Rachel Mae Smith, the blogger and creator behind The Crafted Life, first met Ryan while he was visiting friends in her home city of Philadelphia. They matched on Tinder and quickly embarked on a long distance relationship before Rachel decided to make the move to Brooklyn. Ryan proposed on International Women’s Day with a full view of Manhattan in the background!

New York is often portrayed as dark and moody, but that’s far from their aesthetic. The two of them love color and see the city as a joyful, vibrant place. We met up just after sunrise early on a Sunday morning in May to capture a nearly empty Washington Square Park, the West Village, and the some colorful murals. Rachel and Ryan added an extra pop of cheer with some yellow balloons! Aside from some ambitious NYU grads getting photos, we basically had the city to ourselves. The rain held off until a few minutes after we wrapped our session! I had the best time with these two! Read more about their story here on Green Wedding Shoes!

Love that tiny view of the Empire State Building in the background!

Such a lovely sunrise glow behind the buildings!

The photos in front of this all white building were shot on the iconic Gay Street in Greenwich Village!

The Color Factory created this mural on a random side street on the Lower East Side. Isn’t it so fun?

This striped mural was right next to Starbucks, aka our final destination. Nothing was open when we met up, so we did this session on zero coffee. What. A. FEAT.

The full mural is pretty amazing! I love that there are a bunch of backdrops in one small space!

Congratulations Rachel and Ryan!!

Vendor Credits:
Photography: Mary Costa Photography
Couple: Rachel Mae Smith @thecraftedlife and Ryan @dawkinzz
Featured on Green Wedding Shoes!