I’m on a bit of a stay-close-to-home kick right now. Not for me so much, but for our couples. We’ve had several engagement sessions in which our clients have chosen to do their shoot in and/or around their home, or got back to their roots. I LOVE this!!! It’s so nice to get to know people in their natural environments and we get a great sense of who they are and what they like to do, simply by walking by this cafe or that park.

And so it was with Cleo and Dieter. They had initially thought we should do the session in New York City, as they live right across from the Big Apple. But as the day approached, we realized that their town of Hoboken provided the perfect backdrop for their session. They showed us their favorite spots to walk and bike ride, and the views of Manhattan were the views they could see by stepping out their door. Absolutely perfect!

We started down by the water. You can pretty much see the Empire State Building from anywhere in town. I especially love this photo because their story is central, but there are also two other neighborhood stories and life cycle stories- the dad and his son on the right were fishing (future family) and the couple by the railing is an elderly couple (to me, symbolizing the golden years in Cleo and Dieter’s life together).

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Dancing and fooling around. Why not?!

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On our walk, we popped onto the campus of the Stevens Institute of Technology (Cleo takes a class here for fun). Wow, the views! It must be a great place to go to school.

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Hoboken just built this fabulous new park on the water. And there was this beautiful bridge.

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We finished our tour at the Hoboken Terminal (Dieter rides his bike through here every day). It has character and charm and few people on a Saturday. It is truly a gem of a spot.

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Loving this simple formal portrait.

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A quiet moment.

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And this one with a bit more drama.

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After we were done, we took a cab back to their apartment and enjoyed brunch at one of their neighborhood haunts. I couldn’t get over how great Hoboken was. Having never been there, I had no idea. Seeing the town through their eyes was such fun. And seeing them through a filter of their town helped me get to know Cleo and Dieter even better.

If you would like to see a few more, check out their slideshow.