Choosing a location for your engagement session can be tricky. When couples come to me asking for an ideas, the first thing I’ll tell them is to thing of a location that holds some sort of meaning - it can be where you had your first date, where you got engaged, or somewhere you simply like to hang out. If that fails to prompt any inspiration, I often will ask what kind of “setting” they’re most interested in and send them a list of ideas that I think might work. If you’re in need of some inspiration for your engagement, I thought it would be fun to share 3 of my favourite fool-proof locations in Calgary.

Fish Creek Park

The thing I love most about this park is how large it is. Meaning I can shoot at this park 20 times and have different results each time. It makes a great backdrop no matter the season, and has a lot of variety with its forested area, river, and big open field.

Nose Hill Park

Similar to Fish Creek Park, this park has a lot to offer for settings. Again, because it’s so large, it’s not hard to find a quiet corner (this is great for those who are a bit uncomfortable in front of the camera and want a bit of privacy while they warm up). Being so open, it has the potential to get some really great dramatic landscape shots depending on the weather (and would make for some awesome golden hour portraits!) Another bonus: it’s dog friendly, so it’s perfect for those who want to bring their pups along like A+J, who let theirs run free throughout their session (their little faces popping up in the background just kill me).

Again, while it works in any season, my favourite time of year to shoot here is definitely fall - the tones we got for Z+S’s session give me allll the cozy fall vibes.

East Village

For my urbanite couples, East Village is a great option for those who prefer to spend their time in the city. The river walk and the Simmons building, while popular and sometimes requires a little patience, gets great city views while tucked away doorways at the adjacent St. Patrick’s island gives an intimate and private feel.

There you have it! I hope this helped spark some ideas on choosing a location for your engagement session! My best piece of advice is to talk to your photographer and work together to find something that feels like “you” !

Wondering where I bring my couples when we head to the mountains? Stay tuned for a future blog post where I share my favourite locations outside Calgary!