ericamay | photography blog. » kansas city engagement photos

Katie and Chuck’s engagement session in downtown Kansas City!

ericamay — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 02:38:19 +0000

I hope you had a Merry Christmas! It has been a while since I’ve posted any recent shoots — things have been a little crazy around here, and are not letting up as we approach the new year. It’s a good place to be, though. I like to be busy, and I’m super excited for the new year and all that it will bring!

But right now, I’m excited to share Katie and Chuck’s engagement session images with you. Well, just a few of them. They braved the cold (it was freezing!) but are so sweet to each other that they didn’t mind snuggling up outside for some fun engagement photos in downtown Kansas City. The morning light was amazing, and Katie and Chuck couldn’t have been more fun to get to know. Here are just a few images from their session:

Katie and Chuck, you’re awesome! Thanks for a wonderful shoot, and for being such good sports in the cold! It was worth it.

Lauren and Ryan’s engagement session: an amazingly beautiful fall evening.

ericamay — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 19:34:07 +0000

Where do I even begin with Lauren and Ryan? They’re funny, easygoing, and so much fun to be around. They also have this amazing chemistry in front of the camera, and you can just see how much they mean to each other. I told them during the shoot that they look super comfortable together, totally connected, and that they look like they do this every day. Lauren replied, “We do do this every day. Just not in front of a camera.”

I love that.

It’s fall here in the Kansas City area. And it’s my favorite time of year. Especially when I get to hang out with people like Lauren and Ryan, who know what it means to love each other well… and laugh a lot along the way.

Have I mentioned lately how much I love that this is my job? I’m so thankful.

I always get asked what kind of “filter” I use for shots like the next two. Secret: it’s not a filter. It’s using natural light in a really soft way, and shooting really close to leaves to create a little bit of haziness in between my lens and the cute couple.

Photography is all about light. Finding good light and knowing how to use it to convey an emotion, feeling, or mood is super important. For Lauren and Ryan’s shoot, there was an abundance of beautiful, golden, evening light. I used the sun behind them to create beautiful rim light, and also to add a dreaminess to the images that I wanted to feel more snuggly. Is that a word? Also, Lauren and Ryan are just awesome together.

Lauren and Ryan, thanks for asking us to be a part of telling your story. I hope you enjoyed this preview of your engagement session — more to come soon! Lauren, now you can stop refreshing your internet browser and get back to working on your dissertation.

Dresden and John’s Kansas engagement session

ericamay — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 19:25:01 +0000

This engagement session had everything. A gorgeous evening with beautiful sunset light, a super fun couple who love each other a lot, a quirky little winery near Topeka, Kansas, horses running free on a farm, golden fall leaves, a game of catch, long tree-lined paths, and a strong Kansas wind. Dresden and John’s engagement session was a dream for me to shoot. It was, once again, a reminder that I love the couples I get to work with, and I love shooting in the Midwest.

This was taken inside an old barn, and I loved how their faces were silhouetted against the one window at the back of the barn.

These were taken shooting through a broken wood slat on the barn:

Dresden and John, you are awesome. I am so excited for your wedding in April!

Courtney and Chase’s Kansas City Engagement Photos!

ericamay — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 05:28:02 +0000

Courtney and Chase have a lot of fun together. They both love sports, and play on softball and volleyball teams with their friends. They love to stay active and explore the city that they both currently call home — Kansas City! A lot of their games happen at Penn Valley Park, the park near Liberty Memorial and Union Station, so that’s where we decided to do their engagement session. It was a cloudy evening, and we had a few raindrops, but it was perfect for their shoot. We even got to shoot in front of the art installation in the park, which is only there for a few weeks (the shipping crates are a big sculpture). They also had to bring out their college sports teams loyalties — Chase to K-State, and Courtney to Oklahoma State. What a fun session! Here are just a few!

Mandi and Nathan’s Engagement Photos at Leawood Park!

ericamay — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 17:52:09 +0000

Mandi and Nathan, and their canine daughter Gemma, had such a fun session engagement session at Leawood Park. It was a hot, hot evening, but they still looked awesome. And Gemma is just adorable! They are really excited to get married this October, and I’m really looking forward to being there for it. Here are just a few shots from their engagement session!

