is a different kind of wedding photographer

When planning out my proposal to Alana, I knew I wanted to make it a weekend event. I was determined to make this the most awesome, jam-packed, fanfreakintastic weekend that anyone had ever seen. She makes me want to be extravagant.

We met my sister Kira and her husband Curtis at a small airport in Richmond. Back when they were dating, Curtis asked me to help him surprise Kira with his proposal, and I was now asking him to return the favor...although I really feel like he got the much bigger request. All I did was shepherd an unsuspecting Kira down to Penticton to where Curtis was waiting; Curtis was asked to fly us to Seattle. And he did, in a little Cessna 172, he and Kira in the front, and Alana and I in the back.

When we landed at Boeing Field, Benj Haisch was waiting for us at the FBO. I met Benj through Flickr, had been admiring his work for a while, and was convinced he was the right guy to do our engagement photos. His photos are absolutely brilliant on their own, yet they fit together seamlessly to tell a wonderful story. I was so stoked to hear he made time for us on a busy Saturday in May.

We shot a ton in and around the plane, on the tarmac, and then took off to various spots around Seattle. Once we were done, Benj dropped us off at Pike Place Market where we ate lunch at a lovely Thai restaurant, discovered there was a cheese festival going on (!), drank coffee (necessary), people-watched along the oceanfront and saw the special Andy Warhol and Kurt Cobain exhibits at the Seattle Art Museum before meeting back up with Kira and Curtis for dinner.

By the time we finished eating the complimentary desserts offered to us, dusk was starting to set in. Our flight plan had us flying low over the city, back towards Vancouver, one step closer to home.

In the back of the plane, my fiancée rested her head on my shoulder, that smile I'd fell in love with still resting on her lips.

I have never been happier.