When I first met Mei and Kent, I could tell right away they had a great sense of humor. They told me they had been together for something like 10 years, to which my response was, “but you look so young!” To that, Mei responded with one word and a smile, “Asian.” Too cute!

Yesterday I drove all the way out to Hamilton, NJ, for the engagement session the groom’s sister-in-law generously decided to gift to them. She told me that the one regret she had from her own wedding was not finding room in the budget for an engagement session, and really wanted Mei and Kent to have one. I thought the session was such a thoughtful gift, I rummaged through my jam-packed wedding-season schedule to find time for it. I only had one available date, but I’m so glad it worked out!

We did the session at the beautiful Grounds For Sculpture (GFS), where in spite of the distance, I hope to shoot again in the not-so-distant future. It was such a beautiful place, with so many great photos to be had, starting with this lovely garden entrance, with tables inside.

The couple had done some location scouting in advance, and did a really great job of finding the best spots, including this beautiful pond with some amazing oversized foliage. The plants were so unique that if I didn’t know better I would have thought they were fake!

The next stop on our list was a small dark passageway. After seeing it, I immediately knew I wanted to use off-camera lighting to add a dramatic effect to the photos.

I became very excited when Mei showed me a hammock that was hidden away in one of the gardens. They got into it okay, but when I jumped in after them to get some close-ups I nearly flipped them flat on their faces! Mei was cracking up hysterically after her very close call with the dirt!

Nearby, a park bench lended itself perfectly to a silhouette.

As we were walking to our next location, Mei and I both started rubbernecking as we walked past a cluster of some skinny trees and a bushel of some other tall, grass-like plant. I think she must have some photographer in her, because she was spotting the photo ops as well as I was!

Next we headed over to a small bridge, and I had Mei and Kent do a few poses right at its highest point, while I crept down to my lowest point to elaborate the bridge’s size.

A few more shots we took while walking through…

We had to pass up this gazebo on the way in because it was being used by other photographers for wedding photos, but I’m glad we had a chance to get back to it on our way out.

With a few minutes left on the clock for the session, we figured we might as well see if the peacocks were in a cooperative mood. First we tried sneaking up on them for a photo – fail – then we tried having Mei and Kent chase them… fun to watch, but still –fail – haha. Finally we positioned the couple somewhere in the vicinity behind them, and let the birds come to us – success!

Congrats you two! And thank you so much for not leaving me stranded after my car keys went missing as I was about to leave for home. You are both such fun, good-hearted people, and it’s a privilege to be working with you!