Charlotte & Tom | An Engagement Shoot

Us getting engaged came as a shock to precisely no one but that didn’t stop me from wanting to mark the occasion. I adore the concept of engagement shoots for several reasons. One because I have documented every moment of my life since I was trusted with a camera. Two because it has been noted in the past that I occasionally enjoy being the subject of such documentation. And three because if given the even the slightest chance to curate a set of images that would mark maybe the happiest time of my life, you bet I am going to take the idea and positively sprint with it.

It was, therefore, a slight shock to the system when I mentioned this assumed given concept of engagement photography to Tom and was met with a look as blank as my current drafts for any actual travel content on this blog (it’s coming. I promise. Stick with me).

“Is that a thing?” he asked.

“Here are some curated mood boards I’ve been creating for the last five years,” I replied.

Not convinced by the concept of traditional couple portraits, we (I) knew that if this was something we were actually both going to enjoy something was going to have to give. Taking ourselves too seriously is not our forte. Being the centre of attention is not Tom’s forte. My forte could be described as being (overly) ambitious. We like the outdoors. Travel. Animals. Taking photos that capture a feeling rather than a pose.

Cue light bulb.

What if we took the concept of traditional and beautiful photos and merged it with a setting that would immediately relax all involved, create natural reactions and be, basically, the most fun ever?

If you think we would go as far as assembling a herd of Alpacas to take part in our engagement shoot, you are absolutely correct.

We enlisted photographers extraordinaire Catherine and Andy from White Stag Wedding Photography and Barbara from ultimate location, Lightfoot Alpacas. Barbara and her lovely team were impossibly kind and accommodating and don’t even get me started on how she is living my dream life surrounded by gorgeous animals. I adore Catherine and Andy’s work and knew their bright and informal style would work well with our personalities as well as the frankly ridiculous concept I had suggested to them. Get yourselves some photographers who see as much potential in a field of alpacas and some eBay flower crowns as you do. They are the most wonderful and talented couple; I honestly couldn’t recommend them more. We spent a sunny July afternoon laughing, squealing and making memories as wonderful as the photos that would eventually go alongside them. There was no awkward posing nor uncomfortable direction, just hours as fun as the eight years that had preceded them and that will hopefully long continue for all the years ahead.

Welcome to our engagement photo shoot – an idea that formed from wanting to mark a moment that turned out to be in itself arguably some of the best moments we’ve had.

We still haven’t stopped smiling.

Our endless thanks to Catherine, Andy and Barbara for making this come alive. Follow White Stag Wedding Photography on Instagram and Facebook for wedding inspiration and beautiful photos aplenty. Also, you too can visit the Alpacas at their open day in September! Check out their Facebook page for fluffy updates from the real stars of this show.