By Aleksandria Rudenko | Published 28 October 2026

He lifts her off her feet and she kicks up one heel on the quay of the Maas, the Erasmusbrug and De Rotterdam behind them

These engagement photos in the Scheepvaartkwartier started among old sailing ships and ended on a park bench. Felix and Mira came over from Germany for a long weekend, a few weeks after he proposed.

They wanted a morning that felt like them: relaxed, a little playful, with time for a bike ride. As a photographer in Rotterdam, I planned a route through the old shipping quarter. It ran from the harbor to the river, then back between grand houses.

Where
The Veerhaven, the Maas and the Parklaan
When
June, late morning
Session
Engagement Photoshoot
Light
Bright sun between big white clouds

Old Ships in the Veerhaven

We met by the Veerhaven, the small harbor where historic sailing ships lie moored. Together with the Parklaan, it forms the heart of the Scheepvaartkwartier. Mira wore a camel trench coat and Felix a dark wool coat. First they hugged by the railing, then they ran along the quay hand in hand.

Smiling couple in sunglasses hugging by the Veerhaven railing, sailing ship masts behind them, their engagement shoot in the Scheepvaartkwartier
Black and white frame of the couple running hand in hand along the harbor railing, long coats flying and sharp shadows on the stones

Next, two city bikes took us along the harbor. They rode side by side and laughed, past masts, old lanterns and a row of trees.

Couple on two city bikes by the masts of the Veerhaven in black and white, an engagement shoot in the Scheepvaartkwartier
The Veerhaven, with the masts of the old ships

On the quay, I let them ride straight toward me under the lanterns.

Cycling side by side toward the lens on a tree-lined quay with old lanterns, she in a camel trench coat and he in a dark coat

Engagement Photos on the Maas

A few minutes later, we stood on the Maas, with the Erasmusbrug and the towers of De Rotterdam across the water. Big white clouds kept drifting over, so the light changed from minute to minute.

Couple in long coats and sunglasses on the bank of the Maas, the Erasmusbrug and the towers of De Rotterdam across the water

Felix swung around an old lamppost while Mira laughed and held on to his hand. After that, I asked them to reach for each other above the water. Her ring caught the sun, right next to the bridge.

He swings around an old lamppost holding her hand on the quay, white clouds over the Erasmusbrug during their engagement photos
Their hands meeting above the water of the Maas, her engagement ring in the sun and the Erasmusbrug just beside them

Halfway through, they changed outfits. Mira came back in a black turtleneck and a long pale pleated skirt, and Felix in a white shirt. Back on the quay, he lifted her off her feet while she kicked up one heel. That frame opens this story.

An Engagement Shoot Among Grand Houses

The second half of their engagement photos in the Scheepvaartkwartier took us into its quiet streets. Against a dark green hedge, Mira held Felix’s face and kissed him, her ring in view. Then they stepped out of a tall wooden doorway, as if they lived there.

She holds his face and kisses him against a dark green hedge, her engagement ring in view, in the Scheepvaartkwartier of Rotterdam
Stepping out hand in hand from a tall wooden doorway in the Scheepvaartkwartier, she in a pale pleated skirt during their engagement shoot

On the Parklaan, a sea-green Land Rover waited by a door full of red roses. Next door, the Elevatorhuis still carries its name above the entrance, once the office of a grain company. They ran past it hand in hand.

Running hand in hand past the Elevatorhuis on the Parklaan in black and white, her pleated skirt flying out behind her

Around the corner, a classic black Jaguar stood under the trees. Felix leaned on its roof, and Mira leaned on him.

Classic Jaguar with its chrome grille in the foreground, the couple embracing beside its roof under leafy trees, in black and white

A Bench Under the Park Trees

We ended on a wooden bench in a nearby park, with a long row of trees and a tall tower behind them. Mira sat on Felix’s lap and kissed his cheek.

On a wooden park bench she sits on his lap and kisses his cheek, a long row of trees and a tall tower behind them, in black and white
A park bench, just after noon

Before we said goodbye, I made a single portrait of each of them in front of the trees, fresh photos for work. So their engagement photos in the Scheepvaartkwartier ended on a bench, with a portrait for both of them.

Head and shoulders portrait of her smiling in a black turtleneck, long dark curls, green trees softly blurred behind her
Smiling portrait of him in a white shirt against soft green trees, a single frame at the end of their engagement photos

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