Sometimes the best photos are the ones you didn’t plan to take.


I grew up going to Ocean City, Maryland every summer, spending time at the inlet was always the most magical, under or on the pier, the rides, the boats. As an adult this holds such nostalgia for me. Going to OC as an adult I can bring my grown up hobbies and try and capture some of that magic. On this particular morning I got a little more magic that I had planned on. I went out to the pier before dawn that morning with one goal: some long exposure sunrise landscapes. I set up my tripod under the pilings and spent the blue hour chasing the right comopositions and long exposures, with the surf smoothing out and the sky fading from purple to coral behind the pier’s silhouette.

Silhouetted wooden pier pilings stand over calm ocean water at sunset, with soft orange and purple skies reflecting on the waves.
Golden sunrise glowing between wooden pier pilings as ocean waves roll onto a wet sandy beach at dawn.

As the light started to warm up, I noticed a couple walking down the beach. They were just two people enjoying the morning, standing close and watching the water. I kept shooting my landscapes, I figured I could get a couple of shots of them and maybe offer them the photos if I thought they turned out well.


Then he dropped to one knee in the sand.


I quickly dropped my apurature and framed them up as fast as I could. In the first frame he’s kneeling with the ring box in his hand, and she’s already laughing, leaning down until their foreheads almost touch. It’s one of those split seconds you can’t set up and can’t repeat.

A couple embraces on the beach at sunset, standing close together as gentle ocean waves roll in behind them.
Man kneeling on one knee holding a ring box proposes to a smiling woman standing on a sunset beach with ocean waves behind them.
Man in a backwards cap kneels on one knee holding a ring box as a smiling woman looks on during a beach marriage proposal at sunset.
Man in a baseball cap kneels on the beach holding a ring as a smiling woman in denim shorts reaches for him during a sunset proposal.
Couple embracing and kissing on a sandy beach at sunset, one person kneeling in the sand as waves roll in behind them.
A man in a trucker hat kneels on a sandy beach at sunset, embracing a woman in denim shorts as gentle ocean waves roll in behind them.

What I love most about the next few frames is how unposed they are. She dropped to her knees in the sand right alongside him. He was grinning ear to ear, and the two of them were completely absorbed in each other. The sun was coming up through the pilings, and they had no idea anyone was watching.

Couple kneeling on a sandy beach beneath wooden pier pilings, sharing an intimate moment as the ocean glows at sunset.
Silhouetted couple embracing on a sandy beach at golden sunset, with wooden pier pilings and sparkling ocean waves in the background.
Silhouetted couple embracing on the beach beneath a wooden pier as the golden sunset glows over the calm ocean waves.
Couple kneeling and embracing on a sandy beach at sunset, with wooden pier pillars and gentle ocean waves in the background.
Couple kneeling face to face on a sandy beach at sunset beside wooden pier pilings, with calm ocean water glowing in the background.
Couple kneeling together on a sandy beach at sunset, with wooden pier pilings and calm ocean waves in the background.

Then came the celebration. He swept her off her feet, and the sunrise lit up the water behind them in gold. Barefoot, sandy, and spinning in the surf, they looked like two people who couldn’t believe how happy they were. When the sun finally broke through the pier, they shared a kiss in the middle of that glow, and the ring caught the light on her hand.

Smiling couple embracing on a sandy beach at sunset, standing near wooden pier pilings with golden light sparkling on the ocean water.
Couple embracing on a sandy beach at sunset, with wooden pier pilings and glowing golden waves in the background.
Tattooed man in cargo shorts lifts and hugs a woman on a sandy beach at sunset, with wooden pier pilings and golden light on the water.
Couple kissing on the beach at sunset as he lifts her in his arms, with wooden pier posts and golden light reflecting on the ocean.
Couple embracing on a sandy beach at sunset as a man lifts a smiling woman beneath a wooden pier with golden light on the ocean.
Couple embracing and kissing on the beach at sunset beneath a wooden pier, with golden light shimmering on the ocean waves.

A little later, things settled down. She stood looking at the ring, and they shared a quiet moment with coffee in hand and big smiles. That ring looked good on her. After they’d had a few minutes to take it all in, I walked over, introduced myself, and told them what I’d witnessed. I offered to send them the photos, and they were thrilled. They’d had no photographer for the proposal, and now they had the whole thing, from the first knee in the sand to the sunrise kiss. Congratulations you two! Thank you for letting me be a small part of your morning. I hope these photos take you right back to that moment for years to come.

Couple standing close on the beach at sunset beneath a wooden pier, holding hands as golden light sparkles on the ocean waves.
A bearded man in a cap and a woman in denim shorts stand barefoot on a sandy beach at sunset beside a wooden fishing pier.
Smiling woman with red hair covers her mouth as a bearded man in a cap and green hoodie reaches toward her on a beach at sunset.
A bearded man in a cap and a smiling red-haired woman holding a coffee cup share a tender moment by the ocean at sunset.