Shell Bailey Photography » engagement portraits

Youngstown Engagement Photography | Stephanie & Kevin

Shell — Wed, 15 May 2013 15:51:46 +0000

For Kevin & Stephanie’s engagement photos, we drove to the Fellows Riverside Gardens in Youngstown, OH, near to where they will be getting married this summer. The gardens are absolutely gorgeous and have sweeping fields and cozy nooks spread throughout, so many cute places to shoot there. But while the location was amazing, the weather could have used a little work. Don’t be fooled by their cute springtime clothes- it was forty degrees and sleeting most of the day. But with sweaters and a short break for hot chocolate they withstood the cold! It was totally worth it.

“You’ll have to tell us exactly what to do,” Stephanie says, “we don’t know anything about posing.” But by the end of the session, everyone was laughing and shouting out ideas and saying. “Oh! What if we do this!” We had a spectacular amount of fun. Definitely looking forward to their wedding in July (which, from what Stephanie has told me about it, will be amazing.) In the meantime, a little bit of early springtime love. xx

Hartwood Acres Engagement Photographer: Dave & Jennie

Shell — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 03:51:55 +0000

Dave and Jennie did something very brave: they specifically asked if their photos could be in the snow. They are having a January winter wedding next year and wanted the save-the-dates to match! So we braved the cold and met up at Hartwood Acres to get some wintry, romantic shots.

I wish I got to do snowy engagement sessions more often! Although I have to say, this may have been the fastest engagement shoot I’ve ever done. It was a race against cold toes and runny noses. (I’m not sure who won, but it was tight at the end.) That was alright, though, because Jennie & Dave are absolutely adorable together, and it was totally worth it.

Pittsburgh Wedding Photographers | Here’s to 2013

Shell — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 00:15:55 +0000

Happy New Year! And many, many congratulations to everyone newly engaged over the holidays!

I’ve been wrapping up the last bits of business from 2012 and just feeling really blessed. Last year had so many amazing weddings and unexpected good moments, and I woke up today to several emails to new opportunities. You know, this is probably silly, but even after several years of business, I still get really excited anytime when people get in touch with me about photography. Really excited. Every single time. I can’t say this any more simply- it’s what I love to do. Taking pictures of people in love just never gets old. So I would just send a huge, heartfelt thank-you to all of the couples who helped make 2012 so fantastic. You’re the best. :D

2013 is going to rock. So is 2014. I’m so excited to work with the wonderful couples I’ve already met and can’t wait to meet the ones I haven’t. :D I do still have dates available for 2013, & am just starting to book into 2014- please contact me if you’re planning your wedding for this year! I’d love to hear from you.

Mount Lebanon Engagement | Kelsey & Evan

Shell — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 23:49:14 +0000

Had a fantastic time at Kelsey & Evan’s engagement sessi0n. :) They choose to do portraits at their home town on Mt Lebanon, and had all of these fantastic, quirky little locations for pictures! Old stairwells and beautifully lit brick alleyways and parking garages- it may sound outside-of-the-box, but it’s such a unique way to capture the place that they live and who they are at this time of their lives. Having that kind of backstory, on the streets they walk down every day, makes it so much more than just a pretty location. I just love that little glimpse of them & now I can’t wait for the wedding.

They’ll be getting married at the end of October and honeymooning in Utah (where Evan is going to go the Bonneville Salt Flats! Chances are you either don’t know what that is, or, like me, you’re now very jealous.) So looking forward to the wedding, it’s going to be amazing.

Morgantown WVU Engagement | Amanda & Ken

Shell — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 00:16:23 +0000

While most of my weddings are in and around the Pittsburgh area, I am always excited when photography takes me a little outside of my usual realm. I love traveling and seeing new places and don’t always get the chance to do that as much as I would like. Whenever I do get to explore somewhere new, my favorite thing to do is to walk around and take pictures, so of course I’m thrilled whenever a couple has somewhere in particular in mind. :)

Amanda and Ken are getting married at WVU in Morgantown during the summer of next year, and wanted to take the opportunity to get shots of some of the more scenic locations for their engagement portraits. We had so much fun- they gave Andy & I a tour of the campus and told us all about going to school there and the best places to eat. And they both have a great eye for style & what looks good, I absolutely love working with them.

