Cave Point County Park | Ben and Lauren's Authentic Proposal Session

The first words out of Ben’s mouth were, “I feel very awkward in front of a camera and hate every photo of myself, but I want to do this for her.” I hear this a lot (especially from guys), and you might think this isn’t something a photographer wants to hear. Conversely, I’m excited by it! Not only is putting someone else’s wants before your own an awesome demonstration of your love, but it also shows you have an open mind and are willing to step outside your comfort zone. Furthermore, it’s an easy fix!

Think about how photos were taken of you in the past; the vast majority probably involved standing perfectly still while holding a forced smile for an unnaturally long time. This process sucks, and it’s because it’s not a photograph of a genuine moment of your authentic self; it’s a photograph of you being photographed.

Now think about your favorite photo of yourself. What was going on when the photograph was taken? Chances are you have an attached emotional response, and you can imagine the moment like it was yesterday. It’s not about the pose, it’s not about the precision, and it’s not about the artistic quality. Your favorite photograph brings you back to a time you never want to forget, of a real time with all of its peaks and valleys, of a time that made you feel alive.

That’s what we do at Tandem Photography.

Ben hired me to photograph his proposal to Lauren, but believe it or not Door County wasn’t their final destination. They were on a long road trip to Upper Michigan for a family visit, and they wanted to make a fun pitstop on the peninsula. They had been here once before and built cairns at Cave Point County Park, so Ben thought it would be the perfect spot.

I know Cave Point about as good as anyone. In fact, my first full-time photography job was for a kayak tour company, and the park was my office for an entire summer. The problem, however, is it has notoriously bad cellphone service and calls/texts rarely go through. For a successful surprise proposal, everyone needs to be on the same page. We decided to meet at a rock beach just north of the main area, and we exchanged pictures of ourselves to make sure he didn’t propose before I got there and I didn’t photograph the wrong proposal (I’ve heard horror stories).

When I got to our rock beach, no one was there. I waited a few minutes. Still no one. Shit.

I made an executive decision to continue down the trail because I knew there were small rock beaches down the way. I got to the next one, and I found a couple holding each other close. Bingo. I moved into position, they looked my way, but they weren’t Ben and Lauren. Shit again.

I walked a little further, and this time I recognized Ben walking towards me. He was alone, so we were able to chat. I was right to meet at the original rock beach, but Lauren decided she wanted to walk further. She was hanging out at another beach near the end of the trail, and Ben told her he had to find the bathroom (aka bring me to the new place).

I complimented him on his resourcefulness and asked if he was nervous.

“No,” he said, “I’m just excited.”

We headed to the new spot, and I lagged behind Ben so Lauren wouldn’t be suspicious of the man with two cameras. I got set up, and they placed a few rocks on top of their cairn. Then Ben looked at Lauren and dropped to one knee.

Lauren immediately said YES and threw her arms around Ben. What a beautiful moment! Full of excitement, Ben went to slip on Lauren’s new ring…

… and it fell in the rocks …

I rushed over and quickly introduced myself.

“Hi Lauren, it’s nice to meet you! I’m your engagement photographer, but let’s find your ring!”

“It’s nice to meet you too!” she laughed, and we started digging.

After removing five stones each, we found the ring tucked under a small piece of driftwood. With more care than a brain surgeon, Ben slipped the ring onto Lauren’s finger.

We stepped back on the trail to talk about what just happened. Ben and Lauren couldn’t stop laughing, and they said, “Of course we would drop the ring! It’s just like us!”

I asked Lauren if the proposal was everything she imaged.

“Absolutely! I wouldn’t have it any other way; it was perfect.”

We grabbed a quick glamor shot of Lauren’s new ring (away from the rocks), and headed back to the beach.

We wanted to disassemble our cairn before leaving, so we played a game to make it more interesting. Ben and Lauren took turns adding a new rock to the stack, and whoever didn’t make the stack fall would win. Ben’s rock tumbled the tower, so Lauren was the winner!

… We took a quick stroll along the rock beach …

… had a good laugh …

… and went rock climbing.

Our time was coming to a close, and we were soaking wet. Since we had to change into dry clothes anyways, was there a better way to say goodbye than with a water fight? I don’t think so!

I recently asked Ben what we thought about his new photographs.

“I love every one,” he said.

Thank you for a proposal session I’ll never forget.