A Mobile Botanical Gardens Engagement Session

It was pure coincidence that I ended up at the Mobile Botanical Gardens for two engagement sessions in a row. This location is beautiful in all seasons and, on this day, we were lucky that the Japanese Magnolias were still in full bloom!

I have known that this engagement session was coming soon for quite a while. My cousin, Tanner, and his now fiance, Allie, are just the sweetest couple and several months ago Tanner told me he was ring shopping. I was so excited for him!

When we originally spoke, I told him to let me know as soon as possible what they were thinking about for a wedding date because I really didn’t want to miss another family wedding. Thankfully, Tanner gave me a heads up on the time of year he and Allie had previously discussed for a wedding and I was able to keep my calendar clear until the proposal and wedding date were official!

Tanner is the baby of all the cousins on my mom’s side of the family and I can picture clear as day sitting in the hospital waiting room the day he was born. He was also one of my first “models” when I took up photography in college. Like his sister, Cassie, he was patient with me while I figured out my settings on an old film camera…although his attention span was slightly shorter than that of his sister. Haha!

By the time he graduated from high school, I’d had my photography business for a couple of years and was just starting to learn how to use my flash for creative lighting. Once again, he was patient with me as I learned a new technique. To say that I’m excited to photograph his wedding day is an understatement!

A Special Ceremony Location

Tanner and Allie have chosen to get married on the family property where they live. After their engagement session, we went to dinner to catch up and I loved hearing about their vision for their wedding. As Allie showed me her inspiration photos, I could immediately picture it all being on the property where I’ve taken so many portraits over the years. Having a wedding on family land takes a lot of work, but I know it will turn out to be so beautiful!

The day of this session was freezing cold! I’m still amazed that Allie made it through have the session in a sleeveless dress. I told them that maybe the cold weather at their engagement session would mean mild temperatures on their wedding day!