Moorestown Photographer | Batsto Village Engagement Photos | Medford Photographer

Meet my friends and one of my favorite couples:  John and Annie. We went to Batsto Village for their engagement photos.  They are from the Moorestown area but wanted a location that fit their laid back, rustic wedding vibe. Their engagement session had two special guests- my dog Tucker’s best friend and their lab Cedar and my guy Dylan.  Dylan was our lighting team for the day.  All of the images in front of the dark wood building that have a beautiful and moody feel are all done with additional lighting during mid day with Dylan.  As primarily a natural light photographer I enjoy stepping out of my comfort zone and playing with additional techniques I know my clients will enjoy!

Nessa K Photography has an amazing blog post to help YOU choose the perfect engagement session location!   Here are a few tips from her blog!

1. CHOOSING A LOCATION THAT SUITS YOU

THE GOAL OF AN ENGAGEMENT SESSION IS TO GET TO KNOW YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER, TO LEARN PROMPTS FROM EACH OTHER THAT HELP YOU FALL INTO PLACE ON THE WEDDING DAY, AND TO PERSONIFY WHAT YOUR LOVE LOOKS LIKE.

Think about what works for you as a couple. It doesn’t have to be a conceptual art project, but I find it helpful to choose something you’re drawn to. Coffee lovers? Find a coffee shop that has tall windows on two sides of the building for you to cuddle near. Homebodies? Consider an in-home session showing you cooking a meal together. A shared love of terrifying horror movies? Grab some high waisted shorts, ringer T’s, and pigs blood and head to a campsite for a retro Sleepaway Camp vibe.

2. THE SUN MOVES

I HOPE THIS ONE DOESN’T COME OUT OF LEFT FIELD BUT, THE THING ABOUT GLOWY, BEAUTIFUL SUNSET PHOTOS IS THAT THEY HAPPEN AT SUNSET.

If you went to a location and were in awe of the glory of a sherbet colored sky, picking that location and showing up with your photographer at 2 p.m. isn’t going to do the place you found any justice.

I live on the east coast and I would say 90% of my sessions are at sunrise. It’s foggy in the morning, the sun rises over the ocean, but not every location is right for a sunrise session. If you went on a hike in the morning and saw a beautiful sunset from the side of a mountain, a sunrise session (where the sun is on the opposite side of the mountain) may not be right for that location in that exact spot. And keep in mind if you’ve selected two locations that require travel between them that the commute time means you may have to start a bit earlier than golden hour and miss a chunk of it to travel between the two places.

I wrote an article about planning for lighting on the wedding day for you to peruse, but the cool thing about engagement sessions is that they’re pretty flexible, schedule wise; it’s really just about showing up when you’re supposed to!

3. MATCHING CLOTHING TO LOCATIONS

A BEACH SESSION WITH A BUSINESS SUIT IS AS OUT OF PLACE AS A FLOWING LACE DRESS AND A FLORAL CROWN IN FRONT OF A STARBUCKS.

If what you want to show is an autumnal, outdoors session, aim for a time at the end of the peak of foliage, head into a forest with plaid, wellies and jackets. If you want something romantic and warm, consider a flowing dress that allows for a lot of movement and aim for a location that may have a bit of wind, like a beach or a field. If all you own are Victorian dresses, consider time traveling to the late 1800s and bring a customized churn to make your own butter (note: I’m not a historian. I don’t know what happened in the 1800s), but do not touch anything while visiting because I don’t want to live in a world where microwavable popcorn doesn’t exist and you don’t want that on your conscience. Butterfly effect, guys.