Minnesota Wedding Photographer and International Photojournalist
Jerusalem (Old City), Jerusalem, Israel | Taken: October 1, 2007 | Camera: Canon EOS 20D, ISO: 100, Exposure Time: 1/1250, f/2.8

Christal and Eric’s Engagement Pictures

August 1, 2007 by Preston Palmer

The day the 35W Bridge Collapsed!

This is an interesting Engagement Photography Story… I took Christal and Eric’s engagement pictures AFTER they were married due to scheduling conflicts by both of us, and because they booked me as their wedding photographer very close to their awesome wedding date of 7/7/07. Christal and Eric's Engagement Pictures I took them to one of my favorite places, a section of rail road tacks in Coon Rapids, Minnesota. It is a very busy section of track where it is rare if a train is not seen every 15 minutes or so. Moving trains and train tracks almost always make a good backdrop for Engagement Pictures. Take a look at Adiel and Tiffany’s Engagement Pictures at the rail road tracks in Stillwater, Minnesota.

“I should have realized something was wrong when I didn’t see a train for over an hour, and my cell phone started ringing like crazy…”

I ignored all the calls at first, and then finally picked up the phone once I realized I was receiving call from people I hadn’t heard from in years! I was hysterically notified that the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis had collapsed. Everyone was calling to see if I was alive as I typically drive over the 35W Bridge 4 times a day. It turns out that I drove over the 35W Bridge on the way to this photo shoot approximately 30 minutes before the bridge collapsed, and Christal and Eric around 15 minutes before it collapsed. Huh, guess I am glad we rescheduled this shoot at the last minute. As for the lack of train traffic, the bridge collapsed on the same track line which we were taking our pictures. We ended the engagement session a little early to see if we could go and see the collapsed bridge.

Regardless, we did get some great engagement pictures, as you can see in the gallery below.

Click here for Christal and Eric’s Wedding Pictures
Click here for Christal’s Maternity Pictures

4 comments

1 I-35W Bridge Collapses - 13 Dead — PRESTON PALMER { 03.27.08 at 5:53 pm }

[...] was international news! I drove over the bridge 30 minutes before it collapsed.  I was taking Engagement Pictures of Christal and Eric at the time of the collapse. They went over the bridge 15 minutes before it fell.  Kinda freaky [...]

2 A Beautiful Wedding in St. Paul, Minnesota — PRESTON PALMER { 03.28.08 at 12:35 pm }

[...] Click to see Christal and Eric’s Engagement Pictures 123► [...]

3 I-35W Bridge Collapses - 13 Dead — PRESTON PALMER { 03.28.08 at 12:57 pm }

[...] was international news! I drove over the bridge 30 minutes before it collapsed. I was taking Engagement Pictures of Christal and Eric at the time of the collapse. They went over the bridge 15 minutes before it fell. Kinda freaky [...]

4 Spontaneous Engagement Pictures — PRESTON PALMER { 03.28.08 at 5:54 pm }

[...] Rail Road Tracks make a great background for engagement pictures, another good example is Christal and Eric’s Engagement Pictures [...]