The story behind the shoot
When the conditions don't cooperate, you work with what you have
Hi everyone! I'm Gerald, the photographer on this shoot. I wanted to share with you how K and T's proposal came together, including a few things that did not go to plan and why that did not matter in the end. Read on!
What they wanted
K was about as open as a client can be. He wanted something private, something with blossoms if possible, and otherwise trusted us completely to make the right call. That kind of openness is actually a specific kind of pressure. When someone has strong preferences, you are matching their vision. When someone trusts you entirely, you are building it from scratch. February in Tokyo means plum blossoms rather than cherry, and K was happy to go with whatever the season had to offer. We settled on Hamarikyu Gardens, a large traditional garden close to the waterfront with a dedicated plum blossom grove. The plan was to use that grove as the backdrop for the proposal.
The challenge
Plum blossoms are more unpredictable than cherry blossoms. Their timing varies by variety, and in a bad year some trees simply do not perform. On the morning of the shoot I went to Hamarikyu to check the grove. It was almost completely bare. The dedicated plum blossom area, which is the best spot in the garden for this kind of shoot, was not going to work. There were other trees scattered around the garden with some colour from different varieties, enough to add something to the frame, but not what either of us had pictured. Then, on top of that, the day turned out heavily overcast. I had chosen 3:30pm specifically because on a clear day the sun dips behind the surrounding buildings at that hour and creates a beautiful effect at certain spots. No sun, no effect. We had flat winter light and whatever blossoms we could find.
How we shot it
I found a spot that had the best available colour and a clean background. Because the location was not a landmark and not easy to describe with just a pin on a map, I marked it physically. I gathered a few branches from the ground and arranged them on the exact spot where I needed K to stop. I also briefed him on positioning: he should be on my right, T on my left. More specific than I would normally ask, but the spot required it. It worked. He arrived at the right place, stopped where he needed to stop, and the moment happened exactly where I had the camera pointed. After the yes, both of them were completely at ease. They laugh a lot and they are easy with each other. The flat light, which had seemed like a problem, ended up producing something soft and consistent across the whole session. Sometimes the conditions you did not want turn out to suit the couple better than the ones you planned for.
"I gathered a few branches from the ground and arranged them on the exact spot where I needed him to stop."
"The flat light, which had seemed like a problem, ended up producing something soft and consistent across the whole session."
Gerald was absolutely fantastic. From recommending locations, helping plan logistics on the day of, and executing the shoot. From the minute we met, he was respectful of giving us time to ourselves after our big moment, and then worked with us every step of the way to ensure we had the best photos that we could remember the special day. Even after the experience, he went above and beyond to ensure we had communication around the delivery of our photos. We cannot recommend him more to anyone looking to book a photographer in Tokyo!
K · Proposal · Hamarikyu Gardens, Tokyo
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