Best Engagement Session Locations in St. Louis

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again–Missouri is so underrated when it comes to photography.

There’s so much beauty here and the city is no exception. St. Louis boasts so many fun and beautiful locations for engagement sessions that finding one is easy regardless of what you’re looking for. My engagement sessions are 90 minutes long, which means we’ll have time for two locations. I always encourage my clients to choose a location that’s special to them, like the bar they met at or their favorite date night activity. But for the other location, a lot of my couples struggle to think of good options. If that sounds like you, you’re in the right place!

1. FOREST PARK

This is my #1 pick for so many reasons. This park makes the top 0.5% in the US for largest urban parks, so there’s honestly something at Forest Park for every single client of mine. You’ve got lush green landscapes, rolling hills, open fields, waterfalls, running rivers and creeks, heavily forested areas, bridges of all types, architecture, covered areas, fountains, wildlife… and I’m pretty sure I’m forgetting some big ones here, but you catch my drift. Some of my favorite spots in Forest Park are Deer Lake Riffles, the World’s Fair Pavilion, and the path back to the Victorian Footbridge, where I’ve seen a wild otter swimming in the river! About 50% of my engagement sessions are done at least partly at Forest Park.

Check out Forest Park’s webpage for more planning info!

2. MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN

Every time one of my couples mention taking their engagement photos at the Botanical Garden, I jump on the chance! Everything there is breathtakingly beautiful. I think I could spend an entire day taking photos in the garden. I typically ask my clients what look they’re going for and I throw out some ideas. We make a plan before we go so we can hit up as many beautiful spots as we can! There’s magic everywhere at MOBOT and every time of year looks great there. The price of admission gets you way more backdrops than any studio could offer!

Be sure to check out Missouri Botanical Garden’s website for more information.

3. LAFAYETTE SQUARE

I love a good Lafayette Park / Clementine’s combo! Lafayette Square’s Victorian homes surround a large urban park where you can see lots of nature and even a pair of swans, usually swimming around in the grotto. I typically talk my engaged couples into walking a couple of blocks down the street from the park (taking photos the whole time, because the neighborhood is adorable) and they grab a few scoops of whatever delicious ice cream Clementine’s has in their rotation that day for more photos. Sometimes they even buy me some, which is such a treat!

If you want more information on these locations within Lafayette Square, check out Lafayette Park’s website and Clementine’s website.

4. GATEWAY ARCH GROUNDS

Did you know that the Gateway Arch is actually a National Park??? And on top of that, it’s the smallest national park in the US. Thankfully, they don’t require a permit or fee for portrait photography, so it’s easy to pop by for a few photos even without a lot of planning. The arch is surrounded by gardens, trees, and grassy areas and the base of the arch is beautiful with the river or skyline in the background.

And yes, all of these photos are from wedding portraits at the Arch, but engagement photos look great there, too… plus you can always pop by Laclede’s Landing next door for more unique photos!

Here’s the Gateway Arch National Park webpage for more information!

5. DOWNTOWN PARKING GARAGES

I’m sure this one sounds pretty weird, but there are two parking garages that I love to take my clients to. They create a kind of grungey, city feel and feature the most prominent part of the St. Louis skyline–the arch. I’ve done so many engagement shoots and even wedding portraits in some of the local parking garages! Parking is $4-5 per car–just make sure there are no Cards games going on that day!

6. ST. LOUIS PUBLIC LIBRARY – CENTRAL LIBRARY

Central Library is one of my absolute favorite places to shoot during the colder months. You can get a permit for an hour of indoor engagement photos (yes, inside the library!) and the exterior of the library is absolutely beautiful with the brass gates in the front, stone steps and architecture, and a fountain. There’s a small park across the street and city views all around. It’s perfect for winter photos since there isn’t much greenery around the library, so you usually can’t tell how cold it is.

More info on Central Library can be found here.

7. TOWER GROVE PARK

I’ve shot at Tower Grove Park a handful of times and I’ve even captured TWO proposals there, but I haven’t even begun to explore all of the beautiful spots there! It’s always fun to cruise through before my session and pick out the places we want to visit depending on the lighting. There are tons of gardens, pavilions, natural landscapes, and the ruins in the middle of the park to add plenty of variety to your engagement photos.

Check out more on Tower Grove Park’s website!

8. SOULARD

I’ll be honest–the only time I’ve actually photographed a couple in Soulard is after their ceremony at Sts. Peter and Paul Church, and it NEVER disappoints. You can’t go wrong surrounded by historic brick buildings, stone architecture, and inevitably a bunch of bar hoppers who want to get their photo taken with you.

READY TO BOOK YOUR ENGAGEMENT SESSION?

Contact me here and we’ll get to planning the most unique and fun engagement photos you can imagine!