Colleen and Joe are from Virginia…Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. When Colleen explained her vision for their engagement session….fall color, artsy Old Town, Irish Pub, and a park with their picnic basket…and asked if I would come there…it sounded so fun. I love shooting in new areas. New colors, different locations, and the locals always inspire me. And me and Andrew needed a day away…with just the two of us. So the little guys stayed at Grandma and we headed to Virginia. I love how Colleen and Joe put a lot of thought into their engagement session. You see, Joe is a chef. Like a big time, gourmet chef! I loved hearing Joe talk about what he does and all that goes into being a skilled chef. So both Colleen and Joe are foodies. They love to eat, drink wine, picnic, and restaurant hop. They love spending time together in Old Town. We met there and started at one of their favorite places to meet friends…an Irish Pub. We walked around town….there was SO much to work with…I felt like a kid in a candy store. =)  They also found a new park for their session and it was so, so pretty. These two are incredible and I had a ton of fun working with them.

Joe and Colleen! It was so fun to have you show us Old Town, to walk through the enchanted forest=), and to meet you. Thank-you! Truly.

See their slide-show HERE.

Joe and Colleen…

Colleen has so much personality. I loved planning this shoot with her! I asked Colleen what she loves about Joe…

” I really do love just about everything about him. He is passionate, honest and good. And makes me laugh too. (:

I love that he knows old Irish songs and sings them to me.”

“I love that he makes me feel like the most beautiful and the most important person in the room. No matter where we are.”

“I love that he rubs my feet. And teaches me how to cook. I still smile when I hear his ring-tone on my phone. Every-time.

I love that we can spend an entire day doing nothing. At all. And have a blast doing it.”

“I love that he lets me be me. I can truly be myself around him.”

“I love that Joe loves his family and my family. He never misses an opportunity to spend time with family or dear friends. He is so excited about joining our families and ‘uniting the clans’ as he calls it. He is very proud of his family, their stories, their morals, and what they stand for. I love that.”

“Joe gets just as excited as I do when we talk about our wedding and buying a house and having a family. We share the same dreams and it’s an amazing feeling to know I get to spend my entire life with this person. I love that he is going to be my partner for life. I love how trusting and calm I feel about that. I love that I am going to marry him!”

Sigh. =)

Joe…

“I love that Collen is tremendously loyal. She’s loyal to her family, her friends, and especially to me. We’ve been together for long enough to have some really great times, and some that have truly tested us as a couple. We have always found compromise and joy in each other no matter what mistakes we make or what the world throws at us.”

“Some days she is my rock, and some days I am hers. We make a great team.”

Killer shoes. =) Colleen loves shoes. Fun story…when they walk into town Colleen wears flip-flops. When they arrive, Colleen slips on fun heels, Joe pops her flip-flops in his back pocket, and they are good to go until Colleen needs her flip-flops for the walk out of town again.

Colleen is a kindergarten teacher.  Her great personality? I am sure her kids adore her. Colleen=) You will be a gorgeous bride.

So many unique spots to photograph in!

And pretty doorways.

The lush ground-cover, vines, huge gnarled trees, winding paths, and misty air from the morning rain made this park feel like an enchanted forest.

This picnic basket was a gift and they use it all the time. I love how it is complete with dinner ware.

Love the falling leaf! There were leaves falling all around us.

And the pretty ring…