I can't imagine anything that would make you feel more like a princess than being proposed to at an actual castle. I mean, come on... a castle!?
Friday morning I received a text asking if I was available for a last minute engagement shoot at The Kentucky Castle. I didn't recognize the number, but my friend Mike had referred them to me... so I thought it was safe to meet these complete strangers for a quick shoot. I quickly got out of bed, yes I was still in bed, checked all my gear, formatted SD cards, changed batteries in my flash trigger, triple checked that everything was charged, loaded my car, and headed that way.
When I arrived, and had my temperature checked, I quickly realized this shoot wasn't going to be easy. It was 10a.m. and there wasn't a single cloud in the sky... anywhere. It had just rained, literally about a half hour before, how could all the clouds be gone?! The sun was bright, and harsh, and the shadows were going to be a huge problem. I quickly scrambled around the castle, I'm sure I looked lost, trying to find somewhere to take some flattering photos. One of my biggest pet peeves is when the sun cast crazy shadows across people's faces, it's just so so... so bad.
Sure enough, and I can't blame them because it's beautiful, the key photo was going to be in front of the fountain, where there was zero shade, only the unforgiving sun. A prayer was said, and I'm not even kidding. I did bring my light kit, which I had almost decided not to bring... what a nightmare that would have been. I did my best to position my flash to compensate for the shadows the sun was casting across their faces. While the sun lit them on their left side, my flash would hopefully fill in the right. The resulting images might not be perfect; but I'm very happy with the result I was able to achieve.
While doing my initial search for photo locations, I was relieved to find a decent spot outside the walls, surrounded by lavender. After confirming neither of them were allergic to the 100 honeybees that were buzzing around, I led them in that direction. They were backlit, but not squinting and there weren't any crazy shadows... so I was happy. A little fill flash for their faces was all I needed here. I really love how these turned out.
This was easily my most challenging shoot to date. The lighting was less than ideal and I didn't have much time to prep for the session; but I'm so glad I pushed through and decided to roll with it anyway. I think we were able to create some really beautiful images together, and I hope they look back at these and cherish the memories they made at The Kentucky Castle. Maybe one day they will show these photos to children, and even grandchildren, and that thought blesses me so much. Being able to be a part of their story and capturing this milestone in their relationship, I can't think of anything better. I really love what I do, and I'm so incredibly blessed to be able to work with just amazing couples.
See the full album here.
Tip: If you're shooting on a sunny day, viewing your camera screen can be a real pain. The glare makes it almost impossible. I had purchased a magnifier, to preview my photos in camera... but at this shoot it was a lifesaver. This little tool was the only reason I was able to clearly preview my photos. I highly recommend you get one for your kit. Buy it here.