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Strand Bookstore Engagement

This Strand Bookstore engagement session was definitely one for the books, and it’ll be hard to top the uniqueness of it all. In fact, I’ll be surprised if this isn’t one of the most unique locations I shoot at all year!  Libby and Tim put together a wonderful plan that was led by an exquisitely personal vision. There is nothing I love more than couples who come to me with unique ideas and proposals, and once you take one look at these photos you will understand why!

The day started with a stroll through Washington Square Park. If you’ve never been, Washington Square Park is a beautiful spot in the city – and a great place to get just a touch of greenery in your photos, even in the winter months! The park was picture perfect, with golden sunlight and a fresh sheet of snow. Even the sidewalk was wet enough to reflect beautifully! Fun fact, movie productions will often pay hundreds of dollars to keep cement wet just for this effect!

Once our stroll through Washington Square Park was complete, we made our way to the East Village for a more urban vibe. It was a short walk with a big payoff, as we captured some wonderful photos in front of some colorful buildings.  Libby and Tim were smiling and laughing the whole way through, having so much fun and clearly enjoying each other. The session was just warming up, and already we had some wonderful shots. I can only imagine how great their wedding photos are going to be!

The main course of the session took place at The Strand Bookstore. The Strand Bookstore has been around since 1927 and is a staple for NYC, and a must visit for any book lover. Libby and Tim are two such book lovers, and went so far as to rent the entire Rare Book Room at The Strand!  The Rare Book Room is exactly what it sounds like – a huge room inside the Strand Bookstore that is dedicated to hard to find, vintage, out of print books.

Seeing Libby and Tim light up in the bookstore gave an endless stream of ideas and poses. We all had a ton of fun shooting with different books, in different spots, and even got some shots of them browsing for books together.  On that note, if you’ve never taken your significant other to dance a little bit in a private section of a famous book store, I highly recommend it.

Finally, I’m sure you’re wondering about the beautiful rings!  I always love getting close up detail shots of the engagement rings, and these were two particularly beautiful ones. These rings came from Anna Sheffield from New York City. You’d probably be surprised at how often I get caught up admiring beautiful rings only to find out they came from Anna Sheffield!

I have to end with a huge thank you to Libby and Tim. I’m grateful to have been invited along for this adventure. And as always, thank you for taking the time to check out these wonderful photos! I had so much fun with this session. Don’t forget to leave a comment on your favorite photo! Head over to the blog to see more recent engagement sessions!