Making Things Right: Brett & Mary Bray’s Encinitas Engagement Session — Part Two
Brett and Mary Bray embrace at sunset during their Leucadia State Beach engagement session, celebrating a story of love, resilience and second chances.
A few days after photographing Brett and Mary Bray’s surprise proposal at Seal Rock on an iPhone, we had an opportunity to finish their story differently.
The proposal itself had been beautiful. Brett followed the plan we created together, Mary Bray said yes and the two of them walked away with an unforgettable story from their time in La Jolla.
But Stephanie and I knew we weren’t completely satisfied.
Our professional camera had failed minutes before the proposal, forcing us to document the moment with an iPhone 16. Everyone who saw the photographs thought they were great—including Brett, Mary Bray and the friends they were visiting—but we knew the experience wasn’t what we had originally promised.
Before they returned home to San Francisco, we wanted to make things right.
This is Part Two of Brett and Mary Bray’s story. If you haven’t read what happened during their La Jolla proposal, start with Part One: La Jolla Cove Proposal—When Our Camera Failed.
Part One was about what went wrong. Part Two is about what we chose to do next. A few days after Brett & Mary Bray's La Jolla proposal, we met them again in Encinitas—this time with our professional camera, their closest friends, a couple bottles of sparkling wine, and a chance to give them the experience we wanted them to have from the beginning. Because for us, photography isn't only about delivering photos. It's about showing up, taking ownership, and making sure the people who trusted us walk away feeling taken care of.
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Offering a Complimentary Encinitas Engagement Session
After the proposal, we gave Brett and Mary Bray a ride back to their Airbnb and started talking about what we could do next.
Thankfully, they were staying in the San Diego area for a few more days. That gave us an opportunity to offer them a complimentary engagement session before they returned home to San Francisco.
We couldn’t recreate the original surprise.
The exact expression on Mary Bray’s face when she realized what was happening, Brett getting down on one knee and the emotions immediately after she said yes belonged to that moment at Seal Rock.
What we could do was give them a second experience—one without the pressure of keeping a secret and one where they could simply enjoy being newly engaged.
The new plan was to meet at their Airbnb in Encinitas, photograph them celebrating with their friends and then walk together to Leucadia State Beach for a sunset engagement session.
This time, we would be there with a working professional camera.
Why We Felt the Need to Return
Brett and Mary Bray never pressured us to do another session.
They were incredibly understanding about the camera failure, and Brett repeatedly reminded us that the proposal was about the experience and the story. Their friends had already seen the iPhone photographs and loved them.
But Stephanie and I knew we weren’t 100% happy with what we delivered.
There is a saying we try to carry into our work and everyday lives:
“How you do anything is how you do everything.”
It would have been easy to accept that the proposal was over, send the iPhone photographs and move forward. Brett had already shown us more grace than we could have asked for.
But we didn’t want his kindness to become an excuse for us to do less.
Taking responsibility means more than apologizing. It means doing what you reasonably can to improve the situation, even after the immediate pressure has passed.
The complimentary engagement session was our opportunity to give Brett and Mary Bray the professional photography experience they originally expected from us.
It was also an opportunity to rebuild our own confidence after one of the most humbling days we had experienced as photographers.
Arriving at Their Encinitas Airbnb
When we arrived at the Airbnb, we finally had an opportunity to meet the friends Brett and Mary Bray had been staying with.
Everyone was so kind.
They had already heard the story and seen the proposal photographs from our iPhone. To our surprise, they thought the images were great.
We laughed about everything that had happened a few days earlier, but underneath that laughter was a feeling of relief. We were no longer standing outside a wine tasting location with a broken camera and only minutes to make a decision.
This time, we had space to slow down and enjoy the experience.
We also brought two bottles of sparkling wine so Brett, Mary Bray and their friends could pop them open, make a toast and celebrate the engagement together.
The proposal was no longer a secret. Everyone could relax, laugh and enjoy being part of the moment.
Celebrating With Friends Overlooking the Pacific
We began the session in the Airbnb’s backyard overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
Before heading to the beach, we wanted to document the atmosphere around them—the people they were traveling with, the happiness of the weekend and the excitement of being newly engaged.
The sparkling wine gave everyone something fun to do while allowing us to capture natural reactions instead of forcing every image to feel posed.
Brett and Mary Bray popped open the bottles as their friends gathered around them. We photographed the spray, the laughter and the first toast celebrating their engagement.
These images became an important part of the story.
Engagement photography does not always have to be limited to romantic portraits of the couple. Sometimes the most meaningful photographs include the people who were there to celebrate with them.
The group photographs showed a different side of the weekend than the original proposal images. Seal Rock captured the private moment when Brett asked the question. The Airbnb photographs captured the community surrounding them afterward.
Together, the two experiences told a fuller story.
Walking to Leucadia State Beach
After spending time photographing everyone in the backyard, we began walking toward Leucadia State Beach.
The beach was within walking distance of their Airbnb, which made the transition feel easy and natural. There was no need to load everyone into cars, deal with parking or interrupt the energy we had already created.
We simply walked toward the coast as the sun began getting lower.
This was completely different from the undercover plan in La Jolla.
During the proposal, we had to stay far enough away that Mary Bray wouldn’t notice us. Every movement had to be carefully timed, and we couldn’t give Brett or Mary Bray any visible direction without risking the surprise.
During the engagement session, there was nothing left to hide.
We could talk with them, guide them into the best light and allow their personalities to come through naturally.
The pressure was gone, but the meaning behind the photographs was still there.
