Emily + Tyler
I met Emily and Tyler last fall when Emily’s family was visiting in Lake Lure, NC. Their extended family session was great fun - they are a hilarious group of people, to be sure. We did that session in the garden section of Morse Park, right off the lake. It’s a favorite spot of mine for so many reasons - it’s never crowded, it’s clean, offers views of a cove, long-range mountain views, the marina, and the landscaping is amazing year-round. There’s always something lovely to find there, and the path throughout is paved, making it easy for kids and adults alike.
When a message came in recently from Tyler asking about doing a “special” session for he and Emily while they were going to be spending a long weekend in Asheville, I was immediately hopeful that he was planning to propose - and he was! He had decided to ask Emily to be his bride on top of Mount Mitchell, right off the Blue Ridge Parkway, to kick off their vacation together. We planned out the timing, the specific location, and Sarah and I arrived half an hour early to stake our spot. We wanted to find just the right lighting and a great view of the mountains. I’d told Tyler ahead of time to look for Sarah and then to go stand where she was, pause, and seize the opportunity! That moment was impeccable - blue mountains, electric blue sky, cloud drama, and the surprise on Emily’s face was everything. We captured that magical millisecond for them and then Emily turned, spotted me, and was surprised to see me behind the lens. I loved capturing the moment when she started to comprehend how much time and attention Tyler had dedicated to making this proposal as special as possible for her.
Once we wrapped up on the top of the observation deck, we explored around the base of the structure, and continued down the path, stopping to take in the views and snap a few candids along the way. We did ring shots (I love these so much), played with ferns in front of the lens, and got a little bit silly. These two had dinner reservations at the Grove Park Inn (fancy!) that evening and we almost simultaneously suggested that we pull off Parkway on the way down to snap a few shots. We headed out and Sarah and I spotted the vantage point at the Graybeard Mountain overlook. From this spot, the layers of mountains reminded me of an ocean of blue, with waves rolling towards us, one right after another. It was spectacular, The light was just right, and Emily and Tyler were playful and relaxed. It was the perfect ending to our session. We followed them down the parkway a little further, and when they turned off to go to dinner, we gave them a little ‘beep beep’ to send them off!
Feel free to click here to see more highlights from their session.
