Mueller Park Engagement Photos in Austin, TX
About Mueller Lake Park:
Centrally located at the heart of the lively Mueller neighborhood, Mueller Lake Park is the perfect location for your future engagement session. The park offers beautiful green vistas that are complimented by concrete structures and public art throughout the park. The scenic Mueller Lake is another perfect backdrop for your pictures, which enhances your session with beautiful waterfront photos. The variety of vistas in Mueller Lake Park and its accessible location make this venue ideal for couples that want a no-frills, easily accessible, and free venue that still has natural beauty to spare.
What to know before your sessions at Mueller Park:
Arriving at Mueller Park:
Just off the I-35, Mueller Lake Park is located between Aldrich Street and Zach Scott Street after turning off Airport Boulevard. For parking, the main options are the Lake Park Parking Lot, the McBee District Garage, and metered street parking. The Lake Park Parking Lot is free and located on Simond Avenue next to the park itself. The McBee garage is on 1826 McBee St and charges $1 per hour. Validation is available from the retailers on Aldrich Street. Lastly, you can find metered parking all throughout the park’s perimeter. You can pay for these on the Park Me App or on the physical parking meters.
Clothes:
For your engagement session, you should wear what makes you feel most comfortable and authentically yourself. This can vary greatly from person to person, but a few guiding principles are: try to avoid dressing in heavily patterned clothing as it often clashes with other patterns; if your session is during the hot summer months, consider wearing clothes with more breathable fabrics that hang off your body and won’t collect sweat; lastly, make sure to wear clothes that make you feel beautiful and confident, no matter what direction that takes you.
Ideal Times and Weather:
If you are not a fan of Austin’s suffocating summer heat, try to avoid the months of May through September. During these months temperatures will regularly be around 100°, making the glaring sun and heat a real impediment for the session. If you still want your pictures taken during these months, scheduling the session before 10 am or after 7 pm will ensure the heat is at its minimum. After September there is not much to worry about since Austin keeps fairly temperate year-round. Other than planning around the high summer temperatures, try to avoid scheduling your session on weekend days where Mueller Lake Park is full of families and other groups trying to take their pictures taken. This might result in some inescapable visual clutter in the photos as well as possible delays in the session.
What to do in the area:
The vibrant Mueller area is full of shops, activities, and attractions for you and your significant other to
enjoy before or after the session.
Texas Farmers’ Market at Mueller:
Every Sunday from 10 am to 2 pm, the Texas Farmers' Market at Mueller is open at 2006 Philomena St. Austin, TX 78723. Lauded as “the Best Austin Farmer’s Market 8 years in a row” by Austin’s Chronicle, over 120 vendors frequent this farmer’s market and supply some of the freshest and tastiest produce available in the area. Considering how many Austinites flock in droves to the farmer’s market, I highly recommend planning your session on a Sunday so you too can enjoy what the market has to offer. Some of my personal favorites include: CTRUS fresh lemonade stand, Gardener’s Feast organic masa tamales, and Yapa empanadas.
Mueller Lake Park Itself:
Aside from the pictures we’ll take in the park, there is much to entertain yourself with in the area. For active couples, there is a loop trail around the lake that can be extended onto a three-mile trail if you go South and explore the Butterfly Garden and Southeast Greenway. More information can be found here:
https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/texas/mueller-lake-southeast-greenway.
Throughout Mueller Lake Park and the extended trail mentioned above, you will find plenty of public art and sculptures that showcase the artistic spirit of Austin. Lastly, the park also has an open-air amphitheater and stage where many social events such as “Movies in The Park” are held.
Shops and Stores:
If you wish to leave the park but still explore a little of the Mueller area, leave the park through the free parking lot on Simond Avenue and discover what the shops of Mueller have to offer. If you have kids, the Thinkery is an interactive children’s museum with science exhibits and play spaces perfect for children of all ages. For coffee and dessert lovers, Halcyon Coffee and Lady Quackenbush’s Cakery offer a great one-two punch of delicious pastries and addictive coffee—all centrally located and overlooking the park. Lick Honest Ice Creams can cool you off after the brutal Austin heat. And BD Riley’s Irish Pub can take the edge off after a long day of posing. If you want to make a day of it, Alamo Drafthouse’s Mueller location is a block from the park and offers a full-service movie theater experience with cocktails and food brough to your seat.
