Bridal Veil Falls Surprise Proposal | Oregon Photographer | Alexis + Brian’s Story
Are you traveling to Portland Oregon and looking to have your own beautiful memories captured? Contact me here to inquire & book your photo session!🤗
Alexis and Brian’s surprise proposal unfolded at this insanely GORGEOUS location—Oregon’s Bridal Veil Falls.
The backstory to how we landed here is actually quite amusing, given that our “Plan A” Location was actually supposed to take place at Latourell Falls (about an 8 minute drive up the road) and we weren’t even supposed to be at Bridal Veil Falls in the first place…
Here’s What Happened…
Alexis’ family reached out to me in hopes of capturing their daughter + her boyfriend’s special moment beneath a misty waterfall along the Columbia River Gorge.
This session was one I was SOOO looking forward to, knowing that the overcast fall weather would give a dreamy & serene feeling to their photos—making them look extra emotive and moody!
On My Way to the First Location
The morning of Alexis & Brian’s special day was as I had hoped—a beautifully moody & overcast (but not rainy) day. I couldn’t have been more excited to capture these moments for them.
I packed up my camera gear, hopped into the car with my second shooter (s/o Jolie!), and alas we were headed for Latourell Falls.
Ahead of schedule, we’re winding alongside all different types of waterfalls and lookouts when we finally begin to approach Latourell Falls…but we noticed something odd…
There was caution tape BLOCKING ANY & ALL ENTRYWAYS to access this waterfall.
When I say my heart dropped to my stomach. I quickly pulled over and started googling “Latourell Falls closed?” and found that, just the day prior to our shoot, they closed off Latourell Falls due to heavy rain and it being considered unsafe for anyone to hike or walk through.
AHHH I was 100% freaking out by this point. 1 million ideas were racing through my head and I was just hoping that Alexis’ mom would by near her phone so I could give her a quick call to hopefully come up with an action plan!
Coming up with a “Plan B”
Long story short, her mother got my call and we both decided that the perfect “Plan B” location would actually just be a short 8 minute drive back down the road at the stunning Bridal Veil Falls.
Once we came to an agreement on the updated location, I told Alexis’ mom that I would prepare my camera gear & wait until I spotted them in the parking lot and it would be go-time from there.
As Jolie & I trailed along behind Alexis & Brian’s family (as non-suspiciously as possible) I started taking test shots all along the way to dial-in my settings. After they were set, I just had to wait for “the moment”…
The Proposal
Because Bridal Veil Falls was our last minute “Plan B” location, I had absolutely NO IDEA where Brian was going to stop and propose—and honestly, neither did he!
This was totally winged, and totally, totally worth every unexpecting moment.
Everything came together beautifully. As soon as I started to see Brian take Alexis and stand her in front of him, I knew it was time.
I quickly got in position, made sure Bridal Veil Falls was positioned behind them, and captured every sweet moment that came after.
Here are Alexis + Brian’s surprise proposal photos…enjoy!
PHOTOSHOOT DETAILS
LOCATION:
Bridal Veil Falls Oregon
CAMERA GEAR:
Camera Body: Nikon D750
Camera Lens: Sigma 35mm f1.4
CAMERA SETTINGS:
ISO: 100
Aperture: f / 2.0 - f / 3.2
Shutter Speed: 1/200 sec
PHOTO EDITING SOFTWARE:
Preset Used: Coming Soon
