatives. 

I had the pleasure of visiting this gorgeous workspace in person and photograph it for Rachel, the very talented owner of Floral and Bloom. We hung out and I captured her working on a floral display with amazing speed, from picking out the vessel for the display to filling it up. I love how all the details of her Maryland-based studio reinforce her brand, including the wallpaper from Anthropologie. Here are a few of my personal favorites, but the full link to the published SMP Living feature is here.

I look forward to capturing more creatives’ studio tour stories as they happen. There is something so satisfying about cleaning up your studio for a tour that makes you get your stuff together. It’s not a surprise that this shoot was featured in a publication. The key elements to a “publishable” space are the design. The wallpaper is a feature element. And the storage illustrates how a functioning space can still be neat and orderly. 

Be sure to reach out if you’re interested in a profile of your space. It’s worth mentioning that as former architects, we do tons of interior and architectural photography.

These Potomac engagement photos didn’t turn out exactly as I expected, they turned out better! This couple is from Maryland and very active outdoors. They knew lots of great spots that were hidden but easy access. Like this spot! A hike that is right in all of our backyards, just outside of DC. The location is near a horse stable where the bride’s mother keeps a horse. Just hearing her talk about this location sounded like magic. The bride mentioned there is a forest where she goes trail running that leads to a stream. In addition to those two spots, there is also a wide-open field to get some amazing sunset photos. You can see for yourself how the photos turned out!

It should be mentioned that timing is key to all of these locations. The first spot was deep in the forest, where the light barely made it. As we hike deep into the trail it just keeps getting darker. By the time we are at our destination, I’m wondering if we can shoot film! Fortunately we started the photoshoot early enough where we were able to find a few sunbeams of light. This contrast of dark to light made for some really ethereal photos of light rays among dense trees. 

After that spot, we made it over to the horse barn to take some equine inspired photos. It was more open than the forest, but still shady enough to make sure we get even lighting across faces. I loved the barn and the horse, so we were two for two. 

Finally, the last spot is the open field. An open field in Potomac for engagement photos doesn’t seem like it would be anything impressive, but I’m in love. Just on the side of the road, with glowing fields. 

An epic elopement in DC is always special, but this one was extra. Why? Well, we promised to keep the photos private, but a special and very popular Supreme Court justice presided over this ceremony. That’s why this was the most epic elopement that I’ve been involved with. That’s what makes this an epic elopement in DC.

This couple is planning a larger wedding later this summer in their hometown in Connecticut. But given their connections to the Supreme Court, they decided to get legally married here. With only their parents attending, they got married in RBG’s chambers. After that, the whole group went to a private dinner at the world-famous restaurant Roses Luxury. If you ask me, this is the perfect way to get married.

It’s exciting to see that elopements are gaining popularity these days. From a photography perspective, I feel like they are so intimate and special. A big party is always fun in addition, but weddings are changing in society. I know that the best memories of our wedding were certainly on the dance floor, so I’m not sure how I would feel about missing the party. But I can tell you that there are ways to have both. And I for one am quite excited about these changes. You may also remember an epic San Francisco City Hall intimate wedding that we shared on the blog also.