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Haper's Ferry Photographers: Brittany & Michael

Harper’s Ferry: 3 states, 2 rivers and 1 of my favorite places to visit– what a joy it was to photograph Brittany and Michael there…
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Brittany shared, “I’ve been following you for *seven years.*  You have photographed my friends, my family and even Michael and I.  I am blown away by your ability to take everyday people and places that I’ve known for most of my life, and elevate them into some imaginary world that I’d never been to before!  That creative ability is why we chose you as our photographer.”
She went on, “There’s this photo you took of Michael and I when we were in Laurie and Mikey’s wedding and the color and clarity of the shot are just beautiful. We are so excited to have many more by the same artist!”
Brittany & Michael, It was great to see and photograph you two again, and thank you so much for following me for all of this time!  I opened with a shot that shows a unique perspective on downtown Harpers Ferry and here is a more traditional photograph, maybe an updated version of your bridal party one ;).
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Harper’s Ferry is so incredibly beautiful!
Thomas Jefferson stood on this ground in 1783 and penned beautiful words about this view, “It is as placid and delightful as that is wild and tremendous…. inviting you, as it were, from the riot and tumult roaring around to pass through the breach and participate in the calm below. This scene is worth a voyage across the Atlantic.”
I have to agree!   And for me the colors are the most spectacular, I focused on the couple to make the color below pop…
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Brittany explained, “I lived in Germany when I was a toddler and my parents always show me postcards of these castles built right into the cliffs. This church reminds me of those photographs.”
Michael shared, “Brittany and I are a great fit.  We are on the same page when it comes to most things– movies we want to see, places we go to eat, places we visit, etc.  I’m lucky to have found someone with so many common interests.  We have been together for a long time and rarely argue, it’s really great to have her in my life.”
I love architecture, color and texture as well as symmetry and balance, I think it captures the location and that aspect of their relationship– I really like how they are meeting in the middle here.
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Brittany shared, “The leaves were changing and  created a sort of canopy above us. It was so magical!”
Michael shared, “While the two of us work so well together, most importantly, I cannot picture life without Brittany.”
Girl you are *loved* and that color, too, wow!!!
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Brittany shared, “Michael is more quiet and reserved. I love this about him because it allows me to be the spontaneous, adventurous one!”
Her sentiment kind of reminded me of my husband and I and Ellie and Carl in the movie, Up, haha!
On our way down, Michael said “Brittany, all these years I’ve lived here, I never ventured out to find places like this, until I met you.”
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Brittany explained, “We love taking day trips to historic places and Harpers Ferry quickly became a favorite, both for its beauty and its proximity to our house (a 30 minute drive). Who doesn’t love cobblestone streets, historic houses, ruins, and rivers?”
Interesting, photogenic, romantic, it really was the perfect place for them…
best-harpers-ferry-wv-photographers-12Brittany shared, “Since I’ve been following your photography for so long, I wanted a place that was new to you and meant something to Michael and me. We were both raised in Pennsylvania but we live in West Virginia now and wanted our session to be near our home. Harper’s Ferry has great views and is the location where two rivers (Potomac and Shenandoah) and three states meet (Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia).”
I had stayed in this awesome Bed and Breakfast following Allie & Max’s wedding (The Gayte House, managed by Air BNB SuperHost, Dean) and this was the view out of my bedroom window,  I just knew I needed to photograph a couple here and capture this dramatic scene. I really wanted to get a shot that gave you a sense of the location and all it is.
You can see it all, from the quaint historic downtown to the mountains, rivers, railroad, Appalachian Trail, it’s all here– oh yeah and Brittany and Michael as well!
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Brittany shared, “Michael is the most reliable person I have ever met. It is truly the most comforting feeling to have in your life and I know how lucky I am for that.”
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Brittany continued, “I trust him completely and would do anything with him.”
You can see how safe and loved she feels, here– I also like the climbing vines on the old church wall and the bare trees against the sky in the background…
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It was fun exploring all of the historic ruins in town, so many interesting textures and colors and levels to work with… I loved it!
Brittany smiled, “Michael is incredibly smart (and handsome too). After 8 years together, there is nothing we don’t talk about. We do everything together and are rarely apart. He lets me hold his hand everywhere we go. One time we were out holding hands and someone said, ‘That will go away after a while’, but it hasn’t and I know it never will.”
Here I’m playing with frames and layers and textures and colors again.  🙂
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Brittany shared, “I love the boutique shops in downtown Harpers Ferry. It reminds me of Europe and since our session was in late fall I wanted it to look like we were going to a European Christmas Market. I’ve always dreamed of going to Europe near the holidays and visiting the outdoor Christmas Markets. Being near the river, the winding streets, all the ivy, and balconies all support that European style too.”
I love layering in a photo, here you can see so many layers– the mountain, river, buildings, trees, couple and all through a window…  I love fitting so much into a photo!
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Brittany shared, “A week or two before our session we decided to go to Harpers Ferry. I wanted to check out spots that we might want to show you on the shoot.  I knew if we found the right trail we could get some really great  views.”
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She went on, “We climbed a somewhat hazardous rock staircase. It was dewy so the rocks were slippery and Michael was being extra cautious, haha.”
Brittany continued, “Lo and behold, we found Jefferson Rock! It’s on the Appalachian Trail in Harpers Ferry and consists of several large masses of shale rock. The name derives from none other than Thomas Jefferson who stood there in 1783!”
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While most of the evening was cloudy, the sky did open up a little bit to allow a bit of pink and the intense blues of coming twilight… woohoo!
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Brittany & Michael, it was such a pleasure getting to know you better and learning that we share so many people, places, and favorite movies in common!  Now you have more than one Lisa Rhinehart original of the two of you, haha.  More coming soon!   And I can’t wait for your upcoming York wedding this fall!

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