Engagement Couple Shoot

Ringing Bells - Cork City Couples Shoot /  by Jan

One of the reasons I love living in Ireland is that it’s such a treasure trove of beautiful spots for romantic moments, and luckily, Cork’s city centre is no different. When Tommy approached me about proposing to Christine, and following it up with a city couple shoot in Cork, I knew immediately where to go.

I met the happy couple at Bell's Field, located beside St Patrick's Hill right in the heart of Cork City centre. This spot was meaningful to them because Tommy's grandmother had been christened at St Mary’s and St Anne’s church which you can see in the background of this proposal. After capturing these gorgeous photos of them together in the field, we set off for the iconic Shandon Bells tower.

The Shandon Bells are a landmark of Cork City located in one of the historic parts of town. We took the tour up the tower, which allows you to view the famous eight bells contained within, and even have a go at playing them yourself. Earmuffs are needed for part of the climb up the tower, as the bells can be deafening if someone is playing them from below!

Earmuffs!

“Earmuffs are needed for part of the climb up the tower, as the bells can be deafening…”

After surviving the bells, we emerged onto the top balcony of the tower, which provides stunning panoramic views of the city. We were able to get some shots of Christine and Tommy with Cork City as their backdrop. The tower boasts the famous four-faced clock, known as "the four-faced liar" due to the winds changing the time when the tower was first built.

To top off our tower tour, we admired the uniquely-shaped salmon wind vane atop the Shandon Bells. This nod to Cork's history of salmon farming makes the tower even more distinctive. I loved this special engagement photo session at the Shandon Bells, and I know Christine and Tommy will cherish these memories for many years to come.

If you would like to do a similar engagement photo shoot in Cork city or an urban couples photo shoot in Cork city, contact me here. I’d love to hear from you!

I am also available for wedding photography in County Cork.

Lauren and Michael - Engagement Couple Shoot Gougane Barra /  by Jan

What a sunset! What a gorgeous couple! What a location!

Let me introduce you to Lauren and Michael. So what is the special occasion for this couple shoot? Well, handsome Michael here has recently popped the big question to Lauren. I believe I see a sparkling ring here.

Now that’s a good sized ring!

We had planned this lovely sunset photo shoot at St Finbarr’s Oratory, followed by some more photos in the Gougane Barra forest. Some amazing locations! But these locations don’t always play ball with us photographers.

When I checked the weather forecast the day before, I got a bit of a shock. Not only was there a torrential rainstorm expected, but also lightning and thunder! I couldn’t do that to the poor couple. So a quick ring to Lauren and an unexpected question, “Hey, do you wanna do the shoot tonight instead?”

And just like that, the shoot was saved. I’m still so grateful to them both for being so spontaneous and fun!

Luckily we were bathing in this sunlight, and with Lauren’s dress and the flowers, I’m already getting some romantic wedding vibes from this shoot! I can picture it all already! Well, the location is probably the main contributor. I mean this is one of the best hotspots for intimate weddings in County Cork (one I’m actually booked for next year – can’t wait!).

After all the glorious sunset photos at St Finbarr’s, the cloud cover did come over as we headed into the forest.

Originating from Limerick, Michael met Lauren abroad in Canada and have now moved back to Ireland, staying in Cork city. Lauren was so unaccustomed to our entire lack of predatory animals in our wildlife, always looking out for bears and other creatures we thankfully don’t have! Always good to be on the lookout though!

5-star Google Review

I received this lovely review from Lauren, who said;

“My fiance and I had a great time doing our photoshoot with Jannik, he made us feel at ease and we absolutely love the photos!”

I can’t wait for my next shoot in this area, so if you want to make my day and want to do a couple shoot similar to this in Gougane Barra, do say hello to me here.

And remember, besides couples photography, I also photograph the following:

• Wedding Photography Shoots in Cork

• Proposal Photography in Cork

• Adventure Family Photography and Couples Photography in Cork

• and more!

Ali and Maha Proposal - Proposal Photographer Bell's Field /  by Jan

As seen on the Irish Examiner and Yay Cork.

I do video now??

I’m no stranger to photographing proposals, like this one for example. The element of surprise is obviously very important when it comes to proposals. You don’t want the unsuspecting partner to notice you, the photographer, before the question has been asked. So this means that usually I’m hidden somewhere in the bushes with a telephoto lens and am stalking the couple like a hunter. Haha!

This one was a little different though. With this one Ali, asked me if we could do the proposal at Bell’s Field, which was the location of their first date!

Ali is from New York and got in contact with me a few months ago, planning this surprise proposal on his holidays to Ireland. The plan was for me to pretend like I’m just a photographer taking some sunset shots and that he would come up to me and ask a kind stranger to take some belated graduation photos of his girlfriend, as they didn’t get around to it earlier in the day.

By sheer coincidence, just as I was hovering around them, waiting for Ali to approach me, she mentioned what a shame it was that they didn’t get any graduation photos earlier. It was the perfect cue for Ali to jump up and approach me and for me to pretend like I had no clue what was going on.

I’d say at this stage, I’ll just let the video do the rest of the talking and make sure you wait to see the crowd’s reaction!

Proposal Video

The great thing about this style of capturing the proposal is that I didn’t have to be hidden. That makes it easier on one hand because I don’t have to anticipate they’re exact spot. I can actually tell them where to go. I just had to concentrate on not blurting out, “Hey Ali!” as soon as I saw him. Luckily my acting skills were up to par and it all played out perfectly.

5-star Google review

Ali clearly though I did a good job too, since I received this amazing 5-star Google review from him, which I also believe is the longest review I have every received from anyone:

“If you are searching the web for photographers for your event, and you have the opportunity to read my review, then consider this the ultimate sign that you should book Jan asap!

I had hired Jan to help me out with a surprise proposal to my girlfriend in Cork. He was very quick to get back to me, and agreed to do everything that the proposal needed at a very reasonable rate.

I should mention here that at the last minute, I had to shift the date of my proposal and Jan agreed to still pull through, even though it was date of his wedding anniversary. You will not be able to get that sort of professionalism and courtesy anywhere!

So yes, the proposal day finally arrived, and Jan played a huge role in pulling off the big surprise! The video came out so nice, and the photo shoot that followed was amazing. My fiance and I were over the moon with the results and everyone who saw the photos complimented them, and appreciated how nice they looked!

So good results, professional, quick turnaround times (he got us the photos a day before schedule) and all around a great company to have at your event. What else could you ask for?

It's been an absolute pleasure working with Jan and reporting back the awesome results!”

If you’d like me to photograph your proposal, say hi to me here. I’d love to hear from you!

And remember, besides proposal photography, I also photograph the following:

• Adventure Couple Shoots in Cork

• Wedding Photography in Cork

• Newborn Baby Photography in Cork

• and more!