Amidst this crazy wedding photography October we’d love to share with you Jessica & Lex’s Engagement Session from last week! These two met in college when they attended the University of Notre Dame together (class of ‘13), so it was only fitting that these two chose to have their Engagement Session at Notre Dame just about 5 minutes from our offices/ studio. We have about 10 of our favorite past Notre Dame clients’ wedding and engagement photos compiled into a gallery of our favorite 17 spots around campus and these two looked through it so that they could see a sample of some great spots and places that we like to photograph around the expansive campus. Lex and Jessica went through and chose about 6 spots they were interested in being photographed at within their Sunset Engagement Session and we were all set!
We’ve been chatting with Jessica and Lex throughout this year about their upcoming wedding in 5 months at the Morris Performing Arts Center & Palais Royale at the start of March 2019, but we haven’t seen these two locals in person in a whopping 6 months since mid-March! Unlike a lot of our Notre Dame couples, these two actually live and work in South Bend, so it was easy to coordinate a date and time that worked for them for their Engagement Session. It was great to be able to chat with them again in person and photograph them finally! Without further adieu, here’s Lex and Jessica’s University of Notre Dame Engagement Session!
When Lex and Jessica went to Notre Dame and met, Jessica lived in Ryan Hall (pictured above) and Lex lived in Duncan Hall (which you’ll see from a better vantage point in the last grouping of photos)! Of course we started at these two spots first capturing them where they initially spent much of their time hanging out in college-! There aren’t that many Engagement Sessions that we actually get to photograph couples AT spots very significant to their relationship where they spent a lot of time, but when we get to do so it’s always such a special time. (So far in terms of special spots for Engagement Sessions over the past 9+ years, we’ve gotten to capture actually a few couples at Purdue University in the actual buildings that they met/ had class together in, at Notre Dame where they’ve had great memories, and at a South Bend park where the couple actually got engaged and had their wedding-!) This was a first time though that we got to photograph a couple next to BOTH of their old dorms and we’re so excited that we know that much more about Lex and Jessica’s relationship-!
Also included in Lex & Jessica’s Sunset Engagement Session was of course the Golden Dome. These two have been together almost SIX years so far and Lex actually proposed to Jessica in front of the Golden Dome this year on January 14th, so we photographed them near the extremely iconic Golden Dome from a few different vantage points, then actually on the inside of it! Jessica actually works for Notre Dame too, so they told us where she worked nearby and we chatted again about some spots they had in mind for pre-wedding ceremony photos downtown in South Bend. (To our excitement the two chatted also about how they want a puppy, but will likely wait until they have a place with a good backyard and we exchanged stories about our pets.)
Above you’ll see that we also captured their 2019 wedding “album cover” in front of Jessica’s dorm and that below you get to see a fuller photos of Lex’s old dorm: Duncan! At the University of Notre Dame dorms are a huge deal! Many times (as was true with many of Jenny’s friends) due to tradition (a key theme at Notre Dame: Tradtion!) people try to live in the same dorm that their family members of the past had lived. The 30 dorms on campus are a huge part of campus life for undergrads all having their own crests (amazing), website per dorm, and even hosting signature events. Some of Jenny’s family members were in Dillion, she had close friends in Welsh Fam, etc. and Lex told us that there is a new hall being finished called “Welsh Fam” adding confusion since there will be both a residence hall and also a separate building called “Welsh.”
Lex’s old dorm is pretty new having been finished in 2008, so it boasts bigger rooms and better bathrooms. Their main events are “Highlander Highrise” i.e. a formal dance held at the Sears Tower (now Willis Tower) in Chicago as well as a golf tournament called The Duncan Classic. Jessica’s old dorm Ryan Hall is also pretty new having been finished in 2009, so it too boasts bigger rooms and some of the best technology. Ryan Hall holds an annual wheelchair basketball tournament and also Waffle Wednesday Mass. Since Ryan Hall has a mascot of “the wildcats,” Jessica showed us her long-standing contribution to the dorm: Some awesome paw print decorations affixed to the windows that are magically still there-!
Near the end of their Engagement Session we headed over to the lake and photographed these two as the sun went down. Since it is iconic to the campus, we also asked them if we could capture a few photos of them right there next to the grotto as well, so we captured them there to finish up the evening.
We had a blast capturing you two, Jessica and Lex! We cannot wait to show you the entire gallery today, get you your chosen printed photos, and photograph your gorgeous big day at the Morris and Palais in just 5 months-!! (This fall will fly by and your wedding day will be here so soon!) Thank you so much for running around Notre Dame with us last week and we hope that you love these and the full gallery of photos-! (We can’t wait to see which you like!)
—————> Unrelated: We have a busy day of printing client photos today and designing clients’ Family Portraits that we captured into Christmas Cards (yes, that time of year is already here-!!). Coming up tomorrow (Thursday) we have a couple photography Sessions to photograph throughout the day: An adoption & Family Portrait Session in the morning & then Corporate Photography (of semi trucks) tomorrow evening in Elkhart. We will be editing those Sessions a bit on Saturday and then when we return from Indianapolis Tuesday night, a bit of next Wednesday, and finishing up next Thursday.
We have friend visitors in from Ohio on Friday and on that day we’ll also be packaging up client photos and albums, then we’re in Chicago Saturday delivering 3 anniversary physical albums & printed photographs, and lastly we finally head to a beautiful garden venue near Indianapolis this weekend to capture Alee & Dylan’s WEDDING-!! We return Tuesday night to our home/ pets and will be frantically culling through ALL of the wedding photos to find our 150 favorites to share with Alee & Dylan on the blog as Wedding Teasers-!! Check back next Weekly Wednesday to see some of Alee & Dylan’s beautiful wedding-!
**Whew, thanks for reading this Weekly Wednesday and catch you on the flip side!