Proposals used to absolutely freak me out. Not because of what was happening of course, but because logistically, they’re some of the most complex things to shoot without letting the cat out of the bag. Now that I’ve been doing them for a very long time though, I’ve really grown to love them. When Travis reached out a couple weeks ago and let me know his plans, I jumped at the opportunity. Travis isn’t from the area but had a rough idea of when and where he was going to propose. We worked together to formulate a plan and talk through logistics for how we’d communicate without tipping off his girlfriend, Bridget.
Once plans were set, I got to the initial location roughly an hour early to scope things out a bit and realized that where we were planning on doing it wouldn’t actually work. I found a new location and relayed the details to him discreetly. When he and Bridget arrived after their dinner near Rittenhouse Square, I was down by the water “shooting landscapes and birds”, just minding my own business. He and Bridget walked to their spot facing away from me and I immediately shifted my attention to them. I shot through the proposal and her lovely reaction. After giving them a few minutes to enjoy the moment, I came over to say hello and we proceeded to do a very mini-engagement session. I always play these by ear a bit because sometimes the couple wants to simply snap a few pics and then call friends and family. Travis and I had talked about this and he wanted to plan on doing pictures no more than 30 minutes. We maximized the time, and then they headed off to a little party with friends and family. The whole session didn’t last more than 30 minutes.
It made me think about the last proposal I shot at a rooftop lounge in Philadelphia where the groom failed to tell me his girlfriend already knew he was proposing so it wasn’t a surprise. He came up to me right away where it was going to happen and started talking to me which was a total surprise. Travis and Bridget’s proposal was much more traditional of course.
Anyway, check our some of my favorites from their special day. I hope to get the opportunity to work with these two again in the future. Congrats to the newly engaged couple!
If you’re looking for a proposal photographer in the southeastern PA area and would like to talk through your plans, I’d love to hear from you. Simply fill out our contact form and we’ll find a time to chat.
