The newlywed husband/wife photography + video team of Dayton and Heather Isbell have been working together since they met three years ago. Now the duo has ventured out to start Isbell Creative, which combines their love of photography and graphic design. They’ve shot their way through 18 states and 2 countries to boot. When we asked about their all-time fave pic, they said it was from a series of engagement photos shot at Mildale Farm. “Some people might call it magical looking,” says Heather Isbell. “I just call it being bit by a sh*t ton of mosquitos as I laid down in the wet grass to capture it.”
Here’s how the illustrious shot came together:
“This photo is unedited and straight off of the camera. The sunset and bugs flying just seemed to be perfect timing. When I originally framed this photo, the couple was just leaning against a tree. Nothing new there—but as I stepped back, it took on a whole new look. It almost seems like the bugs are framing a path to them. This photo just feels like the perfect moment in an imperfect setting. There were bugs flying in our face, the trees looked dead in the background, the ground was wet, and the air was cold. I had not planned for all of those things combined to work out, but the second I hit the shutter I was like—nailed it! And it has been my favorite photo ever since. That is the cool part about being a photographer is you can make a moment look even better than reality through a lens.”