Zugibe Vineyards Proposal | Finger Lakes, New York Proposal Photographer | Dani T Photography

SHE SAID YES! Being a part of big moments kind of comes with the territory of being a wedding photographer, and let me tell ya, when proposals come through my email inquiries I get all the feels! Matt had emailed and wanted to set up a plan to pop the question to the love of his life, Val, while they were enjoying a mini get away on Seneca Lake, New York.
As the day quickly approached, Matt and I and shared information back and forth and came up with the perfect plan, and location, Zugibe Vineyards. ! While it was raining all day, the weather cleared up just in time for him to get down on one knee and as Val to be part of his forever!
When I was done breaking out my super secret photography ninja skills, we celebrated together with some delicious wine, more tears and smiles. Of course I also had to check out the ring!! Matt had told me what he had picked out, and when I say it is stunning I mean it! One of my favorite parts of events like these is really feeling like besties by the end of the session together. We explored the colorful fall leaves in the vineyard together, while Matt and I filled Val in on how it all went down, and she started to piece things together over the last few weeks of Matt’s plan!

Congratulations to you both, and thank you for having me capture this awesome moment with you, it was my pleasure to be apart of it! I hope you both had the very best mini get away you could have, and really enjoyed the Finger Lakes region to its fullest! Also shout out to Zugibe Vineyard’s for working with us on making this plan happen flawlessly!

– Dani

”Dani is absolutely amazing to work with!!! I really can’t say enough good things about her, the photos and our experience. I was planning to surprise my girlfriend by proposing on our Finger Lakes vacation, but I’ve never been to the area. Dani helped me plan out the whole thing, set us up at this beautiful winery overlooking the lake and knowing the owner, was able to let us stay past closing! We talked, laughed and joked as Dani walked us around and took the most incredible photos!!!! My fiancé and I are so happy with Dani T Photography and now hove these amazing photos for the rest of our lives. I would recommend Dani T Photography to anyone!” – Matt B.

A LITTLE MORE FROM THE HAPPY COUPLE!

How did the two of you meet?  
We actually met online using a dating app! We hit it off immediately and after talking for a few weeks, met up at what is now our favorite bar. The rest is history. Val says when she walked in and saw my eyes and my smile, she was so dumbstruck the only clever line she could think to say was “Oh, hey…”. We closed the bar down, then went to a gelato shop down the street, talked and ate ice cream until 3AM. We hung out for the next 8 nights straight. We still laugh about “oh, hey…” but it obviously worked!

What are some of your favorite things to do together as a couple? Any cool hobbies you enjoy together?! 

Our absolute favorite thing to do as a couple is cook together, or more her supervising me while I cook for her. It’s a lot of fun to make a great, home-cooked meal and enjoy it together while we talk about anything and everything. When going out was still a thing, we loved going walking around local festivals, museums, and finding new restaurants, bars and breweries to try out. And of course, we try to get back to our favorite bar a few times a month. 

 Matt,tell us all about how you pulled off this awesome proposal! 

Well, first you need to know I’ve been kind of a jerk. Recently both my sisters got married along with my cousin, who is pretty much my third sister. So of course, Val and I have talked about marriage, about how we’re both very happy with the way things are going, and she just wanted to let me know (wink wink) that when I asked, she would say yes. My response, naturally, was “you mean if I ask” that she had a long time before that would happen. I found anything I could use as an excuse and pretty much got her thinking it wasn’t on my mind yet. When I bought her ring, I hid it in a box in the basement knowing she’s too afraid of going down there to accidentally find it. Fast forward, we’ve been wanting to get away for a while and Seneca Lake came highly recommended by my friends. What more beautiful place to propose?

What was your first reaction Val? Did you have any idea?!

I was absolutely clueless. We’d talked about marriage or getting engaged for months, but Matt would always jokingly say “IF I ask you to marry me”, or give me good reasoning as to why we hold off on an engagement and I’m a very logical person, so I agreed with his sound reasoning. Each time I would tell him to just know that when he was ready to ask I would say yes. At one point I told him I would just ask him first! When we were standing there in the field by the vineyard and he was saying sweet things about what I meant to him I didn’t suspect, because that’s Matt. He’s very open about his feelings and communicates with me. When he got down on his knee and asked, I was completely shocked! AFTER I cursed, I just kept asking if he was really doing this, if he really meant what he was asking. I was definitely “ugly crying” in some of those pictures. 

How did you celebrate during your mini vacation to the Finger Lakes, NY?

WITH WINE, of course! We went to a lot of vineyards, and enjoyed some amazing food. He enjoys bold reds, and I love sweet whites. But I have to say my favorite meal was the one we shared at our AirBnB on the last night. Matt makes an amazing charcuterie board, I’m talking Pinterest worthy, and for us to just put on sweats, lounge on the couch, and eat fruits, cheeses and meats, enjoying a bottle of wine while talking or laughing and watching TV was my favorite. 

Any ideas for your wedding plans?!   

We’re thinking of having our wedding at my family’s vacation home on Lake Erie, but that’s as far as we’ve gotten. We’ve decided to hold off on setting a date for now with the way the world as crazy as it is. For now, we’re just going to enjoy being engaged. We’ll set a date and when the rules and restrictions lift and we can plan the wedding we want.