Engagement photography Session - Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
I first met T + M via video in the winter to discuss their 2023 wedding. The couple is located close to Baltimore and are planning a Baltimore wedding. We briefly mentioned engagement sessions on the call and someone (not me!) mentioned that maybe Harpers Ferry would be a good location. I was immediately on board. Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, is a great location to have an engagement session. I have photographed around the historic little town so much that I have lost count. Even then, the location never gets boring! Once I learned that M proposed to T on Maryland Heights, I knew Harpers Ferry was the PERFECT location for these two and there was no convincing me otherwise.
I often get asked “When is the best time for photos?” Although I can work in any lighting situation, my answer never changes. Sunrise and sunset are the best times to capture colorful dramatic skies, and therefore my favorite time to take photos. To be fair, I *rarely* have clients jump on board with sunrise sessions. I know my role in taking photos is much different than clients’ role of being in them. It's easy-peasy for me to pack equipment the night before, wake up, grab comfy clothes, put hair in a messy bun, and head out the door before the sun comes up. There’s a lot more prep on the clients’ end, so I really don’t blame people for preferring sunset sessions instead. Yet to my surprise, T + M were on board for a sunrise session.
Their engagement session took place in the early hours of April. When Trey and I arrived in Harpers Ferry, it was a ghost town—a dark and cold ghost town. T + M arrived shortly after us. We had mapped out our session and knew we wanted to start near the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers in hopes of capturing the sun rising over the water. We also knew that we wanted Maryland Heights in the background since that was the special place M proposed. We got lucky and the sun came out to play, just long enough for us to grab some photos.
After the sunrise, the couple changed into more comfortable clothing before we began our journey to our destination, Jefferson Rock along the Appalachian Trail. We trekked through town and hit some of my favorite locations for photos. It wasn’t too long after the sunrise that I started to feel sporadic rain drops. I ignored it—because that’s what I do—until I couldn’t ignore it any longer! It started to rain as soon as we got to Jefferson Rock. T + M were natural rockstars and were willing to embrace the rain for some fun photos. Of course it stopped raining as soon as we made it back down the hill, but at that point T + M had worked hard and deserved breakfast after an early morning of hiking.
Photographing these two was a lot of fun! I cannot wait until their wedding in winter at Mansion at Valley Country Club.
