I am so lucky to do what I do and to have such a great friend who also in this business! Meg Perotti asked me to come to New York with her to shoot Jessica and Brett’s engagement session… I, of course, said yes because I love to travel, especially for shoots, and because I had never been to New York and was dying to experience this city! As luck would have it, today was the day we planned to do the session, and today was the only day that it is supposed to snow during our trip.

Some people would try to reschedule… we totally embraced every second of it! As we sit here in this Manhattan apartment, drying off and warming up after being out in the snow navigating the city all day, we are both editing these photos. Here is a stand-out favorite of mine so far. MANY more to follow… and be sure to check out Meg’s blog for her shots as well!

Can’t wait to explore more of the city tomorrow!

I’ve said it before, but one of the absolute best things about being a wedding photographer is getting to meet and interact with such a great variety of people. I get to meet so many interesting, new people I would never otherwise have the pleasure of knowing. However, there are times when I have the honor and privilege to photograph family and friends- people I know very well- and sometimes they are old friends I have not been able to see in a long time. Ryan is one of those old friends so I was so happy to go down to San Diego to photograph his and Elena’s engagement session last week. We had a lot of catching up to do since I hadn’t seen him in three years, and it was so awesome to finally meet Elena. Seeing them together was such a joy- they are amazingly perfect for each other and I am so happy they have found each other. I had such a great time… Here are my favorites from the shoot!

Ryan met Elena while they were both working at this school in San Diego. We thought it would be fun to start the day there…

Ryan is from SoCal and Elena is from Wyoming.

Ryan was lookin’ very handsome.

A favorite!

Hello, gorgeous.

Then we headed to downtown Del Mar after a change of clothes and a change of hair. Elena has alopecia, a disorder that causes people to lose their hair, so she wears a variety of wigs and wanted different hair for each outfit. Loved it!

I’ve never seen Ryan happier.

Thennnn… down to the beach! The evening was just perfect here… Check out those clouds! Another favorite.

I’m pretty sure these next two images are my favorite of the day- maybe even two of my favorite ever. I just love the feeling of them and what they represent of their relationship. I have just met Elena, but I feel like I know her when I look at these two images side by side… such a strong, beautiful, genuine, positive and fun spirit.

And a quick shot of us just before we left the beach for dinner. Such a fun day! So glad I got to see you guys!

For more information on alopecia, visit the site for the National Alopecia Foundation. I didn’t know much about it before and found this Website really helpful in understanding what it’s all about.