Stacy and Daniel’s Sunset Engagement Session!

ericamay — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 18:00:49 +0000

Stacy and Daniel love to watch sunsets and sunrises together. It’s their thing. It always has been. Daniel proposed during a sunrise, and they spend a lot of weekends sitting together to watch the sun peek over the horizon or fall behind it at the day’s end. So, when it came time for their engagement session, Stacy and Daniel knew they wanted to take photos during one of those times. We picked sunset, and I’m so glad we did, because the day we chose could not have had a more beautiful, colorful, changing sunset! I made a point of shooting silhouettes of Stacy and Daniel at different parts of the night so they could look back through a see the progression of the sunset on this night. I love how this set turned out!

We started when the sky looked like this:

Then, the sky did this:

Then, the sky just really started showing off.

I would definitely have this in my house as a huge canvas wrap.

These shots were taken after the sun had fallen and when most people would have stopped taking pictures. I love the pinkish light during twilight, and we had to keep shooting into the rich colors of that time of night!

And, finally, our session came to a close!

Stacy and Daniel, you are beautiful. And energetic (that one’s for you, Stacy!). And I can’t WAIT for the wedding next June!

What do you when it’s raining?

ericamay — Sun, 29 May 2011 00:50:47 +0000

Nate and Maggie’s engagement session almost got rained out… twice. This time, we decided to go for it, despite the rain. So we got creative. We found indoor locations off the beaten path, braved the mist for a few minutes at a time, and had a lot of fun. See, Nate and Maggie are the kind of people who are up for an adventure. They’re the kind of people who laugh a lot with (and at…) each other. They’re the kind of people who are fun to be around, because they have an energy and enthusiasm for life. Individually, they’re really cool people. Together, they’re pretty awesome.

Here, they recounted what Maggie first thought of Nate… and how Nate first asked Maggie on a date:

They are the cutest:

And they let me get super close to their faces. They’re both so expressive, I wanted to capture that.

A little purple never hurt anyone… especially K-Staters.

Abbey and Drew’s Engagement Session at the Nelson-Atkins Art Museum

ericamay — Thu, 19 May 2011 14:57:12 +0000

Drew proposed to Abbey on the lawn of the Nelson-Atkins next to one of the big shuttlecock statues. So, when it came time for their engagement session, that’s where they wanted to go! Like most shoots this spring, we were battling some rain clouds but made it through, and I love some of the images we took on the less-traveled side of the Nelson, which is really pretty.

Sarah and Nic’s Kansas City Engagement Session!

ericamay — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 20:35:22 +0000

Sarah and Nic like to laugh together. They’re super fun, and we had an awesome time at our shoot… they laughed a lot and joked a lot, and their personalities were really able to come through. There are a lot of great photos of Sarah and Nic both smiling nicely into the camera, but you know what? That doesn’t tell their story like these images I’ve picked out do. So the theme of their blog post is their connection — and the joyful laughter that produces.

If Sarah doesn’t have one of the prettiest smiles ever, I don’t know who does!

Sarah and Nic, you’re amazing. Thanks for having fun with me! Can’t wait for more fun on your big day!

Jaymie and Daniel’s Downtown Kansas City Engagement

ericamay — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 17:16:43 +0000

Jaymie and Daniel are a really fun couple. And they love each other… a lot! They’re so sweet to each other (and just sweet people in general), so I had a great time photographing their engagement. They’re tying the knot next fall on a beach in Mexico, but wanted some fun Kansas City engagement photos! We started at a park near their home with their three dogs for a few shots, but I’m going to share here their urban images taken downtown in the area of the Power and Light District.

Don’t forget to leave a comment at the end of the post to participate in Cans for Comments… you leave a comment, I’ll donate a canned good to Harvesters!

Congratulations, Jaymie and Daniel!

Now… leave a comment below and I’ll donate a canned good in your honor!