Annie & Kevin – A Downtown Chicago Engagement Session

“You know, I’ll be in Chicago in September,” I said looking across the table at Annie and her parents. I think that was all I needed to say. Just a few days later, Annie and Kevin booked me for their wedding. My trip to Chicago for another wedding was already planned, so why not add an engagement session while I was there? Brooke and I just made the trip a day earlier than originally planned.

The plan for Annie and Kevin’s engagement session was pretty simple. There were a couple definite locations on the plan – the Chicago Art Institute, a stop by the Chicago River, and North Beach. The rest we would just make up as we walked through the city. I still know Chicago well, so I was comfortable traveling in and out. However, I still took the time to scout their entire session before hand.

We started in the gardens outside the Art Institute and chatted as we took photos. We talked about how they landed in Chicago, their favorite restaurants, and Kevin reminded me about how he met Annie. Annie and Kevin were both Students at Wittenberg University. One year, they both volunteered to be orientation assistants. You know, those upperclassmen who help freshmen move in on their first day? During the orientation, they met for the first time. Annie remarked that she was surprised it took so long – Wittenberg is a very small school.

Thereafter, Annie and Kevin became fast friends, but there was a speed bump ahead. Kevin had already booked a long trip to London, which could cut short a relationship that had just begun. Instead of faltering, Annie visited Kevin while in London. As I’m told, things moved forward pretty fast thereafter.

Which brings us back to Chicago. Below are some highlights from Annie & Kevin’s session in downtown. I’ll have more work to share soon from my second hometown. I was quite busy while visiting…

I love those last two photos. The look on Annie’s face is breathtaking. For the photographers, all of the above was captured on a Contax 645 using a mix of Fuji 400H and Kodak Portra 800. However, the wide black and whites were captured on a Leica M6 with Tri-X. Hope you enjoyed!