Luxury Downtown Engagement Photos at the Detroit Athletic Club
When your brother & sister-in-law’s friends ask you to take their engagement photos in downtown Detroit, the answer is ALWAYS a resounding yes! I got to photograph Collin + Gabriella’s engagement in Detroit on one of my many visits back to Michigan to see family, and boy am I glad our schedules were able to line up because let me tell you, this session was pure magic! If puppies, pizza, city views, and a wildly in-love couple sounds like a good combo to you, then spoiler alert: you’d be right 😉 Enjoy this beautiful series of luxury downtown engagement photos at the Detroit Athletic Club & La Lanterna Pizzeria!
Downtown Detroit Engagement Photos with Collin + Gabriella
Cozy moments at home with their fur babies
It’s my favorite thing ever when couples spend their engagement session doing something they love to do together in their regular lives, like reading the newspaper and drinking coffee while wearing cozy slippers & snuggling on the couch. Before we left for the city, I snapped a few photos of Collin and Gabriella enjoying slow moments at home with their fur babies – and of course I had to show you a quick photo of said fur babies before I move onto the main portion of this session! When I tell you that I almost snuck these puppies home to Seattle with me🥹
Luxury engagement photos at the Detroit Athletic Club
Pro tip: if you love the look of your wedding venue, ask if they’ll let you take your engagement photos on-site like Collin and Gabriella did! They were going to be getting married at the Detroit Athletic Club, and loved the architecture + design of the venue so much that they decided to take engagement photos there, as well. The vibe for this session was urban luxury – classy outfits, an elegant setting, and gorgeous interior design + architecture – and I can confirm that we were absolutely, 100% successful in bringing that to life!
Gabriella wore the most spectacular satin, champagne-colored gown with a pair of pointy off-white heels & chunky pearl earrings, which basically meant she was going to look stunning anywhere we went. Collin wore a classy dark blue suit that paired seamlessly with the warm champagne tone of Gabriella’s dress and the golden fixtures inside the DAC. Fun fact: because the club is famous for its tradition and elegance, all members are expected to follow a certain dress code – so it’s the perfect place to host a luxurious wedding & invite your guests to dress to the nines!
We explored as many parts of the club as we could; Collin and Gabriella strolling up and down the marble staircases with massive paintings above, lounging around on gorgeous leather couches, and cozying up as they looked at the city from above. I will NEVER get tired of photographing beautiful couples in front of city skylines as the sun sets and the light turns soft✨
If you’re looking for a stunning wedding venue to host all of your guests in downtown Detroit, with plenty of beautiful space to celebrate, a prized culinary team, and an incredibly elegant atmosphere, then the Detroit Athletic Club is a fabulous option!
If you’re looking for a more tropical wedding venue in Michigan filled with greenery, natural light, and lush florals, I highly recommend the Grand Rapids Downtown Market Greenhouse – take a peek at Jess & Walker’s Chic Greenhouse Wedding to see why I love it so much!
Mouthwatering pizza + tasty cocktails at La Lanterna Pizzeria
After another outfit change into an adorable white halter-top dress for Gabriella & a new pair of sleek gray pants for Collin, our next stop was La Lanterna Pizzeria, an authentic, family-owned Italian pizzeria in downtown Detroit – owned by none other than Gabriella’s family! Incorporating this special part of her family’s life into her & Collin’s engagement photos was such a meaningful touch, and a delicious one, too. They munched on the yummiest brick oven pizza and sipped on refreshing cocktails, toasting to this exciting season of their lives in the space that her family has poured so much love into 🥂Flash photography inside of a dim pizzeria might be my new favorite – the vibes were immaculate!
This day in the city with Collin & Gabriella for their Detroit Athletic Club engagement photos was so fun to relive – I hope you adored it just as much as I did!
Detroit Engagement Photographer
I love, LOVE venturing into the big city when I take trips back to Michigan to visit my family, so if you’re looking for a Detroit engagement photographer, I’m your gal & I’ll be there in a heartbeat. Let’s connect and start dreaming up your downtown Detroit engagement session or elopement – maybe we can hit up La Lanterna and grab a bite of that delish pizza that I’ve been craving ever since this session?!
Urban elopements & engagements have a special place in my heart – if you need some extra inspo for your own, browse through a few of my recent city adventures below!
