What is your proposal story?
Heart palpitations for approximately 24 hours. My jaw, looking back, was incredibly sore from clenching and grinding. I planned this out pretty nicely and was very prepared, however, there's nothing like the thought of you getting down on one knee and asking the most important question of your life to the person that means the most to you.
It started with me prefacing for the week prior to the proposal that I wanted to expand my wedding / engagement photography portfolio for my photography business. For this type of photography, it's paramount that you have experience and to get this experience, sometimes you do these things called "styled shoots." This is basically a code word for fake engagement session or wedding. It shows that you can shoot the desired result, basically. So I somehow convinced Tanya to go along with it. I also convinced her that I needed to dress up to join her in a couple of shots. I would trigger the camera with my tripod and I could then put it on my website. Throughout the week, I needed a couple of things to happen. I had the photographer ready, I had the ring, but I needed to get two things done: her nails done, and her to get a nice flowy dress (for my portfolio, obviously :) ). We had looked for her dress for the past week with no luck, until literally the DAY OF THE PROPOSAL. We were scheduled for an ATV day at Kualoa Ranch, but the ATV's were sold out that day, which I attribute to serendipity teasing me. Without ATV'ing, our morning was free. We went to the mall and she found an incredibly beautiful dress at Macy's that fit her perfectly. She fell in love with it. So, we crossed one of the things off the list.
The morning of the proposal, I also was gifted a hotel room from my amazing parents at the Westin Moana Surfrider Hotel in Waikiki. They have an incredible Spa there and I called them to see if they had any manicure availability. They only had one spot available at 3pm that day. Mind you, the proposal was at 6pm. They take 50 minutes. So it was absolutely PERFECT timing. I took her aside the morning of the proposal, before we got the dress and let her know that her family was so generous to me (they fed us, housed us, and let us use their car while we were there. Shoutout to everyone in Oahu!!) and I had such an incredible time with them that I wanted to gift her something, a manicure. I know, I know. That's like the BIGGEST giveaway ever isn't it? WRONG. For MONTHS, I had been playing down the proposal / engagement because I "wasn't ready" or "money's tight." I also let her know that I wanted to do some macro ring shots with a ring that was gifted to her from her mother. She completely was on board because she has previously assisted me with engagement shoots and knew how they went. Part 2, check.
Everything was in order. I needed a drink. We went and grabbed mai tai's at the bar at around 4pm. I kept smiling and she would catch me. I would say I'm just so happy to be here with you. Little did she know in less than 2 hours, she'd be mine. STUCK FOREVER. Muahahaha. Back to the story.
Now that I was a little loose, we went and got ready. She looked incredible. We drove to Lanai Lookout and the plan was for tanya and I to take a selfie and that was Trevor's cue to know that I was ready. We hopped the fence to an incredible view of the rocks, ocean, and the developing sunset. I asked Trevor if he could take our picture with my camera. He took a couple of shots and then I started talking to Trevor about his camera and how I was thinking of switching camera systems. Tanya wanted to enjoy the incredible views and walked away toward the cliff, which gave me the perfect time to consult with Trevor on what to do next. He nodded to me that it was time. I told Tanya that Trevor was here to expand his portfolio and we would trade shots. She had no clue. We took a couple of shots and then Trevor instructed us to take individual portraits. I told Tanya to go first. Trevor instructed her to turn towards the ocean and let her hair flow in the wind. She was turned away from us. I made eye contact with Trevor. He nodded. My heart was THUMPIN', people.
I walked over.
Ring in my pocket.
I was ready.
I look at her.
She looks at me with relief and asks if I'm here to coach her.
I respond with, "I didn't bring you here for a photoshoot."
She catches on. Tears beginning to well up. "Then, why did you bring me here, Christian."
I blacked out after this. I rehearsed a speech I created about 50-75 times INCLUDING kneeling on one knee.
I remember her ugly crying and me speaking from the heart. I remember us being together in a moment that will be engrained in my head, forever. It was the best day of my life. I kneeled down and asked Tanya if she would marry me. She was in a dream. So was I. So many happy Tanya tears. So many happy feelings.
The heart palpitations ended. My jaw loosened up. The happiness continued. Best. Day. Ever.
