I've been in the Portland surrounding area for somewhere near 3-4 years now and I'm honestly surprised I haven't stopped into Latourell Falls until my session with Cailyn & Jake. Our aim was to go chasing waterfalls and we did exactly that. Nestled right off the Historic Columbia River Highway, Cailyn, Jake, my son Nilas, and I were able to meet up at the trailhead and within a few steps, we were already able to start shooting with the 249 foot gorge waterfall in the background. After a few simple tester shots, we started up the trail, only to realize that we were headed to the upper portion of the falls. While I'm told there is another small waterfall up the trail, we had eyes set on the mist and drama provided by the lower portion, so back down the slope we went. It was a short trek down the lower trailhead and a few snapshots before we reached an area with a little bridge and a rocky entrance down to the landing of the falls.
When I mentioned to Cailyn and Jake that I believed the best shots would come at the price of being wet and cold, there was no hesitation. These two are... awesome, to say the least. I always get excited to work with adventurous couples, and these two went right down into the rocky, slippery, chilly (mind the fact that there is snow on the ground and this flow of water was likely snow very recently), and we were being blasted by mist and huge beads of water every time the wind picked up. The autofocus was struggling through all the water, but we kept at it with no complaints or worries. The moments between these two were nothing but genuine, dramatic, and raw. The poses weren't set, they were just given a general direction and these two, together, blended into the perfect paint to fill in the scenery and make up an incredible canvas. I got way too happy every time I looked back at my camera preview and I felt even better once the images hit the editing board.
Latourell Falls was the perfect scene for an adventurous and brave couple like Cailyn and Jake, yet incredibly easy to access. I'm so happy we got to chase waterfalls together and I can't wait to capture more of their perfection at their wedding. 🤘