Location, Location, Location

Ever since we got engaged, I've been looking forward to doing our engagement shoot. I think engagement sessions are such a great way to capture some fun, relaxed portraits in a more casual setting. Curt definitely prefers to be behind the camera rather than in front of it (check out his flickr stream here!) but I think with a little coaxing he'll end up really getting into it. I, on the other hand, think it's so fun to play model for a day (as evidenced by Curt's flickr)... so I'm super stoked about the e-shoot.


One of the main reasons we booked Sarah was because of her amazing engagement sessions. They're always full of color and excitement, and she and her clients always pick fabulous locations!


We've been talking about the location dilemma for quite some time now. At first, we had planned on doing the shoot in downtown San Juan Capistrano... it's Curt's hometown, and we met while going to high school there, so it has a special place in our hearts...but it seemed like it was becoming a really popular spot for engagement sessions, and ultimately we decided that we wanted something with a little more of a wow factor. The next idea was the Viceroy in Santa Monica. The decor is SO our style, and we thought it would make a really cool backdrop for our pictures. But the more we looked into it, the more we realized it just wasn't quite right. We had plenty of time to decide, so we kind of put the search on hold for a while.


But a couple of days ago, Curt said, "What do you think about taking our engagement pictures at the Orange County Fair?"


I immediately had visions of us sharing cotton candy, kissing on the ferris wheel, and trying to win one of those impossible carnival games. All the bright lights and colors!! The cheesy stick-your-face-in-the-hole things!! The petting zoo!!!! (we are getting a picture with a llama. it's not up for negotiation.) I knew that this would be the perfect setting and that we'd end up with tons of fun, candid, and colorful pictures. "Perfect!" I said. "Let's do it!"


The only bummer is that the fair doesn't come to OC until late July, which means we won't be able to use the pictures for our save-the-dates. But there are still plenty of opportunities to incorporate them... the website, the guest book, thank-you cards....


I did a little research today, hoping to find some carnival-y inspiration. I love being able to search Google Reader. It's genius. Here are the fruits of my (2 seconds of) labor:

That's Miss Fondue
from Weddingbee!

from Jessica Purvis Photography, via An Atlanta Bride

...and the incomparable Jasmine Star

Oh baby. So excited.




...Is it July yet?