Nancy and Alex get MARRIED this weekend at Nancy's family cottage in Morehead City, North Carolina so this is a celebratory post highlighting their charming, romantic and joyful engagement session from last month. They even requested their beloved furbaby Maxie to be in almost every photo and this calm and sweet old two-year old golden retriever was born to model for these photos. You'll see for yourself soon enough! 

Nancy and Alex met a summer house party and have been going steady for seven+ years now so needless to say, they were so comfortable and easy to capture. They were originally going to do their engagement photos in Morehead City, but decided to change to Raleigh, NC at the last minute because of a high wind forecast. Best spontaneous decision EVER! We captured some of their love at their first home in Raleigh and then ventured over to the North Carolina Museum of Art and trekked the grounds. Everywhere you looked was a picturesque backdrop waiting for beautiful humans to be in the foreground. Not only was the weather incredible, they also made two hours of photographing slip by so fast. Alex brought along a portable & rollable speaker so we had surround sound jams playing during the entire shoot. YES, I'm not kidding, it was like we were in a movie and every kiss DID cue romantic music!! Shout out to this sweet fiance for doing all this to make his bride smile. Cannot wait to capture you two tie the knot tomorrow. As for everyone else, thanks for reading my monologue and stay tuned for some sneak peeks from their wedding day! 

After an amazing twenty minutes at their house, Nancy and Alex packed a beer in the cooler and we ventured over to one of the most beautiful public places in Raleigh: The North Carolina Museum of Art. 

Okay y'all, prepare to be amazed. I love to ask couples during engagement sessions about how they met each other. It usually gets the romance going in an organic way and usually ends in some laughs and funny arguments about who's version is right. Asking questions like these also helps me get to know these couples I'm meeting for the first time at these engagement sessions. By the end of this session, I felt like I had known Anna and Adam for YEARS. What amazing chemistry they have and it all started with an incredible and unique "how-we-met" story, one of the coolest I think I've heard to date and I wanted to share their sweet story with y'all (with their blessing of course). 

Anna and Adam each went to a friend's destination wedding in Las Vegas last October. Anna is attending as a guest & friend of the bride and Adam is a friend of groom and neither of them knew each other prior to this trip. Adam is such good friends with the groom at this wedding, that he dressed up as Elvis and gave a speech for the happy couple. Anna and Adam met during the reception shortly thereafter, and laughed over the silliness and happiness that stemmed from their best friends' nuptials. Needless to say...they hit it off. Fast forward almost a year, with some covid-bonding in the mix, this pair decided to get married on their one-year dating anniversary! How amazing is that? I told you, it's pretty doggone sweet. When you know, you really know. Life is short. What's the point in wasting time?

With both of them living in different states at the time they met, a majority of Anna and Adam's relationship blossomed during covid-19 quarantine at Anna's grandmother's cottage in Wrightsville Beach. Like many Americans, they worked from home at a beautiful place and fell more in love so they naturally decided to do their engagement photos and wedding here. I had a blast with these two at the beach and already can't wait for their wedding at The Atrium in downtown Wilmington, NC in a few short weeks! Congratulations lovebirds. Thanks for giving me such warm reminders of why I love my job and hearing these stories.

Ashley and Tripp are getting married this Saturday in Hatteras, North Carolina, which means I'm going to photo bomb you with a collection of this gorgeous couple during their engagement session last October! They were originally going to have a bigger wedding at the Hatteras Marlin Club, but due to Covid-19, they decided to just have an intimate ceremony with family on their original date and then have a big reception same time next year. Ashley is from Hatteras so her gorgeous island hometown is the perfect place for her and Tripp to get married.

​For their engagement photos however, Ashley and Tripp wanted to do them in Wilmington, NC and it couldn't have gone more magically! They had a friend with sound side access and at the time of the photo session, it was a low tide which revealed all the oyster beds and lush lime green marsh. Yes— it was this pretty in October! It sure looked like a scene out of the Dawson's Creek show! I enjoyed every minute of getting to know them as a couple and watching Tripp dote on his fiance. They met freshmen year at UNC-Chapel Hill and were smitten ever since. What a perfect afternoon with these lovebirds! See for yourself. 

Candace and Darin are getting married (again) this Saturday and you better believe I'm going to share a collection of their engagement photos from last September in Wilmington. They opted for three different locations: the garden, the beach, and the sound side. Luckily Wilmington provides all three within a 10-minute radius! Candace and Darin are from Red Oak, NC so they made the trek for their engagement photos and man was it worth it! The weather was unbelievable—wait till you see the sunset glow at the end of this post.

Candace and Darin were supposed to have the big wedding on May 2nd at the Neuse Breeze Wedding Venue in Havelock, NC, but due to Covid-19, they decided to still get hitched on their original date and have a celebration later. Well... The celebration is already almost here! We cannot wait to capture more of this beautiful love on Saturday at Neuse Breeze. Photos of their wedding day coming very soon!

