Surprise Trip for Elizabeth!

For the past 2 months, I have been planning a surprise trip out to Oregon with Elizabeth. The reason I chose Oregon is Elizabeth's favorite photographer, Marina Koslow, lives out in Bend, Oregon. I knew if I was going out there that I had to set up a time for Marina to take some pictures of us.

The planning process was definitely exciting! I almost felt like I was living a double life by sneaking around deleting text messages, deleting web history, and even making additional emails to have plane tickets and Airbnb confirmations sent to me.

Two weeks ago after bible study, I told Elizabeth that we were going to be leaving Thursday morning at 5:30am to fly out of Montgomery. Unfortunately, we actually ended up flying out of Atlanta because we missed our flight flying out of Montgomery. It's not because we overslept, we just weren't paying attention to time. It only put us a couple of hours behind, so it wasn't a big deal.  If you haven't seen the video on my Facebook page you need to go look at it now. Her reaction was priceless, and it made planning the whole trip worth it!

We stayed in Portland the first two nights exploring and doing lots of shopping for new outfits for the photoshoot on Sunday. Our next stop was driving down the coast to see Cannon Beach. The next morning we left the coast and headed towards central Oregon to meet up with Marina for the incredible photo shoot. She really was amazing to work with! I can't wait to see the pictures! We ended up staying the night in Bend before driving back to Portland. The trip from Bend to Portland was insanely beautiful! We stopped at Smith Rock, Mount Hood, and Multnomah Falls. Driving along the Columbia River Gorge was amazing! Overall, we ended up driving 750 miles, so it was definitely a mini road trip.

Anyone who is looking to go on a trip I would highly recommend going to Oregon. We loved every minute of the trip! Here are a few of our favorite shots that we took along the ride.

Thoughts Before a Portrait Photoshoot

WORDS and PHOTOS by Matty Drollette

What if I'm not good in front of the camera? 

No worries. Everything is going to be fine! We will work through the whole thing together. From me telling corny jokes or putting on some good music, you can just relax and have fun! It’s all about the moments. 

What should I wear? 

Wear something that makes you feel like you can conquer the world. Layers, fabrics that move, and different textures always bring out more personality in the images. Once that is decided I will match your outfits to the location that compliments each other! :)