Ellis and Catherin's surprise engagement in the North Georgia mountains was an absolute dream to capture!
Ellis is a friend of mine from the motorcycle world and he had reached out to me a few weeks prior to this event with a special request - He was planning a surprise proposal for Catherin and he wanted me to capture it. We chatted quite a bit about how, where, and what he wanted to do and we joked about the different things he could do to surprise her. I was so excited for them!
Both Ellis and I were eagerly awaiting the date of the shoot, he had all these plans to buy the ring and do a cute little thing where he proposed with a chicken nugget from Chickfila (It was an inside joke between them) and I was watching the weather to make sure it was okay. This was a once-in-a-lifetime moment and we both wanted it to be perfect! We had to reschedule a couple of times due to rain and cold weather. She is pregnant and I didn't want her to get sick or uncomfortable.
When the day finally arrived, I jumped in my car and headed to the spot early. The spot I drove to first, the one he had chosen had a car meet in it so I quickly texted him that we needed to change the plans and we went with option #2 which was just a few minutes down the road with incredible views.
The location Ellis had chosen for the shoot was absolutely breathtaking with a stunning view of the mountains in the background. It was one I had ridden by many times on my motorcycle and I always loved stopping by just to check out the views.
Gear in hand, I hid behind my car with my camera waiting for Ellis to get down on one knee. When he finally did, I snuck up behind my car with my camera and started snapping photos.
When Ellis was down on one knee and pulled out the ring. The moment was magical. The wind was blowing, the sun was shining and Catherin was completely surprised. Her reaction was one of pure joy, absolute surprise, and happiness. She said yes, and Ellis slipped the ring onto her finger and they hugged for quite some time. It's those sweet hugs that matter so, so much.
I'm a hard-working photographer and when I know a moment like this is coming, I brace myself with my camera on high speed and snap away as many photos as I can. It's these moments that will never be duplicated I always do my best to snap as many photos as I can and ensure my gear is 100% ready for the moment. I captured almost a thousand images during this session.
After they got over the initial conversation of "How did you...?" "Wait, so you were getting the ring when you told me..." we moved on to the engagement session part of the session. I had them pose together in cute ways. I wanted to capture their adorable personalities. I then grabbed a dress and hat I had thrown in the car and offered it to her as an option for her engagement photos. It was a gorgeous tan, flowy studio gown and it looked absolutely stunning on her. Ellis couldn't take his eyes off of her in it!
Throughout the session, Catherin was positively glowing. She was just a few weeks pregnant and the love, anticipation, and excitement in her face was unmistakable. It was clear to me that this surprise engagement was just the beginning of a new chapter in their lives together and I was so, so happy to document this for them.
The North Georgia mountains looked so beautiful as their background. This was Easter Sunday and it was sunny, warm, slightly breezy, and absolutely perfect for this session. I loved the way the wind added an air of movement and drama to their engagement session.
I absolutely loved documenting this moment for them. They looked so very happy together and I can't wait to meet their baby girl for her newborn session!
Session date: 4.9.23
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