Lake Michigan Engagement Session by Cassandra Eldridge Photography

Balloons and sunlight are all out magic makers when it comes to taking fabulous photographs. Plus the added spark of engaged love lends a fresh ” We love life and it loves us right back” feel to these pretty images by Cassandra Eldridge Photography. It’s a smile-inducing love fest straight from the shores of Lake Michigan and you can catch it all right here.

Click here for the FULL shoot!

From Cassandra Eldridge PhotographyAmanda is one of my oldest friends, so its safe to say we’ve been through just about everything together. Including a multitude of failed relationships.  All of that ended (for her, anyway) when she met Jay. I still remember riding in the car with her on our way to one of our nightly workouts, and she just had this different look about her. She was relaxed, ultra-confident — she was the girl I knew before guys entered the picture. She was assured. I poked at her for the secret … desperate to find out what had my best friend looking so, well, fabulous. All she said was a name. Quickly followed by a million little things she was already loving about him: his style, the way he always had something unique planned for their dates, his charm, his wit. My girl was smitten, and there was no disguising it. Amanda’s days of failed relationships and horrid first dates had come to an end.

When Amanda and Jay had asked me to shoot their engagement session, I was over-the-moon excited. Of course this was something I had been scheming in my head for months … and I probably would have forced them to pose in front of my camera even if they DIDN’T want me to photograph them. We met over on Lake Michigan just before dusk, and it was so insanely lovely, although the wind tried to give us a run for our money. I was not the only one who wore worry on my face, especially considering the ENORMOUS bouquet of balloons that assisted us, but luckily, it was magical. The wind carried the balloons giving them movement and so much life. They wrapped around Amanda’s curls and gave each and every photograph a touch of whimsy. I am so in love with how this session turned out and even more in love with the subjects. These two people are so deserving of love, and I feel so honored to have the opportunity to stand beside them as they say “I do” next summer.

Photography: Cassandra Eldridge Photography / Location: Lake Michigan in Chicago, Illinois