Oh my gosh, I can’t even express my excitement to share this blog with you!!!! Tara and Morgan are getting married at Legare Waring House in Charleston South Carolina in November. So, when Scott and I went down to visit them this weekend, we did their engagement session at the venue, and all around downtown Charleston!!  All four of us went to college together, and I love this intertwining web of friendship.

Tara was an architecture major like Scott, so they had been friends for a few years before I had met Tara.  In my third year (and Tara’s fourth year) she was in one of my interior design studios because she was minoring in Interior Design. We became friends really quickly. Her bubbly personality was so welcoming every day as I dreaded the mountain of work ahead of me.  The semester after Tara and I became friends, I met Scott studying abroad and started dating soon after. When Tara heard the news back home, she was absolutely thrilled two of her close friends starting dating! We hung out nearly every day both in and out of the studio and Tara became such a cherished friend.

When they first met…

Fast forward to a year after college, and Tara was invited to wing night at Murphy’s Irish Saloon in Philly by her friend Claire.  Claire also invited her friend Ben, and he brought his roommate Morgan. When Claire and Tara walked in, Ben and Morgan already had a table.  Tara thought Morgan was cute so she sat down next to him. All four of them talked and laughed the whole night and Tara left thinking how that was the hardest she had laughed in a long time.

The first date…

Shortly after, Tara reached out and asked Morgan if he wanted to grab dinner at the East Falls Tap Room.  She showed up after a ballet class in a leotard and sweatpants and Morgan wore a nice sweater. That’s when Tara realized it was a date!! Morgan was nervous through the date and Tara could tell, but she thought it was sweet. At the end of the date, Morgan asked her to drive to the top of the East Falls parking garage. Right before they got to the top he asked her to park and get out of the car. Tara got out and Morgan told her to close her eyes and give him her hands.  She was hesitant but she did it, even when he joked, “This is where I come to kill people, haha”…She still kept her eyes closed for some reason. He leads her around to the very top level of the garage and told her to open her eyes. You could see ALL of Philadelphia all lit up at night! Knowing that Tara loved the Philly skyline Morgan had planned this out for her. Tara says it was the perfect ending to the night.

I don’t know how long after I saw Tara once they started dating, but I remember her bringing me into her bedroom and gushing to me about how incredible Morgan was.  She showed me the birthday present he got her, told me about their first date, showed me the card he made her, and just gushed about how amazing he made her feel. Hands down, Tara knew he was the one.

Moving to Charleston…

After Morgan graduated from PhilaU (he was a few grades below us) they made a trip to visit his mom in Charleston.  Tara called her mom and jokingly said she wasn’t coming home and fell in love with the city. Not long after, Tara and Morgan made a leap and a fresh start and packed up their cars and moved to Charleston! They’ve now been there for two years, and are thrilled to call the city home.  Scott joked (kinda) when we were at the bar that he feels really stupid for not living in Charleston. I’d have to agree, it’s absolutely amazing.

London…

After settling into their new life, Morgan thought it was time to take the next step.  Tara is a HUGE HUGE HUGE Harry Potter fan. Huge is an understatement. She had been planning a trip to go to King’s Cross Station in London on September 1, 2017.  This was the day in the epilogue of the Harry Potter books that Harry returns to King’s Cross and Platform 9 ¾ with his kids to bring them to Hogwarts. Ever since Tara was a little girl, she had dreamt of going to King’s Cross on this day.  In our phone conversations, she told me she wasn’t sure Morgan would be able to come on the trip with her due to a new job and finances. But, she had her fingers crossed he’d be able to get time off and experience this magical moment with her.  When it was decided that he would be coming, they planned an entire Europe trip together.

The proposal!

Tara called me just a few nights before they left and told me all about the bags she got her and Morgan to save them from pick-pocketers.  Little did she know JUST how important it was to keep the goods in those bags safe. They traveled from Charleston to Philly to Paris for the first leg of their trip.  On the second night in Paris, they had dinner in the Eiffel Tower. After a great dinner, they decided to walk around the tower to see the views of Paris. It was sunset and they decided to make a short film entry like they had been doing at all the famous locations they went to so far on the trip. Morgan surprised her during the video by proposing and getting down on one knee! All while filming in his other hand! Tara was so surprised she started to cry and couldn’t actually remember saying yes so they had to watch the video to make sure. A proposal on the Eiffel Tower at sunset was more than Tara ever dreamed of. It was definitely the highlight of the trip…even though they did see Platform 9 3/4 a few days later in London 😉

Wedding Planning…

They kept it to themselves for the rest of the trip (except their family and best friends of course). The second they landed in the US, my phone started ringing and it was Tara.  She just about jumped on the phone to tell me THEY GOT ENGAGED!!!!! I actually started crying tears of joy, and then she sent me the GoPro video and I started crying even more.  I honestly could not be happier for these two.

Not even a few days later, we were already making plans for me to photograph their wedding and engagement session in Charleston.  They booked their venue around my availability and I mentally checked Charleston wedding off the bucket list. Scott and I decided we would fly down to visit them in Charleston which we had been saying we’d do for nearly two years! It was a win-win because this would be when we’d shoot the engagement session!

The shoot…

The excitement leading up to this weekend was unreal! We were so thankful for good weather while we were there! It was an amazing break from the never-ending winter we’ve been having in NJ. And like Scott joked, it definitely made me want to stay and just move there!!

We photographed their session in two parts.  The first being Legare Waring House, their wedding venue complete with a gorgeous avenue of oaks. The second being downtown Charleston.  We had no idea it was prom night, so there were photographers EVERYWHERE downtown, but we did a pretty good job at hiding them in the shots.

I could not be more thrilled with this session and for these two on this new adventure.  I’m so excited I get to be a part of it all and document their love story.

Tara and Morgan, thank you thank you THANK YOU for hosting Scott and I this weekend AND for choosing me and trusting me to document this precious and wonderful time in your life.  I’m honored to be your photographer, but even more, honored to be your friend. I love you guys!!!