Ashley and Dustin

Engagement Pictures | Downtown | San Luis Obispo

Ashley and Dustin’s engagement shoot started off down by the creek that flows through San Luis Obispo. Most of the time the creek is a good starting place because the light shoots straight down the river bed in the late afternoon. Last week however, there were a ton of people in my favorite spot so, we quickly packed up and headed out towards the gorgeous hills just outside of town. Around sunset the oaks lit up like they were on fire and the small amount of fog that was rolling in over our heads turned the light flat and soft. I love shooting under clouds as everything becomes evenly lit and low contrast. The vintage feel to some of these low contrast shots reminds me of when I shot only film years ago (although recently I have started spending a couple of moments taking a few film frames if the situation permits). Photographing engagement shoots in San Luis Obispo and the surrounding foothills is always a time when my creative juices start to flow. Ashley and Dustin were very much game for anything. These two have a playful quality that I really enjoyed. Dustin was constantly teasing Ashley, which kept her smiling and giggling the entire afternoon.

Gorgeous evening light can be found in Downtown San Luis Obispo if you time shooting in the creek just right.

Downtown San Luis Obispo has some incredible architecture. The light shoots sideways into the stairwells, giving off gorgeous blues and purples.

Seeing who could be serious the longest – Ashley cracked, Dustin won! Ha!

During the winter months in San Luis Obispo the sun sets quickly and the hues are cool and blue. The blue light gives an instant vintage feel to these images that I can’t get enough of.

Lately I’ve been spending a few moments shooting a couple frames of film on some of my engagement shoots. I am simply falling in love with the soft pastels that come from Fuji Pro 800Z.

A quick climb up the hill got us into the last rays of our California Central Coast sun.

~Please feel free to comment below or shoot me an email anytime!

{portfolio}      {blog}      {phone: 805.748.1378}      {email: jonathan@bluephoto.biz}