Matt & Tori: A Sunrise Proposal | Crabtree Falls | Charlottesville Virginia Proposal Photographer
Believe it or not, proposals take A LOT of planning! The guy has to think about the type of ring she wants, what size ring she wears, where to propose, what to say, etc. What throws a different element into the mix is when you hire a photographer to photograph the occasion!
Matt's mom Martha first contacted me months ago to prepare for this moment. With Matt being in the military and unable to talk much, our communication was scattered through texts and emails between the three of us to make sure everything was set and ready. Matt had decided he wanted to propose to his long-time girlfriend Tori (who traveled from Mississippi for the weekend) at Crabtree Falls but, if you don't know this.... there are two Crabtree Falls. One in Virginia and one in North Carolina. YIKES! Thankfully, we all were on the same page as to which falls we were headed to because when I arrived early to "hide-out", I quickly came to realize there was no cell phone service. At this point, I was going into the situation blind hoping all would go as planned!
Hiding out though was not an option. If you haven't been to Crabtree Falls, it's a very tight space at the bottom of the first falls. Luckily, there were several people with cameras taking pictures of the falls so I blended right in. I thought I caught eyes with a guy that resembled Matt but I wasn't quite sure because it wasn't just him & Tori, her sister & their pup tagged along as well. Within seconds of them reaching the bottom of the falls & myself still wondering if this was them, Matt popped down on one knee. Seriously, with no hesitation at all, one second he was standing up talking to Tori and the next he was down on one knee! It was all too perfect! Her sister was there to hold their pup, Tori was completely shocked & the falls were roaring continuously due to the previous rain we had received. All the planning had paid off!
However, no one goes to a waterfall to propose and doesn't get a couple more pictures to commemorate it! So I followed them up the falls to capture their excitement & the beauty of the hike a little more. Please note, we stayed on the trail the entire time! The falls are dangerous and slippery so we obeyed the rules the entire time and still got some amazing shots! Congratulations Matt & Tori! It was an absolute pleasure capturing this milestone for you & I hope I get to see you again!
