Wikipedia defines “duel” as an “arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons”. I’ve got an engagement, two people, and weapons that shot, so here’s your insane engagement shoot in Queens!
Last week, I flew back to NYC from my 3-week, 22,000-mile trip to Moldova, Georgia (Caucasus mountains), and San Francisco, CA. There were two cool shoots for me the following day, so I spent the night at a friend’s place and then headed out to an insane engagement shoot in Queens.
Bring the Insane!
How insane? It was the messiest engagement photoshoot, and I’ve got a fair share of crazy ones in my engagement portfolio! I’ve had my engaged couples cover themselves in mud and body paint, mess up their kitchens, get rusty and stinky in abandoned jails and recycle centers, go into the Dominican Republic’s jungle swamps and Mexican underwater caves, and even fight on an apocalyptic stage, but no one water-gunned each other with colored liquids and powder, later sprinkling the champagne foam all over the bodies…
Insane Engagement Shoot
So meet Nithley and Joshua. She’s a bartender, he’s a personal trainer—feeling the potential there already? When we discussed their engagement photoshoot, they asked for nothing traditional but extravagant with lots of fun and raw moments.
They suggested a place in Astoria Park, Queens, under a bridge away from the main park traffic, helpful for any insane engagement shoot. We met in a parking lot and chugged a load of props and supplies, including two heavy canisters with water.
Once on location, I did a few portraits before getting messy. With only two hours at our disposal and a ton of fun activities in our heads, they needed to be quick.
These are just the studio’s favorites, not the full gallery. Kindly refrain from re-uploading images to social media during the first week of the feature. “Share” instead and give credit to @ZorzStudios!
Then, the preparations started. As we were setting this all up, we already drew some attention from a few people. They could smell something brewing!
The insane engagement shoot idea was indeed around a duel. So, here are the opponents’ back-to-back portraits:
The judge, truly yours, gave a signal. The duelyants counted five steps, pumped their water guns, turned around, and—swish, boom, bam! Oh, that was epic! All the primary instincts set loose. (Well, Josh turned out to be a kind person and to add a bit of brutality to his face, I kind of smacked him to get him a little more aggressive. Old school theater prep…)
Holi Molly
Leveling up, they got their color powder packets out. It’s the ones that are widely used in India for the Holi, the Festival of Colours, Love, and Spring. I once used that powder for a Bollywood star in training in an abandoned mansion. This time, however, my insane engagement shoot stars were already wet, so the powder got even messier on their skin.
And for the grand finale, they celebrated the tie (Nithley believed she won, though, judging by her cheer). The guys popped the champagne corks, having shaken the bottles wildly beforehand. I then asked them to give me a “drunken pirate walk”. Leaving no doubts about trashing the dress, our bride requested her sleeves to be mercilessly ripped off.
Behind the Scenes
I wish we had someone film that ordeal… This is one of the cases when videography could beat photography. I bet those bystanders got their share of TikTok material for some insane engagement shoot.
Client’s Feedback
Oh my… I foresaw positive feedback, but what Nithley wrote to me after seeing the blog melted my heart. With her permission, here’s the quote:
