This is an engagement session for a couple friends of mine. They were very easy to work with and a lot of fun. We were all on the same page as far as wanting the pictures to look as natural or candid as possible. Many of the poses were done casually and I am super grateful for their willingness to work with me. I think we got their personalities pretty good in some of these and the downtown setting was perfect for them.
I did do some brainstorming and sketches for these. I also have to give some credit to my wife for pinning some stuff on Pinterest that worked really well. I also went down a few days before the shoot and scouted out some places and checked out the available light. I wanted to keep it all within walking distance just to help with flow and casual feel of the shoot. We started around 6:30pm and shot until really close to sundown. Going from under the train tracks, out into the street, then of course in the park, I had to do a few different light readings. As far as editing I tried to stick with, as natural as possible, yet a couple of them I bumped up the contrast to get some extra drama and depth in there. All in all, I am very happy with how they turned out and can't wait to do some more sessions.
This was one of the first ones we did. We kept it super loose at first and just saw this cool building by the bus station and this window and neat stone wall. I just had them sit and snapped a couple without giving much instruction. The lighting was really harsh so it took a few tries to get that right and the I stuck with the shot with the window in it and I love the fun laughter.
This is one of the more formal poses that I knew mom and dad would want a few of. The pose seems natural with her tucked under his left arm and his hand in his pocket. I love the texture and color of the brick wall. I went with the 2/3 composition on this one to get the repetition of the beams under the tracks.
The full shot portrait is one I definitely wanted to get. You get a little more sense of setting and with the gravel and I love how you can see their whole outfits. The lighting was nice and soft under the tracks so it was easy to work with without having to change a lot. Stuck with the 50mm prime on most of these and the shallow depth of field to focus on the couple.
I tried really hard to get a few where the setting was the emphasis and the subject was a small part of it. It seems to be a growing fad among photographers so this is my attempt, allong with the next one. This one has a "looking to the future" sort of feel to it, again with the repetition of the beams. Not a lot of color in this one, but again stuck with the shallow depth of field to keep them the focus.
The tree, the gate, the archway, the light above, all of these I knew I wanted to get one in here. I think it is a hot spot for photos in Fort Wayne but it is a good one. It has an old time feel to it. It might have been cool in black and white but I wanted the green tree and the red brick. Again, my attempt at the setting being overwhelming with them in conversation as a part of this larger picture. This is one of the few where I switched out for my 24-105 zoom to get everything in the shot. I also bent down to get the angle of the tree I wanted.
This picture was one of those that got added in on the walk, which is exactly why I wanted to walk, to keep them as a part of the process. She recommended sitting on the bench and I think it captures them well. The brick background is always a nice feature.
Sticking with the natural poses, we had them sitting across from each other at this table and just had him kiss her hand. Of course, the emphasis is on the ring so I went with the 1.4 aperture and got this one done pretty quick. She was laughing in a few of these which was perfect. I didn't get enough of the tight shots but this one was't cropped at all and I just got right up in there.
The big red door we worked with for awhile. I went with this one again because it just captured their personalities so well. I took a lot more from back really far but they didn't work out so well. Back in the alley way the light was shielded by the buildings a bit so it made it easier to work with.
Right up against that brick wall, and once again with the shallow depth of field, these turned out really well. Tried getting some ot that urban setting. These ones weren't edited a whole lot, just keeping it simple.
Used some props to get a picnic like atmosphere. We had them get close and they started talking so this was them actually just being them. The lighting was really hard to work with as the sun was coming in from behind me, adding a lot of contrast and harsh shadows, but it lit them up well. We also got a wardrobe change in there. The props and the subjects balance each other out in the composition and the angle allowed for the park setting to show in the background.
They did a great job selling the passion and anticipation in this shot. I knew I wanted one with the sun shining through and I think this was the only shot that I used flash on. I also had to do some editing to deal with some of the shadows and highlights and then added a light lens flare in there for extra drama. Again, this was another one where I tried to get right up in there business.
This is one of my favorites, on the park bench, apparently in deep thought, or exhaustion but either way it is captivating. The black and white was for added drama and simplicity. Also, because I didn't like the orange color the low sun was giving so black and white it is. Shallow depth of field on this one to focus in on the eyes and face expressions, which are fantastic.
This was a spur of the moment picture, trying to tell the story of a stroll downtown. I went with him in focus and her a little blurred to emphasize the leadership he has also being shown by the fact that he is out front. That might be stretching it on this photo but that is my theory, and I'm the photographer so...
This was definitely a good learning experience for me. In the future I would like to take less photos and time. I would also like to experiment with some different editing techniques to get some extra drama out of the shots. Maybe even try some more with motion and playful stuff. Also, move around more and get a lot of different angles. I stood in the same place a lot and to set the scene up then move around just to get a feel for what works and adds to the photograph.