A Plymouth Engagement Session
This one goes out to Rebekah & Ciaran who met on the Hoe in Plymouth. They now live in London but this is where their love story began; their ties to this city are clear to see. Having lived in Plymouth myself since 2006 it is easy to become numbed to it’s unusual and often overlooked beauty. But shooting on my home turf gave me the chance to see it afresh. Even on a cold, overcast day in January, it gave in spades, not least because I could see the romance and gravity it holds for these two beautiful souls. There is something in the grey stones with hints of magenta along shoreline that feels grounding and steadfast. A city that is quietly proud.
Rebekah & Ciaran chose the locally known ‘wedding cake’ as a meeting spot. We ambled around the Hoe ensuring we got the iconic Smeaton’s Tower included in the images then we make tracks down to a tiny pebbled beach next to the Lido. The tones on the beach were beautiful, the low winter light with a hint of golden hour picking out the landscape and city scape as they nestle together. Rebekah & Ciaran were happy to warm up with a hot drink midway through which gave me the opportunity to shoot some completely unscripted images. I took a step away to just observe, reminding them that for the majority of a wedding day I do not direct or tweak but simply let the story unfold.
The engagement session is a chance for me to get to know you and vice versa, to break down the barriers of being seen by the camera and feeling vulnerable. It is an artificial arrangement but within the space of the session I create opportunity for authentic moments to arise. That is what I am looking for. When you connect with each other and the guard drops, a split second where you forget the camera is there and just be together, reliving memories of when and where you first met.
