When I first started out, if you had told me that people would travel to work with me, I would’ve laughed and told you that you were bat shit crazy.

Imagine my surprise when lo and behold, I have multiple clients that travel to Maine to work with me each year! One couple in particular, Maddie + Lucas, drove up from Boston for a few days to romp around the Midcoast area and get some engagement photos done.

Nailing down a location for sessions is one of my favorite things. Some clients know exactly what they want while others have a general idea and a select few have absolutely no idea. Whatever category a client falls into, I have the experience, knowledge, and guidance to figure out the perfect spots. If you’ve worked with me, you’ll know I keep tossing location ideas out until you tell me, “That’s the one!”

Maddie + Lucas were open to my suggestions and the general vibe they had in mind was coastal. Say no more! 

I shared my Birch Point State Park pitch with them. Why? Because why freakin’ not?! BPSP or “Lucia Beach” as it’s known to the locals, has it all: woodsy trails, towering pines, rocky coastline, and a sandy beach. If you’re familiar with coastal Maine, you know that sandy beaches are few and far between, which makes Lucia Beach’s smaller crescent-shaped beach extra special for this area. The fact that it’s precisely 4 miles from my driveway to the parking lot is also an added bonus. 

On the day of Maddie + Lucas’s session, we were keeping an eye on the weather because the day started out beautifully sunny but slowly grew cloudier as the day progressed. If you know anything about Maine, especially the coast, you’ll know this is a common thing. This is the exact reason why I tell my out-of-state clients to book their photo sessions as early in their trip as possible. This gives us wiggle room in case the weather unexpectedly takes a turn for the worst, which our afternoons here usually do.

Because of this, and the fact that I only live a few miles away, I drove over to Lucia multiple times leading up to Maddie + Lucas’s start time. Thankfully, Mother Nature took her Midol and was playing nice. It was mostly cloudy, with the occasional sunshine poking through. We were in the clear! *cue the happy dance*

As soon as Maddie + Lucas arrived, I immediately knew they were my people. Maddie tripped walking down the short path to the beach and the first thing out of her mouth was some pretty colorful language followed by the most genuine belly laugh by the two of them. 

If you know me personally, you know that I can be the most professional person on the planet; however, the true me has the mouth a sailor would be downright ashamed of. Sorry, mom! Not only did they both have a potty mouth, but they were down for any idea I had. 

I truly will work with clients of any comfort level and will never force you to do anything you don’t feel comfortable doing. I’ve done engagement sessions with couples who had never kissed in their four years of dating and I’ve had couples that were willing to get nearly naked in front of me for a spicier couple’s session. 

Maddie + Lucas were cème de la crème of PDA levels. They were comfortable with each other and so willing to be goofy, have fun, and let loose.

During session consultations and again on the day of your session, I will as you these questions:

• Do you have a favorite side? 
• How comfortable are you with PDA?
• Are there any insecurities I should be aware of?

I knew Maddie didn’t have a favorite side. Lucas’s response was, “Both my sides are my favorite and good sides.” *cue the laughter*

They were very comfortable with PDA despite a few people on the beach with us that day.

It wasn’t necessarily an insecurity but Maddie mentioned that she was the sliiiighest bit taller than Lucas and they just wanted me to be mindful of that. They weren’t looking to hide it, but they didn’t want me to accentuate that either.

This session had my cheeks aching less than halfway through from the non-stop smiling and laughing. I truly felt like I was hanging out with my best friends. 

The best part of the session was the fact that the entire thing was overcast and about 20 minutes before the sunset, we were graced with about 3 minutes of the most beautiful, golden light to backlight Maddie + Lucas on the beach before the sun went back behind the clouds. 

To this date, the drama of that scene is still one of my favorites. You see, as a photographer, I really am more of a storyteller and director. I don’t put you into poses like many of us experienced back in the ‘90s and ‘00s at Sears getting our family photos done. I give you prompts that allow you to interact and move naturally in the space you’re in. 

What made this session a huge success? Maddie + Lucas took every prompt I gave them but made it their own! The ways in which they touched each other and interacted allowed their love and intimacy to radiate off them in their images.

Don’t be afraid to take direction from your photographer and make it your own. If you don’t, you’re going to feel awkward and stiff and that will show in your images as stiffness. Do what feels natural. Move, interact, and touch each other. Those little things will scream romance through your phone and computer screens when you look at your gallery.