Picnics on the beach and surfing are just a few activities that recently engaged couple Bridget Butler and John Ruggieri like to partake in together. So when it came time to book an engagement photo shoot, they grabbed their surfboards and hit the sand. 

When Bridget told photographer Caitlin Wood, owner of Photography by Caitlin located in Newport, R.I., what she had in mind for their e-session, I thought “Wow, that’s not really something that everyone does. Wouldn’t it be great to take pictures of the two of them doing something that makes them stand out from the crowd?” 

Wood shot the photography at Bridget’s sisters wedding at the Seacrest Resort in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. “It was an easy decision for John and I to select Caitlin and luckily she was available,” exclaims Bridget. “We loved working with her for that wedding and the pictures came out fabulous!” 

Most wedding photographers love the opportunity to work with couples before the wedding to get to know their personalities and break the ice. “An engagement shoot gives me the chance to get to know [the couple] on a more personal level before the wedding day,” says Wood. In addition, an engagement shoot provides extra photographs for miscellaneous items toward planning the wedding. “It’s great to get the classic shots to use for the ‘save the date’ and some candids of them being cute together,” explains Wood. 

The couple — who plans to marry in Newport, R.I., because of their love of the beach — can’t express how helpful Wood actually was. “It seems a bit odd to try and be so intimate with each other with someone watching, but after a few shots, I think we got it!” laughs Bridget. “She was so dedicated and ended up in the water with us in all of her clothes!” 

With all of the life lessons that people learn, spontaneity is still underrated. “John and I were not looking to do an engagement session since we were concerned with the wedding,” explains Bridget. “But because Caitlin’s package came with this session we decided ‘What the heck, we may need some practice before the wedding.’” 

Come wedding time, both couple and photographer feel as though they are perfectly ready to work with one another. “We are so happy with the results and are even more excited to work with Caitlin on the wedding day!” smiles Bridget.