Natalie + Nicole
An Engagement Session in The Redwoods of Hoyt Arboretum
Sometimes when you meet people and they start telling you about the incredible lives they lead, it leaves you in a little state of awe. Meeting Natalie and Nicole was this exact experience for me. Natalie entered an Engagement Session Giveaway contest we were holding and from the first phone conversation, I knew this was going to be an incredible shoot! She and Nicole have filled their lives with adventure and giving back to their community in a big way. They are both outdoor enthusiasts and supporters of impactful non-profits such as the Range of Motion Project and themselves work as advocates for prosthetic care access. Nicole is also currently training for the Boston Marathon, so clearly, these two are one impressive couple!
For their engagement session, Nicole and Natalie wanted to shoot in the Redwoods of Hoyt Arboretum. This unique patch of redwoods is especially beautiful in the late afternoon and was meaningful to both Natalie and Nicole as it brought back memories of the time they spent together in the Redwoods of Northern California.
The forecast on our chosen date for the session called for a fair amount of rain, but true to form, Nicole and Natalie wanted to forge ahead with the shoot, embracing the PNW weather of the early spring. As we walked the trail, Natalie told me about how in the rain the bark of redwoods become incredibly soft so I couldn’t resist placing my hand on the trunk of the first one we came to. I’d never felt redwood bark in the rain and Natalie was right! It was sooo soft and even a little squishy!
Photographing these two in such a private, wooded environment made me feel right at home. Swapping adventure stories, laughing about “backwoods” incidents and the trials of putting your loved one through tough physical excursions, the hour spent on the shoot felt more like hanging with friends than an official “photoshoot” and in the end I even snagged an invite to Natalie’s “must do” hiking list so I hope Dom is prepared! ;)
Enjoy this selection of photos from their gorgeous rainy engagement session, and congratulations, Natalie and Nicole!