A Sunset Engagement Session at Leucadia State Beach
Once we reached Leucadia State Beach, we focused on capturing as many different photographs as possible before the sun disappeared.
Coastal light changes quickly during the final part of the day. A bright sky can become soft and golden within minutes, and the colors continue changing after the sun reaches the horizon.
We kept the session moving while making sure it never felt rushed.
We photographed Brett and Mary Bray walking along the shoreline, holding hands and taking in the Pacific Ocean. We captured the quiet moments between poses, the laughter that happened when we gave them movement prompts and the natural way they interacted when they forgot about the camera.
We also photographed the details that helped complete their engagement story—the ring, their hands together and the small expressions that happen between the bigger moments.
Unlike the proposal, we could pause when something worked, make adjustments and photograph a scene from multiple angles.
We finally had the professional camera, time and freedom we originally wanted.
More importantly, Brett and Mary Bray were able to experience what a relaxed engagement session with us was supposed to feel like.
More Than a Make-Up Photoshoot
We initially approached the Encinitas session as a way to redeem ourselves.
We wanted to give Brett and Mary Bray professional engagement photographs before they left California, but the evening became more meaningful than a replacement session.
It gave all of us a chance to move beyond the stress of the camera failure.
During the proposal, our minds were focused on solving a problem while protecting a moment that was already unfolding. At Leucadia State Beach, we were able to be fully present with them.
We could laugh, talk and create without the feeling that everything might fall apart at any second.
The resulting photographs were not substitutes for the proposal images. They documented a different chapter.
The iPhone images showed the real moment Brett proposed.
The professional engagement photographs showed who they were immediately afterward—newly engaged, surrounded by friends and celebrating beside the Pacific before returning home to San Francisco.
Both sets of photographs mattered for different reasons.
What Making Things Right Actually Means
Making things right does not always mean making a problem disappear.
Some moments cannot be repeated. No amount of equipment, editing or planning could recreate Mary Bray’s original reaction at Seal Rock without turning it into something staged.
Making things right meant being honest about what happened.
It meant offering a full refund instead of waiting for Brett to ask.
It meant continuing to photograph the proposal with the best camera we had available.
It meant giving Brett and Mary Bray a ride home, listening to them and finding a solution that worked with the time they had left in San Diego.
Finally, it meant returning a few days later and giving them a complimentary engagement session with the care, energy and professional equipment they originally expected.
We couldn’t change the beginning of the story, but we could help shape how it ended.
A Humbling Lesson for Us as Photographers and Business Owners
The entire experience was humbling.
No business owner wants to publicly talk about something going wrong, especially when it involves a once-in-a-lifetime event. It is much easier to share the perfect sessions, glowing sunsets and plans that unfold without complications.
But the difficult experiences often teach us more than the perfect ones.
This situation reminded us that professionalism isn’t measured only by how you perform when everything works. It is also measured by how you communicate when things fail.
As photographers, we became more aware of the need for equipment redundancy and stronger backup plans.
As business owners, we learned that taking responsibility quickly can prevent a difficult situation from becoming worse.
As people, we were reminded that kindness can change the direction of an experience. Brett and Mary Bray gave us grace when they had every right to be upset. Their response allowed all of us to move forward and create something meaningful together.
Going through a hard situation with our clients ultimately helped us become better photographers, better business owners and better people.
That lesson will remain with us long after the photographs are delivered.
Brett’s Review of the Experience
After everything was over, Brett left us a review that brought the entire experience full circle:
“I can’t say enough about Son and Stephanie.
I came across Last Minute Photoshoot through researching photographers in the San Diego area, and they were listed in a blog.
They responded immediately to my inquiry and were beyond communicative throughout the entire experience.
Without getting into too many details, we ran into some unforeseen challenges, and the professionalism and courage to navigate the situation was second to none.
Not only did I end up with amazing photos of my proposal—she said yes!—but I got an amazing story out of it and a memory I will cherish forever.
Of course, things happen, but I do want to stress that the quality of the photographs was exactly what we were hoping to get. They were so fun and engaging on the day of the photos as well. At the end of the day, I know that’s the most important aspect of this review, and I stand by their professionalism entirely.”
—BB
Brett’s review meant more to us than he probably realized.
It wasn’t simply a review of the finished photographs. It spoke to the entire experience—the planning, the unexpected failure, the way we communicated and the effort we made afterward.
We will always be grateful that Brett and Mary Bray trusted us enough to return for the second session.
The Story We’ll Always Remember
Brett and Mary Bray initially hired us to photograph a surprise proposal in La Jolla.
What none of us expected was that their story would continue a few days later at an Airbnb in Encinitas, surrounded by friends, sparkling wine and a sunset engagement session at Leucadia State Beach.
The experience began with a camera failure but ended with laughter, new friendships and a gallery that documented more than a single proposal.
It documented the surprise.
It documented the recovery.
It documented friends coming together to celebrate.
And it documented two people beginning the next chapter of their lives before heading home to San Francisco.
This wasn’t how any of us planned for the story to unfold.
But sometimes the stories you remember most are the ones that require everyone to stay calm, trust one another and keep moving forward.
Thank you, Brett and Mary Bray, for your patience, kindness and trust—and for giving us the opportunity to make things right.
Planning an Engagement Session in Encinitas or San Diego?
Encinitas offers a relaxed coastal setting for engagement photography, with scenic beaches, ocean overlooks and soft sunset light throughout the year.
Whether you recently proposed in San Diego or are traveling through Southern California and want engagement photographs before heading home, we can help plan a session around your location, schedule and the kind of experience you want to remember.
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