The Amara Resort in Sedona doubles as a great backdrop for your special moments—like a proposal—and of course, a place to rest your head before a hike up to Cathedral Rock. Travis reached out to me from Australia, as he had won a sweepstakes to travel wherever he wanted from an Australian airline, and he chose Sedona. He would tell Alyse he was going to the gym in order to meet with me on Zoom via his car, and it would be nearing evening time for me. We had fun planning his proposal and making it work to not drop a single hint to Alyse!

The Amara Resort worked with Travis to lay out rose petals for not only his proposal spot, but also for their hotel room with celebratory champagne to follow. They were a great resort to work with and kept everything under wraps. Travis wanted Alyse to be able to dress up for their proposal, but also wanted to have an adventurous hike in Sedona for epic backdrops. Which is totally fair, it’s Sedona and a proposal! The way to get the best of both worlds is to book a next-day adventure session. We did 30-minutes of photo coverage to purely capture the surprising moment, some shots by the creek, and then an 1.5-hour session for a Cathedral Rock Hike the next morning. This allowed for them to have dinner at the resort together all dolled up, to take in the moment just the two of them, and then prepare for an epic hike the next day. It’s a perfect combination in my opinion.

And just like that…we woke up before the sun rose and headed to Cathedral Rock.

Cathedral Rock has its own challenges when it comes to its popularity, parking/shuttle, and timing. I always give my clients all the options and what their outcomes will be experience and photo wise. The timing chosen allowed for more intimate moments and epic lighting show thrown against the rock walls.

I love seeing my clients get down and dirty with the adventure; throwing off the hiking boots and walking barefoot on the rocks in order to safely change into picturesque shoes. I also love when they keep their hiking boots on for shots since it’s how it truly got them to this point. Genuine!

On top of giving options, I always provide my clients with a Cathedral Rock guide in order to thoughtfully prepare them for the hike, and all the necessities they will need for the adventure. It helps make a great experience for all and not to sweat the small things. Cathedral Rock is truly my favorite spot in Sedona for its views and the epic vantage point it provides for photo sessions. Cheers to Travis + Alyse!

Photos taken for Flytographer

What a unique morning hike proposal I captured for Andre + Alex on their dream trip to Sedona, Arizona featuring an Alebrije. When Andre first contacted me, he immediately mentioned two things:

1. “We're keen hikers so happy to go somewhere in Sedona that you recommend, we've never been to Arizona before – we're flying in from our home in New Zealand on holiday.”

2. “I've made a small Alebrije [ring] box…so it's a bit of a funky one.”

It was exciting to be able to help curate a proposal for someone from New Zealand, AND for someone that built their own Alebrije that doubles as the ring box! Extremely cool. Now some of you surely may be asking, ‘what is an Alebrije?”

An Alebrije is traditionally a papier-mâché or wooden sculpture. It is a form of art previously invented by Mexican artists Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo in Mexico City, with a large influence in Oaxaca today.

With Andre having family from Oaxaca, he explained to me that he has made his own Alebrijes over the years. He even made one for Alex when they first started dating, and he explained it felt right to make one for his proposal to her with a special twist. The addition of their home cities HAND PAINTED on it made it extra special to show Alex. He also explained he felt it would be a good way to display both of the Alebrijes he has made her as bookends. A very special idea!

From there, we chose a hike with a summit but a casual one, as it was an early morning hike or “stroll” to start their first day in Sedona with. We specifically also chose a hike where the trailhead was only steps away from their Airbnb. All of these things were decided to keep it feeling casual, in order to not give the surprise away. The photo below is me spying on them from above as they started the hike!

About 15 minutes later, I start acting like a fellow hiker; eating my snack bar and taking phone photos of the sites, as I see they made it to the top as well. As planned, Andre asked me to take a photo of them with his phone and when I got them into place, that was Andre’s cue to go ahead and do the thing—propose!

Alex was enamored when seeing a familiar Alebrije, and couldn’t help but put together the pieces of Andre’s suspicious behaviors back home in New Zealand. Her happiness and excitement for his proposal was palpable.

From here we took celebratory photos to commemorate the moment and take in the views. This was all possible for their 1-hour photo session with the hike included in the time. For those wanting something short & sweet, a 1-hour session with me is just right. If they wanted to do a more extensive hike, or a longer session for more options to adventure further, I always recommend beyond an hour. I have plenty of location advice to provide in Sedona for whatever kind of adventure you’re looking for. Consider me your hiking guide!

Congrats to these two on their engagement and for bringing a slice of home with them on their dream vacation. Nothing is better than doing what you love to celebrate your engagement.