Courtney and Gib are getting married in October at the Angus Barn in Raleigh, NC but they decided to do engagement photos where they live —Wilmington, NC! I just adore these two and the love they share for both each other and for adventure. I was thrilled to hear that Courtney and Gib were up to going to Masonboro Island as an alternative to Wrightsville Beach because all the beaches were closed due to Covid-19. Don't worry, I kept my distance and photographed them flirting from afar with my many lenses! I'm so grateful to capture this beautiful couple get married in just a few short months!

Thinking about Wilmington, North Carolina for your portrait session? You should be! There is a reason my husband and I live here: It's one of our most favorite places in the world! Between the historical downtown waterfront booming with character, the small, close-knit, beach town of Wrightsville beach and the incredibly colorful gardens scattered around the city, you really have everything you could possibly want for beautiful photo shoot scenery. If you just want to cut through all the B.S. of research for your upcoming shoot, check out my top four locations in Wilmington, NC that are indeed FREE to the public. Although some may kindly ask for donations! After all, everything has a cost. 

1. Downtown Historical Wilmington, NC
Historical downtown Wilmington, NC gives you a plethora of backdrops. Between the gorgeous bridges, historical buildings, wooden boardwalk, charming mansions, you have a quaint backdrop right out of the Notebook. You can choose to do half of your session walking around the city, then the second half on the boardwalk overlooking the Cape Fear River.

2. Shell Island, the North End Marshes of Wrightsville Beach

Look at all that texture and green! Shell Island is the best place for sunset with a coastal backdrop. If you want to be nestled in with nature, the North end of Wrightsville Beach marsh is the place is for you!

3. The Arboretum
The Arboretum at New Hanover County Garden is a hidden gem just five minutes from Wrightsville Beach that many people prefer if they aren't a sand person or just don't want to deal with that 10mph wind coming off the ocean. This intimate garden features a pond, baby walking bridges, a rose garden and a cute play area for little ones. Want to know the best part? It's FREE! While it is open to the public, you may have some bystanders during your shoot but it has been pretty private almost every shoot I've done there. It may be free, but they kindly ask for donations for park maintenance and care for all the adorable koi fish.

4. South End Beach of Wrightsville Beach, NC
Sunsets, sound, and sea. This is the trifecta that is Wrightsville Beach's South End. You get the blend of the sound and sea and even a bit of marsh textures. Depending on the season, you can even bring your fur babies for easy access and watch all the boaters come in through the inlet.

5.Greenfield Lake Park
Another hidden gem is Greenfield Lake Park. Nestled in the outskirts of downtown Wilmington, this picture-perfect park features a beautiful blue lake with mossy trees, swans, and gazebos. Needless to say, all perfect accents for a photo shoot. 


Now that I've shared with you my top five favorite (FREE) locations in Wilmington to do a photoshoot, which speaks to your heart? Let me know what you think and send me an email when you're ready to get your shoot on my calendar!

If you are one of my booked couples, you received a complimentary engagement session right in Wilmington! If you're not a booked couple and just want a little spicy shoot with your honey, then you're probably still wondering: What should my fiance and I wear at our engagement session? It is THE most common question I receive.  Don't worry. You're not alone in this. That's why I've created this blog that will always be in my blog sidebar.


KEEP IT SIMPLE

Keep it simple.Keep. it. simple. Don't overthink it. You want your love and raw emotions to be the focal point of the photos not your clothes. Wearing a flashy or complicated outfit will distract from the love that brought you here in the first place. Trends come and go, so just think like this while combing through your closet: "Will I be embarrassed to wear this outfit 10 years from now?" If you have any hesitation, it's probably a trend. You'll look at these photos for the rest of your life. The last thing you want to think to yourself is "Why was I wearing that?"

ASK YOUR FIANCE FOR HIS OPINION
It takes two to make an engagement shoot right? You will find yourself surprised sometimes that your fiance may have some input! He or she might stir up some inspiration too so ask your honey simple questions like these "Would you like to dress up or down? Is there anything you've always wanted to do?" If he/she doesn't care, then don't sweat it and have fun dreaming up the color schemes.

Kelsey + Rocci are getting married on July 21 and by the looks of these photos, they are so ready! They are so undeniably cute and just treasure each other through their body language. They live in Winston Salem but made a fun weekend out of coming to Wilmington for their engagement photos back in February. How sweet is that? I loved getting to know them through this morning session by the river and feel like we're best friends already! Looking forward to capturing the real thing in July. Congratulations again on your engagement, you two beautiful lovebirds!

Last Summer, Daniel proposed to Mary Shaw on a catalan near Ocracoke Island and even had the boat guide photograph the entire thing. Of course she said yes so fast forward a few months... the two lovebirds said their vows this past Saturday in Windsor, NC at Mary Shaw's grandmother's farm. Celebratory photos were captured yesterday as a memento that they survived the crazy night of love! I'm so so happy for you two—thank you for letting me ask you a million questions while I captured your beautiful souls. Congratulations!!

Ring: Daniel had it custom-made at Creative Jewelers in Nags Head, NC, goodness gracious it's a beauty.
Make-up: Dollface by Melissa came on location to do her magic! 

​Thanks for reading!
xoxo, helen