Frances Park

Frances Park is on the west side of Lansing, about 20-25 minutes from MSU. There are bathrooms and easy, free parking on site. No permits needed. There is a gorgeous rose garden, river overlook, pergolas, and wooded nature paths. You can also go directly down to the Grand River. This park is amazing is summer once the roses are in bloom and in fall when the trees along the river have turned and you can see their reflections in the water. I absolutely love how shoots turn out at this park.

MSU Lewis Landscape Arboretum

Located on the south of MSU’s campus are possibly my favorite gardens in all of Michigan. In spring, summer and fall, the gardens bloom with dahlias, hydrangeas, roses and more. There is an English garden, a pergola, a few ponds, and a mini apple orchard and vineyard. You can get so many different looks in just this one garden! Bonus is there is a tiny parking lot right on site, so you don’t have to walk far to the location. Only down side is there are no bathrooms anywhere nearby so if you are doing an outfit change, it has to be in your car. This garden rivals other gardens in the Detroit area that charge hundreds of dollars in fees. There are no logos or Sparty statues around, so it even works for non-Spartan alum :) . There is no shade at this garden, so it only works for golden hour sessions or on cloudy days.

MSU Central Campus

Central campus is great for all four seasons! There is shade in this area along the river, so the light is a little more forgiving than the arboretum if shooting outside of golden hour. Parking at the main library is free in the evenings, though it can be more difficult to find a spot. Bathrooms are open during business hours in the library too. There aren’t as many flowers as the arboretum, but the leaves look incredible, especially in fall. There are evergreens for winter. The riverwalk and bridges look beautiful in photos, and the botanical gardens are right next to the library. There is a lot of walking in this area, so its a great spot for a casual outfit.

MSU North Campus

MSU North campus is by the Union and the old dorm buildings. The old dorm buildings provide for such gorgeous architecture, which makes an elegant background. There are also beautiful blooming trees, bushes and flowers on north campus. Bathrooms are in the union to change but parking is a little trickier. Beaumont Tower is right across from the Union too, but can become really busy, especially during graduation season. It’s easy to do a more formal outfit on north campus and then change into a casual one for central campus.

Rotary Park

If you are looking for a beach/water summery vibe, but don’t want to drive to a lake, Rotary Park in downtown Lansing has a beach along the river! It gets a great sunset and I love how the photos turn out. It’s right on the river trail so there are lots of little nooks and a cool bridge to use too. Parking is super simple but unfortunately there aren’t public bathrooms for changing. This spot can be combined with shots at the Capitol building/downtown Lansing. Couples often start with a formal look a the Capitol and change into a casual one for the beach.

MSU Children’s Garden and Horticulture Gardens

These gardens are so beautiful in summer! There isn’t any shade, so shooting at sunset is imperative, and the roses are in bloom in summer only. There is a cute little bridge and pond, a red brick path, hanging flower baskets, and beautiful roses everywhere. It’s a great summer spot for a session. Parking is super easy right on site but unfortunately no bathrooms.

Downtown Lansing and the Capitol Building

The Capitol building provides an elegant backdrop for photos and looks best dressed up. Parking isn’t too bad (you can park on the street right out front at a meter) but there are no bathrooms. Do a formal look here and then move to Rotary Park for a casual one! This location is also great in early spring/late fall when there aren’t leaves on the trees since there is beautiful architecture to use as a backdrop.

Old Town

For couples wanting a spot with a lot of color and a cute downtown vibe mixed in with a bit of nature, Old Town is perfect. Brightly colored buildings and the river trail make for fun photos. There aren’t many flowers, but the colorful buildings give the images a pop. There isn’t any shade, so golden hour or a cloudy day work best. Parking is easy (there’s a large lot on site) but no bathrooms for changing.

Happy New Year! I kicked off 2021 (and aren't we ALLLL glad it's finally 2021?!) with Olivia + Mark's winter engagement session at MSU in East Lansing. Typically, when I think of winter engagement sessions, I think of bitter cold and dreary. But we had the most beautiful winter day! There was fresh snow and it continued with flurries, giving us possibly my favorite winter engagement photos ever. If you're newly engaged and thinking of snowy engagement photos- let's do it! Get in touch and we can watch the weather for some wintery MSU engagement pics!

Morgan and Matthew were my first 2021 couple to book! They booked in 2019 and opted for a two year engagement when most have a one year engagement. Little did they know that it was a blessing in disguise, as many 2020 weddings were rescheduled. They are getting married at the University Club next year and I can’t wait!

