Spring, summer, and fall are usually the busiest times for me with engagement sessions because it’s such a beautiful time of year! I always get asked where I love shooting and what places I recommend, and I always love helping couples find the location that fits their relationship, personality, style of wedding, and vision the best! I photograph most engagement sessions in either Iowa City, Coralville, Cedar Rapids, and Des Moines, and here are some of the most common (and beautiful) public locations that are available for sessions! I also linked a few sessions for several of them that I’ve done in the past!

 

IOWA CITY / CORALVILLE :

• Devonian Fossil Gorge ( Crall Family /  Harris Family / Jacob + Darby
• City Park ( Kirby + Demi )
• Downtown Iowa City ( Aaron + Natalie )
• Kent Park ( Cody + Kattie / Borntrager Maternity / Jeff + Kristi

 

CEDAR RAPIDS :

• Palisades-Kepler State Park ( Jeremy + Allie )
• Squaw Creek Park
• Downtown Cedar Rapids
• Pleasant Creek State Park ( Starks Maternity )

 

DES MOINES :

• The Brenton Arboretum ( Jordan + Shelby )
• Downtown Des Moines ( Tyler + Danielle )
• Water Works Park
• Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden
• Des Moines Art Center / Mills Rose Garden / Greenwood-Ashworth Park

 

I love all of these locations! I’m happy to always give recommendations or ideas when couples have trouble knowing/finding what they’re envisioning. However, more than anything, I LOVE when my couples choose locations that are meaningful and special to them, such as their family farm or their college campus. A lot of times, these couples end up taking me to gorgeous, private pieces of land that isn’t always openly available to shoot at because it’s private! I also love it because these sessions usually look unique and different compared to everything else in my portfolio, plus, it’s so fun shooting at NEW locations I have never been to before! I have a list of gorgeous locations that are private farms, lakes, etc. in my area and the owners love when I bring clients there for sessions! If you want something more personal and unique but don’t have that gorgeous piece of land yourself, that’s also an option!

Andrew + Emily / Wes + Saige / Epley Family / Kohl + Kaitlyn / Caleb + Cassie / Kyle + Megan / Eric + Taylor / Eli + Summer

Another engagement session location idea is to plan the location around the props or activities that are special to your relationship! For example, if you have a favorite coffee shop, restaurant, or ice cream shop you always go to together, plan to do some photos there! If you love biking, rent some cute bikes, and incorporate that! Other ideas are hiking, boating, picnic-ing, in-home cooking, swimming, amusement parks, county fairs, horseback riding, etc. Think of things you love doing together, where your first date was, or things that really encompass your relationship, and see if you can make your session unique!