Viewing entries tagged
santa cruz engagement photography

Santa Cruz Panther Beach Proposal / Engagement

Santa Cruz Panther Beach Proposal / Engagement

Let’s be honest, Asha has a PRETTY GOOD IDEA her boyfriend was going to propose today – maybe it was seeing her BF’s friend’s car in the parking lot of the beach. Maybe it was the nice dinner reservations. Maybe it was the fact that she knew a photographer (yours truly) was there to take couples’ pics of them. So many maybes… but the clincher was seeing all the framed pictures of them arranged on the beach with candles and a sign that said “Marry Me” that was the real clincher lol. I love proposals that happen in the middle of a planned photo shoot – I don’t have to hide or pretend to take pictures of waves. I just do my thing and at the appropriate time, the proposer does their thing and I’m in the perfect spot to capture it.

Here’s a few of my favorite shots from Satya and Asha’s proposal / engagement at Santa Cruz’s finest hidden gem, Panther Beach (aka Hole in the Wall beach).

If you’re interested in planning your proposal / engagement / wedding with me, start here: http://www.BayAreaWedding.Photography

Marriage Proposal / Engagement Photo Shoot at Panther Beach, Santa Cruz

Marriage Proposal / Engagement Photo Shoot at Panther Beach, Santa Cruz

Aside from weddings, I probably put the most effort into helping plan surprise proposals for romantic guys who really want to make this moment special for their girls. From detailed and diagrammed satellite imagery outlining the target area for where I’ll be waiting, to making sure I receive a selfie of the couple so I don’t accidentally “stalk” the wrong couple, I go to great lengths to ensure all the randomness of nature and life don’t prevent me from capturing the moment, then expanding that moment into many moments, guided by my experience and natural feel for this sort of thing.

Even though we had a surprise river bisecting the beach, even though the tide (and waves) were so high that we couldn’t explore half the beach, even though it was a Sunday afternoon and we had a ton of partying teens cheering the couple on – everything came together in a magical way that I hope was everything Shamik imagined it could be. Here’s the highlights of our short time together, I hope you enjoy them.

Panther Beach - Santa Cruz Engagement Session

Panther Beach - Santa Cruz Engagement Session

Panther Beach is one of the more popular engagement photography destinations in the Santa Cruz area, mostly because it offers stunning natural features and is fairly private, as it’s challenging to access. But with great beauty, comes another natural risk – big waves! This is the only beach I or my couples have fairly routinely gotten wet at – usually by accident :) Luckily I was able to get a bunch of great photos before the risky shot at the end. A sneaker wave pummeled the rock these two were standing on and utterly drenched them. I got the shot (of course), because that would be a real bummer way to end a session if I didn’t! Luckily they were in good spirits and it wasn’t too cold (even though it’s March). Enjoy a few of my faves below:

Panther Beach Santa Cruz Engagement Session

Panther Beach Santa Cruz Engagement Session

We had nice soft light for Abbey and Andrew’s engagement session at Panther Beach just north of Santa Cruz, California. Just because you’re a little shy in front of the camera doesn’t mean you aren’t capable of amazing photos! By some miracle, we avoided getting soaked by the notoriously enormous waves at this beach. Here’s some of my faves from the session…

Seabright Beach, Santa Cruz - Mini Engagement Session

Seabright Beach, Santa Cruz - Mini Engagement Session

Zoe and Kenny are getting married down in Santa Barbara this year, and like pretty much all the other brides, she realized it’s January and she should really, seriously, think about starting that whole photographer search thing! Even though it was cold, windy, threatening to rain, and with the weather service issuing a high surf advisory, Zoe and Kenny agreed to go for a quick practice session at Seabright Beach in Santa Cruz. They’re super easy to work with, and I did my best to provide clear direction over the noise of crashing waves and gusty wind. The waves surprised us several times, dousing this couple (RUN!!), but we kept safe, had fun, and kept our hearts pumping the whole time. We were blessed with an amazing sunset once the sun lowered below the dark layer of murky clouds, and we wrapped things up so this lovely couple could thaw out back at the car. I really enjoyed my time with them, and hope to work with them again soon! Here’s a few of my faves…