A University of South Alabama Engagement

Last March I photographed five weddings in addition to a dozen other sessions. I also met several of my 2020 brides for the first time during this month in 2019. I’ve spent most of this March like almost everyone else in the world, watching the continuous coverage of the coronavirus pandemic and wondering when we will see life return back to normal.

It seems so bizarre that just two weeks ago I headed to photograph an event in the early afternoon. I had no idea how fast things would change in a 24-hour period of time. Suddenly, almost all of my shoots for the month were cancelled, especially those that were for events and/or commercial clients. Some of my spring brides have already had to make the difficult decision to postpone their weddings, while others hold their breath to see if we will get good news in time enough for them to keep their plans. My heart breaks for them and, like them, I hold out hope that this won’t go on as long as everyone predicts.

One of the hardest things about social distancing and this whole coronavirus situation, has been the suspension of church services. Thank goodness we live in an age where live-streaming of Mass is an option, but it’s definitely not the same. For the past 14 years I’ve been volunteering to serve coffee after 9am Mass at church. I’ve met so many of my fellow parishioners just because I poured them a cup of coffee and wished them a happy Sunday. This is how I first met Bailey’s grandparents. After seeing them for several Sundays in a row, we found our paths crossing at the State Championship game for Alabama high school football. During the pregame festivities we recognized each other from church. Since that time, Vernon and Mary Ann have become two of my favorite people!

Coincidentally, my mom knew Vernon and Mary Ann’s daughter, Deena, from the gym she was a member of years ago. It truly is such a small world, especially in Mobile! Fast forward a few months and my mom ends up being in one of Deena’s exercise classes. One day, at the beginning of class, Deena shared that her daughter had gotten engaged. Soon after that, I sat down with Bailey and her mom to chat all things wedding!

It turns out that Bailey has very similar taste to my own sister, choosing the same ceremony and reception venues! I was so happy that Bailey and Dave were keen to go forward with their engagement session as planned. I truly love what I do and just getting back out with a camera in my hand was a good feeling! We did practice social distancing during this shoot. Since I prefer using lenses with longer focal lengths, this wasn’t a problem at all. I just missed out on getting to hug my clients…so I just gave a big wave instead.

We pretty much had the university to ourselves the day of this shoot, minus a few people who passed by while on a run or walk. It was a bit strange to see the campus so deserted, but it definitely worked in our favor! Enjoy my favorites from this sweet spring session and I hope you’re all hanging in there during these crazy times!