Proposal Photography at Coronado Island | David + Megan

We were given the opportunity to capture this proposal out at Centennial Park in Coronado a couple of weeks ago. David planned to drop down to one knee right in front of the beautiful San Diego skyline. 

The plan was to walk out at the park and caricature artist was going to ask them if they would like a drawing made of them. The drawing that he would show to them would be of David dropped down to one knee asking for Megan to be his bride. 

Check out some of the beautiful images from their amazing day: 

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San Diego Wedding Photographers: Ernie & Fiona Photography
Location: Centennial Park | Coronado Island | San Diego

Julian Engagement Session | Colin + Sarina

What an amazing time we had with Colin and Sarina wandering around Julian. We had some apple pies and we found some amazing light for their engagement session. Check out some of the images below from their great day. 

Jullian Engagement Photographer: Be Still Photography | Ernie Padaon | Fiona Padaon

Julian Engagement Session | Sneak Peek w. Colin + Sarina

We did an engagement session with Colin and Sarina in Julian and found some amazing locations to take photos. Here is a quick sneak peek in on our session with them. 

Julian Engagement Photographers: Be Still Photog | Ernie Padaon | Fiona Padaon
Location: Julian

Jake + Stephanie | San Diego engagement photos at Moonlight Beach

San Diego engagement photos at Moonlight Beach in Encinitas with Jake and Stephanie.

We were able to capture the engagement photography for Jake and Stephanie out at Moonlight Beach. They will be getting married in July at Big Bear. They are such an amazing couple and we were so excited to be able to capture moments with them at Moonlight Beach.

San Diego Engagement Photos at Moonlight Beach in Encinitas

We were also asked to capture their proposal a few months ago at Stone Brewery.

They love the beach and love the idea of getting onto a lifeguard tower for some of their photos. We walked on the beach and enjoyed hanging out with each other.

San Diego Engagement Photos at Moonlight Beach in Encinitas

San Diego Engagement Photos at Moonlight Beach in Encinitas

San Diego Engagement Photos at Moonlight Beach in Encinitas

Always have to have some fun while you are out on the beach. 

San Diego Engagement Photos at Moonlight Beach in Encinitas

If the lifeguard tower is open, you just have to get up in there and take a few snaps. 

San Diego Engagement Photos at Moonlight Beach in Encinitas

The beach session with these two was amazing. They got to hang out for an awesome day, while we just sat back and captured the two of them. 

Loved capturing the day for Jake and Stephanie. Loved being there with them and we congratulate them for an awesome wedding that they will have.

San Diego Engagement Photography: Be Still Photography and Video | Ernie Padaon

Wedding Proposal Photography | Colin + Sarina

Oh what a beautiful night it was. A beautiful night for a proposal. A proposal that would definitely be a surprise and would get some amazing reactions. A proposal that would be seen and done in front of a ton of people. Colin and Sarina are an amazing couple from our church. Colin wanted to plan a proposal during one of our youth ministry nights. Both Colin and Sarina are heavily involved with the youth. They both serve at different campuses on Fridays though, so the plan was to have Colin come down for a surprise visit in the middle of the service.

We played a little intro video on the screens that Sarina didn't know too much about. It was just listed as a Special Item on the run sheet. The video was going to play after a Valentine's day promo and Colin would walk out onto the stage after a certain part of the video.

You can see our recap video here:

[video_box video_url="https://vimeo.com/153825170"]

That proposal video still gives me goosebumps.

We captured some photos on the day as well:

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Before Sarina was on the stage, she was in the audience enjoying the worship from the night.

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Colin was in the back nervously waiting to make his appearance.

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Then the video came and it was time!

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We brought them backstage for a few quick photos, but then wanted to let them sit back and enjoy their moment together. We will get our chance to do photos with them during a real engagement session and can spend the time to create some amazing photos.

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Surprise Proposal Video | Colin + Sarina

The proposal. Colin and Sarina are some of our favorite people and Friday nights we all get to serve at church for MyCity Youth. Colin serves at the North campus and Sarina serves down at Central campus, so they don't see each other on the night. This Friday it was a little different.

Throughout the week, we had been working with Colin on what we could do to make a surprise visit down to central during MyCity. We added a "special item" on the run sheet for the night that only a few people were aware of and that is when we would play a video and Colin would appear on stage.

Early on Friday we had initially planned to play a slideshow of some sort with the song from Safetysuit called Never Stop. We then came up with the idea of recording him and prepping to come out onto the stage for the surprise.

