Tag Archives: ogden gardens

 

Engagement sessions are often observed as an opportunity to celebrate a new chapter in a couple’s relationship. All eyes are on the future, as wedding plans start in full force. While it’s important to think about the future, we should also consider that engagement sessions are also a chance to reflect. They’re a time to look back on your time together leading up to the current moment, and remember how you got to where you are this very day. For Tess and Josh’s engagement session, this is exactly what they had in mind.

 

For Tess and Josh, the plan was to reenact their very first date! We were to visit every spot they shared their time together on that date, reliving those pivotal moments that got them where they are today. For our first stop, which actually happened to be their last stop on the actual date, we made our way to Ogden Gardens of Valparaiso!

 

 

After Ogden Gardens, we took a ride over to Yomazing of Valpo. This was their first stop on their date, and what a sweet choice, if I do say so myself! Solid move, Josh.  😉

 

 

And how appropriate…Yomazing serves the BEST gummy bears in the world, which just so happen to be from Tess’ family’s candy factory, Albanese Candy Factory! Load em’ up!

 

 

And one more for good measure!!

 

 

Our next spot was a hoot, and definitely requires a bit of back story. On their first date, once they finished up with Yomazing, Josh was trying to come up with something to keep the ball rolling. Turns out he was in the market for some new compression sleeves, and figured…what the heck…let’s go to Dicks Sporting Goods and see what happens! Just as you’d expect, as any couple that’s meant to be together, it really didn’t matter what they were doing — they simply made it work.

 

 

Oooo…caught yourself a keeper there, ay, Tess?? Hardy har har….   🙂

 

 

Our last stop on the date day reenactment wasn’t a part of their real first date, but it’s something we couldn’t pass up while we were in the area. We made a quick stop over to the incredible Dagger Mountain Roastery for a delicious cup-o-joe before wrapping up for the day. PS…if you haven’t been there yet, you MUST give it a try. Great stuff, and even more amazing staff.

 

 

Can’t wait for the big day you two! Thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of this special time in your lives!!

 

Looking to book YOUR engagement session? Head over to our CONTACT page and drop us a line! We’d love to hear from you!

 

 

By Matt Bigelow

 

Vintage bikes, coffee snuggle session and more!!

 

After my fiance and I having own engagement photos taken recently (which I’ll be talking about in another blog very soon — stay tuned!), I finally have first hand experience on how awkward it can feel at times being in front of a camera. For most couples, there’s typically a small transition period when they first get in front of the camera. There’s a lot of “what do I do with my hands?” and “where do I look??” Of course, this is completely natural, as not all of us are used to being photographed! This is actually one of the very top reasons as to why planning an engagement session with your photographer is so important (read more about it, here:)!

 

Anyways, everyone once in a while, you run across a couple like Jessica and Erik. A couple that is so wrapped up in each other’s love, that when they are together, nothing else around them matters. Simply sharing each other’s company is enough to take the weight of the world off of their shoulders. When they are together, there’s nothing in this world that can come between them — not our 90 degree heat we had that day, and especially not a camera. Needless to say, with Jessica and Erik, the transitional period was completely non-existant.

 

For our first location, Jessica and Erik wanted to relive the moment that Erik proposed! This brought us to the beautiful Ogden Gardens of Valparaiso, Indiana. This was a perfect opportunity for their personalities to take over and give themselves a little time to relax and enjoy each others company.

 

 

Once we finished up at Ogden Gardens, we made our way to an awesome little spot that we found on a side road in Crown Point. This was a perfect location for them to have a little fun on their vintage bikes!

 

 

As a wrap-up, we shot over to Sip Coffee Shop on the Crown Point square to share a little snuggle session and some coffee!

 

 

 

Jessica was so incredibly sweet and left a few amazing words for us to share about their experience on their engagement session. Here’s what she had to say:

 

“I cannot say enough about Matt Bigelow; 5 stars doesn’t do him justice. Matt makes you feel like you are the only bride on the planet. Like any bride, I did my fair share of researching photographers, rummaging through pictures, comparing prices, etc…Like Sinatra said, “The best is yet to come.” That’s how I feel about Matt. From the moment my fiancé Erik and I sat down with Matt to discuss what we were going for, we felt that “special” something, and knew we chose the right one to capture our special moments. Matt really “listens” to what you want, and more than that, he encourages you to express your style and really makes you feel comfortable telling him what it is that you want. Being that this is my first rodeo, I really appreciated Matt’s “soft ” guidance and care.

 

I would HIGHLY recommend Matt to anyone for their wedding experience. I also HIGHLY recommend making this your first stop, because you need not look further!!!! Not only is the talent behind the lens exceptional at what he does, he’s a down to earth, good hearted, and honest person to work with…he makes it easy to laugh and smile, which makes the overall experience so enjoyable/memorable. Thank you so much Matt Bigelow, for your passion, commitment, kindness, guidance, and most of all, making this a MAGICAL experience for us both. I always wondered what the love that Erik and I shared looked like, from the outside looking in, and I can honestly say, I had no idea it looked like this…I fell in love all over again.

 

-Jessica Dowell”

 

 

 

By Matt Bigelow