When and Where to Take Engagement Photos in Shenandoah National Park

When it comes to engagement photo locations, Shenandoah National Park is hard to beat. The Blue Ridge Mountains never disappoint, and Skyline Drive makes the beauty so accessible for everyone! For couples that love hiking and all things outdoorsy, the trails and peaks are perfect places for engagement photos. And even for less adventurous couples, Shenandoah is still a great choice because the beautiful mountain views can be enjoyed from the many overlooks on Skyline Drive with no hiking needed.

There’s a lot that goes into planning an engagement session in Shenandoah National Park - figuring out where to go for the best photos, what you need to bring, and how to avoid the crowds. I’ve been taking engagement photos in Shenandoah for years, and wanted to collect all of my tips and recommendations in one place. Hopefully this post will be helpful with your planning and ensure you get the best engagement pictures possible!

Park basics

• The park is big – it’s 105 miles from the northern entrance in Front Royal to the southern entrance at Rockfish. If you’re coming from Northern Virginia, you’ll likely be entering at Front Royal or at Thornton Gap near Luray. The park has a $30/car entrance fee or you can get an annual pass for $55 (there’s also an annual pass for ALL national parks that is $80). To save time at the gate, you can purchase your pass online ahead of time.

• The maps page of Shenandoah’s website is a great resource for navigating the park. You can pick up a hard copy park map when you arrive, but the electronic version is perfect for planning out your route beforehand. More detailed trail maps are available too so you can zoom in on specific trails. It’s also a good idea to checkout where the nearest bathrooms are in case you need them!

• Google Maps is also super helpful if you want to see photos from different overlooks on Skyline Drive. This is a great way to research different locations to see if the views are what you’re looking for!

• Shenandoah does not currently require a photography permit for engagement pictures, so there are no additional fees. Just make sure you are following all of the park rules – stay on established trails, leave no trace, and don’t let your photo session disturb other park visitors. If photographers and clients routinely cause issues, the park may have to implement restrictions or fees, so please do your part to follow the rules!

Choosing your date

Shenandoah is beautiful year-round, so you really can’t go wrong with any season. A popular national park, Shenandoah can get pretty busy at times which can definitely interfere with your photos. Weekdays are ALWAYS better than weekends!

• Spring – Spring is the perfect time of year if you want to capture blooming trees and wildflowers. You can find wildflowers along many of the overlooks as well as at Big Meadows. Check out the park’s wildflower calendar if you want to know when exactly your favorite flowers will be making an appearance! Remember that spring hits the mountain elevations later, so April in Shenandoah often still looks a lot like winter without many leaves on the trees.

• Summer – I love Shenandoah in the summer! The trees are so full and green, providing lots of cooling shade for those hot summer days. Avoid holiday weekends if you want to avoid the biggest crowds, but really any weekend throughout the summer can get busy so plan accordingly.

• Fall – Everyone loves Shenandoah in the fall! It is the busiest time of year for the park, so during peak fall leaves, you can expect the line to enter the park to be at least an hour long, parking to be nearly impossible to find, and crowds of other visitors at every beautiful photo spot. Definitely stick to sunrise or weekdays for your best chance at photos without a million other people in them! Follow along the park’s fall webpage for foliage updates to determine when peak colors will be.

• Winter – The park will have the fewest visitors during the winter compared to other times of year, and you may have many of the popular spots completely to yourselves! Snow-covered trails are absolutely beautiful, and the mountains will often have snow on them even when the lower elevations do not. Just keep in mind that Skyline Drive will often close due to unsafe conditions with snow and ice (even while Northern Virginia may have a perfectly sunny day). For the most up-to-date road conditions and closures, call the park at 540-999-3500 (option 1) before heading out, or you can also check their Facebook page that is regularly updated with closures.

Choosing the time of day

Most photographers will agree that sunrise and sunset are the best times for photos! I totally understand that sunrise can be difficult (you have to wake up pretty early to make the drive out there and arrive before the sun is up!) so sunset tends to be more popular. But sunrise does typically promise you fewer people around, which can be worth the lost hours of sleep if you’re heading out there at a busy time of year. Mid-day is also an option too, I just always warn clients that on a bright sunny day, that direct sunlight can be pretty harsh.

Choosing a location - hiking or overlooks?

This is probably the hardest part of planning your engagement session in Shenandoah – choosing where to do it! The options are endless, it can seem overwhelming trying to make a decision. First it can be helpful to determine whether you want to do an actual hike (often to a peak or a waterfall), or if you’d rather stick to the overlooks.

