From the second I walked up to Gabrielle and Ray, I instantly felt like I knew them for years! They just have that way of making you feel comfortable around them. Gabrielle herself will tell you she’s the more outgoing one while Ray is a little quieter when you first get to know him. They got to know each other through their friend group in College and hung out together quite often for 4 years through college before finally, during senior year, decided to go on a date and take things to the next level. Their date was at the local bar in Historic Smithville – they drank beers and got to know each other just the two of them and now here we are! And how fun that we got to recreate that first date and go to that EXACT bar for their engagement session!

I had never been to Historic Smithville but it was SO charming and adorable! Gabrielle and Ray picked it because it was where they had their first date years ago, have come back to a few times since then, and for it’s charm! It really was! Everywhere I looked, there was another cute backdrop or another pop of color to use for photos. I LOVED this location for engagement photos! And it was so fun being at the bar that started it all for Gabrielle and Ray. I feel like I talked to them more than I took pictures which I admit may be a good or a bad thing but I think it’s a good thing because I LOVE getting to know my clients better and I LOVE when it feels like they are old friends that I can just talk and talk to! It makes us all feel so much more comfortable on the wedding day and the photos turn out even better! I am SO bummed I have to wait a whole 10 months to see them again on their wedding day – BUT I’m so excited to share my favorite images with you today! Also… you might also spot quite a few pictures of very large geese in their post lol I was taken aback by how CLOSE they got to us!