Cathleen envisioned a romantic and dreamy vibe for the second part of their session (see Part I here!), so we headed to a gorgeous field along the coast in Orange County. Scott and I had scouted out the location beforehand, but as we parked, we happened upon the cutest community park. We decided to start off with a few photos there. With a perfect little tree swing, how could we not?

Isn’t Cathleen’s headband the cutest? When I commented on how much I loved it, she replied “for a splash of color!”.. and took the words right out of my mouth!

Then we ran across the street to our original wilderness destination. We were greeted by more sweet afternoon light and a field of gorgeous yellow flowers:

Engagement sessions are always tons of fun. They’re about laughter, about little kisses, about dancing in the street, laying in the grass, and getting comfortable with a camera (or two) following every moment. But most of all, engagement sessions are a way to celebrate who you are as a couple. A couple who likes to ride bikes. Or visit Farmer’s Markets. Watch sports. Cook. Read. Dance. Get overly competitive in video game or tennis matches (which is um, the single most defining factor of Scott and my relationship.. thanks to yours truly). You can incorporate any element of your relationship into the session and that’s what makes it so exciting and special!

Cathleen and Victor took the already-sweet idea of an e-sesh and raised it one bar higher! When she contacted me with her idea of a “story” theme for their shoot, I was so excited! We chose Old Towne Orange in Orange County for the shoot’s backdrop – a haven of cute cafes and shops, encased in the most wonderful old-timey sensation. As you stand by the fountain and watch the cars drive round and round the circle of antique stores, you cannot help but feel a “when did I accidentally step into a DeLorean and get transported to 1955” vibe.

Part II of the session will follow, but for now let’s dive right into the story! Cathleen’s main idea was to have the story unfold as a fun date that results in an unexpected little occurrence ;) The setting: a sunny day in Orange County. Victor sits on a wooden bench, waiting to meet up with Cathleen for a Saturday afternoon date. But this will not be just any ole date… *cue hopelessly romantic tunes*

Cathleen arrives in the cutest pink top known to mankind.

What is a date without some gelato? Laughter and kisses in between raspberry & expresso-flavored bites.

After strolling around for a bit, they stop at a small jewelry shop. They peek into the window and Cathleen secretly admires the rings…

The time is now! Victor nervously reaches into his pocket, his hands shaking and his heart beating up a storm…

She said YES! (A slight commercial break to say that I absolutely loved Cathleen’s reaction.. regardless of the slightly staged aspect of it all, you can still see the absolute love and joy that is reflected in her face. I can only imagine how exciting it was during the real thing! :)

What to do after getting engaged? Why, go hang out in an alley with AMAZING light of course!

Continued strolling around Old Towne Orange…

And so concludes Cathleen & Victor’s sweet date-turned-engagement story! For Part II we head to the hills for some romantic field shots and some more yummy light. Stay tuned! :)

They had met in the dorms at UC Irvine – during those golden years of staying up late, playing football in the halls, spending 75% of the day in pajama bottoms, and swiping a card that magically lets you into a land of all-you-can eat pizza and ice cream. On a grassy knoll on campus during these happy times, Rick asked Christina to be his girlfriend. 4 years later, they found themselves back on campus at the very same spot. In place of the grass was now the Student Center, a tall brick building, surrounded by tables and meeting areas. And although the scenery had changed, the school had changed, although they no longer frequented dining halls or spent late nights chatting in dorm hallways, what was most important in their lives had stayed the same. And so Rick asked Christina to be his wife.

I was so delighted when Christina told me they wanted to do their engagement session at the campus where they met and fell in love. When planning the e-session, I always ask couples to think of someplace that is meaningful to their relationship, and UCI was definitely their perfect location. As we wandered through the campus, Christina and Rick pointed out the benches they rested on, the buildings their classes were in, their most favorite nooks where they had spent their college days. It was so much fun hearing about all of their memories – not to mention getting a spectacular tour of the campus!

An extra dose of excitement was added to our email exchange when Christina disclosed that she was would be bringing balloons! I have been wanting to do a session with balloons for the longest time and was beyond on board with the idea! (Additional fact: Christina chose green since the color reminds of her Rick.. apparently when they first met in the dorms, his freshman wardrobe was quite green-intensive! ;)

Love the sexy boots!

Where the proposal happened!

A quick change of clothes and more exploring around campus! During the change, we tied the balloons to Scott’s camera bag. When we took off again we decided we might not really use the balloons for this part of the session, so we left them attached to his bag. You can probably guess what happens next – I’m snapping away, Scott goes “uh oh”, we all look up, and there are the balloons 30 feet up entangled in the top of a eucalyptus tree! We felt horrible, but of course Christina and Rick were beyond sweet about it, and the show went on!