She’s “friends” with Disney royalty, he’s one of my all-time favorite Disney park photographers (click here to go drool over his portfolio!) and they’re just as kind as they are beautiful. Shortly after Mark proposed to Hope, he mentioned wanting us to be their wedding photographers, and I think my first response was, “Are you sure?!?!?” It’s been a while since I’ve been so nervous and excited to photograph a wedding day, but if Nate’s photos from their engagement session are any indication, Hope and Mark are certainly going to make our job easy. 🤍
I first discovered Hope when the pandemic was still fresh and scary and one of the few things that brought me true comfort was the release of Taylor Swift’s Folklore album. I had never been a “Swiftie” in the past, but this album brought me so much peace the hundreds of times I played it in 2020. This was also the time when Haute by Hope showed up in my Instagram feed, and I saw this woman sharing her adventures in learning to sew, and she just happened to be sewing dresses inspired by songs on Folklore. To this day I can’t choose a favorite, but it’s safe to say I’ve been one of her biggest fans ever since discovering her talent and passion for my favorite hobby!
Given that little backstory, I think it was around that time I learned that Mark and Hope were dating and I thought, “Oh, yep, that seems just about right!” Mark Willard and Tom Bricker are household names for us because of their amazing Disney park photography, and we often share their latest posts with each-other. Mark and Hope are the epitome of a power couple to me and I can’t wait to see what they tackle next- This much beauty, creativity, and talent shouldn’t be allowed in one family but thankfully they seem like genuinely kind hearted people so I’ll allow it. ;)
Mark proposed to Hope after a night out seeing The Nutcracker (let’s all just take a moment to collectively swoon here, ok?). So it wasn’t at all a surprise when they were brainstorming session locations with Nate, that the phrase “off duty Parisian ballerina” was thrown out and I knew juuuuust the place- the Ringling Museum in Sarasota! I thought the blush walls would be perfect and sure enough- they weren’t allowing any session bookings.
THEN I remembered a wedding we photographed a decade or so ago in Miami at Vizcaya. It required a road trip for sure but I certainly think it hit the spot- This place is like Paris meets a Taylor Swift music video and well, I think you can see how it all tied together quite nicely in the end. <3
I am counting the daaaaays until we have the honor of photograph their wedding day!!
Until then, enjoy my favorite Nate shoot of 2022!!
