Couples Session at Matthaei Botanical Gardens in Ann Arbor - Marielle + Miles
The Conservatory at Matthaei Botanical Gardens is a popular place for engagement photos in Ann Arbor.
And it’s not hard to see why! Who wouldn’t want to walk amongst lush greenery, looking and feeling your best with the person you love best? ESPECIALLY during these brutal winter months when we Michiganders are starved for sunlight and warmth. Seriously, if you live somewhere where the sun doesn’t hibernate during Jan + Feb, send your Ann Arbor + Midwestern friends some love. We need it!
The best part about shooting in a building with a glass roof is that, even when it’s overcast, the lighting is still perfect. It was like being outside, without all the bother of coats, and the uncomfortability of freezing to death. Of course the alternative to that is me lugging 3 cameras around in 100% humidity, and though it’s a little bit sweaty, I’ll take that any day over temps that start with the numbers 1, 2, or 3.
During engagement + couples sessions, I usually like to let most of the pictures be very candid, because that’s what’s interesting to me in a photo. I can control the composition, and the lighting (to an extent) and pressing of the shutter, but I can’t control what I’m photographing (or rather, I don’t want to). I’m very interested in the things I can’t control. It’s why I love a blurry photo, or an off the hip shot, or even the fact that my preferred camera brand has notoriously the worst auto focus in the game right now. Sometimes when you let go of control, you get things you never could have gotten by trying.
One of the reasons I love to shoot weddings is because the wedding is the entire point of the photos—everyone in front of the camera is so distracted on a wedding day because they aren’t there to get photos taken, they’re there to get married. That makes my job as a documenter easy. When you set out to do a photo session, it kind of feels like the photos are the whole point, and it’s a really hard thing to fight. As someone who freezes up when I’m forced to be in front of the camera, I get it. I get it so hard. So I feel like my job as a photographer most of the time is less about the mechanics of whatever I’m doing with my camera, and more about creating an environment for people to relax and enjoy themselves and forget that their photo is being taken while their photo is being taken. I’m not an expert at it. Yet. But I do feel like I’m getting better at it day by day, and I want to keep pushing to steer in this direction: of having the photos not be about the photos, and creating space for people to have genuine moments, and helping them find those moments.
I will also say this, and it’s a hard truth: Some people and couples are better at it than others. I’ve had clients who were incredibly awkward and it was HARD work to loosen them up but you eventually get there. I’ve had people who were so excited, and show up ready and with a mindset that helps them understand that they’re there to have a good time! They’re there to interact with their person and show their personality, and they execute it flawlessly. And of course, there are people that live in between those two extremes. So my job as a photographer is also about reading people, and finding out who they are, and how to best show that in pictures when they might be reluctant to show it to in front of the camera.
This session was so much fun because Marielle and Miles really showed me their relationship. And the way Miles looks at Mari in all of these photos melts my heart because that’s the way he felt— not the way I asked him to pose.
Ann Arbor Engagement + Wedding Photographers:
If you’ve never been to the conservatory and are thinking about having a session there, here are a couple tips that might help you (also parking info because I have anxiety about new places and am always looking for advice like this on blogs lol).
There’s plenty of parking available right outside the conservatory, but you do have to pay for it. The spots are numbered and you just have to remember the number and pay with a card at the kiosk right outside the front door (you can pay with cash but have to do so at the front desk). There is nowhere else to park, you can’t get around the parking fee (I did 2 hours and it was $4.40, so it’s not terrible).
There is a fee to get a photo pass, which you can pay at the front desk (don’t skip this— you will be noticed and also it’s just not cool). If you’re shooting one person its $25, two people it’s $50. More info on rules and rates at their website here.
Make sure you get there earlier than your subjects so your camera has time to adjust to temperature and humidity changes.
Getting there early is also a good idea because the first 15 minutes of the conservatory being open is your best bet for wide shots with no other people in the background. Let’s save ourselves some photoshopping!
Thinking of hiring me to document your love? Let start the conversation now! It doesn’t have to be in Ann Arbor— I travel all over Michigan + beyond!