A Gay Surprise Proposal in New Orleans

Jake asks his boyfriend of ten years to marry him in Armstrong Park

I love asking surprise proposal clients about what brought them to this moment. As I’m sure you can imagine I’ve heard a wide range of love stories. Some people met and fell in love instantly. Some people dated, broke up, then got back together and got hitched. And some people got together young and stayed together a long time before deciding to get hitched. Jake and Cory are the latter.

Jake met Cory when they were freshmen in college. They fell in love quickly and against all odds that say you’ll change so much in your twenties there’s no way you’ll want to be with your college sweetheart in ten years, they were still together while staring down the barrel to 30. Jake knew that Cory wanted to get married but he wanted to wait for just the right moment.

They had a trip planned to New Orleans for Jake’s 30th along with Jake’s mom and sister. And Jake knew this was going to be the right time to pop the question. He also knew he needed a local guide to help him plan something just big enough to impress his sweet boyfriend but not so over-the-top his partner would be embarrassed.

He came to the right place!

Planning with Jake was delightful. I felt a warmth from him right off the bat. It was obvious that after a decade together he was still head over heels for Cory. We looked at a number of locations but since they were staying in the Treme, I showed him my favorite spot inside of Armstrong Park. We were planning an early May proposal and I knew the Peggy Martin roses would be in bloom then. I was stoked that he liked it because I knew it would be perfect.

Jake wanted a musician for the moment and he knew exactly what song he wanted them to play. Cory is a HUGE Kelly Clarkson fan and “A Moment Like This” was the perfect choice for, well, a moment like this! I knew the perfect musician to perform it, too.

I don’t know a lot of women in town who can play guitar while also belting out a ballad like Kelly. I know some powerhouse vocalists but we would need an accompanying musician too. So I went with a guy who both sings and plays guitar and can learn a new song quickly. I’ve had him play numerous different genres for proposals and he’s nailed every one. I knew he would kill a Kelly Clarkson hit!

I was really anticipating this proposal. I look forward to all of them (they’re my FAVORITE!) but this one in particular had me anxiously awaiting. I think it was the sweetness of the song combined with how long I know Cory has been waiting for Jake to propose. I just knew it was going to be something special.

And oh, was it ever.

I spotted them walking from across the park and felt my hands start shaking! I used to get nervous before every proposal but it’s really not that often anymore. The adrenaline was pumping as they got closer and I took decoy photos of our musician gently playing an intro to the song. Jake’s mom and sister were in on it and tried to lead them across the bridge while Cory kept stopping to take photos! His mom made eye contact with me and I could feel my heart pounding in my chest.

Once they’d all made it over I told them they looked so nice that I was wondering if they wouldn’t mind being extras in some street performer photos I was taking. They agreed and asked me where the best place to stand was. Which made it even easier for Jake to make sure Cory was where he needed to be!

I’m pretty sure Mom, Sis, and I were all teary eyed from the second Dr. Sick started singing. We were all crying our eyes out once Jake took a knee. He and Cory managed to hold it together while Sick continued to sing and Jake slipped the ring on Cory’s finger. Sick killed it, just as I knew he would.

I kept photographing as the newly engaged couple hugged each other, their family, and shook Dr. Sick’s hand. Then it was time for a few portraits! But before we started, I told the couple the history of the Peggy Martin Rose.

Peggy was a South Louisiana gardener who grew these pink, thornless, climbing roses from cuttings passed down from gardens in New Orleans. She was visited by a botanist from Austin in 2005. The roses had no name and he was interested in studying them. Fortunately, he took cuttings back to his lab before Katrina flooded her garden and home, destroying everything in both. But after the waters receded and Peggy started to make sense in the wreckage, she noticed that one single plant survived: her roses. The Austin botanist named them for her and they are a sought after plant in South Louisiana (I have some in my own garden!).

I told Jake and Cory that proposing under an arch of these indestructible roses was good luck for their future and a reminder that their love can withstand any challenge life throws at them. They may have been tearing up by that point too. :)

I did what I do best and monkeyed myself onto the bridge railing so I could get a shot of the couple framed by the roses. Thanks to Jake’s sister for snapping some photos of me dangling dangerously above water!

I was sad to say goodbye to this lovely couple but was thrilled with how perfect everything had gone. It was my 95th proposal and it was exactly what we had hoped for it to be!

Enjoy this selection of images from Jake and Cory’s New Orleans Surprise Proposal Photography.

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