My cousin is getting married guys! Jake and I grew up together. His mom and my mom are cousins (and best friends) so when we were little we would have playdates all the time! I’m so excited for Jake and his lovely fiancé Melissa. I had an awesome time doing an engagement shoot with them! After going through a drought for many months, rain wasn’t something we were anticipating on the radar when scheduling their engagement shoot. We even had to reschedule because of rain! We thought we were going to escape it on the warm June day we chose to shoot on. Lone behold the bottom fell out and we literally had to sit in my car for 15 minutes as we waited for the rain to at least lighten up. Never I have ever had to “take a break” in the middle of a session to wait for rain. I was wracking my brain for ways I could still do a shoot for the time allotted. Jake and Melissa? They were as chill as they could be. Neither one of them seemed concerned with the rain and were totally fine with not only waiting but even shooting anyways in a light drizzle. I was thankful for their amazing attitude despite the weather.

Truth be told, I am the opposite of Jake and Melissa. I have a “lets stick to the plan” personality and feel super thrown off when what was planned unfolds differently. If it were my engagement shoot and it started raining, I would be pretty bummed and disappointed. Needless to say Jake and Melissa reminded me of a good life lesson: go with the flow (which was something my mom constantly was telling me when I was growing up). I say all that to say thank you Jake and Melissa for going with the flow! Rain aside, we were able to get lovely photos of the pair twirling about in a field and snuggling by the lake shores. It was a true Florida engagement session! Our location was very lush and green at Loyce E. Harp Park in Lakeland Highlands, it rained and we even saw an alligator! Jake and Melissa are the best kind of people and I can’t wait to photograph their wedding in March! It’ll be a beautiful day that will represent them and their love for one another so well, I just know it! For now, I hope you enjoy a few highlights from Jake and Melissa’s engagement session!