The Adventure Bride’s Guide to a Florida Riverside Engagement

Hey Adventure Brides!

I’m back - this time with a behind the scenes look into the Tangled Riverside engagement session in my gallery (view here: https://dyetheknotweddings.squarespace.com/gallery/florida-riverside-engagement )

This particular photo shoot was SO much fun! Trish from Rainedrops Creative was the talented photographer behind the camera lens this time; and I focused on the theme and design of the engagement session.

Our theme was whimsical with Tangled vibes, and I think we definitely accomplished just that!

The sweet riverside dock in Milton, Florida was our chosen location because of the magical way the sun sets over the water at just the right angles! (If you’re wanting to search the address online, you will find it under: Riverwalk South, Milton, FL 32570). This is a great spot for any type of photo session: family photos, dreamy sunset maternity photos, engagements, the list goes on! It’s definitely one of my favorite places in Florida to shoot! It’s a very cute date night idea as well. (FL local hack: get some Angel Cream donuts at Milton Quality Bakery - a sweet, family owned little store with the best donuts you’ll EVER eat - and go for a little stroll down the riverwalk at sunset/dusk. BEST. DATE. EVER.) (Also, if you didn’t catch that Tangled reference, go watch the movie and come back to try again). Anyways, back to the shoot!

Our props included a small floral bouquet (arranged by me), a simple lace fan, a few lanterns, wooden initials, a lace picnic blanket, and a floating lantern. For safety purposes, we never actually let the lantern fly up into the air. We lit it for the photos, then promptly set it down into the water to extinguish the flame. The awesome floating lanterns in the final result (stay tuned, adventure brides!) are the result of Trish’s amazing editing skills. (There are many trees, fields, and a few state parks in this area; and we really didn’t want to have to explain to law enforcement why the nearby state park was going up in smoke!) We did have to do this step a few times to get a good shot, so I’d recommend purchasing a pack of floating lanterns if you’re wanting to recreate this idea! I believe the type we got came by the dozen. We used probably 4 of them.

The Milton riverwalk has several fun photographic elements such as a long dock with an open view of the river and sunset in the distance, a gazebo, cute little benches, and on the opposite side near some downtown apartment buildings are some quaint bistro lights that hang between the buildings.

The gazebo definitely gave us some really cute “Married Life” vibes; and were some of the best performing ones when posted on Instagram. The simplicity of the setting lends a casual and comfortable element to the message of the photo, and is definitely one of my favorites.

One unique element we added to this engagement shoot was giving the groom-to-be an engagement ring as well, so that both parties had rings to photograph.

We very much wanted to showcase the equality of the relationship as well as break a few patriarchal stereotypes in the meantime (which if you don’t know by now, is one of my very favorite pastimes ;)

This also captured a glimpse into the personalities of the subjects; and the fun relationship with the amazingous photographer as well! (Shameless sales pitch for Trish, because she’s the best!)

Our beautiful end result, thanks to Trish & her awesome talent for editing magical elements!

This was definitely a whimsical experience all the way through, from the location to the props to the editing style of the final product.

For couples looking for a fun and affordable Disney themed shoot, this definitely is a great post to Pin to your engagement shoot Pinterest board!

This idea can also work for adventure photography sessions as well for the couple looking for a magical element to add to their adventure photo gallery.

Obviously, these photos are just a starting point! The best part about being in a creative field is getting to add different unique elements to make the session match the couple!

I hope you guys enjoyed viewing these photos as much as I loved being part of this session! More highlights from this gallery can be seen at the link above!

Till next time!