We’re Engaged!

I’m very happy to tell you all…

WE’RE ENGAGED! 

Christen and I are finally engaged! After six years of knowing each other and five years of our long-distance relationship, going back and forth, visiting each other in the USA and England, we decided that it’s time that we get married!

We decided to get engaged on the 1st May 2026, and we’ve already filed for our K1 Fiancèe visa. We didn’t have a ring at that point, so we spent a while choosing the perfect one. Then on the 8th July 2026, Christen officially proposed to me on one knee, with the ring, to cement our prior engagement.

I am planning on writing a whole blog post for you all, to explain how everything went, the proposal, the plans for the future, the visa, etc., but I wanted to share these engagement photos first to announce it to you! I can’t believe we’re engaged! YAY! And as a side note, I now have that main image above as my iPhone lock screen! It’s my favourite!

As a lover of photography, regularly shooting and editing my own photos (usually having Christen or my mum to focus and click), I decided to create this photoshoot by ourselves with a tripod and timer. I initially saw this beautiful spot in a natural park in Ohio, while Christen and I were on a walk in a new park he had found. I thought it would be one of the most beautiful spots to take pictures, as the pine trees create a depth effect on the path. I adore nature, so it was ideal. It’s also really secluded, which was even more perfect.

We took my camera to this location on a very warm evening and attempted to capture these images. Now, let me tell you, getting the focus on the ring was pretty tough in some of the shots, as well as getting the framing right! Many retakes were shot, and we were losing a lot of light under the trees as the sun was close to setting.

I’m pretty happy with how they turned out, though! Some of them were so dark on the camera, but it’s easier to edit low exposure photos than it is to bring down exposure and highlights on an over-exposed image, so I didn’t want to go too far with exposure while shooting, as I can play around with that in Photoshop. I wasn’t sure if they’d be usable, though! But after a lot of my time spent with editing sessions, they’re beautiful!

We decided on complementary brown outfits, with me wearing a brown polka dot dress and Christen wearing a tan linen shirt, so that it would match the background perfectly, as well as give that classic romantic feel to the photographs. I truly am in awe of how these pictures turned out, and really happy that doing them ourselves was a win! I’ve been waiting to share them with you, and they’re finally here!

You can see my ring in these pictures, but in the next blog post that I write, I will be sharing proper videos of it as well as up close pictures, so that you can see all of the details – it’s stunning! I’m so excited! So, I’m just going to type it again as I love saying it… We’re engaged! Christen and I are engaged! He’s my fiancé, and I am his fiancèe! Ha ha! I hope you enjoy these pictures! I will be back soon with the official story and update for you all. Thank you for reading!

Photos shot and edited entirely by Lorna Burford.