Kelly’s hand immediately went to her face when Jay got down on one knee. From Hunter’s hiding place in the bushes and my vantage point a few feet away (disguised as a lounging college student), we could see on Kelly’s face that in an instant she was going through the full range of surprise proposal emotions. First was shock, as her hand covered her gaping mouth and her eyes widened in surprise. Almost immediately, joy overcame her as what was happening began to register. Disbelief soon followed as she smiled at Jay and even closed her eyes, probably wondering if this was all real. But when she opened them again, and Jay was still down on one knee, she immediately reached down and kissed him. As you might expect, overwhelming love and affection are the final emotions that most girls feel on this day!

 

Jay had strategically picked out this location, the small lawn in front of the International Residential College at UVA, because it was where he had first asked Kelly out almost five years ago. Although we were initially surprise he wasn’t proposing on UVA’s Lawn like most of our guys do (those are five separate links from just the last 12 months!), when we heard their story we immediately understood. Although we could’ve spent all afternoon shooting with Jay and Kelly, our engagement mini-session that followed the surprise was extra-mini that day. Unbeknownst to Kelly, a group of their closest friends from undergrad were waiting around the corner so that as soon as we finished up with photos, they could all celebrate together!

 

Kelly + Jay,

We are so glad that you reached out to us this winter about capturing this incredibly special moment, Jay! We loved getting to hear your story throughout our time together, and even hear the unique story that surrounded your sapphire engagement ring (“Ooooooh it’s blue!”) Despite your initial hesitations, we knew that you two would be total naturals in front of our cameras, and that you’d even have a lot of fun! We know that these are just a few photos from our time together, but we hope they hold you over until your full gallery arrives in your inboxes later this month 😉

 

With love,
Sarah + Hunter

 

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If you’re interested in speaking with Hunter and I about your own surprise proposal, click HERE to get in contact with us!

 

If you’d like to view more of our surprise proposals, click HERE to view our portfolio!