Sean-Patrick + Jenna // A Southern California Engagement Session by Brett Hickman Photographers

Brett Hickman of Brett Hickman Photographers always sends us gorgeous submissions - like this SoCal engagement session he did for Sean-Patrick & Jenna. Gorgeous couple + beautiful lighting... what more can you ask for? Be sure to scroll all the way down to read the couple's love story and how the proposal went down.

From the couple: Brett is the best. He met us at Stone Brewery in San Diego, and since we had never done a photo shoot, he gave us direction for each of the photos. The location was awesome - we got to take pictures in the restaurant, brewery, and outside garden. After, we relaxed for a few hours and then met Brett at Table Rock Beach in Laguna Beach for the second part of the shoot. The beach was pretty deserted, and we had so much fun taking pictures and drinking champagne while Brett did amazing things with the natural outdoor lighting. The cold didn't even bother us because we were having such a blast. We are extremely happy with the pictures.

Their love story: Sean-Patrick and Jenna both attended her cousin's wedding in July of 2008. Sean-Patrick noticed Jenna dancing and complimented her to his friend Chris, but the two didn't meet at the wedding. And although Jenna attended an after-party at Sean-Patrick's house, he was asleep the whole time in his bedroom. Jenna kept in touch with Sean-Patrick's friends, and six weeks later, she was invited to meet up with them at Old Tony's on the Redondo Beach Pier for their friend Braydon's 24th birthday. Jenna immediately noticed Sean-Patrick and once they began to talk, they were instantly smitten. Although they dated on and off for about a year, the two were practically inseparable. They got REALLY serious when Sean-Patrick left for three weeks to vacation in Nicaragua and Argentina, and realized that he missed Jenna terribly. The couple continued their adventures together in various places, including several US cities and Mexico, Canada, Spain, and Portugal. In addition to traveling, they've nurtured their love of the outdoors, hiking and camping in the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite, Joshua Tree, and places along the Oregon and California Coast. They decided to move in together in Playa del Rey – an adorable little beach town in Los Angeles – in February 2011, where Jenna enjoys cooking and reading, and Sean-Patrick enjoys eating Jenna's cooking and watching sports. In their spare time together when they're not traveling, Jenna and Sean-Patrick like to go on bike rides, visit breweries and wineries, attend sporting events, try new restaurants, and just relax at their apartment with a good bottle of wine and a movie.

The proposal: For about a month, Sean-Patrick looked at rings until he found the perfect one for Jenna, who had no idea he was planning the proposal. One Friday night, he asked Jenna if they could do something the following day with his family. While the two were brewing beer with friends that Saturday (one of Sean-Patrick's favorite hobbies), Jenna's cousin called. She and her boyfriend were visiting from Germany and wanted to spend the night with Jenna and Sean-Patrick. Sean-Patrick reluctantly agreed, but only because Jenna promised to reserve Sunday to spend with SP's family. On Sunday, March 25, 2012, Sean-Patrick packed a very expensive bottle of rosé champagne and two champagne flutes in the trunk of his '99 Cadillac DeVille, and the couple left their apartment in the pouring rain. Jenna realized that they weren't heading in the direction of his parents' house and brought it up to Sean-Patrick. He said that he wanted to spend time with her before he left for his bi-annual surf trip in Nicaragua that week, so because Jenna is a huge planner, he had to lie about spending time with his family to get her alone. He took the coast so the two could look at the ocean on the way up, and pulled off a few times to look at the surf. He found a spot just south of Rincon Island on the way to Santa Barbara, and got out of the car. He asked Jenna if she wanted to join, and she said she was just fine staying dry in the car. Standing in the rain while Jenna waited in the car, Sean-Patrick turned around and motioned for her to join, so she grabbed an umbrella and joined him in the rain. As they looked at the ocean, Sean-Patrick said, "This is it." When he got down on one knee and proposed, Jenna was completely surprised and didn't even look at the ring - she immediately said yes and threw her arms around him.