How a simple marriage proposal becomes unforgetable
Our first proposal photoshoot in Paris happened on December 30 of 2009. We received an email from Patrick, a fellow from California. He had the project to propose to his girlfriend during their trip to Europe while in Paris. And he had in mind to get nice photos of his proposal. The first goal was to remain a hidden photographer of his lovely girlfriend Heather, and him during his Marriage proposal in Paris.
In the beginning, the mission was to meet at Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Paris. That was initially set up at 11 p.m. and we just had to take pictures of the proposal itself. But I decided to document not only as a proposal photographer but as well as a photo-journalist all evening. I invited my wife to have dinner in the same restaurant, so I could photoshoot the couple earlier at the Georgian restaurant Deda, where the two lovers had dinner.
I could meet in person Patrick for the first time in the restaurant’s restrooms!
After that dinner, they walked through empty Parisian streets towards the Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Paris. They crossed bridges and stopped by some nice street lights to allow a few romantic photos…
Walking hand in hand and enjoying every shop’s Christmas decorations, Patrick and Heather finally arrived at the Cathedral. That’s where our hearts all were all beating hard: the proposal was supposed to happen but when?
Patrick got down on one knee a hundred feet away from the Cathedral. He showed the ring to Heather, waiting for her answer, and she said “yes”.
Afterward, some great pictures were taken in black & white after the proposal. Please enjoy these photos down below.
Restaurant Deda had a sign at the entrance saying: “A guest is a gift from God” (it is a Georgian popular proverb). We can say that a Marriage proposal is a gift from love.
That first proposal was expected as the only one. But Patrick loved the result so much he posted a very positive review on TripAdvisor. Then, some other romantic guys from the U.S.A. contacted me soon after, asking for a shooting for their own “proposal in Paris” pictures.
This is how this adventure “proposal in Paris” started.
Patrick’s review on TripAdvisor
(Text fromPatrick’s review on tripadvisor.com)
” I proposed to my now fiancee in Paris over the New Year and did four months of internet searching to find a proposal photographer for the big night. I stumbled upon the work of Bruno Cohen and contacted him right away. We brainstormed together for a few weeks about how to pull it all off without my girlfriend knowing. He went above and beyond to help map out a walking route to the Notre Dame and he brought his wife to the restaurant to get some beautiful early evening shots.
The night went off without a hitch. He stayed hidden the whole time and my fiance was completely surprised. He was wonderful to work with and sent the photos to me almost immediately. I’d recommend him to anyone based on all this alone, and then we saw his shots. This guy is a genius with the camera. He shot us on our middle of the night stroll with only the lights of Paris to pick us up. His work looked like some beautiful black and white film noir that will blow you away.
Bruno’s work was worth every penny and it will be something that we cherish for our entire marriage. If you’re looking for someone who will get as excited about your big event as you, Bruno is your guy. We fully intend to hire him as our wedding photographer.”
Patrick C.
Discovery of the photographer after the proposal
