Engagement Session Allaire State Park
Becca and Tory’s Engagement Session Allaire State Park was beautiful, and the ladies had a lot of fun. The entire week of the session was raining, and we had rescheduled their session 2 times already, so we were determined to shoot on Sunday! I met Becca and Tory through a free engagement session contest I ran back in the summer. We hit off great, and I knew that these two were special.
Our original plan was to go to the Catskills in NY to shoot their EPIC engagement session. They really wanted trees and a forest look, but we decided on Allaire State Park since the rain and constant rescheduling. We are winding down from the busy season, and shooting with Becca and Tory was simple, and they had a great time. Engagement Session Allaire State Park
Allaire State Park has a ton to offer, and you shoot at a location a few times, you develop a route to cover most of the grounds. They most definitely wanted to incorporate trees into the session. Allaire State Park has some beautiful tall pine trees where the bark is exposed at the bottom, and they make for a beautiful backdrop! Engagement Session Allaire State Park
When we got to the second spot on the session, Becca had something she wanted to do for Tory. The best part was when Becca told me to “back up” because she was going to propose to Tory. Tory had already proposed to Becca in their apartment earlier in the year, so Becca’s turn was to propose to Tory at Allaire. I’m pretty sure Tory shed a tear when Becca got down on one knee and proposed to her.
I am so glad that I was there to capture it for them. Although I wasn’t there for Tory’s proposal to Becca, at least I was able to capture Becca’s proposal to Tory.
Becca said to me at one point, “I don’t care if you can’t see my face. I wanna be able to look at Tory’s beautiful face in the photos.” Some of the poses I was able to accomplish with Tory and Becca were like some I haven’t been able to capture before. The way these two look at each other, you can tell that they are madly in love and cannot wait to get married. Engagement Session Allaire State Park
Tory wore this beautiful black velvet Komono that I couldn’t get enough of in the photos. She complimented what Becca had chosen to wear very well, and their outfits just flowed so well. Engagement Session Allaire State Park
I am so excited about this session, and I cannot wait for this wedding. They’re going to look absolutely beautiful. Unfortunately, I won’t be shooting their wedding, but two of our associate photographers will capture their big day!
Becca and Tori, I am honored to call you friends, and I cannot wait to see where your love story continues from here. It has been a blast capturing pieces of that love story from behind my camera and I know that you will be in great hands with the rest of my team for your wedding day!
They will be tying the knot in October 2021 at The Arnold House in the Catskills, NY. Engagement Session Allaire State Park
A LITTLE Q&A FOR THE BRIDES
HOW DID YOU MEET?!
“Our love story began like any fairytale does; on Tinder. Very shortly into dating (that night when Becca walked me home), we realized that we only live five blocks away from each other, but our paths had never crossed. We shared a grocery store, a gym, a subway stop, but for the last three years, we kept missing each other. Looking back on it, we feel like we weren’t ready to meet our soulmates until the day when we had our first date. So, after years of growing up and becoming our best selves, divine intervention via Tinder made it happen.”
TELL US ABOUT YOUR FIRST DATE!
“We decided to meet at a bar in our neighborhood. Becca was 10 minutes late, which she later confessed was because she was nervous and “wanted to seem cool,” so she circled the block a few times before walking in. We only planned to meet for a quick drink in case the date went south, but we ended up talking while nursing two gin and tonics for seven hours.” Engagement Session Allaire State Park
“Becca walked me home that night to make sure I was safe, which was funny because I’m four inches taller than her. After a few days, we went on our second date, which lasted about as long as the first. We actually might still be on our second date because we haven’t really been apart since.” Engagement Session Allaire State Park
They went to Draft House in Harlem, NY, in September 2017.
HOW DID YOU FALL IN LOVE?
Becca: “Very quickly. I ended up getting sick in October over Columbus Day Weekend. Tory left work early to come to my apartment, and she took care of me all weekend. As a therapist, I don’t often lead with my own vulnerabilities, but I remember how natural and easy it was to trust her.”
Tory: “We drove up through the Catskills once, and I think it was the first time we had driven anywhere together, and I thought, “I’d be fortunate if I could sit next to her forever.”
HOW DID SHE PROPOSE?
Tory: “Nothing went according to plan, and I have no regrets. I had Becca’s ring for twenty-four hours before I panicked that she would hate it and made her look at it. She teared up, so I figured I got it right. When she got my engagement ring, she quickly showed me too. We loved our rings so much that we wore them around the apartment in secret. Becca had an elaborate proposal planned, but then the pandemic hit.”
“After a few weeks, it became clear that the proposed plan might not happen. One day, I was doing some work, got up to get a drink, and thought, “I think I’m gonna ask Becca to marry me right now.” So, in glasses and sweatpants, I pulled Becca into our bedroom. I was about to get down on one knee, ring in hand, when Becca said, “Wait! I have to brush my teeth!” So I waited an awkward two minutes while she did. We have the rest of our lives for grand gestures and big celebrations, but I didn’t want to spend another minute not being engaged to her.”
Becca: “I want everyone to know that I started working on engagement plans in August 2019. I asked her parents for their blessing that Christmas. I made Airbnb reservations, had taken vacation time, gotten our friends on board, and was going to surprise her on Memorial Day weekend.” Engagement Session Allaire State Park
“It would have been the perfect story, but I kind of like ours more. Even though Tory proposed before I did, I promised her I was still going to as well. I figured our engagement photo shoot was the perfect opportunity. I was pretty sure she was going to say yes.”
WHAT ARE YOU MOST EXCITED FOR ABOUT YOUR WEDDING?
“Getting to celebrate with all of the people that we love most. Everyone keeps telling us how cool it is to get all of the people from different parts of your life together, and we can’t wait for that. (Becca is also excited for apple cider donuts.)”
YOUR LOVE STORY IS MADE INTO A MOVIE; WHAT IS THE TITLE?
“It’s All in the Timing”
DESCRIBE YOUR RELATIONSHIP IN 5 WORDS
“Laughter, kindness, respect, good food, animals.”
WHAT IS SOMETHING THAT MEANS THE MOST TO BOTH OF YOU?
“Communication is a big shared value. As a teacher and a therapist, there’s a lot of feeling sharing in our home. When we have an issue, we talk it out; we don’t let things fester. I think that’s what’s made our relationship so solid.”
