Best indoor locations for Surprise Proposal Photography in Washington DC

You have heard it before; You should always have a back up plan or Plan B! This certainly holds true when planning a photography session for surprise wedding proposals and engagement sessions at an outdoor location. It is a very good idea to have an indoor location as Plan B, especially if you are not able to reschedule the date of your photography session.

On the day of proposing, it could rain or during the winter months you could be faced with ice and/or snow! Washington DC has some great indoor locations and most have no admission fees.

Here are some tips on getting ready for an indoor location:

- If time is flexible, go as soon as the location opens to avoid crowds.

- Plan a weekday proposal/engagement session as weekdays tend to be less busy than weekends

Here is a list of my favorite indoor locations in Washington DC for surprise proposals and engagement sessions:

National Gallery of Art

The National Gallery of Art is a wonderful place for photography to capture your special moment. There are two buildings in addition to the National Gellery of Art. In one building you will find modern art and in the other building there are mostly classical paintings. Although both would be ideal, the building with modern art has more natural light. The LED Tunnel makes for a cool photograph!

Open Monday-Saturday from 10:00am-5:00pm and Sunday from 11:00am-6:00pm.

National Portrait Gallery

The National Portrait Gallery's Kogod Courtyard is located in the center of the building. This location is wonderful as it has a lot of space, natural light and indoor plants. Other parts of the gallery are great for portraits as well. During the holiday season the courtyard is quite festive!

Open Daily from 11:30am-7:00pm.

Botanical Gardens

The Botanical Gardens are located right near the Capital Building. The walkway in the tropics exhibit is an ideal spot for your special moment as it tends to be more private and a there is a lot of natural light coming in through the windows. To add to your photos, you can end the photography session with a photo outside with the Capital Building in the background.

The Botanical Gardens are open daily from 10:00am-5:00pm including weekends and holidays.

Library of Congress

The Library of Congress is another great place for photos with its beautiful marble floors and spectacular pillars.

Once inside, you must go through security and then walk up to the main area. The top level is suggested as the best place portraits!

Open Monday-Saturday from 8:30am-4:30pm.

Other location Ideas

Restaurant Proposal - proposing at the resturant where you went on your first date or a frequent date spot is also a popular choice. Restaurant proposals may require more advance planning and can be a bit restricted for portraits afterwards if its raining outside. Using the overhang outside the restaurant is an option or a bar area or other parts of the restaurant such as private rooms if the restaurant allows and has this option.

National Building Museum - The National Building museum has an entrance fee but always has cool exhibits that can make for unique photos.

Union Station - The front of Union Station has a great outdoor area that is covered by the overhang. Inside is also a great spot for indoor photos however Union Station can be busy during peak travel times.

Hotel - A hotel room, hallways or the lobby area can be used as a great indoor location as well with the hotels permission. This works well for couples out of town staying in a nice hotel. Some hotels also have proposal packages where they will place flowers or a bottle of champagne in the room for you when you check in. Below are some shots from The Ritz Carlton Hotel in Georgetown where I captured a surprise proposal during the holidays!

Surprise Proposal Photography includes detailed planning & advice, photography session to capture the proposal moment, portraits afterwards, and your online gallery of your beautifully processed high resolution images. The online gallery is easy to share with friends and family! Jon Fleming Photography specializes in capturing couples love stories from the surprise proposal to the wedding day!

Learn more about planning a surprise proposal photography or engagement sessions in Washington DC by using the contact form or emailing jonflemingphotography@gmail.com

Planning a Surprise Proposal or Engagement Session at The Cherry Blossoms in Washington DC

Every spring Washington DC celebrates The National Cherry Blossom Festival. The annual festival celebrates the 1912 gift of 3,000 cherry trees from the mayor of Tokyo to the city of Washington DC and honoring the friendship between The United States and Japan. Today the festival last about four weekends and attracts about 1.5 million tourist. The blossoms can be seen around The Tidal Basin, Jefferson Memorial, MLK Memorial, and many other areas. Many couples choose the Cherry Blossoms as the perfect time to plan their proposal or engagement session but there are some things to keep in mind!

Dealing with Tourist: The Cherry Blossom Festival attracts many tourist! So avoiding the busiest times will be beneficial to make sure there is space to get photos without people in them. Sunrise sessions are highly recommended as there are not many tourist out just after sunrise. The later in the day the busier it gets. Going on weekdays instead of weekends is also helpful! 

Peak Bloom: many clients like to have their photos during peak bloom! Peak bloom happens when 70% or more of the cherry trees blossoms are out. The peak bloom may only last for a few days but the week before or after the bloom will still have many trees in bloom. Peak bloom can be hard to predict especially if you are coming from out of town on a planned trip. If you are flexible on dates, I am happy to be flexible in planning spur of the moment to go during peak bloom for photography sessions! You can read more about peak bloom and up to date predictions on cherryblossomwatch.com.

Transportation: As The Cherry Blossom festival attracts thousands of tourist it is recommended to use transportation such as Uber or Metro instead of driving as parking is limited! Parking may be available if you are planning a sunrise session. 

Other Locations: Aside from The Tidal Basin and Jefferson Memorial there are other locations around Washington DC that also have Cherry Blossoms if Memorials and large crowds are not your thing! Feel free to reach out as i'd be happy to discuss other options that may work for you!

Some shots along the pathways around the tidal Tasin! 

The Lincoln Memorial is a great spot to propose with a view of The Washington Monument! After the proposal you can walk nearby for Cherry Blossom photos!

Surprise Proposal Photography includes detailed planning/advice, photography session to capture the proposal moment, portraits afterwards, and your online gallery of your beautifully processed high resolution images. The online gallery is easy to share with friends and family! 

Learn more about planning a surprise proposal or engagement session at The Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington DC by using the contact form or emailing jonflemingphotography@gmail.com

Planning a Surprise Proposal at The Lincoln Memorial

The Lincoln Memorial is one of the most iconic spots in Washington DC attracting thousands of tourist per year. The memorial has an amazing view of The Washington Monument and is walkable to many other DC memorials. The Lincoln Memorial is one of the popular locations in Washington DC for surprise proposals and engagement sessions! 

My favorite spot for a proposal is inside the memorial between the columns with a view of The Washington Monument as seen in the two images below! To get this shot I coordinate to direct my clients on which side of the memorial to propose on. Sometimes there may be tourist around this area and in that case I would suggest walking around a moment until those tourist leave or walk away. Sometimes you just need some luck. Weekends can be busier and summer is busier for tourist. By going to the memorial during less busy times you can succed in getting this amazing shot without any tourist in the shot. 

If you want to have The Lincoln Memorial in your photo you can also propose in front of the memorial at the bottom of the steps! This is another great option, however you will have tourist in the shot behind you and maybe some onlookers! 

A third option is to propose near The Reflecting Pool in front of The Lincoln Memorial with a view of The Washington Monument! This is a great option since tourist won't be in your image with the water. 

After the proposal there are lots of great locations within walking distance for additional portraits! Here are some of my favorite images: 

Learn more about planning a surprise proposal in Washington DC by using the contact form or emailing jonflemingphotography@gmail.com