Liz and Paul met me at the National Cathedral for their DC engagement session. The weather was warm and pleasant and Liz and Paul were so easy going and fun to photograph! I love that they chose such a gorgeous feat of architecture for their session and the Bishop’s Garden was also just brimming with blooms and lush greens. The National Cathedral is a modern American interpretation of 14th Century English Gothic architecture, assembled using Old World techniques that I used to teach my Art History students about a decade ago as well. It’s scaffolding is also a present reminder of the infamous “East Coast Earthquake” as it’s still under construction to repair the damage.

Walking around the grounds was a wonderful experience and stunning at that. But how about Liz and Paul? Their story is equally as sweet and I’m thrilled to share it from both Liz and Pauls’ perspectives now and can’t wait for their Great Marsh wedding next year!

Their story from Liz:

“We matched on Bumble while Paul was in DC for a college roommate’s wedding. We didn’t meet up while he was here, but kept in touch. He was an amusing texter and I liked talking to him. Eventually, he convinced me to meet him in Baltimore for an Orioles game and I (hesitantly) agreed.

Before the game, we decided to meet for a drink at a bar. Coincidentally, he chose the bar that my parents first met at in the 70s. I took that as a good sign and we had a great day. We started dating long distance (going back and forth between DC and NYC), and we racked up a lot of Amtrak points. It was fun, but also pretty hard. When Covid hit in March 2020, we weren’t sure when we would be able to travel again. A few weeks into the pandemic, Paul came down to DC thinking he’d stay for a few weeks while things calmed down. Paul has been here ever since and he proposed in December 2021 at the same bar we (and my parents) met at!”

Their story from Paul:

“Liz and I met through a dating app when I came down from New York to DC for a wedding in May 2019. We started talking on the phone. Our first call was when I was walking home through East Harlem late at night after playing in a soccer game. I was so distracted I got lost! In June, we met “in the middle” for the first time for a Baltimore Orioles baseball game. I looked for a bar to meet at before the game and somewhat randomly suggested Peter’s Pour House. It looked like a low-key dive bar and I was hoping it wasn’t too grubby for our first meeting.

When I walked in, Liz had a very reserved look on her face. Now I was hoping she wasn’t disappointed or regretting coming up from DC! After a while, she told me her parents had met at Peter’s years ago, which I took as a good sign… but I had no idea how good. I forgot my sunscreen at the bar, so we had to buy seats in the shade where I wouldn’t get burned. I felt comfortable with Liz right away and loved how we could just sit together taking in the day without feeling the need to fill every empty space in the conversation or impress each other.

After that first meeting, we started seeing each other long distance every couple weeks in New York and DC. When Covid started, I came down to DC for a weekend… and never left! We helped each other survive the pandemic even as it upended our lives along with everyone else’s. We settled into a routine, going on hikes and road trips, exploring the city, and keeping each other company. Eventually, I gave up my New York apartment. When I was ready to pop the question, I told Liz to pack a change of clothes and took her back to Baltimore. She likes to be surprised within reason, so she knew what was happening but I didn’t tell her any of the details.

After crab cake egg rolls at Papi’s, we made our way to Peter’s. There were a few people in the pub who had no idea what was going on. We were both nervous and needed a few minutes to calm down, but fortunately she said yes. We spent the night at the Ivy, a historic mansion renovated into a swanky boutique hotel. The next day, we went to her dad’s house to celebrate the good news. A few weeks later, we visited Great Marsh (after she convinced me it wasn’t too far away to check out). We loved it right away and can’t wait to get married there!”

Keep scrolling for more images from their National Cathedral engagement session!

Michelle with Lieb Photographic is a Northern Virginia Wedding Photographer, a Charlottesville Wedding Photographer and photographs destinations worldwide. To see more weddings and engagement sessions in the Washington DC area, view the Washington DC Wedding Venues page. If you’d like to explore some more of my favorite wedding venues in the Virginia and Washington D.C. areas, view the Wedding Venues page.