I have shot weddings and everything else in quite a few “extreme” conditions. I have done outdoor wedding photography when the weather was in the 30’s with wind chill of 19. That might not sound like much, but remember I am shooting. I can’t wear gloves! Well, I could.. but imagine my clumsy fingers trying to get your photos in perfect exposure with a nice thick pair of gloves on. It ain’t pretty! Instead, my hands were purple by the end, and the shots look great! I have also shot weddings and family portraits until the very last month of pregnancy when it was 99 degrees outside. And I always wear black to work. Oh yes, I hold on to my professional look in the worst of climates. But for Jennifer and Ryan’s engagement session, it was a whole different story. In the hours before their shoot, I was struck down with food poisoning. (at the time I simply thought I was dying.. ) Knowing they were coming from Houston, and only for one night, I was absolutely NOT canceling. My husband knows I’m mildly insane and he still asked for me to cancel. My mom kindly agreed to drive me to Mount Bonnell where their engagement photos were supposed to be, and I reached the sickest point about one minute before pulling into the parking spots. Keep in mind Mount Bonnell is one of the best spots to see the sunset in Austin.  I got a huge rush of “I feel great” since I had left every other bit of sickness on the side of the road. Enter Jennifer and Ryan! Oh these two were wonderful. I was so relieved to look through the lens and just take a deep breath and know it would all turn out fine. They took guidance so well and were just so sweet on each other that I didn’t have to stress over making moments happen, they just did. We had golden hour and took full advantage. Nearing the end of that hour I started getting waves of the poison set in. Yes, I need to be dramatic, it was horrible! So thankfully these two were completely ok with me taking the last set of photos sitting down. Ok, hunched. I am laughing now thinking just how professional I must have looked as people started rushing in to watch the sun set. I haven’t even mentioned their wonderful fur child! Finn the labradoodle was such a great pup, very photogenic and yes you can follow him on Instagram. We didn’t have to leash him up in between photos, since my mom was already there, we doubled her as a dog watcher! Finn was also the main part of their engagement, so we made sure to get him with the ring. I was so impressed and just pictured my dog flinging the ring over the mountain side. I could not be more thankful for how understanding Jennifer and Ryan were and how adventurous they are in going to the edge for great photos! Now I am even more excited to shoot their wedding… and I will aim to not have food poisoning!