Hansen and Wai Yee have known each other as school mates since they were 13 although they weren’t close then. It was only after they both graduated from high school did they start growing closer to each other -- Wai Yee used to work part time at a gift shop and Hansen would occasionally drop by to say “hi”. From then on they started to grow closer and go out more, bringing them to where they are now. Hansen shares that “I love her independence and carefree approach to everything around her. She laughs very easily so it's easy for me to amuse her. I feel the most comfortable around her. Her attention to details and strong bond among her friends impresses me as a strong, reliable modern lady.” Hansen and Wai Yee were chasing the Sakura season and their trip to Japan happened to coincide with Osaka’s bloom As both Hansen and Wai Yee both preferred not to have a fancy proposal, Hansen decided to go with a pleasant surprise, proposing during a casual stroll in a sakura park during their holiday trip to Japan -- something Wai Yee was sure to love. Hansen and Wai Yee were chasing the Sakura season and their trip to Japan happened to coincide with Osaka’s bloom, so Hansen decided to hold his surprise proposal in Osaka. While Googling for stealth proposal photographers, Hansen came across OneThreeOneFour’s site and decided to engage Andy. With Andy’s suggestions of the best location to catch the cherry blossoms, Hansen easily planned his surprise proposal shoot despite visiting Japan for the first time. He decided to shoot at a small park called Sakuranomiya Park near Osaka Castle, which has long paths with cherry blossom trees that would create a beautiful frame for the photos. Also, at the end of the path, there are a few small hills which are covered completely with cherry blossom trees. Although it was raining slightly the morning of the proposal and our couple was a little late for the cherry blossom season, they were thankfully still able to catch a wonderfully pink scenery. After a 15 minute walk through the park, our couple reached a small hilltop with an umbrella of Sakura trees. Hansen spotted a huge and majestic Sakura tree in the middle of the hill and “knew from first glance that it would be The Spot to plant this memory into our lives -- and so it was then that I readied my knee!” “Wai Yee was definitely surprised and started to tear up” When our couple reached The Spot, Hansen handed the umbrella to his fiance and proceeded to go down on one knee and then propose to Wai Yee. Andy shares that “Wai Yee was definitely surprised and started to tear up”. "I'm glad she didn't suspect anything strange from the guy with a huge camera behind them..." After the proposal, Andy caught a few snaps of Hansen and Wai Yee embracing. He shares that “only then was I able to approach them and introduce myself saying, 'Hi, I'm Andy, the weird photographer who has been stalking you since the start.' to which she said, 'Oh. I didn't even notice you there until the very end.' I'm glad she didn't suspect anything strange from the guy with a huge camera behind them who was constantly turning around and taking photos of cherry blossom flowers.” "We are overly satisfied with the shots, even our families back home were immensely impressed!" Both our couple and photographer had nothing but praises to sing about each other: Hansen shares that “Andy is a very professional photographer. In terms of skills and in managing our emotions. This was a stealth shoot for us and so when the proposal was over, my fiancee was still balancing her feelings. He joined the jovial mood and was able to coordinate us for all the shots throughout the park. We are overly satisfied with the shots, even our families back home were immensely impressed!” Andy also shared that “shooting for Hansen and his fiance was so much fun... I was paparazzi for the first half of the shoot and I could only finally introduce myself to the couple after Hansen had proposed. This was strange as I was essentially meeting both of them for the first time. They were such a fun couple to shoot for though. Full of smiles and laughter and they both had a great sense of humour.” Has Hansen and Wai Yee’s story moved you to want to plan your own surprise proposal event? Then check out Andy’s portfolio or our full list of wedding photographers in Japan to capture your special day!