In addition to having their wedding on MSU’s campus, they also decided to have their engagement photos on campus too! They chose the Children’s gardens and the Horticulture gardens. Because it was summer, all the flowers were in full bloom, including the roses. No other garden can beat an MSU garden— they are seriously the best gardens in Michigan for photos— and they are free…no fee at all, and easy parking! Even if you aren’t MSU alum, Spartan signs are absent from the gardens so you can still use them without any guilt :) .

This weekend I took over 2,000 photos and had 3 engagement sessions and 3 family portrait sessions! This is a typical weekend for a photographer in October. We photographers joke that October for us is just like April for accountants....every one would like a service at the same time and so we have to jam pack our weekends so that all of our clients can get that fall color for their photos.

While we had to reschedule Erica and Grant's first session due to rain, the second date ended up being perfect- sunny and not too cold! People always ask me what to wear, and Erica and Grant chose the perfect outfits- solid, textured sweaters in earth tones. Erica also threw a scarf over her sweater for a third, different look!

I love how these turned out-- you can't beat the fall color on MSU's campus! Even if you aren’t alumni, I always recommend MSU’s campus for it’s beautiful gardens. As long as you don’t take pictures with Sparty, no one can tell you are on campus ;) .

Aren’t Mallory and Jon the cutest?? We had an absolutely gorgeous (but a tad chilly!) fall day for their engagement photos on the north campus of Michigan State University in East Lansing. People are often scared to wait and do their photos the first two weekends of November, but I swear, those two weekends always have the best fall color!! Thankfully, Mallory and Jon waited, and the fall color was GORGEOUS!! I can’t wait for their June wedding!

It took awhile, but fall finally appeared! It was about two-three weeks behind this year!

Abbey and Nathaniel had originally scheduled a beach session in Holland, but due to a super rainy and cold weather, ended up holding out for fall photos instead, and I'm so glad they did....I think their engagement photos turned out gorgeous!

They chose the MSU Arboretum, which is one of my favorite places to shoot in Michigan. The gardens are stunning, and Abbey + Nathaniel, while nervous (everyone is!), totally rocked it with the perfect outfit choices and natural laughter.

Here are a few of my favorites below:

Caitlin Maloney is an East Lansing photographer specializing in weddings, engagement photos, senior pictures, and family portraits. Email caitlinmaloneyphotography@gmail.com to get in touch.

So, I found a new favorite place to shoot! The MSU Arboretum has so many great spots for photos including a stunning English garden! I can't believe that I lived in East Lansing for 10 years AND attended MSU as a student, and had no idea the Arboretum existed! I even frequently visited the Children's Garden next door to it when I worked as a nanny throughout my undergrad and had no idea it was there.

When I told Madison and Tom about the Arboretum, they were totally up to take their engagement photos there-- and I'm so glad we did! Tom attended medical school at MSU, so taking photos on the campus of Michigan State University was really fitting since it has some meaning to them. These two were so easy to photograph, and I'm super excited for their 2018 wedding!

Here are a few of my favorites!

Ahhh....spring is finally here! I LOVE spring, and funny enough, it seems to be a season that is overlooked by couples planning their engagement session. So many opt for summer or fall, but spring is so gorgeous with all of the tulips, flowering magnolias, and cherry blossoms! The only hard part is guessing when they are going to bloom and wondering how long they will stay in bloom! Warmer than usual winters and late snows can totally make it unpredictable. However, for Hannah and Jon's shoot, everything was timed PERFECTLY.  And honestly, I don't think spring gets any prettier than it does on the campus of MSU in East Lansing. There are gardens all over campus and the grounds are meticulously maintained....it's the perfect setting for a spring engagement session in Mid-Michigan! Here are a few favorites from my spring engagement session with Hannah + Jon!

The MSU campus in the fall is so gorgeous. Well, to be honest, it's really gorgeous at all times of year, but especially in the fall! Since Oksana is a Spartan alum, she agreed that campus would be the perfect spot for their engagement photos. We met in East Lansing on a cloudy day with sprinkles of rain in the forecast just a few days before their wedding with no option for a reschedule. Thankfully, the rain held off, and didn't start sprinkling until I was in my car after the shoot. The clouds gave us perfect filtered light (clouds are always better than sun for photos, which most people don't know!)  and resulted in some gorgeous engagement photos. Here are a few of my favorites:

Courtney and Arthur chose to have their engagement photos done on the campus of Michigan State University, one of the largest and most beautiful campuses in the country. Courtney is an alum, and after graduation, met her husband while working for USAID in Africa! Since East Lansing holds so many great memories for Courtney, the couple chose to have both their wedding and engagement photos in Lansing. Here are a few of my favorites: