Some sessions start as work. This one started with a friendship.
I'd known Maurice for a while, but only through screens. We connected through Facebook group for Christian YouTubers. It was the kind of online friendship that builds slowly over comments and DMs until you realize you actually know someone. When he told me he was getting married, and asked if I'd shoot his engagement photos, it meant I'd finally get to meet him in person. At his own engagement session. In Washington, DC.
No pressure, right?
Their Story
Maurice and Latoya met through mutual friends, a couple who was dating at the time, and thought the two of them might click. And they were right. This all happened after Maurice had walked through a recent loss. But the connection between the two came easy, at a time he probably wasn't expecting one.
There's something about a couple who found each other on the other side of something hard. You can see it in how they hold onto each other. Less performance, more relief.
Why Lincoln Memorial?
DC has no shortage of monuments, but Lincoln Memorial does something the others just don't. The scale of it makes people feel small in the best way, which is exactly what you want in your engagement photos. Two people, wrapped up in each other, dwarfed by marble columns and a skyline that doesn't care about anyone's timeline but theirs.
The steps alone are iconic, but the real magic is the reflecting pool. Get the light right and you've got the couple mirrored back at themselves, which is about as on-the-nose romantic as a location gets without trying too hard.
It's also just varied. Columns for structure, open sky for softness, water for reflection, city views for scale. One location with five different looks.
Quick Tips for Shooting at Lincoln Memorial
Go right at opening. The park opens at 9 AM, and that's your window. Fewer tourists, softer light, and you actually get the steps to yourselves for a few minutes instead of dodging strangers in every frame.
Parking is the real challenge, not the photos. Street parking is available nearby, but it goes fast once the day gets going. Get there early or you'll be circling blocks instead of taking pictures.
Bring layers. DC weather near the water can shift on you, and you'll be out longer than you think once you start finding angles you didn't plan for.
Trust the walk. Some of the best shots aren't posed at the steps. They happen in the in-between, walking toward the reflecting pool, laughing about something that has nothing to do with the camera.
Better Than Expected!
I showed up not knowing exactly what to expect, meeting a friend for the first time while also being the person directing his engagement session. Turns out that combination works better than it should. There was already trust there, just not the in-person kind yet, and it filled in fast.
Maurice and Latoya were incredibly easy to work with, easy to talk to, and easy to photograph. That's not always the case, and when it happens it shows in the gallery. The location definitely helped with the photos, but the session was special because two people who'd already been through something real showed up ready to be exactly who they are in front of a camera.
That's the whole thing, really. Living Out Loud isn't just a name I picked, it's what happens when people stop performing for the camera and just live in the moment they're in. Maurice and his Latoya did that from the first frame.
Planning an engagement session in the DC area? I'd love to help you tell your story too. Reach out here to get started.