Victoria & Cody | Raleigh NC Engagement Photos in Historic Oakwood Neighborhood
Raleigh NC Engagement Photos in Historic Oakwood Neighborhood
Love looks different during a pandemic. Instead of dining in downtown Raleigh or attending crowded concerts, couples turned to classic date activities. Victoria Gordon and Cody Barnes fell in love over afternoon picnics and long neighborhood walks amidst the shutdown. They wanted engagement photos to authentically represent their modern-day love story. So, they booked Nikki Whitt Belch with Fancy This Photography. And, let me tell you, I’m thankful that they did! I had so much fun capturing Victoria and Cody’s Raleigh NC engagement photos in Historic Oakwood Neighborhood.
You might wonder whether engagement photos are necessary. If there is room in your wedding budget for engagement photos, I strongly encourage you to book a session for two reasons:
You’ll want and need engagement photos for save the dates and/or your wedding website.
An engagement photo session is the best time to get to know your wedding photographer and practice being comfortable in front of a camera.
Engagement photo sessions are my favorite because it allows me to see how a couple expresses love. Understanding how people interact and their body language helps me make the day-of wedding smoother with posing, etc. It's a win-win all around.
Raleigh NC Engagement Photos by Fancy This Photography
Victoria and Cody discovered Fancy This Photography via their wedding venue, The Carolina Inn’s recommended vendor list. They booked Fancy This Photography because they love Nikki’s style and emphasis on color.
“All of her shoots looked so fun and unique, displaying each couple's personality and we felt very strongly that we wanted our photos to reflect us as a couple,” Victoria says. “We had a wonderful time shooting our engagement with Nikki! We had so much fun chatting, trying out new poses and just laughing a lot. Nikki made it very easy to be our natural, authentic selves, and we can't wait for her to shoot our wedding.”
Keep scrolling to read more about Victoria and Cody’s love story and Raleigh NC engagement photos in Historic Oakwood neighborhood.
Fortune Cookies & First Dates
Bull City-born Victoria met Cody, originally from Mount Airy, on Bumble. After messaging on the dating app for a day or so, they went on their first date at Brewery Bhavana in downtown Raleigh. They hit it off over delicious drinks and dangerously good food.
Invisible String-Inspired Proposal
Cody asked Victoria to marry him on Aug. 11, 2021. He had five days alone, while Victoria was on a work trip at Virginia Beach, to plan an epic, surprise proposal. Let me just say this, Cody understood the assignment.
Flowers, candles and fortune cookies (an ode to their first date at Brewery Bhavana) greeted Victoria at the front door when she got home. A gold string inspired by Taylor Swift’s “Invisible String,” led her to the back porch where “Imagine” by Ben Platt played in the background. Victoria found her prince waiting patiently on the back porch. Cody, already down on one knee and surrounded by twinkle lights, held a giant sign that read “Will you marry me?” in flowers.
“It was a complete surprise for me, and full of the sweetest, most thoughtful moments and keystones to our relationship,” Victoria says.
You think that story is sweet? Keep scrolling for more of Victoria and Cody’s romantic Raleigh NC engagement photos in Historic Oakwood neighborhood.
Raleigh NC Engagement Photos in Historic Oakwood Neighborhood
Fancy This Photography captured Victoria and Cody’s engagement photos in the historic Oakwood-area near downtown Raleigh. This included several local landmarks for the couple: The Merrimon-Wynne House, Two Roosters Ice Cream, The Raleigh Rose Garden and a few other random neighborhood spots.
“With so much of our relationship being during the COVID-19 pandemic, we spent a lot of time together walking outside in the Oakwood-area, talking about plants and the beautiful homes we wished we could one day live in,” Victoria says. “We'd always grab a pint of Two Roosters on the way home for a sweet treat later! Oakwood is a huge part of our dating history and one of the places we spent the most time getting to know each other, so we thought it would be fun to show the area off in our engagement photos.”
Advice From Your Raleigh NC Engagement Photographer
When it comes to engagement photo sessions, I want couples to feel comfortable in their environment. The last thing that I want to do is place a couple in a pretty field somewhere that has zero meaning to them. Victoria and Cody really enjoy the Historic Oakwood part of downtown Raleigh. They frequent this area often, and even go to Two Roosters (a place we stopped at for a few photos and ice cream!). Places that feel like the couple make the final photo gallery that much special.
As for engagement photo fashion, I recommend that you bring two outfits.
One outfit that’s fancy, formal, spicy and va-va-voom.
One outfit that’s casual, comfortable, thoughtful and authentic.
Two outfits will give you the best of both worlds. Engagement photo sessions last an hour to an hour and a half, so you don’t have time to change into four or five different outfits. I also recommend that couples wear complementary colors. For example, if you wear blue, your partner should wear a yellow, pink, or dark purple. You and your partner should be able to stand on your own, in your own colors, and come together as a complementary pair in camera.
Fancy This Photography couples receive their engagement photo gallery three to four weeks after their session.
Stay Tuned for Victoria & Cody’s Carolina Inn Wedding
Fancy This Photography is excited to capture Victoria and Cody’s November 2022 wedding at The Carolina Inn. The bride- and groom-to-be are both UNC Chapel Hill alums who look forward to celebrating with friends and family in such a sentimental place. The wedding ceremony will take place outside, fingers crossed for perfect fall weather!
“We want our wedding to be filled with lots of little references to us as a couple and we cannot wait for Nikki to capture that for us,” Victoria says.
Interested in booking an engagement photo session with Fancy This Photography? Click here to schedule your free consultation.
Photographer // Fancy This Photography
Raleigh NC Engagement Photo Locations Featured: