LGBTQ+ Engagement Session at Vista Hermosa Park | Downtown Los Angeles | Crystal Lily Photography | Brand & Lifestyle Photographer

This LGBTQ engagement session at Vista Hermosa Park near Downtown Los Angeles was so sweet to photograph. These two met in such a unique way online when Jenna (shorter) found a Youtube vidoe by Jasmine (taller) and reached out to chat about the subject matter.

“I found her Youtube video and sent her a message asking a question and we sort of never stopped talking. Fast forward to last summer, we were talking basically 24/7, and eventually you could cut the tension with a knife and Jasmine finally said um, so I sort of love you… And the rest was history. Since then I relocated to Los Angeles and we have started our life together here.” ~Jenna

When Jenna and Jasmine reached out to me about photographing their engagement and wedding, I was immediately excited. They were referred to me by Isabel Kate of Isabel Kate Events, and by that alone, I knew we would get along.

We first met over a video chat and we talked for about an hour. It was clear we had similar vibes and they told me they absolutely wanted to work with me.

We planned their session and when shoot day came, they showed up to Vista Hermosa Park with Harry Potter books, LGBTQ flags, and the biggest smiles on their faces!

We wandered around the park and really just hung out together while I snapped photos. I enjoyed hanging out with them and getting to know them better. A bonus of engagement sessions is of course getting to know each other.

After their gallery was delivered, Jasmine shared the kindest words on her Instagram account:

“We could not be more in love with our engagement photos! Our photographer Crystal captured us so beautifully. Our love for each other speaks and I just get chills looking at them. When I look at them, the negative little thoughts that always run through my head when I see myself fade away. I look at these without only seeing my pale skin years of illness. In them I stop resenting losing the warm Korean glow that I used to love. The harsh lines on my face from weight loss and the massive scar through my hairline from brain surgery do not jump out at me, taunting me from the page. What usually hurts me fades away. In our engagement photos, instead of pain I only see my immense joy, I only see the love that radiates between us. I see myself filled with so much joy that makes me want to be the wife that she deserves to love her. When I see her in these i feel butterflies like we are children again, filled with that pure innocent happiness, and in the same breath I feel like we are old ladies who have loved each other for our whole lives. They capture a feeling that warps time, to where it is hard to remember not loving her. What I love most about these photos is that when I see them, all these feelings run through my body like an electric current. My broken body becomes a blessing, the disordered way I feel senses like electricity is palpable and incredible. Everything that makes us who we are is present and raw, and I could not be more grateful to get to marry Jenna in August, and to have these incredible photos that show who we really are. It reminds me that it was our brokenness that brought us together, to accept what is unfixable, that we are set free by radical acceptance of one another. I did not know that the ability to truly let someone see me existed until we were brought together. I thought I knew the true meaning of loving someone but I did not. I used to fear losing myself in a relationship, instead we nurture each other into the best versions of ourselves. Somehow these photos capture the intensity of our love, in a way I as someone of too many words cannot. They show our love unfolding. @crystallilyphoto, just thank you. I have no words❤️”

0 COMMENTS

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *