Surprise proposals

Yellowstone Proposal in July

This cover shot depicts how photographing a surprise proposal often plays out! The valiant partner is already on one knee while the other has got the camera stuck to her face in amazement capturing images of the magnitude of this huge water fall! In this case, with some quick navigation skills I jockeyed my way into position around the small group that has gathered to see the falls.

Tanner reached out to me many months ago to begin the process of planning his big surprise in Yellowstone Park. On the day of, there was a little confusion regarding the exact location, but thank God for adequate preparation and planning, excellent maps and some sly text messaging. Fortunately we connected before I got to deep into Yellowstone, as the cell service in the Park is sketchy at best. The end result was she said ‘YES!’ and they were a very happy, happy couple.

She had visited Yellowstone when she was young and she wanted to have some images in a place that her father had taken her to. So, off we went to the LaMar Valley to finish up the photo collection.

Congratulations to this newly engaged couple!

Rainbow light proposal

It was a surprisingly brilliant morning after some snowfall the night before in Yellowstone National Park. As I entered the north entrance and headed into the higher altitudes en route to the falls, the roads were slick with a frosty covering and the peaks had a fresh white highlight as the sun made it’s way over the ridge.

My clients arrived soon and the big surprise was about to unfold. I was in position, posed as another tourist dude with a camera. As the couple were nearing the edge of the overlook, the lady who was about to get the surprise of her life, looked right at me and held her phone out, and asked ‘say, would you mind taking some pictures of us?’. I was about to respond with ‘sure’ and started to approach them with my camera dangling from my hand, with wrist strap secure. Just then the gentleman called her back and brought her face to face with him and proceeded to take a knee. The camera phone remained in her hand and the other hand raised to her face in shock and immense joy! It was an amazingly beautiful moment as I banged away capturing all of the excitement and emotion. Truly a surprise… shock and awe proposal!

Afterwards, we had a good laugh about it as we ventured off to other places in Yellowstone. We headed south from the falls to one of the highest places in the park that you can drive to, above Yellowstone Lake, stopping here and there making some historic images, capturing the early days of a their life together.

We ended up here on the shore of Yellowstone Lake where the winds had blown ice off of the lake onto the shore line creating a 7 foot tall iceberg! It didn’t take much to get them to climb up for a cool, COLD photo!

2024 Yellowstone Park Proposals

And so… here we go again! 2024 – The wonderful story of proposing marriage in our country’s first national park – Yellowstone National Park!

Gabe and Cora had pulled up stakes in Florida and were crossing this great nation in their sporty little Audi, stuffed front to back and side to side with clothes and the basic necessities until the moving van arrives.

Along the way across the country, they had planned to drive through Yellowstone Park to take in the views. Little did Cora know that Gabe had made arrangements with me to meet in Yellowstone Park on a certain date and time when he would propose! The grand plan was set and the timing was tweaked a bit along the road.

On that morning, when I had gotten deep into Yellowstone Park and headed toward our meeting spot, I discovered an unexpected road closure which forced my hand to make a change of location and communicate it to Gabe via text (hoping she would not notice). Of course there was no service at my location, so I drove out toward the west entrance until I found a couple bars of signal. I crossed my fingers and punched SEND. So, miraculously everything worked out. Actually, I was amazed when I saw them drive up to the parking area of the falls. I had my day pack over my shoulder and I took off down the trail… and walked right in front of them so he would see me. Needless to say, I was totally relieved!

I grabbed my camera and pretended to be snapping away at the water falls, and then… bingo! Gabe took a knee and the excitement flooded the canyon! Yep… it’s true.

To Cora and Gabe, may the adventure of your lives together always be blessed with that excitement!
Cheers to my new friends!
And… I’ll let the photos tell the rest of the story!

We took in some other spots of beauty in this magnificent place!

And it seemed fitting to end up in front of Old Faithful! smiles…

Yellowstone Park Surprise Proposals

Once again, hope springs eternal. Hope is real in our world today, regardless of the ebb and flow of the circumstances, karma, politics and human conditions. Love finds a foot hold in the moment. Love… it is our greatest hope.

In Yellowstone, the world around you is unlike anything you’ve ever experienced. Our first national park is a marvel to behold. Visiting Yellowstone is like stepping into another world. And… to propose marriage to your partner on this hallowed ground is something you will never forget.

I have witnessed and photographed dozen(s) of proposals over the last 6 or 7 years and it inspires me every single time. Here’s a collection of moments from a handful of recent proposals that I had the honor of surreptitiously capturing.

Watch the slideshow below.

Interested? I can help you fulfill this dream and capture the moments in images that you will treasure for a life time. I have scouted out many scenic locations that are easily found and accessible. All couples are welcomed.

Yellowstone Park opens in the middle of May. I’d love to speak with you about your plans and capture your surprise proposal or photograph your engagement or elopement.

Larry

Fall Proposal at Old Faithful

Well this is just about as sweet as it gets!

With the recent threat of the closure of Yellowstone, I was not sure this surprise proposal in front of Old Faithful geyser was going to become a reality. And… as fate would have it, happily … the stars aligned, we all arrived at about the right time and the proposal was made and accepted!!! So, this sweet little child will be going to Mommy and Daddy’s wedding soon.

Pulling off this surprise was pretty tricky because the time between eruptions can and does fluctuate daily. So I got there at about 9 am and Old Faithful had erupted nearly 30 minutes early. That pretty much blew our initial plans of a 9:30 eruption and surprise proposal.

There was no way to contact Bob as it would blow the secret. So, I hung out until the next guesstimated eruption and everything fell into place.

Soooo… what a way to end the summer season of many happy surprise proposals in Yellowstone National Park! Enjoy the view!

And… as for me, I made some new friends and witnessed their love! And that is such a blessing.

Morning light at Yellowstone falls proposal

Ryan contacted me in the early months of this year with his plan to make the long trip to Yellowstone National Park and propose marriage to Payton, the love of his life. When planning a day in Yellowstone in the first week of October, you never know what sort of weather you may get. At about 8000 feet above sea level, you may have 65 and sunny or, 15 degrees and snow. It’s a roll of the dice. As this date was coming up on the calendar I watched as the temperatures were dropping and precipitation was on it’s way sooner rather than later. Fortunately, the weather held!

I headed out before sunrise to get to our meeting place that looks directly into the face of Yellowstone falls. Everything went like clock work, the surprise was a great success and then we took a drive to several other of my favorite locations for photos.

Congratulation to this wonderful couple!

Enjoy the view!