Katie and James felt like friend – not clients.  We had great conversation while we strolled around downtown, talking kids and photography and horticulture and ghosts!  I am so pleased with their engagement photos, and cannot wait to shoot their wedding this fall.

Also – how cool is Historic Pensacola Village?  For a little town, we sure do have a lot of neat places to check out…

Clearly, this is neither Katie nor James.  But this little guy hangs out with me every time I shoot on Palafox Pier.  I’m thinking of naming him…

I’ve met with Stephanie and Christopher several times over the past year, and I was super-excited to finally get them in front of my camera.  They are one of my favorite couples ever – smart, kind, thoughtful, funny, and clearly head over heels for each other.  They suggested Bellingrath Gardens for their engagement portrait and I loved they were clearly as impressed with the place as I always am.  I couldn’t choose my favorite shot, so here are a lot!

When we arrived at Bellingrath, the guide told us that the roses were “just starting.”  If this is “just starting,” I cannot imagine what they look “in full bloom!”

In our explorations of the rose garden, we accidentally stumbled into a frog nursery.  Literally hundreds of these little guys plopping all over, including this one, who plopped into Chris’s hands…

This might be my favorite shot.  I love the angle of their bodies and the incredible hydrangeas floating above them.

I met Brianna at the Bridal Expo in Pensacola last January, and had such a great time shooting her engagement portrait with Shawn.  They weren’t afraid to turn it ON for the camera, which made my job pretty easy

This is officially the longest engagement session post we’ve ever done, and it’s 100% due to the fact that I am obsessed with every single shot of Sarah and Eddie.  Seriously.  I think I went through about 15 “favorite” shots as I worked through the film, and I’m still stuck.  So I posted tons.  Enjoy!

We shot in two locations: downtown Pensacola and Pensacola Beach.  This shoot reminds me why I love to live here, and why people from all over the world come here for vacation…

I really love my job.  I think one of my favorite things about being a photographer is that so many people I love value what I do – not in an abstract way, but in a real, day-to-day manner.  I my previous life I was a high school English teacher.  Do you know how often friends and family members would genuinely ask me to apply my knowledge to their life?  NEVER.  (Can you imagine the conversation over a glass of wine after dinner?  ”Hey Aislinn, let’s discuss the connection between Minerva, the owl, and color grey…”).

With this in mind, I was thrilled to bits when my brother and sister-in-law asked me to take a few shots of them on Christmas Eve for a New Years card.  We left all babies in the cabin and spent about 30 minutes strolling up the driveway and through the woods, laughing, and created some great family portraits.  Merry Christmas!

P.S.  Can you guess which shot they chose for their cards??

I love shooting engagement portraits, and this fall has been an incredible series of romantic and beautiful beach sessions.  Adrienne and Mike wanted something totally different.  When they suggested the 17th Street Bridge (you know, the one with the graffiti all over it), I was totally psyched and just a tad apprehensive – after all, how many shots could get around a single bridge with traffic zooming beneath it, nonstop?

Well, it was AWESOME.  Every shot here was taken within about 100 yards of the actual bridge, and it is now on my short list of favorite Pensacola locations.  When I zip under the bridge in my car, I am too busy reading the graffiti to notice the boardwalk, train tracks, bridge pilings, and greenery that provided these incredible backdrops.

I should probably also mention that Adrienne and Mike are both SO FUN, totally photogenic, and up for anything.  Love.  Them.

I was annoyed that cars kept blocking my shot, but now I kind of dig this!  Thoughts?

So, Kristen and Joel from DeFYOOOniak Springs are tons of fun.  I think we were laughing by the second frame, and I don’t think we stopped until the sun went down (literally).  They were game for anything and handled obstacles – such as jellyfish and rogue waves – with aplomb.  I cannot wait for their backyard spring wedding…

Also, I didn’t enhance up the colors in the beach shots.  This might have been the most amazing sunset of the year.  I LOVE where I live!

So, Anna is gorgeous, Josh is handsome, the weather was perfect, and I like taking pictures.  Pretty much the ingredients for a perfect shoot.  I adore this engagement portrait…

Also, how cute is the Save the Date banner Anna made?  Answer: super-duper cute!

When I first met Brenna, she had her heart set on shooting her engagement portrait with Brian in Bellingrath Gardens, outside of Mobile.  She told me a bit about it, and I was sold.  I have to say, the gardens didn’t disappoint.  Everywhere we looked was another incredible backdrop for this adorable couple, and I can honestly say that this is one of my favorite engagements ever.

Also, do you think Mr .Bellingrath would mind if I moved into his gardens?  Seriously – I die.

This is a frog.  On a lilypad.  Hanging out while we were taking the shots above.  Is this a fairytale?

If Bellingrath Gardens feels the need to apologize for this, then I officially retire from any and all gardening.

You have probably noticed that I love a couple who is willing to get dirty for the sake of a photo shoot (this is ironic, since I prefer to stay clean, dry and warm at all times).  Well, Jessica and Matt fit the bill.  We met at the foot of the Pensacola Lighthouse, and spent a lovely morning climbing trees and doing gymnastics on the beach.  All in all?  My kind of engagement portrait