You’ve heard of destination weddings, but have you heard of destination engagement sessions?  When we started planning Hannah and Andrew’s engagement session, Hannah asked if I ever traveled for engagement sessions.  My answer was a resounding, “Absolutely!”  Her dream was to have a beach wedding, but not everyone would be able to travel to the beach.  They decided that having all of their family present at their wedding was more important than a beach wedding.  The fun thing about engagement sessions though, is you can take them wherever you want!

Panama City is their favorite beach – they vacation there once or twice every year!  We coordinated our schedules and planned to be in Panama City in the middle of May.  We met at the pier at St. Andrews State Park and got so many fun beach photos!  We even got a few with the aptly-timed sailboat as it passed behind them.

Hannah and Andrew were willing to do anything for a photo – including getting in the freezing cold water!  The first time they got in the water was under the pier.  Andrew’s pants got soaked, but he had an extra pair in his truck because they were prepared to get in the water.

While they changed into their second outfit, I photographed Hannah’s ring.  I really wanted a shot of it in the sand, but there was no way I was going to risk losing it.  Then I figured out a solution.  I sprinkled a handful of sand on the sidewalk and no one would know the difference except I’m telling you my big secret here haha.

Next, we drove down to the jetty and all three of us climbed on the sharp rocks barefoot.  The only ones that really hurt were the man-made concrete/oyster shell rocks that we had to cross over.  It was 100 percent worth it though!  We got some of my favorite shots on the jetty, then quickly climbed down to get a few more shots on the beach before the sun had completely set.  Hannah and Andrew were totally committed to getting awesome beach photos and got in the freezing water once more.  We topped it off with a romantic sunset silhouette photo and their engagement session was a wrap!

Hannah and Andrew, thank you so much for inviting me to photograph your destination engagement session at St. Andrews State Park!  Thank you for your willingness to do whatever it took to get the shot.  I am so proud of these photos and I hope you love them as much as I do!  I hope you enjoyed the rest of your vacation in Panama City!  So excited for your wedding next year!

P.S. Check out their behind-the-scenes reel here and their proposal story blog here!