Kirsten & Spencer
I never know where an engagement shoot might take me. But with charged batteries, my camera and my phone’s GPS to guide the way, I am always ready to go! My phone and it’s countless apps can not only connect me to every beautiful corner of Oregon, but to beautiful people as well, thanks to a little app called Instagram. That’s actually how I met Kirsten and Spencer. Kirsten was on the hunt for a wedding photographer, found my page and we connected through Instagram. I then got even more connected with this special couple through a road trip to Central Oregon for their engagement shoot!
We had a two-and-a-half-hour car ride through Oregon to Smith Rock to spend together. Having never met before, I was prepared for some miles of awkward silence. You never know how a long car ride with strangers can go but I, of course, ended up talking their ears off! The three of us all ended up chatting the whole way there and I was happily surprised at the amount of life that we had in common! I loved learning more about them and quickly realized that we were just a really great match all together!
Kirsten and Spencer knew each other in high school. They disconnected as so many of us do after graduating, but found each other a few years later and have been together ever since. So sweet! Kirsten is a nanny now and Spencer has always been adventurous and loves to be outside. Central Oregon is a frequent stop when he wants to hike and explore. So heading to the high desert of Smith Rock State Park to capture their engagement photos made perfect sense!
Kirsten had reached out to me a few times before our shoot letting me know how nervous she was to be in front of a camera and that the two of them never done anything like this before. I did my best to reassure her that they would be great! That I’d be there to guide them each step of the way. It’s always a goal of mine in my job to help people feel comfortable to show their true selves, or true love in this case, for each other during an engagement shoot.
Once we got there though, they were total naturals! Any ounce of nervousness, if there was any at all, didn’t show. I had such a good time having them be super playful in their casual outfits and loved capturing their sweet interactions. After they both changed into their formal outfits I was able to capture some of my favorite shots of them. As well as some of Kirsten’s gorgeous dress blowing in the wind that had picked up. We ended their engagement shoot by popping a bottle of champagne to celebrate not only the happy couple, but a successful day and shoot!
As we headed back home, we realized how late it had gotten! We weren't really sure what would be open at 9pm in Sisters, Oregon. We ended up finding the only restaurant open was Sisters Saloon and Ranch Grill and decided to give it a shot! It was, to all of our surprise, so delicious! It was not your average bar food! Organic, local beef burgers on homemade buns. Yumm! A variety of veggie appetizers to choose from. So good! I actually ended up ordering brussel sprouts for us to share, because I love them and they’re amazing, right? Come to find out neither Kirsten or Spencer had tried them before! They ended up trying them and loving them! So now Kirsten and Spencer have me to thank for their new love of brussel sprouts!
Turns out we took care of two firsts that day: First photo shoot together plus their first time trying brussel sprouts! And I think they really enjoyed both! Hopefully this is the first of many photo shoots to come over the years as well as the first of many dinners together of shared laughs and brussel sprouts!
I just love creating memories for and with my couples! So thankful for the day we had, Kirsten and Spencer!
xo
Amanda
https://oregonstateparks.org/index.cfm?do=parkPage.dsp_parkPage&parkId=36
