Guy and Rachel: A Personalized Surprise Proposal
Guy surprises Rachel with a romantic, personalized Proposal in New Orleans City Park.
Personal Photographs sweeten up this surprise proposal photography.
The first words I ever said to Guy were “okay, so let me guess, people crack jokes about your name all the time don’t they?” We shared a laugh over the many unoriginal quips we’ve heard about having names like Guy and Lady. I could tell almost instantly that we were going to have a great time working together on his surprise proposal.
Planning the Proposal
Guy originally wanted to Propose at the Tree of Life in Audubon Park. But when discussing possible rain options, he felt drawn to City Park instead. Which I was definitely not mad about. While I think the Tree of Life is gorgeous, you just never know when there might be a wedding happening over there (and there is no way to find out ahead of time). City Park feels like a safer bet plus it offers far more Engagement Portrait possibilities and Guy wanted a session after their proposal.
Guy said Rachel is a “pictures person” which came in handy because I love decorating proposals with framed photos! It’s an inexpensive way to personalize a proposal and show your person that you put a lot of thought into it (hopefully, they’ll be popping some of these engagement photos into their new frames!)
The Perfect Setup
We worked out a ruse to get Guy to the fountain and decided on red roses and photos as decor. We even worked out a walking route so Rachel wouldn’t see the setup until the very last moment. I like to preserve the element of surprise as long as possible! I did leave a trail of rose petals out onto the walkway a bit for her to see. I hadn’t done that before and I thought it would be a nice touch.
It seemed to have worked out well because Rachel started smiling as soon as she saw them. She knew what was coming when Guy pulled her to him in a deep kiss while he got the ring box out of his pocket. The smile on Rachel’s face said it all. She laughed, she cried, she said “yes”! I saw a full range of emotion (except anger, obvi) move across Rachel’s face as she leaned down to kiss Guy before he put the ring on her finger (it is SO cute when the proposee kisses the proposer before they even get up!)
I’ve done many proposals at this fountain. But this was the FIRST time the water was actually on! I told Guy and Rachel about it and they agreed it was a good omen for their marriage.
A Surprise Engagement Session
The surprises weren’t over yet! After my assistant helped Rachel touch up her eye makeup, we started on our engagement session for the new fiancés. They were so easy to work with- two tall drinks of water with legs for days who were so fantastically in love and easy to make laugh. I was definitely on a roll with the weird commentary (and my hilarious assistant, Evan, helped with that too!) We kept them smiling and laughing for the next half hour. And the photos? *chef’s kiss* I couldn’t be more stoked with how they turned out (I love them so much I put one as the main photo on my Surprise Proposals page! Link below!) I really click with some couples and this was definitely one of them (even if I did have to bring a stepladder to get on their level lol!)
Enjoy this selection of Guy and Rachel’s New Orleans Surprise Proposal and Engagement Session.
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