Melinda and Ben’s Engagement Session at Boulder Loop Trail in Albany, NH

Where do I start with this incredible engagement session adventure? Melinda and Ben met while rock climbing at their local gym. They quickly bonded over their love for climbing, hiking and adventuring outdoors, and have been inseparable ever since. Although they are based near Boston, they love spending almost every weekend at crags in New Hampshire to climb together!

Ben proposed to Melinda a year ago in the fall while they were on one of their weekend trips climbing in the White Mountains. After finishing their climbing for the day at the crag, they raced up to the summit of the mountain to catch the sunset as they usually loved to do! They unfortunately missed the sunset by a few minutes, but Ben still proposed at the top of the mountain overlooking the beautiful New Hampshire autumn foliage. In their excitement over getting engaged, the pair lost their headlamps, and had to make the 45 minute trek back down the mountain in the pitch dark! Melinda thought she was going to die trying to blindly navigate down the steep and rocky terrain at night, but they managed to make it all the way back to the parking lot safely and with the ring secure. It was memorable proposal for sure!

Being a rock climber myself, we easily connected over our passion for the sport and spending time outdoors during our first consultation meeting! I absolutely love clients that enjoy adventures and are up for some hiking to get beautiful images. We got chatting about our favorite locations to climb and hike. Melinda and Ben mentioned how much they wanted to get their engagement photos done at the same mountaintop where they had originally gotten engaged, as they only had a few poorly exposed phone photos due to how dark it was during the actual proposal! I was elated at the idea and we got started with planning their adventure engagement session.

We scheduled their engagement session to fall almost exactly a year after they had gotten engaged. Since we are all avid climbers, we decided to make a day out of it and ended up spending a whole six hours together hiking, taking photos, and rock climbing! Melinda and Ben even brought their gorgeous red English Lab called Hank, who was adorable and so handsome in his checkered bandana.

We started the session off with some photos by the Swift River and Albany Covered Bridge near the base of the trail. We even made a slightly treacherous expedition into the center of the river for some photos, balancing precariously on the wet boulders and attempting to keep my camera and clothes dry!

Afterwards, we started hiking up the Boulder Loop Trail, stopping periodically to take photos of Melinda and Ben. Everywhere I turned was another stunning vista, and I couldn’t take enough pictures of the beautiful couple and views! Melinda and Ben (and Hank!) were so photogenic and easy to get amazing photos of, and the lighting was incredible at the summit.

We spent about four hours taking photos and hiking before heading back down and trekking over to the crag to get some climbs in before sunset. Melinda and Ben are expert rock climbers and showed me some amazing routes to climb! By the time we finished, it was pitch dark and the day had already ended. I truly had the most wonderful time with the pair getting to know them, exploring the beautiful trails, soaking in the breathtaking views and fall foliage, and climbing some amazing routes. I am so excited to capture their wedding next summer, and for more climbing trips with them! I am thrilled with how the photos turned out, with the cozy fall vibes coming through and the gorgeous couple so clearly over the moon for each other. Check out some of the images below!