Julie + Garrett | State Park Engagement

The owner & lead photographer here at Aly Matei Photography. I proudly serve outgoing couples who value lively & emotive experiences.

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Nothing can stop true love. I am a firm believer that true love can make it through the toughest of times and longest of distances. Garrett and Julie’s love story definitely confirmed that for me too. These two lovebirds started dating their senior year of high school. After graduating, Garrett moved to San Antonio, Texas where he attended UTSA while Julie stayed local to the Houston area. They stayed strong and kept their relationship moving forward while Garrett was away. He decided to move back to Houston and attend the University of Houston after a year at UTSA. They were able to be together for a year until Julie transferred to SFA in Nacogdoches, Texas where she completed her degree after 3 years. Upon graduation, Julie eagerly moved back to Houston to be back with Garrett. Life threw them a curve ball and Garrett accepted a job down in Corpus Christi, Texas, where once again, they had distance as their biggest challenge. These two did not let distance stop them from growing together. They took every opportunity they had together to travel, explore and become stronger. After 1.5 years out in Corpus, Garrett moved back to Houston and they were FINALLY together.

It wasn’t much long after that Garrett knew it was time to pop the question. I’d tell you the story but honestly, Garrett tells it better here:

I planned a surprise trip to Colorado. I stayed home from work on a Friday and packed both of our bags. When Julie arrived home from work that afternoon I told her to grab her bags and we headed to the airport. She didn’t figure out where we were headed until we got to the airport and printed out our boarding passes. We flew into Denver that night and stayed at a hotel close to the airport. The next morning we got breakfast nearby and then started to make our way to Breckenridge. I arranged to meet a photographer around noon at Sapphire Point which is a roadside scenic lookout just outside of Breckenridge. Luckily in the last hour of the trip Julie had fallen asleep so my nerves were able to calm a bit. We pulled into the parking lot of the lookout and we walked down a 1/4 mile trail to the point. At the point the photographer was there hidden in plain sight pretending to be taking nature shots. We asked him to take our picture and then I got down on one knee…

I mean, HOW FREAKING ADORABLE!? Breckenridge is where Julie said yes, so they named their puppy after the place where their forever began. You can meet Breck below! He is one of the liveliest puppies that I have ever had the pleasure of photographing.

Julie and Garrett will be saying “I do” at the beautiful Beckendorff Farms in Katy, Texas in July this year. I know you’ve heard me say it before (I guess you’ve read it more than heard it), but when I met Julie and Garrett, I knew this was going to be more than just another couple to add to the AHP Family.

My philosophy is simple: your wedding day was meant to be EXPERIENCED and not just posing in front of a strangers camera the entire day. I want to capture the must-have portraits and document you truly loving every moment of your wedding day.

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