There’s nothing I love more than a challenge, and when Caren told me her idea for engagement portraits, I just couldn’t resist. Adam had proposed to her in the Renaissance wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and she wanted to have some photos taken of the two of them in the museum. The problem is that while the MET allows tourists to take non-flash photos, it’s not exactly the perfect place for a photo shoot. Ignoring the miserable lighting in most of the building, giant security guards stalk the halls looking more like cyborg sentries than rent-a-cops. But that was certainly not going to deter us.

After a quick jaunt through the Andy Warhol exhibit, Allison and I met up with Caren and Adam in the gift shop and I explained to them how this was going to go down. I was going to tell them where to sit and interact with each other, Allison was going to distract the security guard by looking cute and I was going to walk far away and pretend to photograph some statue or painting in the general vicinity of the couple. It worked for three shots in the Renaissance area, but a beefy security guard started giving us a dirty look and was playing with his walkie talkie, so we high tailed it after taking the shot below. I’m not sure if it was the exact spot where he proposed to her, but you get the picture.

As a kid, I adored the Egyptian part of the museum. The massive temples and hieroglyphics were something out of GI Joe and the exhibit is in a huge solarium—a major contrast to the dark and stuffy museum. We spent half an hour shooting some fantastic photos around the tomb and wishing well. Just as an FYI, while it might look like the place was empty, there was actually plenty of people milling around. Caren and Adam were troopers, waiting patiently for people to move out of the way. Since we didn’t want to draw attention to us, I didn’t ask anyone to stand clear, instead we just waited and waited—it was so worth it. Below are some of my favorite photos from the engagement session, including a few images we made in Central Park and around the museum grounds. Since this shoot, I’ve received a few inquiries about doing an engagement session at the MET. My answer is simple, “Only if that’s where you got engaged.” 

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