Engagement Pictures in Portsmouth, NH :: Can you take engagement pictures in the rain? :: Helen + Matt

As I write this blog post the rain is streaming down the windows and outside the puddles are getting deeper and deeper.

Yes, it's raining again and my engagement shoot for this evening just got postponed :( I'll often get panicked emails from couples saying "The weather forecast is predicting rain!!! What are we going to do?" and my advice is usually that if it's heavy rain, precipitation likehood higher than 50% then we can reschedule. If it's just a chance of showers then it can be fun to think of a couple of indoor options/sheltered areas/bring umbrellas.

 Last week I was meeting Helen and Matt to photograph their engagement pictures in Portsmouth, NH. The weather forecast kept updating with 10% then 20% then 30% then 70% chance of rain and usually we would have rescheduled. However Helen had a make up trial planned and as luck would have it I had a photographers-meet-up in Portsmouth anyway so we figured as long as it wasn't torrential rain (my camera is weather-sealed but not completely waterproof) we'd take some engagement pictures in the rain!

We met in Brazo which is not only an excellent Portsmouth restaurant but also the scene of Helen and Matt's first date. Although it nearly didn't happen.

Matt arrived first, he spotted two seats at the bar and so decided to grab them and hope that Helen was along soon. It was a really busy Friday night and people kept asking Matt if the other seat was free and he kept insisting that someone was joining him.

Remember a couple of years ago when smartphones weren't that smart? And email/internet on your phone all weird and text-y? So after almost an hour of waiting for his date Matt attempted to send an email checking if she was OK.

Just across from the bar in the lobby of the restaurant Helen was sitting on a bench, she'd been sitting there for an hour waiting for her date. Here's the thing - there's a sort of little partition and from the bar you can't see if anyone is sitting/waiting and vice versa. So after almost an hour Helen figured Matt wasn't coming and went home. On a whim she decided to check her email and saw the message from Matt "I'm here, I'm at the bar." Helen went back to the restaurant where Matt was valiantly saving her seat at the bar and drinks led to dinner which led to more drinks which led to more dates and now Helen and Matt are getting married at Glen Magna Farms in July and I'm their wedding photographer. The End. Don't you love a good first date story?

What? You're just hear to see some engagement pictures in the rain? Fine. Here you go. Here's Helen and Matt at the bar where it all started:

Suki the dog joined us for part of the shoot, she was initially a little suspicious of me but she warmed up ;)

Unless you're the wicked witch of the west a little rain won't hurt...

Living dangerously without umbrellas:

Helen, I hope you don't mind me posting this one, I love it :)

If the rain stays away I'll be reconvening with Helen and Matt later this week for some non-rainy pictures and I'm really looking forward to it as they're such good company.

That's it for today, come back tomorrow for part I of a beautiful wedding involving a Chinese tea ceremony, Filipino wedding customs, a Catholic church ceremony, an 8 course dinner and much more...!