Will and Andee: An Instagram Surprise Proposal
A birmingham couples gets engaged in the French Quarter
While I believe being a New Orleans Surprise Proposal Planner and Photographer is the best job ever, there are some fairly annoying aspects of being self-employed. Mainly, spending 80 percent of my time on marketing. 🥱
While I’d love to spend all of my time focusing on planning elaborate proposals and editing phenomenal photos I have to make sure couples can find me!
I’ve never had a lot of luck with Instagram. The algorithm changes too frequently and I’ve only invested energy into it in spurts here and there. My follower count has been hovering near 1500 for years regardless of how I use the app. But then I gave in and gave reels a try. I found that they were fun to make and after the first one I posted, a hopeful proposer found me and did a quick DM slide.
Enter: Will! The first client I booked via instagram reels!
Working with Will was a delight from the very first interaction. He was eager to propose to his girlfriend, Andee, and definitely wanted some help getting the lay of the land in New Orleans. The best word I can use to describe him during out planning call was “giddy”. I could feel his excitement through the screen.
He and Andee will have only been together ten months (and ten days!) by the time he popped the question. But he said he knew from the moment he met her (her very first week in Birmingham!) that she was the woman for him. The older I get, the more I believe in the idea that you can “know” early on in knowing someone (the caveat being that both people would be somewhere in their 30s with a few relationships behind them). At that point in our lives, if we’ve been paying attention, we know what we do (and don’t!) want in a partner. Red flags get easier to spot and green flags are impossible to ignore.
It’s less “love at first sight”and more being able to tell the difference between NRE and true compatibility.
Anyway, that’s just my opinion and also- I digress!
Will planned a simple Jackson Square proposal with the added punch of a carriage ride and champagne. I grabbed a nice bottle for him ahead of time and kept it chilled until the big day. And on the big day, I got to the French Quarter early (landing some absolute rockstar parking in an off-hours freight zone just off the square. Winning!) and delivered the champagne, ice bucket, and flutes to the carriage company’s logistics manager. I also chatted with the carriage driver so she knew exactly what the plan was (this is an important detail!).
Then we played the waiting game (we meaning me and my assistant/videographer/partner). During which I turned away from the cathedral and noticed that the confederate cannon was gone! I got super excited… I always felt uneasy photographing proposals crouched next to a monument to the South during the civil war. Especially if anyone in the couple wasn’t white. I learned that the cannon (which was actually still loaded up until a few years ago!!) had been moved to a historical park at the Jackon Baracks one town over. I think it will be well suited there and I’m curious what they’ll put in its place in the Quarter (a fountain, please! Let it be a fountain!).
The proposal itself went off without a hitch! Andee’s reaction was absolutely adorable. I thought she was going to fall over from sheer excitement- and all the laughter. After Will put the ring on her finger I overhead her say “thank you! Wait… is it weird to say thank you?” and they both laughed even more.
When I led them to the carriages for Will’s next surprise to Andee, I took a quick peek into their carriage and saw that the champagne wasn’t in place! So I continued to lead them to a great portrait spot and kept their attention on me as I saw the carriage driver hurrying past us with the champagne! Fortunately, the couple was still in the proposal daze and didn’t even notice her.
We rounded the corner to head to the side entrance of the square but another couple was doing engagement photos! It’s just as well because I was just stalling anyway. I led them back to the carriages, apologizing for all the walking (they didn’t mind, they were on cloud 9), and the surprise was waiting once we made it back to their carriage.
After meeting Andee, I immediately understood why Will couldn’t wait to propose. Everything about this woman was awesome. She was funny, intelligent, irreverent, silly, gorgeous, and unabashedly herself. She had a big personality packed into a small frame and I must say, I can relate!
She is also a photographer who has photographed surprise proposals and carried the belief (same as I!) that no one would be able to spring a proposal on her without her catching on. But with a little help, Will caught her completely off-guard. She said she saw me with my camera harness and instead of thinking “he’s about to propose!” she thought “oh, I have a harness like that!” 😂
They were precious together and I was so, so honored to capture them taking the next step in their relationship together! They may very well be one of my favorite couples of the year.
Coincidentally, a behind the scenes reel I posted of this proposal went viral! Well, viral by my standards. It got 84k views in the first day! Will brought that reel magic with him! I’ll post it below!
Photos and videos from Andee and Will’s New Orleans Surprise Proposal Photography after the jump.
Ready to plan your own big moment?
