I couldn’t help but like Jordan and Marian upon the very second meeting them. Not only are they a beautiful couple together, but they are full of warmth and have plenty of charisma to boot. I met this stylish couple at my favorite spot in the Third Ward Neighborhood and we walked along the Riverwalk in Milwaukee, taking some of my favorite engagement portraits I’ve ever taken.
The Historic Third Ward Neighborhood
The Third Ward is my absolute favorite place to schedule a portrait session. This historic place in Milwaukee is 10 blocks south of downtown and runs along the Milwaukee River and is just a stone’s throw from Lake Michigan.
Historically, it was a warehouse district that used to be a neighborhood with a rough and tumble reputation coming from the working class population that lived there. A century or two later, all the warehouses have been renovated into the premier shops, restaurants and apartments. It’s also the neighborhood where you’ll find the most people walking around, the most foot traffic and where the tourists will be.
Part of the draw of the Third Ward, at least for a portrait photographer like myself is the Riverwalk. It’s a continuous boardwalk that runs on the east side of the river, from the southernmost edge of the Third Ward all the way through downtown and then to the lower East Side.
When you go to the Riverwalk on any given day, you might run into a photographer working with a client, but you’ll definitely run into a lot of people. My strategy has always been to meet at the southern-most point of the Riverwalk. It’s still a beautiful area, but there are less pedestrians out and about and it gives me more space to work.
There is also a beautiful park that has a boardwalk that creeps out and over the Milwaukee River with a historic and abandoned train trestle in the background. The trestle is still in the middle of the river and you can only reach it by boat, although you may be trespassing if you do.
This place is called Trestle Park, and more often than not this is where I’ll start my portrait sessions.
From here, we continued down the Riverwalk, where there is a spiral staircase, which I like to use to get some more interesting shots. This included one where Jordan and Marian sat down cuddling and I went up to the upper level of the Riverwalk and took a photo straight down the spiral staircase, giving me a unique perspective.
At the end of this session, we went to a side street that had these classic lamppost and Historic Third Ward signs. These are really beautiful signs and lampposts and it makes for great sidewalk photos.
Springtime
Spring isn’t the first time of year that Wisconsinites think of to take their engagement portraits or any kind of portraits, but it has a bad rap for how beautiful it can be.
Jordan and Marian reached out to me in March and then we ultimately scheduled our engagement session for early May.
At this time of year, there can be really warm days, but it was a bit chilly for our session. My quick and easy solution for this is to schedule the photoshoot earlier in the day. Normally, when weather isn’t a problem I always have my portrait sessions set at golden hour, the hour before sunset or the hour after sunrise. It’s when the light is best.
However, it also is a bit colder and what I’ve realized through a lot of experience is that in 40 or 50 degree weather, clients can really hang tough if it’s the middle of the day and the sun is shining on them. Once, they’re out of the sun it gets really cold for them.
With Marian and Jordan, we met in the early afternoon and quit well before sunset. We also worked fast and efficiently. With a lengthy wardrobe change included, we were in and out in under two hours.
On the flip side, springtime has some big benefits. For one, the flowers are all blooming and with that, comes some beautiful colors: light greens, pinks and light blues.
Clothing
It also comes with a beautiful springtime wardrobe: light colors with lighter fabrics and light jackets. There’s a breezy carefree quality to your stereotypical springtime wardrobe, but the temperature isn’t so warm that you wouldn’t want to wear layers. These layers like light jackets, vests or blazers can make outfits pop.
Jordan and Marian were a particular stylish couple.
To start the day, they both wore blue jeans. Marian wore a cream-colored blouse and Jordan wore a white shirt under a dark brown blazer.
They then switched their outfits halfway through and Marian came back out with a beautiful mid-length black dress with white polka dots and Jordan switched to dark blue jeans with the same white shirt, but this time with a white blazer over top.
Jordan’s wardrobe in particular is an example I use for my male clients and how they can elevate and diversify their wardrobe. Wearing a blazer over a t-shirt is an easy way for men to upscale their outfit to be upscale casual. If you want something dressier, simply change what’s underneath. A polo is more formal and then a button down shirt is even more formal than that! Wearing a t-shirt and a blazer gives you a carefree look, but is also something you can wear to a fancy lunch date out in the city.
Switching blazers the way he did was also a way to have two very different looks with minimal changing effort. In fact, for a lot of men or senior boys (I shoot a lot of high school senior sessions) you can go from a t-shirt or sweater in one shot and then add the blazer in the next for a completely different outfit. All it takes is the five seconds it takes to put on the jacket.
Also, wearing a blazer can really sell an outfit as a “special outfit” if you want to wear jeans or denim. A friend of mine will routinely do this at work, so he can get away with wearing denim. Pairing the denim with a blazer, makes the outfit more business casual instead of just casual.
If you have any questions on what to wear for your portrait session, please give me a shout at matt@bigskyphoto.com. I may not know everything about women’s clothes compared to men’s clothes, but I’ve had a lot of great clients, male and female, who have excellent taste.