Here is the quick storyboard we put together:

We arrived early at church around 4pm and gathered footage as quickly as we could and put together a quick video to show in front of everyone. After the video was done and ready, all we could do was sit back and wait till our special item was ready to be played.

Here is the recap:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=og6E4_Q9Lxk

Wedding Proposal Videographer: Be Still Photog | Ernie Padaon | Fiona Padaon | Caleb Gonzalez

Chris + Kelly | Engagement session at Marian Bear Park after the rains

El Nino gave Southern California a beating for the last few days. Once the skies cleared we were able to get together with Chris and Kelly to hold their engagement session at Marian Bear Park. We will be their wedding photographers and videographers for their wedding in early February. We are almost there!

Marian Bear Park looked a little different than usual with puddles all over and a stream of water that was blocking some paths. Trees were knocked over, but it still left some amazing photos to be taken.

Check out some of the photos that we captured of this amazing couple.

With some of the puddles around, we just decided to use them in our favor and get a few reflection photos. It barely rains in San Diego, but when it does, we might as well use it to our advantage.

With some of the trees on the ground, it made for a good spot to sit down and rest.

We loved working with Chris and Kelly and can't wait for their big day. They will be getting married in a couple of weeks in Pacific Beach and we cannot wait to see the amazing photos that we will capture from their day.

Engagement Session Photographers: Be Still Photog | Ernie Padaon | Fiona Padaon

Engagement Location: Marian Bear Park

Jim + Isa | Engagement photography at Solana Beach during the rain

  Last week was full of crazy rain and a few tornado alerts were popping up across San Diego. As we were driving out to this engagement session, we knew that the rain could be a huge problem, but we were going to have the session anyway. We planned on keeping it indoors.

We started out at a small winery in Solana Beach off of Cedros and we started our session in the little parking area that was covered. We liked the purple bricks and used it to start our session to stay dry.

The winery we held the session at was small, but we found some great moments in there despite the tight area. Jim and Isa were amazing and had a glass of wine and enjoyed their time with each other.

Our first attempt to shoot outside after the winery had a lot of rain pouring down and we had to hurry to get some cover. We used that little moment to get a few sweet moments.

As the rain let up, we noticed that we could have an awesome sunset and we were just hoping that the rain would hold off long enough to get some awesome photos.

The rain held off and the sunset was incredible.

We even were able  to get down to the beach to take some photos. Since it was raining out, the beach was all ours. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLg95oV2pXs

Engagement Photographer: Be Still Photog | Ernie Padaon | Fiona Padaon Location: Solana Beach | Carruth Cellars | Fletcher Cove

Tips when having a photographer during your proposal

Where are you going to drop down on a knee and propose to your lady? In San Diego, there are a number of beautiful locations that you can propose and save that magic moment.

If you want a photographer, here are some things that you want to make sure that you keep in mind.

Make sure that there is good light where you want to propose

A lot of times during these proposals the photographer has to be hiding around the corner at some location and won't be able to set up a solid flash to get everything just the way you like.

Make sure that you have a schedule that works out well and are at your location at that exact time. We like to have people schedule out their time right at sunset. Check what time sunset is and have it all scheduled by that time.

Schedule out your plan up to the proposal

The last thing you need is to run over time on your schedule and start rushing as your time gets closer. You don't need to add any more stress to your proposal. Leave extra time on your schedule to make sure that you are not left in a hurry.

Be in solid communication with you photographer before the proposal day

Make sure that the location is clear. Make sure that the time is clear. Make sure that the photographer knows exactly how the plan is going to go and when you are going to drop down on a knee.

If possible, let the photographer know exactly where you will be facing in order for the photographer to get in proper position for the money shot.

Hold the pose on a knee for your proposal

Just hold the pose.  Don't drop down and jump right back up. Stay down there long enough to get a few solid images. We are not saying that you should be down on the knee for a few minutes, just give it a few seconds before you come up to hug and kiss your lady.

Hire a photographer

You will want someone to capture this moment. It is a big day in your life and you will want someone to be there to capture the moment properly. Don't have your friends do it on their phone. Have a pro ready to capture your day.

What to do when in rains in SoCal during your engagement session

What do you do when it actually starts to rain in Southern California during your engagement session? It never rains in Southern California. At least that is what everyone else in the world thinks. For the very few moments that the weather does bring down some rain, we have to be prepared. Usually your photographer will give you a heads up on the upcoming weather for the day in advance and it will give you a chance to reschedule the appointment or to just continue on with the day.

