Matt knew he wanted to propose at Black Sand Beach in Silver Bay, MN, and with a photographer to capture it all. So finding the location and the spot was the easy part. As the day crept closer his photographer friend had something come up and canceled. That day Matt called me as he was scrambling to find a replacement. He had received my name from a referral of a photographer friend of mine in the Twin Cities. I jumped on the phone with him and figured I was free and we could make it all work.
He explained the game plan to me and I asked for some more details to make sure he was prepared. Things like the exact time of arrival, the clothes they would be wearing and more details he could think of. My goal is to spend time before preparing for your session. That way we can aim for doing as little communication moments before. Proposing can be pretty nerve-racking so it helps to make a game plan with your photographer as far in advance as possible. It also helps in keeping the secret better as you won't be texting and trying to still chill moments before.
Most proposals I photograph are surprise proposals. Meaning most folks don't see me until after you get down on one knee. For Matt, he shared a pin location on where he was going to pop the question. A few hours after our phone call, I went out to the spot he had selected at Black Sand Beach and waited for them to arrive. Matt rolled in and popped the question. She said yes and then we spent time together after grabbing some more photos. Post proposal I think it's really important to take-in the moment together and soak it all in. Lake Superior had the most beautiful sunset the evening Matt proposed. We hiked up to the top of a rock to really appreciate the beauty of this stunning evening on Lake Superior.
