Twisted Fairy Tale Engagement Session: Sarah & Brian

Who says a bride has to wear white?  Something similar can be said for an e-session.  Who says engagement photos have to be bright and sunny and taken on Pittsburgh bridges?  Sarah and Brian say that these photos should be a little different, which is why they chose a twisted fairy tale theme for theirs.

Dark and even a bit brooding, these engagement photos are beautifully dramatic.  The bride and groom were inspired by the likes of Maleficent, Alice in Wonderland, and Snow White.  They wanted something snowy and seemingly out of a story book…but the villainous side of one.  Photographer Kelsey Kradel lead the pair to Preston Park in Butler.  There they found knee-deep snow, frozen ground, dead leaves, and trees with twisted tendrils that resembled something you’d find in an enchanted forest.  With Brian in all black and Sarah in a gorgeous black dress (that she later topped with a bad ass leather jacket), the only pop of color came from a bright bouquet of flowers.

I wish more couples would follow Sarah and Brian’s lead and think outside the box.  These two took a chance and it paid off magnificently.  Kudos to creativity!!!

From the bride…

When and how did you two meet?
Brian and I met in my junior year of high school (his senior year) through his sister, whom I am very good friends with.  It wasn’t long before Brian developed a crush on me.  We still joke about his first words to me, “What are the chances of a girl like you dating a guy like me?”

Sadly, Brian and I never took things to a relationship level and we went our separate ways following high school.  In 2012, after I had just ended an eight year relationship, I received a message from Brian, saying he wanted to reconnect.  He said that never making a move on me was his biggest regret.  We quickly realized we were meant to be together all along, and the rest is history!  His sister and I are still great friends and she was a bridesmaid in our wedding past October.

Juicy details on the proposal, please!  Where, when, how?
Brian and I were on our third beach vacation together in Cape Cod.  It was our second night there and he took me to dinner at a beautiful restaurant overlooking the bay.  Afterwards, we walked to Kalmus Beach to catch the sunset.  Right after the sun went down, Brian knelt down on one knee and pulled a ring out of his pocket!  To say that I was surprised and overjoyed would be an understatement!!  Afterward, we celebrated around a fire with a bottle of champagne.  Ahhh, I wish I could go back to this moment!

Describe the engagement session.
Brian and I knew we wanted something a bit different than the traditional Pittsburgh engagement photos.  We wanted something that would reflect our darker side, so we opted for a dark, woodsy, wintery shoot!  We knew we wanted snow so we chose a day in early March.  The shoot was done at Preston Park in Butler, where there was much more snow than there was in the city.  In some locations, the snow was almost up to my knees!  We were FREEZING but we had an absolute blast and would do it again in a heartbeat!  It was also POURING the entire morning but it stopped just in time for our shoot.  However, the gloomy sky played in perfectly with the look we were going for!

What inspired your vision?
My vision for the shoot was a dark, snowy, storybook vibe.  Think, dark Alice in Wonderland or Maleficent.  Our rock star of a photographer scouted out the location and found some awesome mushroom-looking Alice in Wonderland trees.  We wanted an all black look with just a splash of color, so I bought Brian a tie that goes along with his personality, and he got me a GORGEOUS bouquet of flowers that popped perfectly against the black we were wearing.