Ellisa and Henry wanted a cool city feel for their engagement session, and photographer Nicole Cordisco Photography knew exactly how to mix artistic and romantic for this Rittenhouse Square shoot.
The weather helped them out a bit with the romance, as Nicole Cordisco explains. During a stop at La Colombe, “As they were sharing their cups of tea, a light rain began to fall and it somehow made the cozy ambience of the coffeehouse even better. Once the rain had stopped, we ducked into the alley right next door to do some dramatic city-like shots.”
How They Met
Ellisa was beginning to give up on dating app Bumble when she got a bit of help from a friend. She says, “That’s when one of my closest friends, who happened to know Henry, browsed through my matches and insisted that I give him a chance! At the same time, Henry was also consulting with his friends about his match with me, and it turned out that his one friend was also a good friend of mine from college. She made sure that we met, and predicted early on that we would hit it off, too.”
When it comes to their relationship, Ellisa shares some of her favorite things about Henry, “What I love most about Henry is that he makes everyday moments feel special, and he makes me appreciate the little things in life. He keeps me laughing 24/7, and he loves to celebrate even the smallest accomplishments. Every car ride is a dance party, every walk around town turns into a foodie adventure. And even when we’re sitting in silence for hours binging Netflix, he still makes me feel like I’ve had the best day ever.”
The Proposal
Henry nailed it, as far as Ellisa is concerned. The bride-to-be describes her moment, “Henry surprised me with a sweet and intimate Christmas morning proposal, which was thoughtful and perfect because it’s my favorite holiday. My gift was wrapped in a large box, and inside that was a smaller jewelry box—that’s when I knew what was happening! Before I could say a word, Henry was down on one knee asking me to marry him. After I said yes, we spent the next moments dancing to Otis Redding’s “Merry Christmas Baby,” which will now forever be one of my favorite songs.”
Engagement Session Inspiration
“We wanted our photos to feel relaxed, cool, and fun, and to also reflect our love for Philly, where we met and are sharing our lives together. It was also important to us that our photos have an urban feel with nature elements, which is why we chose the iconic Rittenhouse Square to be the main stage for our shoot,” Ellisa tells us.
Wedding Planning
Getting ready to say “I do” is truly a team event for Ellisa and Henry, “We started wedding planning about a month into our engagement, and I can honestly say that it’s been really easy and fun so far. We started off by each writing down our top three priorities for the wedding, and that really helped us to establish the tone and theme for our wedding, as well as who will take the lead on each component of the planning. Lucky for me, Henry plans events for a living and has such a creative eye, so he’s been super involved throughout the entire process.”
Nicole Cordisco Photography
Ellisa and Henry love working with Nicole at Nicole Cordisco Photography, saying, “Working with Nicole has been easy and so much fun! We were a bit nervous during the beginning of our shoot, but Nicole helped us to feel at ease and just enjoy each other and the experience. She was also really funny and has a contagious laugh, so you can tell that we were genuinely happy and laughing in our pictures. My biggest advice when taking engagement pictures is to not take yourself too seriously! Nicole really helped us embrace that.”
Vendors | Photography: Nicole Cordisco Photography
