We stood at the edge of the water. Our eyes fixed on the skyline of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. Everything appeared gray under the clouds sitting in the sky. Gray, but beautiful. Our heart rates rose in excitement for the shoot, like they always do. We envisioned capturing their love story in various locations around us, eventually coming up with a game plan. Then it was time to assemble our cameras and wait. We sat and talked about the little we knew about Andrea and Gino so far.
At the time of most of our engagement sessions, we’ve typically only met the couple once, and it’s usually just over Facetime. We knew that they were young: Gino still finishing college and Andrea having just graduated. We knew that they’re getting married in the Extraordinary Form of the Mass: the same form we had recently started attending as our desires for radical abandonment to truth and for awe of liturgical beauty led us there. We had seen them once at Tricia and Steve’s wedding Mass, but we didn’t get a chance to speak since we were busy arranging and photographing group photos after Mass. As we sat at the edge of the water, we saw them at last.
Have you ever experienced meeting someone who immediately feels like an old friend? Someone with whom you feel comfortable immediately? Andrea and Gino both made us feel this way! Our hearts were full as we spent the next two hours walking around, capturing their photos, and learning about their lives and their story. At one point, we took a break so they’d be able to go change into their second outfits. When they found us in the new location, they brought us a hot chocolate to ease the bite of the cold night. Gino handed it to us and then joked about just needing to purchase something from the coffee shop so that they could use their bathrooms to change. The same comment and humor Kyle would have used in that situation.
Andrea and Gino, we began your session knowing so little about you, but left truly feeling like fast friends. We loved having a front seat to your love story for the evening, and hope these photos we’ve captured will be cherished for generations to come. We admire how you have this ability to bring people along with you in the little things, from the details that went into your rings, to the Latin Mass missal you use, to the stool you brought to use during your shoot. It’s clear that you write people into your hearts, and we’ve definitely written you into ours! We are praying for you and cannot wait to celebrate your marriage with you in December!
Love,
Amy and Kyle
