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San Diego is one of the most beautiful places in Southern California. We have beautiful beaches, gorgeous sunsets, and pretty good weather most of the time. It’s no wonder many couples like to take their engagement photos on a San Diego Beach.

This particular beach, Terramar, boasts an amazing view of the coastline as well as stunning cliffs and exposed rock that really add to the drama of this location.

In Santa Barbara, California, just a little ways out of the way, there’s a hike called Lizard’s Mouth. I initially learned of this place because there is some rock climbing in the area, and I’ve ventured here before with a few friends. Since my very first visit to Santa Barbara, I sort of fell in love with the place! I’m not entirely sure what it was–maybe the warm Southern California sun was just what my Oregonian soul needed. But more so, I just enjoyed the general vibe of the area. It was relaxed and fun, but easy to find places that were pleasing to the artistic eye.

Nicole and Ben had seen some snowy photos I had recently done and knew they wanted something similar for their engagement photos. We ended up deciding to shoot in Mt Hood area and the Columbia River Gorge in the same evening. We started at my favorite spot up by Mt Hood for some winter wonderland photos. Nicole came prepared with a stunning mink that used to belong to her grandmother. Paired with her long burgundy velvet dress it really made a statement! By the way, if you will be in snow, PLEASE wear shoes that make sense. There’s not need freeze your feet off when you can easily hide your boots under a long dress or better yet—embrace them as a fun accessory.

A winter wonderland sounds like a beautiful place to take your maternity or engagement photos, but it does come with its own set of challenges that you might not think to consider. I’m here to help! Take a look at my top tips for a winter photo session.

Bring a cute hat as an accessory. If snow is actively falling during your session, it’s only going to be a short time before your hair gets covered in snow and therefore wet and most of us don’t love the wet hair look. Plan to shoot your more formal outfit first, then add a cute hat when it starts to get too wet. When you change into a more casual look, you can change into a more casual hat as well. You’ll have a ton of different looks AND you can hide the fact that your hair is drenched. Win win!

Jackets and blankets. The right jacket can look super classy and keep you warm. Peacoats with clean lines are always a safe bet. Blankets make great props for sitting down in the snow for that cozied up look.

When Joey contacted me about surprising his girlfriend Molli with a proposal, I knew it was going to be a good one. I could just tell from the email how excited Joey was to propose and loved seeing how much thought and effort he was putting into it. Our original plan to shoot in Forest Park on the Redwood Deck didn’t pan out due to availability, I think it worked out in our favor, as the waterfall we ended up choosing was beautiful and the stop we made by Mt Hood at the end of the session was perfect at sunset.

I was recently inspired to do a picnic themed photo shoot in Peninsula Park. It’s high time for roses and a beautiful summer golden glow and I couldn’t pass it up! With the help of my new friends Margaret and Bo, we shot this beautiful session and it turned out more perfect than I could have imagined! We also had a platter made for us by The Platter Girl who blew us away with her stunning arrangement of cheeses, figs, meats, fruit, nuts, gummy bears and more!

Choosing to have an adventure engagement session or an elopement doesn’t mean you have to be an avid or experienced hiker or lover of long strenuous hikes! There are a lot of stunning locations all around the PNW that are actually quite iconic and require little to light amounts of hiking. Win win!

That being said, there are also other epic locations that do require some hard work, and if you want to know about those, get in touch! I do a lot of hikes, but haven’t done many sessions in these locations

Janaye and Mike knew they wanted to have an adventure together, and then they decided to make a whole weekend out of it! We stayed at an amazingly cozy Airbnb in Bend, and made a whole weekend out of exploring and taking photos. What a dream!

We started out at the Oregon Badlands. I’ve always been a sucker for that desert vibe with the neutral colors, the dust and the general desolate nature of it all. Paired with their badass jackets, this made the perfect backdrop. We ended the session dancing to Get Low and making fools out of ourselves. All around, a great way to get started!

So you’ve booked your engagement session—the date is set, the location has been picked and you’re so excited—but how do you pick what to wear?

I like to give all my couples a Style Guide that gives them an idea of what types of clothing and accessories are going to look best on the camera. Generally I recommend looking for items of clothing that offer a lot of movement or flow, textures, neutral or deep tones, and styles that flatter your features. I’m also a big fan of pattern mixing, if you’re feeling bold.

As a lover of fashion myself, I understand the urge to instantly start online shopping for the right dress, jacket, blouse, etc. BUT as a lover of our planet and the gorgeous natural areas we get to shoot in regularly, I’m constantly looking for ways to reduce my footprint, so I always make an effort to shop second hand first.

There’s something about the Oregon Coast that keeps so many of us coming back. Is it the salty air, the powerful waves, or simply the sand that we always seem to take back with us in our shoes? I think it’s a combination of all those things (plus the coffee shops that seem so warm and cozy and the surf shops with coconut scented everything!) but it’s also the memories that we make there with the people we love. From campfires on the beach, to making friends with strangers in small coastal bars, to hiking out to the edge of the peninsula and seeing a whale while your friend tells a pretty hilarious joke about whales in the background. This is why I love taking couples to the coast. So they can make their own memories there or add to their own coastal scrapbook they’ve already started.