Storytelling Engagement Photos

It’s giving at home, sunrise, mimosa, moments you CAN’T plan, garden, front porch, library, going on a walk with your favorite people shenanigans. Wrapped up in a cinematic engagement photo package.

At-Home Engagement Photos That Tell a Story

I drove out to the east side of Michigan (not so) bright and early on the morning of Julie and Jake’s engagement photo shoot. It was about a 2 1/2 hour drive from Grand Rapids.

The plan was to start our session at sunrise at their home. I just love an at-home session. There is something so beautiful about engagement photos in your space. In your element. It’s intimate and cozy and real. Beginning to end, we kind of just embraced the day.

So, I show up at their place, they are making mimosas. MIMOSAS. Already it’s a total vibe. We get some sweet photos on their front porch. Just them enjoying each other. I’m already obsessed. I really loved the color grading on these photos. They have this really lovely yellow tone. They feel so peaceful and ambient in a way I haven’t really created before.

Julie + Jake’s Creative Engagement Photos

Then, we go inside, he makes her breakfast. It’s super cute. They have this window that aligns with where they are sitting. Looking at them through that window felt like a movie scene to me. No notes. :’)

Julie and Jake are sooooo cool. Very artsy–she actually is an artist, he plays guitar (this is very subtle foreshadowing, just you wait.)

After breakfast, we hung out on the couch. Their cat showed up and joined in the photos for a bit. We played with some posing on their stairs. She painted their stairs??? Can you even believe that? They are so fricken cool.

This entire shoot was easy going and playful. It was seriously so easy for me to document. I hardly pulled out any posing prompts. They just spent time together being their genuine selves. It really was like I got to follow along as their film crew for a day. It makes a part of me feel so warm and whole getting to make art out of other people’s genuine selves.

Outdoor Engagement Photos

We began our out-of-doors adventure with them showing me their new goose statue (I loved it). Their house is so fricken cool. It’s old and has all of this character. We got to commemorate it in a way which is really beautiful I think. After that, we kind of went through their morning routine. They showed me their chickens (chickens!!!) which they tended to and we played with a little bit. Those chickens were so funny and cute. They watered the garden and plants and soaked up a bit of sunshine and fresh air.

Then, they pulled out the bikes. She had just thrifted this tandem bike which was one of the coolest things ever. Literally amazing. It amazed me. The photos we got with it were very fun. They also pulled out a regular bike and a skateboard/longboard thing. They rode around while I had my own fun getting photos of them. It felt like being a kid playing around the neighborhood with friends. Just messing around, being kids. Riding bikes and making art. All we need is a razor scooter.

Unplanned + Cinematic

As aforementioned, Jake plays the guitar. They are seriously such a cool couple. He busted out the guitar and started playing. Julie (who had disappeared inside for a second) walks out the door in the most perfect possible timing and steps into an ACCIDENTAL SERENADE? It was completely unplanned and cute as hell. I couldn’t make this shit up. He plays for awhile and we all have a really lovely time.

We went back to their porch and spent some quality time listening to Jake continue with his set list. I thought to myself again how much it felt like a movie. When I first posted some of these photos to Instagram, Mara dm’d me telling me the photos on the porch reminded her of the film 10 Things I Hate About You. Like, Mara gets it. Your story is just as cinematic as a movie. It is just as thrilling, comedic, heartfelt, colorful, vivid, and expansive as the stories they tell on the silver screen. Sometimes all you needs is a cinematographer (aka me) to make it look that way. To show you what it really looks like when you aren’t the one living it.

Library Engagement Photos

Our next scene was a walk to the library. We walked in and I could TELL Julie is a regular there. I had them pick out some books and got some fun, more artsy shots there.

Throughout the entire session, Julie and Jake naturally kind of loved on each other. Not every couple is super affectionate and photos where they are posed affectionately can feel forced. This was definitely NOT the case for these two. I loved that I could create this space where they could just be their authentic selves together and have beautiful pictures of it. The entire day was one authentic moment after the other doing the things they usually do. Posed and themed photoshoots can be so beautiful and exactly what someone wants—they totally have their time and place. There is something so beautiful to me, though, about engagement photos especially where the couple truly embraces who they are. To let a normal day unfold and document it to celebrate your engagement. It is so gorgeous and genuine and soft. At home sessions like this really tend to be my favorite to shoot.

You can just do what you do every day and it can be art???

On our walk back from the library, Julie spotted these cute wildflowers and stopped to pick them and the moment was so cute. I was so glad I got to be there to witness it and snap some photos. The walk itself was it’s own little adventure. We saw this squirrel and laughed. We stopped at a swing set. There is this pond and picnic area near them and we got some more shots before our day together was over. Those ended up being some of my favorite shots. Leaning against the trees, walking on the picnic tables, and moments spent just talking and laughing.

Photos that tell a story

It all felt so… THEM. So very much Jake and Julie. They feel so happy, so hopeful and playful and loving. It is their story that these photos tell. Sure, on the surface it is the story of our day spent together. BUT if you look closely, you can almost see all the times they’ve spent days together just like this one. You can almost see their plot, how they came to be. The times they’ve had to work through to get here. You can pick up hints of their excitement for what is ahead. You can feel the deep sense of peace for the life that is right in front of them now—what their everyday life looks like right now. And you can pick up on the knowing that it hasn’t and won’t always look like this.

I can see your story.

Even if you think your story isn’t interesting. It is worth telling, worth documenting. Even if you think your house isn’t photo-worthy, I promise you your home is cool as hell. It holds your trinkets and your things and your life.

An Engagement Photographer That Tells YOUR Story

It was just some time spent at home and a walk around the neighborhood, a trip to the library. But I can see the story it tells. And I can promise you, your story is just as beautiful. Together, we can create engagement photos that tell a story—tell your story. Learn more about engagement photo sessions and book yours now. <3