Normally, we would recommend to continue on with the session and if the day gets too full of rain, then we will work on doing another session.

In SoCal, there are usually different pockets in which the weather will be good enough for you to go outside and get some shots. There were a number of clients in which we rescheduled, but at the time of their appointment it was beautiful and sunny outside. That is just that SoCal weather that we all know to love.

Find a cute indoor location like a winery or coffee shop

If you do decide to brave the elements, there are a few things that you need to be prepped with. As far as location, find a cute spot indoors in which your photographer can work with. For our clients yesterday we had chosen a little winery and coffee shop in Solana Beach.

Since the rain is out, those locations should be pretty empty. Just call to make sure that it will be OK to take some photos at the location before you walk in.

Bring proper rain gear

You will want to have an umbrella. Also, make sure that it is nice and big and that two people can stand under it at a time. At some point, your photographer would likely want you to go out in the rain and take some photos.

Bring some towels and a change of clothes. If you don't expect to get wet, you likely are going into the shoot with the wrong attitude and it might be better for you to reschedule. You are going to get wet.

Bring makeup

Since you likely are going to get wet, you are going to want to be able to touch up from time to time.

Be ready to move quickly

In San Diego, you have to be ready to move. There is going to be a pocket of time in which there will be no rain and you can get to that dream location that you were wanting. When that pocket hits, be ready to move and get to that location. Keep your indoor location near that outdoor location that you want to move to.

We did an engagement shoot yesterday in the middle of El Nino and we found a pocket of time to shoot and came away with some great images at the beach. Here is a quick share from that shoot:

Just know that you will get some great images with a good photographer. They will be able to make some magic happen indoors and outdoors with you and they will be prepped for the day.

Engagement session photographer: Be Still Photog | Ernie Padaon | Fiona Padaon Location: Fletcher Cove, Solana Beach

Where should you have your engagement session?

As a wedding photographer, we get this question a lot: Where should we have our engagement session? 

Our best answer would be that it would be a place that you are comfortable in. A place that you are familiar with.

We usually like to recommend a location in which the couple had their first date or any other location that has some sort of significance for the couple.

San Diego has a number of great locations to do an engagement session. Balboa Park is always a favorite location to take photos. The architecture of the buildings is so amazing and there are a number of different locations in which you could take amazing photos.

Any place that has great architecture, the photos are going to turn out amazing. The Salk Institute in La Jolla is a great spot to take photos as well, but you have to be a little more sneaky about it there. Professional photographers are not allowed to take photos there. So you just

The beach is always another favorite for couples. How can you go wrong out there?

Couples also like to change things up and get more greenery in their photos, so they choose a spot around Miramar Lake or Lake Hodges.

There are a number of great looking places like that is Southern California. Some other places that could make for some amazing photos are in a library or in a movie theater. We have taken photos on Montgomery Air Field.

The locations are endless. Take some time to select the best location that fits you. We could take photos at a Starbucks and feel great about it.

There are definitely some locations that we would love to take photos at though. If you are interested in going out to them, then let us know and we can work out a better deal with you.

Here is our dream list at the moment:

San Juan Capistrano Mission Inside of a library Inside of a hangar

We also are interested in doing more theme type photography. At the moment we want to do a shoot that incorporates Star Wars in the engagement shoot.

Follow our facebook page to see the latest themed worked we are looking to do is. We usually will offer to do those shoots for a very discounted rate.

What awesome and unique locations can you think of for an engagement shoot?

Proposal Photography | Proposal at Stone Brewery

 

San Diego Proposal Photography: Be Still Photog | Ernie Padaon | Fiona Padaon Venue: Stone Brewery | Escondido, CA

We were asked to capture this awesome moment for Jake and Stephanie. Jake had it planned out that he would ask his now fiance to marry him at the location that they spent hours at. They literally shut the place down when they were sitting on this bench talking to each other for hours. They were in the garden at Stone Brewery where the two of them hit it off and Jake wanted to bring her back there a year later to get down on one knee and propose.

Jake had it all planned out and shared with us his vision. He took some candles from Stephanie's house and wanted it set up on the bench. He made a custom-made ring box that matched the candles and he wanted it laid out on the bench.

Jake would lead Stephanie out to a walk in the garden at Stone Brewery and get to the bench. When he comes around she was going to see the bench and he would then ask her.

Everything went according to plan and here are some of the captured moments from the day: