I’ve always been drawn to Philadelphia, I don’t exactly know why. Maybe it’s because a lot of our couples live in the city, perhaps it’s the architecture or the light. Or maybe it’s all of it! Regardless, this city just calls to my creative nature, so I knew I wanted to do a styled engagement here.

We wanted this session to be modern and editorial yet soft and romantic, this meant calling upon different locations from Old City Philadelphia to Boat Row. With 3 different wardrobe changes (curated by myself with the help of our Client Closet finds from Red Dress Boutique), lots of driving, and more driving, and more driving…it was a Sunday, and we had trouble finding parking. LOL

Our models are one of our real-life couples, Stephanie and Allen Sheffield. The two were married a few months before this session. Ethically, we believe that if a photographer creates a styled engagement session. It is just that, a styled engagement session, not the couples’ actual engagement session. Stephanie and Allen have the exact modern and European aesthetic we were looking for. When selecting models for a photo-shoot, many factors go in place during casting, and overall aesthetic plays a significant factor in this. We also take in mind their personality, experience, and overall chemistry as well!

We called upon our dream glam team, Whitney Burkhart (WB UPSTYLES), for hair & Talitha Collado (Collado Cosmetic Lab) for makeup. They are the best at working together to get that high fashion yet soft and editorial look in a time-efficient manner. We haven’t had the opportunity to all work together on a real wedding YET, so we make sure to create projects together throughout the year so we can all create together. Because when we do, the amount of creative energy in one space just blows the roof off! The other curial creative member apart of this team was the sweet Heather Heagy of Custom Florals, who created the bouquet and floral wreath for Maddy (The Great Dane)!

This session was so fun, and we cannot wait for our next collaboration!

Photography & Art Direction: April & Mike Raymond
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Florals: Custom Florals
Models: Stephanie & Allen Sheffield
Makeup: Talitha Collado of Collado Cosmetic Lab
Hair: Whitney Burkhart of WB Upstyles
Wardrobe: Red Dress Boutique

xoxo, April