If you’re considering something similar, I am always interested in doing destination portraits- it’s especially a great option if you have to keep the wedding a little closer to home! I am always on the lookout for neat places. In the meantime, I’m totally looking forward to Amanda & Ken’s wedding at WVU next year. :)

White Oak Engagement | Virginia & Chris

Shell — Fri, 07 Sep 2012 13:27:20 +0000

I’ve been waiting for this one for a while. I may not know a whole lot about cars, but I very much appreciate them, and when Virginia & Chris told me what their plans were for the engagement session, I couldn’t wait.

Virginia & Chris met because of these cars, & were so excited to include them. Two classics- a Challenger and a Cuda- rumbling through the park, drowning out the graduation parties. We would park and pose and you could watch the fathers kind of sneak away from the parties to come stare at the cars until we drove away. :) Despite the occasional audience, it wasn’t hard to get good shots. Virginia & Chris are just so happy together it’s adorable.

And tomorrow’s their wedding day…!

Phipps Engagement Portraits | Chris & Molly

Shell — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 23:08:49 +0000

I only met Molly & Chris two weeks before their wedding, due to some crazy circumstances. We had a consultation, two days later I was shooting their engagement portraits, and the next week I was shooting their wedding. A bit of a whirlwind, but I was so glad we could fit the engagement portraits in- we went to Phipps Conservatory and strolled through the sunlight & leaves. Chris and Molly are so fun to hang out with, I can’t wait to show you their wedding– and it’s coming soon. :)

Pittsburgh Engagement Photos | Chrissy and John

Shell — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 01:42:17 +0000

It’s been a busy but fantastic fall, and the wedding season is winding down. I’ve got one more wedding left for this season- and it’s tomorrow!

Chrissy and John are from Virginia Beach, and I think every time they’ve been up recently it has been wet and miserable. We were lucky enough to sneak about half an hour of glorious sunshine for their engagement session. I’m hoping that they have just as much luck for their wedding- the forecast is calling for snow. Think warm and sunny thoughts for them this weekend, please!

But at any rate, they’re a fantastic couple, and I am really looking forward to tomorrow, no matter what the weather turns out to be. Stay tuned… :)

Downtown Pittsburgh Engagement | Emily + Scott

Shell — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 21:34:28 +0000

Emily and Scott live in Kentucky, but they are originally from Pittsburgh. So when they came back in town for wedding planning and the fourth of July, they wanted their engagement portraits to have an iconic Pittsburgh feel. We bounced around a couple of ideas, including Downtown, the Strip District, and the North Shore, but we eventually decided to take a walk along the river and feature some of the famous bridges. I don’t think you could ask for a more perfect setting for a summer engagement sessions- a great cityscape, the sun setting over the three rivers, and the cutest couple ever. Seriously. I couldn’t put them anywhere for two minutes before they’d start laughing at something, and forget about posing, because we were having far too much fun for that. (Give me someone who can work the lyrics of the Safety Dance into conversation, and we’re bound to hit it off!)

Emily & Scott are getting married this September in the Cranberry area, and if the couple of hours I spent with them are anything to go by, it’s going to be a fantastic time. Many thanks to them for fitting me into their busy return home & I am definitely looking forward to September.

Engagement Portraits at Frick Park | Heather and Dave

Shell — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 13:57:55 +0000

Heather and Dave booked me forever ago- a year and a half ago, I think? And their wedding is coming up in a hurry! It’s only two weeks away. We finally got a chance to meet for the first time a few weeks ago, and we had a good time running around Frick Park. I was a little nervous when I got there- it was near sunset and the lighting was fading fast, especially under the cover of the trees; it had rained recently and all the trails were mud; and there were huge mosquitos absolutely everywhere. But luckily Heather and Dave are super sweet and up for anything. So whenever I suggested blazing through the knee-high underbrush in their nice shoes or sitting on muddy steps in order to catch the elusive rays of light- instead of looking at me like I was crazy, they followed right along. I think we got some great shots because of it. Thanks, Heather & Dave, for being such good sports!

These next two weeks are going to go by fast, so look for wedding photos soon!