A Sunset Proposal at Garrapata State Park: Nick and Patrycja in Big Sur

Some sessions I’m still thinking about weeks later. This is one of them. Nick brought Patrycja out to the cliffs at Garrapata State Park just as the light was starting to turn gold, and somewhere between the ice plant and the ocean he got down on one knee.

What I love most about these photos is her face in that first frame. Looking down at the ring, laughing, hands still half-raised like she hasn’t quite caught up to what’s happening. That’s the whole reason to have a photographer there. You can’t recreate that.

The yes, then the ring

Once the answer was in (it was a yes), we slowed down. Patrycja held her hand out toward the water, the two of them tucked into the bluffs with the whole coastline behind them. The light out here in the last hour before sunset does a lot of the work for me, and Garrapata’s trail along the cliffs gives you that classic Big Sur view with the Santa Lucia mountains dropping straight into the ocean. A line of pelicans flew through right on cue.

Down to the beach

Then we headed down to the sand. Shoes came off, Nick picked her up, and the rest was just the two of them being happy. These are my favorite kind of engagement photos. A little blurry, a little windblown, all real.

Patrycja wore a white floral midi dress with a pearl bracelet, and Nick wore a white button-up with khakis. Light on light, nothing competing with the water, and the ring shows up in every frame. If you’re figuring out what to wear for your own session, my what to wear guide for the Monterey coast covers all of this.

Congratulations, Nick and Patrycja. Thank you for letting me be a quiet part of this one. You two made it easy.

Why Garrapata is one of my favorite spots for a Big Sur proposal

Garrapata State Park is about ten minutes south of Carmel on Highway 1, and it gives you two completely different settings in one stop. Up top, the bluff trail winds through ice plant and wildflowers with the whole Big Sur coastline stretching south. Down below, Garrapata Beach is a wide stretch of sand with waves rolling in and the mountains behind you. There’s no entrance fee and no reservation, just pullouts along the highway. The trail down to the beach is short but steep, so plan your footwear (or do what Patrycja did and go barefoot once you hit the sand).

It faces west, so the last hour of light comes straight across the water and lights up the cliffs. That’s the glow in these photos. I wrote about Garrapata and a few other spots in my guide to the best photo locations on the Monterey Peninsula, and if you’d like to see a proposal on a different stretch of this coast, Joe and Peyton’s proposal at Asilomar in Pacific Grove is a good one.

Planning a proposal in Big Sur?

If you’re thinking about proposing on the Monterey coast, I’d love to help you plan the spot, the timing, and how to keep it a surprise. I photograph proposals and engagement sessions in Big Sur, Carmel, and Pacific Grove. You can reach me through my contact page, or text me at 831-328-3113. Your secret is safe with me.