lizzie + jon | an urban industrial engagement session at clipper mill
/Lizzie and Jon are one of the most laid-back, down to earth, and kind couples you could ever hope to meet. Lizzie’s smile lights up a room and Jon’s sense of humor is the perfect compliment.
These cuties are parents to the sweetest #urbanrowpup Molly, who of course had to be included in their engagement photos and will be at the wedding too (SO EXCITED)! I’m so glad Covid had other plans in mind for their original date since it meant I will be able to document all of the gorgeous elements they have planned: mixed metals, muted neutrals, plenty of textures and organic / natural flowers to play off the natural beauty of the industrial venue... 100% MY. KIND. OF. PEOPLE!
Cheers to celebrating your love story with all of your favorite people, FINALLY! I had so much fun with you both (+ Molly!) during our time together and can. not. wait for your wedding!!!
xo,
Naomi
kate + cody | a laughter-filled clipper mill engagement
/I met up with Kate and Cody for their engagement session 3 days before everything shutdown due to Covid… since they were visiting for a few days on a break from life in Texas, we were so lucky to have spent the afternoon exploring Artifact Coffee together and the Clipper Mill and Woodberry industrial buildings before life changed dramatically!
These two are such a beautiful breath of fresh air to be around! Their energy, laughter, lighthearted and easygoing nature made for the most fun candid photos in this location - we had room to walk, explore and admire all of the textures of these historic mill buildings while having the place to ourselves, it seemed.
Here’s how they met and how Cody proposed, in Kate’s words:
“We met in the West Virginia University Drumline. I (Kate) was marching on the cymbal line and Cody was marching on the bass line. He finally noticed I was there in the fall, and we quickly became friends. He asked me on a date by October.
Cody had switched to cymbals on the drumline by this point. I had just completed a practicum for behavior analysis at WVU and was preparing to start my masters at the University of North Texas. He told me he was going to go practice for an upcoming summer camp, and went off to go practice while I was reading something in the living room. About ten minutes later, after hearing strange sounds that didn't quite sound like practicing, he came back into the living room with a really concerned look on his face and said he though one of the cymbals was broken. I was the drum captain the previous season, so I said I would take a look at it, not realizing he was holding the cymbals together like a clam shell which is not how you typically hold a broken cymbal. When he approached me, he opened the cymbals and my ring was in the middle of the bottom cymbal.”
Their wedding day is going to be full of unconventional and unique details that are meaningful to their relationship (Kate told me her bouquet is going to be made up of musical elements) and will include board / card games for their guests to play and end with a variety of cheesecakes to enjoy as dessert! YESSSS, please!!!
I can’t wait for your wedding at the Riverview at Occuquan in Virginia! It’s a venue I’ve loved since they first opened. Your fun-loving personalities and sense of humor are going to be incredible to photograph during the Fall in this beautifully lit, nature-filled, modern waterfront venue!
Cheers, lovebirds… let’s get you MARRIED!
xo,
Naomi
kelsey + bryan | a clipper mill + artifact coffee engagement
/As soon as Kelsey + Bryan told me they were thinking of taking their fall engagement photos at Artifact Coffee since they love their maple lattes, I knew we were in for a treat (and I don’t just mean the delicious maple lattes!)… add in their pup Camden and a love of the Clipper Mill / Woodberry industrial sites around the corner and I was feeling all the ‘how-did-I-get-so-lucky-these-are-my-people’ feels!!!
We talked about our shared love of the texture throughout the stone and wood historic mill buildings for probably more emails than I should admit… ;) You both are too cute for words; words can’t express how happy I am that our paths crossed!!
Camden has the most alluring eyes and was such a wonderfully sweet little model! He rocked his status as the newest #urbanrowpup and coordinated with the warm fall color palette so well…
But enough of my commentary, I can’t wait to share THEIR love story: one of perfect timing and location. While Bryan and Kelsey both grew up in North Carolina and spent their college years at UNC-Chapel Hill, it wasn't until a year and a half after moving to Baltimore for graduate school that they ended up meeting at a school formal. Bryan tried to woo Kelsey by bringing up their similar roots, but Kelsey was extremely unimpressed. A year later, after several crossed paths and attempts by friends to bring them together, Kelsey accepted Bryan's request for a date. Bryan cooked Kelsey BBQ, they talked, laughed, and watched Game of Thrones. Kelsey fell for Bryan's sense of humor, good cooking, and kind heart while Bryan fell in love with Kelsey's intelligence, compassion, and of course, her beautiful smile (it didn't hurt that she laughed at his dumb jokes too). A year and a half passes. They explore Baltimore, get a dog, travel together, do Whole30, meet each others families, and decide they want to spend the rest of their lives together…
Once we decided that we wanted to get married, Bryan got to work designing a custom ring using the diamonds from both his maternal and paternal grandmother's engagement rings with Ron at Stonehaven Jewelry in Cary, NC (Kelsey always wanted a family ring!). Kelsey is someone who is very hard to surprise and Bryan decided to propose when she'd least expect it - on a trip to visit Kelsey's best friends in Atlanta. Bryan got Kelsey's friends Kaley and Emma in on it to help with logistics and decided to ask in the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. When he found the perfect spot, he got down on one knee and asked Kelsey to marry him, and the first words out of Kelsey's mouth were, "Stop it.". Nevertheless, Kelsey said yes and we celebrated with her best friends. There was champagne, confetti, and of course pizza to end the night.
You two have such an undeniable chemistry, we’re SO excited for your September wedding at Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park!! The menu alone (featuring Copper Kitchen’s catering and ice cream cookie sandwiches for dessert) is already making all of my fall waterfront wedding dreams come true!
xo,
Naomi