"First off, let me say that it was a pleasure working with Gavin and Erin. Their energy is infectious and their skill and professionalism brought out the best in me and my fiance. Our session took place in the fields of San Juan Capistrano. The instant we drove up I knew it was going to be a special day. The way the fields glowed in the sunlight and the grass danced in the wind was magical. We were both nervous heading in but Gavin and Erin instantly put us at ease. Once past the initial jitters we had a blast. Our photo shoot went by as a blur of laughter and love and we topped it all off by popping a bottle of champagne and toasting to new beginnings and new friendships." -Diana & Ralph
Photo credit: Gavin Wade Photographers
Their love story: Ralph and I met at a mutual friends house after a night out in celebration of life. I didn't notice him at first but the feeling I got the moment I laid my eyes on him will live in me forever. I sat down on a couch next to him, looked over and when I saw him for the first time I accidentally blurted out "Oh my goodness, you are so handsome!" I had never felt such a sweet, warm energy beaming from a person. I am generally a shy person so I immediately felt embarrassed for being so direct but it turns out I do not regret it one bit, as this moment became the beginning of the rest of our lives. Ralph simply looked at me, smiled with his precious closed mouth smile and softly said "Thank you". I was in love. We kept in contact through Facebook for the next few months, attended events the other would be at and got to know each other a little more. I noticed how respectful he was to women, who like me seemed to fancy him. He never took advantage of it and I respected him for that. I knew he was the one. Finally, one night I got the courage to tell him how I felt. I remember talking to his brother Trip for a short while that night, I asked "Where is Ralph? Bring him over to say hi, I loved him!" His brother smiled and said OK. After hanging out and dancing a bit. I asked Ralph if I could let him in on a secret of mine. He was intrigued and said of course. I leaned over and whispered in his ear "I have a really big crush on you". His reaction was that of shock. I totally caught him off guard. He asked me “Why did you just say that?” I felt a sense of embarrassment flush through me and thought I had made as mistake. He noticed my reaction and said “Now I won’t be able to stop thinking about you” with a smile. My heart melted. We started dating exclusively immediately. We even moved in together right away, within two months or so. Our families and friends thought we were crazy but we didn't care, we knew we were in love and what we had was real. We discussed eloping and marriage on our first evening date but being that we are both grounded, logical individuals, we decided to be cautious and wait two years to decide whether or not we were meant to spend the rest of our lives together. We would never part.
The proposal: Our two year anniversary fell on Sunday, November 6, 2011. Ralph had an entire weekend of fun planned for us, all of it a surprise for me. We kicked off the weekend with our favorite thing to do in the world, we had a quiet night at home enjoying a special home cooked meal by Ralph (he’s an amazing chef!). Saturday we caught the evening showing of Iris - Cirque du Soleil. Our first show together and it was a memorable one. On Sunday he took me to The Bazaar in The SLS Hotel Beverly Hills. It was a delightful three hour long meal. We laughed, ate a drank so much! After dinner he said he had one more surprise for me. We got in the car and started a long drive. I was so anxious to find out what it could be and I kept looking for clues. When I saw the beautiful, old tree lined streets leading up to our first date location the Griffith Observatory, I knew. The only reason he would bring me back here on this day was to ask me to marry him. We got off the car walked up to one of the highest points and it was there that he got on one knee and said “Diana, you know I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Would you do me the honor of being my wife?” He was so nervous. I said yes! with a huge grin on my face.
