SUZANA + JUSTIN
Victoria Beach, Laguna Engagement Session
Date: 12-14-19
Location: Victoria Beach, Laguna, CA
Suzana and Justin are a young, beautiful couple originally from Texas. Justin is a Captain in the Air Force and Suzana is a Registered Nurse. Their love story started like most relationships, they met through mutual friends and were friends initially for some time. Their long distance relationship eventually blossomed and they hit it off.
Laguna Beach is Suzana and Justin’s favorite beach line in Southern California. They wanted sometime unique and picturesque. Suzana decided with Victoria Beach, which is a hidden gem in Laguna. There is no direct route to the beach from the pacific coast highway. Therefore, parking is a little bit tricky since there are no signs pointing towards the beach. Many of the locals despise visitors from parking not the neighboring streets. So I recommend that you find parking right on the Pacific Coast Highway, but this may get crowded during the summer. Winter is the best time to schedule photo shoots, there are less visitors and spectators.
There are two entry points from Victoria Drive and Wards Terrace. There are no public restrooms, so we recommend brining a pop-up changing tent for your couples. The last option is to take the trolley from Treasure Island or the Main Beach.
We decided to park right on Pacific Coast Highway and walk down between the homes. If you park north of Victoria Beach Dr., you can walk down McAulay Place or Sunset Terrace and it will lead you to a Public Stairway to the beach. Not far of a walk at all, just be careful of the cars coming around the corners.
We were so lucky because the past few weeks it had been pouring down like cats and dogs in Southern California. There was also a slight chance that it might rain near the coast that day. I’ve always been lucky with the weather and it has never rained on me yet. The day was just perfect! There was a slight overcast which gave us some diffused light. This spot is definitely a hidden gem. There were a few people on the beach but no where near crowded as the Main Beach.
Suzana and Justin wanted to start the engagement shoot wearing her nurse scrubs and Justin’s military uniform. I actually loved this idea because it’s an important part of how they moved here in Southern California. They briefly met through mutual friends in Texas, but then Justin was transferred to a new duty station in Southern California. They eventually reconnected and started a long distance relationship. Their relationship kept building and they made the decision to move in together. This meant that Suzana had to move all the way to California from Texas. What a big leap of faith! The rest is history!
After taking some natural light photos, we made our way towards the tide pool and the pirate tower. The Pirate Tower is slightly north of the beach. You won’t be able to see it from the entrance of the beach. The tide pools were amazing. We were able to capture some dynamic photos with flash there.
The Pirate Tower is an interesting sight, the tower was built in the early 1900s and it’s still standing to this day. The tower is located north of the beach, you will have to walk over a section of rocky terrain to make your way to the tide pools and pirate tower.
It was simply an awesome day to spend some time with Justin and Suzana, we absolutely love their positivity on life and infectious enthusiasm. Dolly and I are so glad to have connected with them. We are so looking forward to their wedding in July. Love you guys!
Here’s a highlight video of their engagement session at Victoria Beach.
