I get reeeeeeally excited when one of my past dating photography clients reaches out to tell me “I’ve met someone!”. It’s happening more and more as time goes on!
This particular “I’ve met someone” situation is especially fun because I loved Galen from the moment we met in Fremont for his Level Up dating photoshoot. We were fast friends.
When Galen first contacted me about doing a dating photoshoot I asked what was going on for him with dating — had he had a recent break-up, change in his appearance, was he getting back on the apps for the first time in a while, not excited about the matches he was getting….
He said: all of the above.
He shared some of the shots he had been using as his dating profile photos and they weren’t bad! But they also weren’t great.
Ok, a bunch of shots from this one ocean cliff hike (all with sunglasses). A Rosie the Riveter tattoo moment. And a CrossFit shot.
And here we go, a cute dog! Turns out, it is his sister’s dog and he doesn’t own a dog so…better not to use those photos on his dating profile (here’s how to decide whether to include a dog photo on your dating profile).
Since Galen already had some solid dating photos (so, we weren’t building his dating profile from scratch), we opted for the Level-Up dating photography package.
We made plans to do Galen’s photoshoot in Fremont, focusing on portraits and lifestyle photography to build out his Hinge profile. The goal: first, to properly show off what Galen looks like (he’s cute!), and second, to capture some of his bright and playful personality.
Here’s a peek at some of my favorite shots from Galen’s professional dating photography session…
A highlight from Galen’s dating photography session: He shaved his beard in the middle of the photoshoot!
Many clients over the years have discussed shaving partway through their dating photoshoot (so they end up with dating photos that have different facial hair situations) but Galen was the first to actually do it.
The shave was quick and dirty on the side of the road, using the car window as a mirror; it was hilarious and perfect:
Now, I love a good facial hair transformation. Like LOVE it. The various in-between beard and mustache combos, it’s too good!
When I asked Galen to slow down and let me get some shots before we got all the way down to stubble he was totally game. And not only that, his attitude and persona morphed to match his facial hair, lol! I don’t know if I have ever laughed this hard on a photoshoot.
Here are a few highlights (a little bit sexy dirtbag, a hint of Freddy Mercury, I was squealing with delight!).
Ok so you’re getting a little bit of a sense of Galen, right? He’s playful, he’s not taking himself too seriously, and if you’ve got an idea for some mischief, he’s all in. Bottom line, Galen is FUN.
A lot of what I do when I’m photographing people for their online dating profiles is to get to know, and then capture their real personality. For some people that requires a little bit of coaxing, reassuring, inviting. For Galen, it was easy because he just fully showed up as himself for his dating photoshoot. This is the best possible scenario for dating photography and I think the proof is in Galen’s photos.
After his Fremont dating photoshoot Galen did this little dating profile reset, and then uploaded his new dating photos to Hinge.
Spoiler alert: He met Ashley VERY quickly.
Two of Galen’s Hinge photos are ones he already had, and the other four came from our Fremont dating photoshoot.
I asked Ashley what she thought when she first encountered Galen on Hinge, how did he seem? Ashley said:
Ashley also said:
Here’s Galen on meeting Ashley:
“We matched on a Tuesday night and had some really funny back and forth banter. I asked her out that night for a date the next day! I invited her to Chuck’s Hop Shop and when we met she confessed that she didn’t like beer. Which, of course, is ridiculous because she should have told me and we could have gone somewhere else, but she claims she didn’t know what hops were!
We hung out there awhile and chatted before we went down the street to Communion for a night cap and to indulge in their amazing banana cream pudding. I bought 4 more banana cream puddings to-go (they come in these perfect little mason jars) and apparently that sent Ashley over the edge because we shared an amazing first kiss before saying goodnight.”
The banana cream pudding goodnight kiss!? C’mon 🥰.
Also proof that you don’t have to pick the perfect first-date spot!
Ashley’s version of their first (and second) date:
“Our first date is funny, I don’t drink beer so of course I didn’t know what a hop shop was! I thought it was a cutesy bar or café.
For our second date, we were at a restaurant and were so busy chatting that we missed our name being called to be seated! We haven’t stopped chatting and giggling ever since.”
I linked up with Galen and Ashley at Three Forks Park in North Bend for some lovey couples photos and to capture a bit of this moment in their love story (these photos are going to very fun to look back on).
Since our couples photoshoot, Galen & Ashley have moved in together, met each others families (!!!), and are making plans to live abroad in 2025.
Ashley says:
Welp, there it is! Another happy couple who met with a little help from yours truly in the dating photography game 🙌🏻.
When you’re ready to play for keeps on dating apps, when you’re ready to see what happens on Hinge or Bumble when you put your best foot forward with quality online dating photos, give me a shout! I would love to meet you.
Reach out about professional dating photgraphy
I help people find love on dating apps like Hinge and Bumble. My superpower as a professional dating profile photographer is less about photography skills and more about my way with people. I make regular folks look confident, warm, totally genuine, and effortlessly magnetic in their online dating photos by making them *feel* confident, warm, and magnetic in real life.
