In the email from Daniel, it was written that they are a Romanian couple and they are coming to Istanbul for a holiday. At the same time, he wanted to make a surprise marriage proposal to his girlfriend Eliza. After we started to correspond with email for a while, we moved the conversation to Whatsapp. Unfortunately we didn’t talk much. Normally online meeting is ideal for such situations but we did not have such a chance. This was because they were both working as home office. Eliza was aware of every step Daniel took. Daniel had even muted our Whatsapp chat. You can find the entire story of “Turkey Marriage Proposal Photos” at the bottom of the page…
First of all, I shared four alternatives with him for the upcoming marriage proposal. Those were a 2 hour private boat tour, on Galata Bridge against the backdrop of Istanbul, a terrace with a panoromic view of Istanbul and Sultanahmet Square with Hagia Sophia Mosque view. First of all we talked about the advantages and disadvantages of all of them together. When they came to Istanbul they would stay at the Kybele Hotel which is very close to the Sultanahmet Square. Therefore he chose Sultanahmet Square because it is both close to them and one of the most important symbols of the city.
Another issue is, how would it be a surprise despite my presence? Eliza might be suspicious if she hired me as the photographer. That’s why I made a suggestion. They would come to the predetermined place in Sultanahmet Square, stop and take a selfie. As a tourist walking around, I was going to suggest taking photos with their phones instead of selfies. Then I was going to suggest that I go a step further and take a picture or two with my own camera and send it to them. Meanwhile the marriage proposal would begin. This idea was very convenent for both of us.
Proposal is Happening
Half an hour before the shooting day, I went to the meeting point and first determined the exact spot they were going to come from and took a photo. I sent this photo by message and made sure he understood its exact location. This was the side of the fountain in the square that saw Hagia Sophia. I’d be sitting on the bench right across from him. I also took my own selfie and sent it. Daniel did the same for me. After all, taking a picture of another couple could ruin everything.
In the first photo in the post, you can actualy see the couple taking a selfie. At this very moment I stepped in and approached in the mode of a kind hearted stranger and we started to implement the scenario. Everything went well and Eliza was really surprised. After the offer, I explained my identity to Eliza and we congratulated and hugged together. After a short break we did a short couple shoot in the square. Then we returned to the hotel and used some of Kybele’s colorful backgrounds. Then we came to Eminönü seafront at sunset and finished the day with a night shoot we took here under the Parliament blue sky.
We are still in contact with Daniel and Eliza after they returned to Romania. They are such sweet people. I hope we can meet again as soon as possible. I wish them endless happiness.
Turkey Marriage Proposal Photos by Ufuk Sarisen
