The Ring in My Camera Bag

For three days, I carried a diamond ring in my camera bag — and I was terrified I was going to forget it.

Mat is a coworker of mine. He'd booked me for family photos, but that wasn't the real plan. The real plan was a surprise proposal to Brit, right in the middle of the session. He'd been hiding the ring at his house for weeks, and a few days before the shoot, he handed it to me. Which meant the whole secret — weeks of hiding, all of it — now depended on me remembering to bring one small box.

The morning of the shoot, it rained. Not a drizzle — the kind of weather that makes you text each other "are we really doing this?" We almost didn't. But we went, and I kept checking the sky the whole drive.

During the session, I could tell Mat was nervous. Brit had absolutely no idea.

I needed a moment to hand him the ring without her seeing, so I sent Brit and the kids walking toward me for some action shots — and while her back was turned, I slipped Mat the ring.

What I didn't plan for: Mat trying to stuff a ring box into his waistband. Brit caught him digging around in there and asked him, point blank, if he had a wedgie.

Mat said yes.

I don't know how I kept a straight face. We were both sure she had him.

At the next spot, I separated them again — standing apart, holding hands. That part was strategy: it kept Brit away from Mat's waistband. I had them both look in opposite directions, out at the mountains.

Then, while she was looking away, I gave Mat the signal.

He went down on one knee. And he stayed there — a full few seconds — while Brit kept looking the other way, completely oblivious. Finally I told her to look toward Mat.

She was shocked. Truly, completely shocked. She had no idea — not the ring, not the plan, not the wedgie. (The wedgie was real commitment to the bit, Mat.)

And then there's the part none of us planned. The rain that had threatened the whole morning cleared for exactly the length of our shoot. The clouds opened up over the Sawtooths, and you could see the first snow of the season sitting on the peaks — like the mountains dressed up for the occasion. We finished the session, got in our cars… and it started raining again.

Mat — thank you for trusting me with the secret, and with the ring. Keeping a secret that big, in a camera bag, through a rainstorm, is the most stressful and most rewarding thing a photographer can be asked to do.

Brit — welcome to the family, officially. He had it in his waistband the whole time.

Planning a proposal, a family session, or a moment you want kept forever? I'd be honored to help you pull it off — secret-keeping included.

[CTA: Contact button → /contact]