Fall Palmer Square Princeton NJ proposal photo shoot

Sunday morning proposal in Princeton!

I got to document a surprise proposal captured against the backdrop of vibrant autumn colors in Palmer Square Princeton NJ.

It was a pretty quiet, cold Sunday morning in fall and I was waiting for a couple I’ve never met. I had gotten an inquiry from someone who was planning to propose to his girlfriend and he wanted me to capture the event.

Even though I’ve photographed hundreds of weddings and engagements, I’ve only done a handful of proposals, so I was excited! Since I’d never met the couple, he sent me some nice pictures of both of them. He had a couple locations in mind where he should get down on his knee and ask her the question, and we narrowed it down. So I knew exactly where he would propose, but I didn’t know how the ambient lighting would be, especially early in the morning.

That morning there was a beautiful light coming from the east. I had 2 cameras on me with different lenses on each. A little girl on her scooter noticed me there, and asked why I was standing here. I replied to her that soon someone would be asking his girlfriend to marry him. She didn’t seem fazed, but her mom got very excited.

I did my best to hide my cameras till the last moment. Then I saw the couple coming towards me, smiling and talking to each other, and I tried to act casual and breezy without putting my game face on (at least I did my best, but I need to focus to get great shots). She saw me but she looked right back at him and kept talking. They came down the steps right next to a beautiful bed of flowers and bushes. They were perfectly lit by the sun from behind, so it was like a nice movie set. I noticed she started wondering when he slowed down on their way down the stairs. In the next moment he was on his knees, and she was surprised. And then said yes!

Afterwards, we visited some of their favorite locations in downtown Princeton and also on the university campus for an engagement portrait photo session.

Enjoy the pictures!

Here is a proposal / engagement portrait gallery.