Phil and Katie- Clifton VA Engagement Photographer

This job that I have? Its pretty incredible. I get invited into some of the most precious moments in peoples lives, whether they’re celebrating an addition to their family, sweet moments with their kids, or planning to marry their best friend. I love that I get to know my clients and feel like I get to show up to their session as a friend, but I don’t think anything really prepared me for how powerful this job is when I’m ALREADY friends with them.  I’m sitting here trying to find the right words that would adequately explain to you wonderful blog readers just how much this couple and this session means to me and I have no idea where to begin. How do you sum up a 6 year friendship in one single blog post? Not possible, but I’ll give it a try anyway…

Some of my favorite college memories involved Katie. We would sit and talk for hours over brownies (or cookies, cupcakes, or whatever other delicious treat we felt like cookin’ up!) about life, ministry, and boys. Oh man we talked a LOT :0) I got to walk with Katie through times in her life when boys were sweet, boys were dumb, boys were confusing, and boys were flat out idiots. But most recently I’ve gotten to walk with her through a time in her life when one boy in particular as been intentional, loving, genuine, and cared for her like no one has before. and this one, my lovely blog readers, is the one that she gets to spend the rest of her life with :0)

To say it was an honor to be the one to document this time in their lives is about the biggest understatement I could make! I have LOVED getting to see their excitement during this period of their lives i think its safe to say we are all already counting down to October 30th when Phil and Katie will officially be husband and wife! So crazy! Katie, no words can explain how thankful I am for you and your friendship and how well you love the people around you. You give until you have nothing left to give, and your heart for the kids you get to work with is so evident in every conversation we have. Thank you for being my go-to friend, my shopping buddy, an incredible source of encouragement, my fellow disney enthusiast, and for showing me what it looks like to seek Christ first. Phil, I always knew it would take a pretty incredible man of God to sweep Katie off of her feet, and you have exceeded every quality I would have wished for her husband to have. Thank you for loving my friend so well and for the example you set to those around you of a man after God’s heart. I am so thankful to call you both friends, and SO excited for this next chapter in your lives!! :0)

Whew, okay, now on to the REALLY good stuff! ;0) Internet, meet Phil, Katie, and the pups Memphis and Mercy!
I’m pretty sure Mercy and Memphis were REAL mad at me since I kept having them sit next to Katie and Phil instead of running around like they wanted to.. but i’m also pretty sure these next few images were totally worth it! :0) love the early morning light! yes, i’m pretty sure she’s a big fan of his ;0)
absolutely LOVE this one of the four of them :0) then we dropped M&M off at home and headed to downtown Clifton to focus on Phil and Katie for a while, cause lets be honest, Mercy and Memphis can totally steal the show ;0) I absolutely LOVE these next few! hey Phil, thanks for constantly putting this smile on my friends face :0) OH my gracious.  this next one right here? one of my most favorite images I’ve ever taken. EVER! another favorite for sure! love when a couple seems to forgets the camera is there :0)
the one above and these next two all happened within about 3 seconds of each other… a fun little series, if you will: LOVE this one too! Katie, you are SO gorgeous! okay friends, these next few shots were completely Phil’s idea and they are some of my absolute FAVORITES from the whole morning! I think I was even more excited about these than he was! love how they turned out :0) if it were me i would blow this one up big time and display it at the reception :0) one more quick outfit change and a few more pretty pictures to wrap up the morning: 
Leave Phil and Katie somethin’ nice in the comments box and tell them you were here! Have a great weekend, friends! :0)