"Mike & Victoria's engagement shoot was wonderful. We started off downtown Mission Viejo, strolling through the gardens and little shops, dancing around & laughing uncontrollably in the process. We then hiked up a few golden hills down south, and as the sun set, we had Mike & Victoria throw confetti into the air to better help celebrate the two becoming one. Victoria spent the whole night before cutting up different shapes of tissue paper - but it was all worth it. The magic caught on camera that evening was timeless." -Natalie Schutt Photography
Their love story: "I knew very early on that i would marry michael. i don't know how to explain it- call it fate, intuition, or God's plan (as i prefer to think about it)- but i knew michael was my future husband the day he asked me out. we ran into each other 3 times over a span of 4 months - and this was before we knew each other. On may 5th, 2013, my sister signed up to volunteer at the oc marathon for service hours. rather than drop her off, drive home, and come back, I decided to volunteer with her. By a fortuitous turn of events, we were placed at the finish line rather than at her originally scheduled station.
We'd been passing out goodie bags for a few hours when I suddenly recognized a sweaty and exhausted (though still wildly handsome) face amid the frenzy of the crowd. Much to my surprise, it was michael. he was equally surprised and made his way over to me and began to chat and pass out bags with us (and really, who does that after running 13.1 miles?) 30 minutes later, a combination of excitement and disbelief contributed to my quick 'yes!' when michael asked me out on a date. That afternoon, i texted two of my friends, letting them know I had found the person I was going to marry. One week later, we had our first date. The following week, we said 'i love you'- and meant it. Everything happened like a dream, in fact sometimes I still can't believe it turned out the way it did. 2 years later, here we are. Getting married. I can't imagine spending my life with anyone else."
The proposal: "Valentine's Day is my favorite day of the year. Not because I expect to receive jewelry or chocolate, but because I think it's beautiful that there's one day a year where people express their love for each other (and I love seeing flowers and the colors pink, red and white everywhere!) on Valentine's Day, Michael and I went to the beautiful Huntington Gardens in Pasadena where we enjoyed looking through their amazing art and literature collections. I was suspecting a proposal and casually tried to sneak a peek and look for a ring box. I did a quick walk around and didn't see anything. We walked through several gardens and ended up in the Australian Gardens, surrounded by beautiful eucalyptus trees. We sat down on a bench to talk about the future. Michael said that there were a few big events coming up like my graduation, his Air Force application notification and our wedding. At that moment, he got down on his knee and asked if I would be his wife. Of course I said yes!!"
Vendor: Photography: Natalie Schutt Photography
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