• If you don’t have strong feelings either way, I usually recommend doing an overlook or two. You’ll end up with more photos since your photographer will be taking pictures the whole time instead of hiking, and it’s easier to make outfit choices when you don’t have to consider a hike.

• But I absolutely love doing hikes too! And it’s so special to CLIMB A MOUNTAIN and then take photos at the top of it. I know many couples where the proposal actually happened at a specific peak, so it’s always meaningful to go back there for engagement photos. Just keep in mind that on a warm day, hiking also means sweating haha, which is not everyone’s favorite look for photos. Consider bringing a change of clothes to switch into at the top of your hike, and a towel or wipes to dry off.

• Have a backup location or two – Since you aren’t making a specific reservation for photos, there’s a chance of arriving at the location you’ve picked and finding out it’s not accessible. Trails and overlooks sometimes close for maintenance, parking lots fill up, or a giant tour group may arrive right before you and take over the entire overlook. Talk to your photographer about other possible locations just in case you have to change plans last minute.

• Don’t be afraid to ask your photographer for recommendations! If they have photographed in Shenandoah before, they likely have some favorite spots to share with you (when clients book with me I always offer a list of my favorite locations if they need help deciding).

Logistics

Shenandoah National Park engagement sessions come with some logistical challenges. All totally manageable, but important things to consider before getting in your car!

• Be specific about location - Some spots in the park can be confusing (for example, Hawksbill has two different parking lots, there is Stony Man and Little Stony Man, etc) so be very specific with your photographer about where you will meet!

• Drive time - When estimating what time to leave your house, make sure you put in the location in the park you’re heading to, and not just the entrance. It could easily be another 30+ minute drive from the gate into the park to get to the spot you’ve chosen.

  • If you’re planning to stop at multiple overlooks/trails, again pay attention to the distance between them and the drive time. Choose your locations carefully so you don’t spend half your session in the car!

• Prepare for no cell service - You probably won’t have cell service in many spots in Shenandoah, so make sure to download directions on Google Maps and any trail maps you need before you head out. Clearly communicate with your photographer beforehand about your meeting spot or if you’re running late, since you may not be able to call each other once you’re in the park. (If you do need to use your phone while you’re out there but don’t have service, try driving to a different spot! Some overlooks don’t have signal but other nearby ones might.)

• Watch the forecast –If you’re driving in from Northern Virginia, remember that the weather out in Shenandoah can be very different from the weather at home. Afternoon thunderstorms can pop up quickly without much warning, so if there’s a chance of rain, figure out your backup plan. Talk to your photographer about their rescheduling policy, bring umbrellas and rain boots and prepare to embrace the rain (as long as there’s no thunder/lightning!), or just accept that your session might get cut short if the weather doesn’t cooperate.  And again during the winter, always double check that Skyline Drive is open by calling the park at 540-999-3500 (option 1). As a general rule of thumb, I always tell people not to stress about the forecast until 2 days beforehand because it can always change!

• What to bring:

  • Comfortable shoes

  • Extra outfit if you’re planning to change

  • Jacket/extra layers/blanket if it’s cold

  • Water

  • Bug spray

  • Downloaded and/or printed maps

  • Fill up on gas before making the drive

Dress appropriately

Make sure you’ve got the proper footwear for hiking or even just for standing on rocks or rock walls at the overlooks. If you’re planning on a hiking, you can also throw another outfit/shoes into your backpack and change at the top! Even for overlook sessions, many couples bring a second outfit just to get more variety in the photos. Depending on the overlook location you choose, you may not have easy access to a bathroom. So if you’re changing clothes, keep in mind that you’ll be doing it in your car or in the woods.

Also remember that it’s colder and windier up there! It’s always a good idea to bring layers just in case.

Dog tips

Bringing your pup along for photos is always a good idea! (I’ve actually got a whole post with my general advice for including your dog in your engagement photos.) If you’re going to be hiking, make sure your dog is physically fit enough for the trail you choose, and always bring along extra water for them too. While dogs are welcome in most of the park, a few of the more popular trails do not allow pets so be sure to double check your trail’s information on Shenandoah's website. And it’s usually a good idea to bring a friend along too in order to act as dog wrangler while you get some photos of just the two of you!

And most importantly…

Have fun! Enjoy whatever adventure Shenandoah sends your way for your engagement pictures. Check out more Shenandoah National Park engagement photos below, including blog posts to see what a full session looks like. And fill out my contact form if you’d like more information about booking an engagement session with me!

Contact me for more information if you'd like to schedule your Shenandoah National Park engagement session!