Stacy Wells

It’s no secret. Austin in full of beautiful outdoor locations for engagement shoots. We started out with Warren and Katelyn making some Mt Bonnell engagement photos. We headed to Commons Ford Ranch later in the afternoon We had to dodge some afternoon thunderstorms, but that paid off later on at sunset.

Mt Bonnell Engagement Photos

My Bonnell’s cliff top views of Lake Austin make a nice background for engagement photos. The park isn’t large and is frequently very busy on a weekend. With a little hiking we were able to find a quieter spot off the path.

Commons Ford Ranch Engagement Photos

Commons Ford Ranch is one of the hidden gyms around Austin. The open grass fields are a blank canvas for sunset engagement photos. On a day with thunderstorms to add interest to the skies, it can be magical. We loved the long path leading down to the river through the tall brown grass. It begs the question “what is down that path?”

The denuded pecan trees in the pecan bottom provide some nice graphic elements to play with. Normally we don’t think of bare trees very attractive. But in silhouette, they can create nice abstract framing or space filling elements  around the couple.

We always try to bring a as much of the couple’s personality and relationship into the photos as we can. Warren and Katelyn both enjoy a good book so we played with the idea of an afternoon relaxing together with a couple of good books.

When you have clouds like this, just take some pictures. The last light of the sun lit up the underside of the clouds at the horizon. The roiling underside of the approaching thunderstorm creates some nice drama in the background.

Weather is one big variable in a shoot like this. We dodged thunderstorms all afternoon. That is both a blessing and a curse. Right about sunset a couple of bigger storms rolled through providing dramatic skies and a nice backdrop for the photos. We finished our last few engagement photos and then had to make a dash for the cars to avoid a sudden down pour.