Ethan planned the BEST surprise proposal in Garden of the Gods. I am so freakin' excited to tell you about it, and to share my 8 favorite poses with two dogs.
Ethan and Abby dated through veterinary school, so when he decided to propose he knew their dogs would be involved. He chose an iconic area in their new home of Colorado. They had not yet explored Garden of the Gods, but after researching several locations Ethan just knew this was the one. He contacted me to say that he was planning a surprise proposal and a surprise party afterwards with family and friends. I was already struck by his thoughtfulness and enthusiasm. When he mentioned including their two golden retrievers I knew I wanted to be there! He landed on a Saturday in March, which is the most unpredictable month of the year for weather in my opinion. We could get 18" of snow (two weeks ago) or a day that's 60+ degrees and sunny (last week). Luckily it was the latter on the morning he popped the question. It was honestly a perfect spring day. Abby and Ethan arrived with their dogs, Moose and Malibu, and walked to a boulder big enough for four. Ethan dropped to one knee, and Abby cried (happy tears) and said YES.
Let's talk about photo sessions with TWO dogs! This is something I see fairly often because lots of couples want to bring their dogs to their engagement session. It's a great way to get family photos, and especially worthwhile if the dogs are not attending the wedding. All poses are dependent on the dog's age and disposition, as well as their ability to obey commands in a potentially crowded area. Many trails in Colorado require leashes, which rules out that last one. I would also never ask someone to pick up a dog in their arms or invite a dog to jump up for a photo unless the dog and owners are comfortable. But these will get you started for sure!
My favorite prompts for posing with two dogs:
Dance back to back with your dogs. Hold onto their paws and lean forward for kisses.
One person kneel down with the dogs and the other person hug from behind.
Sit with your dogs in the middle of you two and squish your faces together.
Puppy love fest: kneel with your dogs and try to get them to kiss you.
Pose yourselves in a cute way, then invite your dogs to jump up on you.
Walk with your dogs.
Pick up your dogs and hold them in your arms like a baby.
Have your dogs sit, then back away. Kneel down and say "ok!" to get a photo of your dogs running to you.
One of my non-negotiable shots is a close-up of the ring (these are SO hard to capture with a cell phone but everyone's going to want to see).