Engagement Session at the Valley Ho

Engagement Session at the Valley Ho

Over the years I looked forward to early November and a few days of inspiration and learning from some of the best photographers in the business at the Fearless Conference in Scottsdale, AZ. Of course it’s also great to be able to hang out in the beautiful weather with many of my best friends. This year I got to meet up with G’Kyshia and Jeremy, whose wedding I’m excited to be photographing in Pittsburgh next spring. They live in Phoenix so I suggested they meet me for an engagement session at the Valley Ho, the fantastic mid-century modern hotel where the conference has been held for the past few years.

Photos at Sunset

The sun sets early this time of year, so we started out on the roof of the hotel to catch the last few rays of sunlight. The couple was in a reflective mood. <– Dad Joke!
a couple is reflected in a pane of glass as they stand on the roof of a hotel at sunset during their engagement session at the valley ho

G’Kyshia looking fabulous in the late afternoon sunlight. She’s beautiful and stylish.

A young woman in a white dress casts a shadow on the wall she leans against during her engagement session at the valley ho

After Dark

It gets dark fast in the desert, so we walked towards Old Town Scottsdale in search of some light from the many galleries and restaurants when I saw a restaurant with an outdoor dining area decorated with twinkle lights. The management were kind enough to let us in to take some photos.

a couple stands close together in an embrace with twinkling lights in the foreground

The Old Town Tortilla Factory is a fun place to eat if you’re ever in Scottsdale, AZ. The night before the shoot I had dinner there and kind of filed it away in my mind as a possible location for photos. I think it worked out pretty well.

palm trees and twinkle lights surround a backlit couple

couple embraces in a dark courtyard lit only by twinkle lights in Scottsdale, AZ

Before we called it a night, Jeremy had one last request. He’d brought along a couple of Steelers jerseys and wanted a photograph while they wore their team colors. It goes to show that the Steelers Nation is everywhere 🙂

flames lick the air as a couple in Pittsburgh Steelers jerseys smile during their engagement session at the valley hoSpecial thanks to the Hotel Valley Ho for opening up the roof for us, and to my friends Mauricio Arias and Mark Janzen for their lighting assistance. I was kind of in awe of the generosity of two of the best wedding photographers around for taking the time to help me with lighting.

Update: You can check out G’Kyshia and Jeremy’s wedding photos by clicking on this link. The wedding day was all of the greatness that I expected it would be!