Nestled deep in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains in the northeast corner of Tennessee is Johnson City. Johnson City is where I’ve called home since late 2018. Despite living here, I don’t feel like I do that much photography right in Johnson City. I travel all over the southeastern US and beyond for photography, but it felt good to stay right at home base for this engagement photography session.
Caitlin reached out to me about photographing her engagement session with her fiance, Ian. Just like me, they had moved to Johnson City a few years ago. She informed me that they had never had professional photos done together, but I would have never known. They were so photogenic together!
We started our session right outside the old London’s building in downtown Johnson City. I have no idea what this building was used for originally, but boy is it cool. The original London’s building has long been closed, but its iconic sign remains. Next time you’re heading down East Market Street toward King Common’s Park, look up as you cross the railroad tracks and you’ll see the large London’s sign looking down at you.
Now the London’s building is home to a few apartments, a bike store, and a restaurant.
One of the things Caitlin told me when we were planning their engagement photography session was how she wanted to get some photos in the alleys between the city streets. Thankfully, Johnson City has some very cool alleys that are lined with red brick and copper roofing.
As we walked down the alley, I had Ian spin Caitlin, and then he pulled her in for a kiss. You could see how happy they were together as they goofed off with each other. They were practically cracking up at each other the whole session!
Check out this slide show of our photos in one of the Johnson City alleys.
After leaving the alley, we walked to the corner of East Main Street and South Roan Street to get a few “city” pictures. Although Johnson City is small, from the right angles it gives off much bigger city vibes. It is a very cute downtown that makes you feel like you’re walking through the set of Gilmore Girls. I don’t think Caitlin or Ian were too concerned with the scenery around them. They were too busy staring into each other’s eyes.
Downtown Johnson City Engagement Photography
We continued to walk around the downtown Johnson City streets, getting some really nice images on the sidewalk, as well as a really cool shot right in the middle of East Market Street. Neither Caitlin or Ian could contain their smiles as they looked at each other. We finished our session under the famous Johnson City, Tennessee sign at King Commons Park. We finished right on time too, as the rain that had been threatening the whole session finally started to come down. I absolutely loved this session. Thank you so much to both Caitlin and Ian for having me be their downtown Johnson City engagement photographer.
If you are looking to have engagement or proposal photos in or near downtown Johnson City, please don’t hesitate to contact me to be your photographer here.
