Rosie + Spencer
An Adventure Engagement Session in Lyle, WA
When Rosie and I were first chatting over e-mail, one of the things she was super excited about was an engagement session at Spencer’s grandma’s house out near Lyle, WA. If you’ve never been to the Washington side of the gorge, do your self a favor: pack a pick-nick lunch, strap on some hiking boots and drive over the bridge at Hood River to check it out! Most of us Portlanders know about many beautiful places on the Oregon side, but once you cross that river man wait until you see the view! On a clear day, Hood towers over the far rolling hills and the Columbia River curves away below steep cliffs adorned with tall golden grasses. The highway on the Washington side is much less traveled as well which makes for easy pulling over to explore roads wandering off and up the cliffs.
I’d spent some time driving and trekking around on the Washington side of the gorge in search of an elopement site for a previous Kate Holt Couple earlier this summer, so when Rosie told me about the property in Lyle, needless to say I was beyond stoked to return and see what other treasures lay over the river!
Rosie gave me excellent directions, so on my way out I had a few extra minutes to spare and was able to stop at the cutest littles shop, Columbia Gorge Bakery, which lies just off highway 14 in Cook, WA. The owner there was just closing shop but still hooked me up with a mouth watering panini and even threw in some free cookies that were to die for!
Driving up the steep driveway to Spencer’s grandma’s house I was impressed that someone would live up here year round as navigating that road on an icy winter day would be quite the feat! Pulling up I was greeted with the excited voices of Rosie and Spencer’s four “children” who barked while wagging their friendly tails with the excitement of a new visitor.
Rosie and Spencer both owned two dogs prior to their engagement, so now their pack is rather impressive! As Rosie came to greet me, she laughed about what a comical part of the shoot it would be when we rounded everyone up to do some “family portraits.”
Rosie and Spencer both expressed a bit of nervousness and trepidation at being in front of the camera so I took them up to a bluff to teach them some “core poses” to put them at ease. One of the most difficult parts about being photographed can be the introversion that comes from not knowing what to do with your hands and feet, so teaching my couples just a few poses that are simple and look great is key to later on getting those amazing candid shots that really only come about once you feel comfortable and are then more willing to relax and open up while a camera is pointed at you. I told Spencer to make sure if he feels like he need direction on what to do with his hands to just raise them directly in front of his face, and this produced many moments of laughter when he dutifully did so at a few different points during our session.
I love it when I work with a couple and they laugh and have fun with the whole experience and Rosie and Spencer were 100% game so we quickly got into some silliness with butt squeezing and hip-bumping and Rosie’s jovial smile just lit up in almost every frame I shot!
Rosie and Spencer are a couple after my own heart. They love the outdoors and family is of utmost importance in their life. Spencer proposed to Rosie on Christmas Eve in 2019 and since the pandemic put a bit of a kibosh on a ton of outdoor adventure and travel, they’ve just really enjoyed all the extra time to spend together and with family, hanging out and getting that extra time to grow and bond even tighter during their long engagement.
Just a week prior to this engagement session, the fires which threatened so many people in Oregon moved into where Rosie’s parents lived and they were evacuated. Rosie end Spencer didn’t think twice before opening their home to them and taking them in until the threat passed. Luckily their home was spared, but this kind of familial support is exactly the type of thing I truly admire in these two, and is a large reason why we wanted to work with them during their wedding experience.
After trekking all over the property and before Rosie and Spencer changed into their more formal attire, we brought out all the pups and took some fun images that went surprisingly easy when you consider the ages of the dogs spanned from fairly young to a gorgeous older, almost deaf and slightly territorial matriarch. ;)
While Rosie and Spencer changed, I got to snap some photos of Rosie’s stunning diamond engagement ring and chat with Spencer’s grandmother and mom who were there hanging out for the evening. This beautiful property had been in the family for years, and used to extend quite far up the hill from where the house sits now. The view from the front porch is absolutely incredible and as we chatted, the clouds rolled by and the sun streaked through which was too much and I just had to snap a few landscape images that I’ll include below.
Rosie emerged from the house wearing the most gorgeous deep blue dress which complimented her slender figure with some waist cut outs, adding a modern element that I just loved! Spencer also was looking top notch and I complimented him on his perfect matching of belt and shoes to which his mom laughed and took credit for teaching him well! :)
Honestly the beauty of the gorge and the love emanating from these two got my head spinning and I didn’t know whether to keep shooting the wide epic expanse, documenting the stunning beauty of this part of the PNW or to crop in tight and focus on the dazzling snap of Rosie’s eyes as they lit up in laughter any time she and Spencer looked at each other! So, snapping away we walked all over the property and Rosie did amazingly well navigating the lava rocks in heels to reach one particularly stunning overlook. We photographed until the light was almost gone and then these kind people even invited me to come to dinner with them at the local tavern! How amazing is that!?!
Dom was waiting for me at home with a meal however (he’s the chef in our little family, how lucky am I?!) so I declined the invite but I can’t tell you how excited I am to see these guys again at their wedding at the Hood River Hotel in May of next year.
Check out some of the images from their session below and seriously, if you haven’t been to the Washington side of the Gorge- go! You won’t regret it! :)
