Cold Spring Marriage Proposal |  Colleen and Chris

It was exciting to be contacted by Chris to photograph his surprise Cold Spring marriage proposal to Colleen, a couple of weeks ago. Suprise proposals generally require a lot of pre-planning but this was simplified, on my end, when the location turned out to be walking distance from my house.  Chris chose the Cold Spring waterfront to propose, as this was where he and Colleen had stopped on their first date.

Chris’s surprise marriage proposal to Colleen thankfully happened exactly as planned. 

However, surprise marriage proposals can be tricky. Even when you think you have the basic logistics down, there always comes a moment when you think it is all going to fall apart.  And sometimes it does.

An example, I heard of, where things went awry happened like this… A photographer was all set to photograph a surprise marriage proposal. A location was set on a hiking trail.  The proposer conveyed to the photographer what he and his soon to be fiance would be wearing. Sounds like a plan, right? Well, the photographer thought she was set. The couple arrived on the trail at the set time and the photographer secretly started following them to the predetermined location.  The couple then went past that predetermined location. The photographer was perplexed but continued to follow the couple. The photographer then got a text from the proposer asking her where she was and why she had missed capturing his proposal. The photographer then realized she was following the wrong couple!   The “wrong” couple she was following was wearing the same designated clothing and happened on the trail at the set time.  Because of stories like this, I always insist on having a photo of the couple before the meeting.  Luckily, Chris and I had a chance to meet beforehand to go over logistics.

When the designated day and time arrived, Chris and Colleen showed up right on schedule. It was a sunny day but there was a chill in the air so the Cold Spring waterfront was without a crowd.  I, therefore, was able to immediately spot them arriving. I quickly turned away from them and started photographing the Hudson River, hoping that Colleen would become accustomed to my presence and my camera clicking.  However, there was a slight moment when Chris was not sure I saw them. When I turned again in their direction, Chris and I were able to acknowledge each other quickly without speaking. Chris then dropped to his knee. Collen calmly listened as Chris asked. Her expressions varied from shock, to amusement, to joy.  We then went for a walk in a nearby park and snapped some photos along the way.

By the end of the session, it was evident to me that both Chris and Collen have good energy.  They both have a kind and calm demeanor. There was no denying that they were both good people – equally happy to have found one another. I was happy and honored to be a part of it. Congratulations Colleen and Chris!