Published February 2017 · Updated April 2026
Destination Engagement Session
One of my favorite parts of this work is meeting couples where they are — sometimes literally. Destination engagement sessions take us outside of Arizona, into the cities and landscapes where couples have built their lives together. Each city brings its own light, its own rhythm, and its own kind of beauty.
What I love about traveling for engagement sessions is the way a familiar place looks different through the lens of a love story. These backdrops carry meaning because the couple chose them. And that meaning always shows up in the photographs.
Planning Your Engagement Session
An engagement session is a chance to get comfortable in front of the camera before your wedding day and to create images you can use for save-the-dates, your wedding website, or guest sign-in displays. I typically recommend scheduling your session about 4 to 6 months before the wedding. For Arizona desert sessions, the best months are November through March when temperatures are mild and the light is warm. Sessions in Scottsdale, Phoenix, and the surrounding desert typically start about 90 minutes before sunset to catch the golden hour. If you are planning a session, get in touch and we can talk about locations that work for you.
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Julie & Mat are the hippest, coolest couple I have ever met. They live in THE most amazing apartment in San Francisco, they have the absolute best sense of style and they both are artists in their own right. Oh and they madly in love with each other which is just adorable! Essentially an engagement session made in Elyse’s Heaven. Mat and Julie were so prepared for this shoot, they had multiple locations that were meaningful to them scouted out and all were so beautiful and well thought out.
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Capturing this gorgeous Day on Film, with my Contax645 on Fuji 400h film made the images romantic and lovely. I adore film, It ignites my creativity so much.
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This shoot is one I will never forget, besides the fact that they are basically an anthropology ad; I am so in love with every image and I loved their energy together. It was so delightful to photograph.
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Xoxo
nMore Engagement Sessions
Interested in a destination engagement session? Let’s talk about your vision.