Where you should do your Engagement Photos in San Francisco

If you found this blog post I’m assuming you have a shiny new rock on your hand and are brimming with excitement. Chances are you’ve already started your Pinterest boards and have been scouting for San Francisco engagement locations. I am happy to tell you that I am a born and raised San Francisco native who knows all the secret spots and best places to do engagement photos. Our whole team is!

We love all of these choices equally and it just comes down to a matter of preference and the vibes that you want. Most of my couples use their engagement photos for their save the dates or wedding invitations so think about what kind of emotions you want to portray when you invite your friends and family to your wedding. Does the ocean make you feel at peace? Do big redwood trees make you swoon? Regardless of what makes you feel all the feels there is a spot in San Francisco that is perfect to have your couples session.

Shakespeare Garden and Golden Gate Park

I think that Golden Gate Park is one of the first places that people think of when they are thinking about where they should do their engagement photos in San Francisco. And for good reason! You can take a boat out to Stowe lake and get some beautiful photos that way, hang out in front of the D Young along the tree line path, or find hidden gems like Shakespeare garden. I have spent probably 100 hours since I started doing engagement photography looking for the perfect spots. There’s a place for everyone in Golden Gate Park no matter the type of background you want. Golden Gate Park is considered quintessential San Francisco and is a very romantic place to do engagement photos. Here is a session that I documented they’re not that long ago. We started off in Shakespeare’s garden and wandered to the California Academy of sciences and it was absolutely perfect. Of course, it was a foggy and cold rainy day But it fit the vibe of their engagement session perfectly which was BoHo and Foresty. Click here to see a Golden Gate Park Engagement Photo Session!

Lovers Lane in Presidio Park, San Francisco

Lovers lane is adequately named and is the perfect spot for whimsical and airy engagement photos. During golden hour, the sun filters through the trees to create a golden glow to the entire area. Marked by it’s lines in the ground it is an incredibly peaceful and remote part of the Presidio, which is perfect for engagement photos. If you dig really tall trees and feeling like you are not in the city and instead immersed in the middle of a beautiful forest, lovers Lane, also known as the Woodline by Andy Goldsworthy is a perfect spot for engagement photos in San Francisco. 

Crissy Field 

Crissy Field has some of the best views in all of San Francisco. It also has a wide variety of landscapes… From the large grassy area to having sand between your toes with bridge views it is unmatched. Crissy Field is of the most popular dog walking areas in San Francisco so if you want to bring your dog to your engagement session, definitely consider Crissy Field. My high school was actually located in the Presidio so I have deeply fond memories of Chrissy Field because it was a hop skip and a jump away from my school. I often came here to eat lunch on my lunch break and always found that the ocean brought me solace and peace. As an adult, it still holds a very special place in my heart and is definitely a spot worth considering for engagement photos. The beach is one of the nicest in San Francisco too! But don’t expect to come in a short skirt and go swimming – the water is coooold and there’s normally a very brisk wind chill.

Golden Gate Bridge

As an engagement and wedding photographer in San Francisco Golden gate Bridge is one of the most requested places to do engagement photos. And for good reason! It is a world renowned landmark that is architecturally unmatched and provides sweeping views of the San Francisco Bay and Pacific ocean. If the ocean is always calling your name and it makes you feel at home, it doesn’t get much better than the Golden gate Bridge. Click here to see more from their Golden Gate Bridge engagement session

Palace of Fine Arts

With bold architecture and a stunning pond in front of it, it’s a beautiful place for engagement photos. The Palace of Fine Arts has a lengthy history so for historical buffs – don’t write the Palace of Fine Arts off for your engagement session. This is a good spot for an engagement photos if you also don’t mind being surrounded by a lot of people. It is tourist city here and it is difficult to find a spot that feels romantic and peaceful. If you’re not deterred by that – let’s chat! The most popular spot where the above photo was taken we waited for 5 minutes in a line to take a few photos. Mostly tourists taking selfies, but it’s definitely worth the wait. This spot is easily the prettiest angle of the Palace of Fine Arts in my opinion and it’s always very humbling to shoot wedding photos or engagement photos here.

I hope you found this article useful! And of course, if you love our work and are looking to get engagement photos done we’d love to chat more. Get in touch by using the button below and we can’t wait to make magic with you and document such an important time in your life.