Engagement on the Palouse with Eric and Magda

They met on Tinder - as so many couples do these days. They talked for a couple days, but eventually decided to meet. Magda, being the careful woman she is, decided to meet in a busy place, in the middle of the day, downtown CDA - But the place Eric chose was closed. Magda - being who she is - showed up about 10 minutes early, so she selected a location across the street for them to meet. That means, that when Eric showed up (only one or two minutes late) she spotted him from inside and went out to meet him.

Bryce and Monica's Washington Coast Engagement

Bryce and Monica are magnetic. And not just to each other (which they definitely are) but to others. They are so thoughtful in the way they talk and interact, they are fun and kind, I genuinely had a great time with them on the Washington Coast - which, can we just say, is a pretty awesome place to do engagement photos. The only thing I was bummed about in this situation is we had a completely overcast sky this day. That said, it meant we got some really soft light (which is beautiful) and no bright hot-spots. Now, I would normally tell you the little bits of the couples story in these blogs, and I do know that Bryce and Monica met in the military. The Infantry - if I remember correctly - where Monica was one of very few women in a branch of the military that has traditionally only allowed men.

Personal - Hiking in the Pacific Northwest

This hike, with my friend Jason, was quite the adventure. I should have known this the second I saw some snow on our approach to this peak (which is just over 7000 feet above sea level). We set out in good spirits, dodging the beautiful streams from the melting snow, and started climbing. It wasn’t long, however, that in order to keep going we had to cross on top of snow - lots of snow. By the top we were going across spots of 10 feet or more, but we made it to the top and it was beautiful. I love being able to get out, explore, and spend time in nature. Now if only I could get a couple up here in these mountains for some engagement or elopement photos! Huge shout out to Outdoor Vitals who helped make this hike happen.

Chance and Lily's Beautiful Overcast Engagement in Coeur d'Alene

They met around 7th grade. According to Lily he was the "guy that knew everyone" He played sports, was kind, and just generally got along with everyone in his class. I asked Chance if he noticed Lily to which I got a little chuckle from both of them. Because Lily didn't really get to know Chance right away, rather, she was friends with his friends. So by nature, she was around, but they never really hung out, they were never really all that close.

Alex and Allison's Spokane Wedding at the Bozarth Mansion

Alex and Allison had such a beautiful wedding - even if the weather on that day was far from beautiful. We had a mix of sun, rain, hail, clouds and everything in between. I honestly can’t say i’ve ever seen a day that random before. That said, I would say we got really lucky, as it seemed to downpour every time we transitioned from one location to the other, and we got some great light from the overcast skies multiple times. But the real highlight of the day was easily Alex and Allison, who were kind, thoughtful, and so so easy to work with. They had meaning and thought woven through the entire day, from Allison’s bouquet to her first dance with her father. I absolutely loved it. So it is such a privilege to be able to share these photos with you, I hope you love them as much as I loved taking them.

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.

The Blog

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.