One of the most unique parks in the Lehigh Valley is the Archibald Johnson Estate. Winding walking paths make for a great time if you just want to take a casual stroll, but all the unique architectural features really help it be a standout for local photographers like us.

Kate & Don’s engagement photos took full advantage of the little nooks and crannies that we know of throughout the estate grounds from experience visiting there a few times on our own, and previously shooting some wedding portraits for Erica & Kevin (you can see in their wedding blog post here).

Always being up to help diversify the photo galleries for our couples, we also suggested to do half of the session walking around the city of Bethlehem. The Moravian courtyard, library, and side streets all contributed to helping us create a lot of great photos! We ended the shoot with beautiful Golden Hour light illuminating these two as we overlooked the cities South Side behind them.

Of course – it was all made so much easier by Kate & Don’s natural interactions with each other. They were constantly laughing together – sometimes with the help of us asking them to do things like “name your favorite breakfast foods in a Batman voice”. Our approach to posing is sometimes serious, and other times a little silly when it suites our couple’s vibe.

As we walked around together and creating great photos together, we really hit it off. Chris really enjoyed getting to chat about his obscure musical interests (like the ambient soundtracks of Brian Eno) with Don (who is a musician himself!). And Kate is also a graphic designer – just like Jes who had worked as one professionally for 6 years! It’s these little things that really ramp up our excitement to shoot their wedding next year. We literally cannot wait!

Part 1: Archibald Johnson Estate

Part 2: Downtown Bethlehem, PA