Kate & Josh
Goddard Park, East Greenwich, Rhode Island
July 13th, 2025
I've always felt the purpose of an engagement is to help make a couple comfortable with me before their wedding day so that their photos on said day are much easier. But, because most times my couples do their engagement sessions a year or further away from their wedding, I'm never quite sure how much of what I told them will stick and whether or not we'll be starting from scratch on the day they say "I do."
Thankfully, I can guarantee that won't be the case for Kate and Josh and their July engagement session as Goddard Park in East Greenwich, Rhode Island took place just three weeks before they were set to become husband and wife.
Now, you may be thinking: Why bother with an engagement session if your wedding day is so close? Because, as I said, the point of these sessions for a bride and groom is to break the ice and get comfortable with their photographer before they head down the aisle and while it may have been an awkward start, I know by the time Kate, Josh and I left Goddard Park, we felt like we knew each other for years and that, my friends, is how you know you had a great session.
Right from the start of my time with Kate and Josh, I could tell this was a couple that was a little uncomfortable in front of the camera: Mostly because they explicitly told me that. But, as is often the case with engagement sessions, it's not how you start, it's how finish that matters and I knew even with an awkward beginning for these two, Goddard Park was so beautiful on this particular summer evening that we couldn't help but get great photos.
And, thankfully, the longer Kate, Josh and I worked together, the more comfortable they got.
I always love shooting at Goddard Park but my favorite days in this particular location are ones where the sun is present but not directly on top of you.
Kate and Josh's engagement session took place on one of those days and I knew the photos would be beautiful, particularly the ones on the iconic Goddard Park pedestrian bridge, one of my favorite spots for a couple to pose.
I've shot a LOT of engagement sessions at Goddard Park but what I love is the location is so big and diverse you can literally go years in between taking photos in the same spot. So when Kate and Josh told me they wanted to do a little hiking and take some photos on the well-worn horse trail behind the park's boat launch location, I said "Hell yeah."
I couldn't tell you the last time I was in this particular part of the park but, honestly, I might need to make it a regular spot for my couples as it was stunning and led to some of my favorite photos of the entire day for Kate and Josh.
As Kate, Josh and I exited the horse trail, I took a look at my watch and knew we only had about a half hour of usable light left but I had two locations I wanted to hit before we called it a day.
So, what does a good photographer do in that situation? Choose the best one? Absolutely not. He gets his couple in their car and speed runs through the next location so that there's enough time to wrap the session up at the beach.
And, of course, the shots of Kate and Josh on this hill I had scoped out prior to the session would prove to be my favorites of their day. Because that's just how it works sometimes.
With three great spots down, the only thing Kate, Josh and I had left to do was hit the beach for sunset and I'm so glad we did as it was the perfect place to wrap this session as the colors in the sky started to fade.
As my time with Kate and Josh came to an end, I couldn't help but smile as I thought about how much fun we had on an absolutely beautiful day at Goddard Park.
Beyond that, though, I was immediately thrilled that their wedding is just a few weeks away because I know we can not only match the energy of this session but exceed it.
So, thank you Kate and Josh for a great way to spend a summer evening and I can't wait to do it all over again very, very shortly. See you soon! :)
-Paul J. Spetrini
