Couples | Romance and Light in Rocky Mountain National Park

Naturally, the one uncomfortably cold day on my week long trip to Colorado was this one. While the rest of the Midwest was essentially frozen alive, I was sweating out at Garden of the Gods and walking around downtown Estes Park wearing nothing but an over-sized sweater. Of course the cold would catch up to me the day of my shoot. As Juliet and Connor removed their warm winter coats I told them to think warm thoughts and assured them I’d be quick. Dressed in about four layers myself, looking like the Michelin Man’s artist cousin, I somehow managed to successfully photograph these two. They, on the other hand, made the cold seem like nothing.

Juliet and Connor were total troupers and absolutely wonderful in front of the camera. I wasn’t too worried about our shoot knowing Connor was a photographer himself. Having both lived in the same small Oklahoma town, I’d been creeping on his work since a friend of mine had a brief crush on him in high school. I remember her scrolling through his MySpace pictures until she came across one of his photography albums. I lived in another town at that point so I never officially met him, but his work caught my attention and I added him on social media. For the last decade he was a random friend on Facebook that I’d like his photography once in awhile. By the time my trip to Colorado was planned, I’d observed that he and Juliet had moved out to Denver last summer. I immediately reached out and our date was set!

Both myself and my mom (who I brought along for the ride) were so floored by their easy going attitudes and warm nature, especially considering the chilly temperatures. They were naturals in front of the camera, but beyond that they engaged us both in conversation, asking us about our trip, lives, ect. They were so nice and fun to work with, and even recommended us a restaurant a couple hours after the shoot. We showed up there and they were still finishing up so they joined us at our table while we waited for our food. I know this entire post was supposed to be about how beautiful the mountains were and trust me, they were, but I think it’s important to realize that if you vibe with your clients you can shoot them anywhere and have a great time. Of course I’m overjoyed at the opportunity to shoot in Colorado, and please please please someone take me back! Until then, I’ll just be drooling over the gorgeous images below.