Whenever my friend Jaclynn and I talk about relationships that we find inspiring, we typically end up talking about our friends Jon and Jillian. I think the chance of two people who met and dated in college ending up together actually seems like more of a seldom occurrence than I imagined it to be when I was younger; you have so much growing and changing and learning who you are to do still at this point in your lives, and now that I’m older, I realize that there’s a good chance of growing in different directions during that process. So when we talk about Jon and Jillian, we talk about them as the exception to this rule – the couple who met in college, who grew and changed and learned right alongside one another, who went on to become closer and stronger because of it, and who you couldn’t possibly imagine with anyone else as their partner in life. I don’t throw this description around often, nor can I claim to know them quite as well, but this is exactly how I imagine Sam and Matt are seen amongst the people who have known them since they first started dating in college — steadfast and having grown together and with the exact person their loved ones would have dreamed up for them.

There’s a sort of ease that you feel when you’re spending time with these two – the jokes come gradually and effortlessly and they have a way of immediately making you feel like a friend. Before we finally met in person for their engagement session, I had spoken with them both on the phone and via email to the point that I already felt like I “knew” them, so meeting them in real life really did feel like seeing old friends. It was misting on and off on the day of their session, and when I checked in to see if they would prefer to reschedule, Sam said simply that they didn’t really mind the weather, because they really are just that chill and perfectly laid back. In the months leading up to their session we chatted about locations and realized we lived within a mile or so of each other, so we started at Humboldt Park, which is so close to my apartment that I went out for a run one day to scout it. After that we went to one of their (and my) favorite spots, 90 miles — the two of them love the empanadas there, so we ordered some food and poured some wine together. Eeeevery so often I’m in the middle of a session and having such a good time that I sort of forget I’m actually “working”, and as I was sitting there chatting with these two over our drinks and Cuban food, that’s definitely how it felt.  I’m shooting their wedding this upcoming year, and I’m already looking forward to forgetting I’m working while hanging with them once again.