I have shot at this spot many times while living in San Diego. One of my first shoots ever was at this spot, so it has a special feel to me! It wasn’t until the morning of this shoot that I realized just how perfect this place is. Especially for a Sunrise Engagement session in San Diego.
Stacey and Darren booked me for their spring 2024 wedding in San Diego, and since they live in San Diego, we were trying to align our schedules for their engagement session for a date I was back in SoCal. Back in June, I was in town for another shoot, and we were able to make their engagement photoshoot happen!
Location for a Sunrise Engagement in San Diego
Stacey wanted a location that matches the theme of their wedding, floral vibes, and something that would be pretty at sunrise. If you’re familiar with San Diego, then you’re probably familiar with “June Gloom.” June in San Diego can often be dreary, especially during sunrise. Mornings near the coast are typically foggy, and the sun isn’t usually peaking through the clouds. We tossed around shooting at Mission Trails or Torrey Pines Glider-port in hopes there would potentially be some flowers still around. However, we knew it would probably be gloomy that early in the morning.
I proposed shooting at Ramona Grasslands, and Stacey thought it would be perfect! I’m so glad we decided to shoot there because it was perfect. As I was driving from the coast towards Ramona, the sky was thick with fog. As soon as I got to the location, the cloud coverage had dispersed, and right where we were shooting, the perfect golden light shone on Stacey and Darren! I had never shot here at sunrise, but let me tell you this is the perfect spot for sunrise sessions in SoCal if you don’t want an ocean view.
If you’re looking for great photoshoot location ideas in San Diego, check out my blog post here!
The Outfits
Stacey ordered a ton of outfits for their shoot, but none of the solid-colored options she wore worked out. She was a little worried the prints would be too much, but I assured her that as long as Darren was in a solid color, their outfits would look great together. And they did! In my style guide, I usually recommend neutral colors and limiting patterns to only one person wearing them. It’s not that I don’t love color, because I do! However, finding the same shade of color can be difficult, especially when ordering online. And putting two people in patterned clothing next to each other can be distracting. But these two nailed it perfectly!
For more engagement session outfit ideas be sure to check out my Pinterest board here, there are tons of ideas!
The Questionnaire
Before every session, I send out a questionnaire to get a better understanding of how my couples want their shoot to go. The questions help tremendously, as I prepare for shoots and build customized shot lists tailored to you. One of the questions I ask is, “Do you have an overall vision for what you want your session to look like? Classic and timeless, unique and creative, fun and energetic, sultry and romantic? All of the above?”
This was Stacey’s response, “For our engagement session, I think we’re looking for an overall good mix! We want those classic and timeless photos but ones that also capture the candidness of our love story! So I would say somewhere between classic and timeless mixed with fun and romantic.”
I think we nailed it!
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