Rebecca and Chris are the kind of couple that makes a photographer’s job feel easy. Not because they’re polished or practiced in front of a camera, but because they’re completely themselves together. As a Boston engagement photographer, sessions like theirs are the ones I think about long after the gallery is delivered.
From the first five minutes, it was clear this was going to be a good one.
Rebecca & Chris at the Arnold Arboretum
Chris would say something under his breath, Rebecca would crack up, and I’d just be firing away trying to keep up. Half my favorite frames from the day happened in those in-between moments. The laughing, the teasing, the totally-unaware-of-the-camera stuff.
They came dressed simply, her in a black top, him in a relaxed grey shirt, and it worked perfectly. Nothing fussy. Just them.
We moved through shaded groves and open wooded paths, and I kept the prompts loose. Walk together. Talk to each other. Forget I’m here. Within minutes they were in their own world, which is exactly where I want couples to be. The Arboretum is one of my favorite spots for this kind of session, and my Arnold Arboretum engagement photo guide covers all the logistics if you’re thinking about booking it yourself.
The result is a gallery that actually looks like them. Mid-laugh and unguarded. Quiet and close. Walking through the trees like nobody’s watching. A few black and whites that strip everything back to just the two of them.
Rebecca and Chris came in saying they weren’t good in front of a camera. They were wrong. That’s almost always how it goes. The couples who worry the most end up giving me the most genuine work, because they stop performing and just exist together. If you’re still figuring out where to shoot, my roundup of engagement session locations around Boston is a good place to start, and my Boston wedding planning resources has everything else you might need along the way.
