Laura & Andres

This proposal was MONTHS in the making and I’m so excited to finally share it with you! Back in February, I received a DM from Dre, gushing about his amazing girlfriend Laura and his plans to propose. We quickly hopped on a call and ironed out the plan, ultimately selecting the DC War Memorial as the location where Dre would pop the question, then heading over to the Lincoln Memorial for more portraits.

While not as well-known as other DC monuments, this beautiful location offers lots of privacy and would rouse less suspicion, which was important because Laura is a SMART girl and would figure things out fast! Laura already followed me on Instagram, which was how Dre found me – so I even posted to my stories that morning about having a quiet day at home. Lies, all lies. But I had to cover my tracks in case Laura was watching!

Dre chose May 25th, a perfectly sunny Tuesday at the height of cicada season in DC. This particular date was special, as it was Dre’s late mother’s birthday and a perfect way to honor her memory on such an important milestone. I was SO NERVOUS waiting for them to stroll past! I pretended to be milling around, checking out the cicadas … waiting to pull out my camera until the very last second!

This moment was SO sweet to witness! After the question had been popped, I walked over to “officially” introduce myself, to which Laura said “I was hoping you’d be here!” This totally made my day! Laura and Dre were instantly my people, they are so kind and warm and just a dream to photograph. I threw them into the deep end with my posing workflow, but they were total champs!

Laura may have suspected the proposal was coming … but she had no idea there was another surprise waiting for her at the Lincoln Memorial! Her parents, a handful of friends, and her dog, Hamilton, were waiting to greet the newly engaged couple. We headed to the top of the Lincoln Memorial for a few iconic portraits, and then these two were off to celebrate!

Congratulations, you two. Can’t wait to photograph your wedding this fall!