Michael contacted us to photograph his proposal at Mackenzie. Although it was a Saturday in October, we were able to be available! The proposal took place at 10am  after a little hike out to Beam Rocks Overlook. (I went ahead of them and got set up so they wouldn’t see me on the trail!)

There’s a few ways to do proposal photography – here’s how it works for you proposers out there!

1. We can set a time to meet and you text me photos of you in advance. I will also often track your location on your phone (and you do the same for me). If the proposal involves a hiking/rural area, I will let you know what my car looks like so when you see it in the parking lot, you know I’m ahead of you on the trail and in place. I will ask in advance what you are wearing and we will also look at Google maps together (and if I have previous reference photos, I will send those as well so you have an idea of the best lighting/angles).

2. If it’s a place where I cannot blend in (like a wide open field at 4pm) – you can go with the old “photo shoot” excuse. Act like you want to set up a photo shoot with family/the dog/your friend from college is getting started in photography and building a portfolio and then you and I will pre-determine a code word for you to get down on one knee during the session. If you HATE photos – your partner might not fall for this one! :)

3. The “tourist trap” – this works well on Mount Washington, PPG ice skating rink, University of Pittsburgh, riverfronts, etc. I can act like I am just a tourist with a backpack on, taking photos of the sunset. Then you can ask me for a photo or I will just kind of be out of view, looking at the back of my camera, and then swoop in and capture the moment (we would do the aforementioned outfit and sharing of locations in advance).

The most nerve-wracking type of proposal is the truly incognito candids-only proposal, where I am completely behind a bush, etc, and we don’t put eyes on each other before the proposal. This one can only be done depending on location – some have nowhere to hide! :) I would also say a tough one to pull off (in a similar category) is me capturing you proposing in a restaurant or on a ski lift – somewhere that we would have to really work logistically to pull off! But if you can dream  it – let’s do it! Hit the inquire button – we can walk you through location ideas, dinner reservations, where to park – let’s minimize your proposal stress!