Stefan and Alicia's Engagement Downtown CDA

They met at a house party about ten years ago. Both of them had extremely solid first impressions, from "wow, this girl is amazing, fun, beautiful… and taken" to Alicia's first impression of Stefan being "handsome and sweet… and taken" You see, even though they both knew each other, and seemed to really get along, they were both not available when they first met. So nothing happened. In fact, they didn't talk again after that first impression for about 8 years. Through that time relationships would come and go, and things would change - but what wouldn't change would be those impressions. That one person I met a long time ago was pretty darn cool. They would see periodic updates on Facebook, but again, they wouldn't really engage.

Kyle and Jessica's Coeur d'Alene Engagement

Kyle and Jessica are like so many people in the way they met - that is, they met online. It seems that is about 75% of all the couples I photograph each year. In Jessica’s case, she had made her profile to acknowledge all the things she did - and didn’t - want in a guy. She basically said on her profile “need not apply” if you don’t hit “x, y and z categories”. In her mind, she didn’t want to waste her time meeting guys who wouldn’t be someone she would marry. Kyle wasn’t someone who hit all the marks.

Jeff and Nicola's Spring Engagement Near CDA

They met on Match.com. This isn't surprising these days, as almost everyone seems to meet online. I asked them what attracted them to each other's online profiles and I got an answer I hear a lot - the person looked "real" on the other end. In other words, they didn't look like the other person was trying to be fake, or put their best foot forward, they were just being themselves.

Hunter and Becca's Avondale Golf Club Engagement

They met at Costco. If we're really tracking things, Becca was kind of* his boss. Well, she was a supervisor when he started working. That said, Hunter told me that when he first saw her she caught his eye right away, and it became his mission to find a way to talk to her. Becca, for her part, also noticed the "cute red head" right away. The question wasn't "will they get together" but it was more "WHEN will they get together?"

Josh and Nikki's North Idaho Engagement

They met on Match.com. Just like so many couples these days, they met online (I would say about 75% of my couples met online in some form), and they hit it off. Both Josh and Nikki told me that their earlier chatting online and over text felt real - it wasn't superficial. It seemed like both of them actually cared, and wanted to have something real. This moved things forward. The problem? They lived roughly 8 hours apart.

Joel and Alyssa's Engagement on Tubbs Hill

Joel and Alyssa met at work. They were working in Buffalo New York, although neither of them were from there. Alyssa came from Michigan, and Joel had flown in from Colorado. Both were there to do some type of construction job (both are engineers), so when Alyssa showed up that day with her bright orange vest on, she wasn't really thinking she was going to meet the man she was going to marry.

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Brent Looyenga is a Spokane wedding photographer based IN SPOKANE WASHINGTON and Coeur d’Alene Idaho area. He loves people and specializes in wedding, engagement, family and senior photography. You can like Looyenga Photography on Facebook or follow them on Instagram.