When Shanthi told me she loved to go hiking and she would give me a run for my money, I paid it no mind. After all this girl will be in heals, wearing a Sari for the first time in her life and working on not messing up her hair; all while “hiking.” I of course thought her definition of hiking was to walk about a half mile, sit for 20 minutes and go “hiking” once again. And being a prior marathon runner, prior United States Marine and someone who is in relatively descent shape, I paid her comments no mind. Of course I can keep up I told myself…this will be easy…boy was I wrong.
Shanthi and Tayans engagement session took place at Great Falls, Maryland a gorgeous location with ample hiking trails, secluded woods and charming streams. Shanthi and her family use to come here all the time, go hiking, talk, laugh and just spend some time bonding. She and Tayan thought it would be the perfect location for their perfect engagement shoot.
After battling schedules, reconfirming date and coordinating we finally planned to shoot the engagement session on a warm summer evening in June. The heat finally broke around 6:30PM, a half hour before we were to meet and as Ritesh and I drove to Great Falls, all we were hoping was that if we found a great location, that our wonderful couple would oblige and do what we asked, weather it was climb up a fallen tree branch, climb up a boulder or jump across the stream from rock to rock.
We started with normal formal portraits of our couple at the entrance of Great Falls and then literally began hiking in Shathi’s eyes, but jogging in mine. Shanthi was walking faster in heals than we were in sneakers, to say these two were fast would be an understatement. Within our two hour engagement session we found great locations with wonderful light and started shooting the second we found a great location. It. Was. Great.
And although Shanthi and Tayan were a little nervous to begin with, these two were naturals, laughing, joking and posing wonderfully. They were like excited school children searching for the next best spot, the next great location and having a blast doing it.
Shanthi and Tayan we are looking forward to your wonderful wedding and hope you love these engagement pictures as much as we do.
