Autumn National Mall Portraits

Ooh I am so excited to share Meghan and Jesus’ autumn National Mall portraits today! I know I always say I’m excited – haha – but I am! I love sharing photos of people I’ve enjoyed getting to meeting, and that I loved taking pics of!

One and Only

I’m extra excited today, though, because these are photos of my one and only mentee (so far), Meghan! Meghan reached out to me in 2019, asking if there was a way she could learn some things about photography from me. I admired how she took the chance to reach out to someone she didn’t know, and of course resonated with her passion for photography. I didn’t have a plan in place to take on a mentee, so I let her know she would be bearing with me as I figured things out, and she was willing, so off we went!

Mentoring Sesh

I arranged for us to meet at my apartment to go over some basics, then I took some headshots for her and walked her through my thought process on that, and I arranged for us to do an engagement session with the winners of an Instagram contest I did. I took the photos while Meghan shadowed me, and then I let her take the lead for a few minutes. She took some beautiful photos! And I gave her some tips on how to keep practicing.

Meghan actually came along on a couple of actual photo sessions later that fall, to observe and assist. We had plans to do another session where she would get to take some photos, but then quarantine hit and those plans got put on hold. Womp womp.

I’m so glad Meghan initially reached out! She’s such a fun, good person and a talented photographer. It’s been fun to watch her adventures with her hubby on Instagram (follow her here) and see the beautiful photos she takes on her travels (when not in quarantine!).

Similar Light / Similar Look

Meghan reached out last summer to book an autumn National Mall portraits session for her and her hubby, Jesus. She wanted to do the exact same session that she observed the year before at the Lincoln and WWI memorial because she loved the photos. Luckily we somehow managed to get very similar light to that session too, so we got a very similar look! Woot woot!

Much in Love

After getting to know Meghan, it was wonderful to meet her hubby, Jesus, at their autumn National Mall portraits session. These two seem to have so much fun together and are so in love! It’s so beautiful to see two people so into each other – and they made my job super easy since they were such naturals in front of the camera.

At the session Meghan let me know these photos were so important to them because they were actually moving away from the D.C. area soon – Jesus got a new job and they bought a house in Florida! While I miss knowing Meghan is in the area, it’s good to know she’s enjoying her new home (and all the warmth!) in Florida!

Eep! So romantic!

They dance salsa together!

This is their signature move! Nailed it!

Did this post get you excited to book your own wedding, micro-wedding, elopement, or engagement session?! If yes, send me a note and we can chat about what you have in mind: contact me

Hi – I’m Rachel! A wedding, engagements, and headshots photographer in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and northern Virginia. I love taking photos of elegant people who love to laugh, as well as of much in-love couples. If you’re a dog owner, that’s a plus! I’m currently booking 2021 portrait sessions, as well as 2021 and 2022 weddings.