Right time, right place, wrong proposal

  • Published
David is on one knee and Jenny is grinning whilst sitting on Hawksbill CragImage source, Jacob Peters Photography
Image caption,
David and Jenny had no idea they were being snapped

What's the most romantic way to propose to the love of your life? How about high on a crag at sunrise?

Photographer Jacob Peters, from Arkansas, was paid to hike to a good vantage point of a popular landmark, Hawksbill Crag in Whitaker's Point, to snap a happy couple in the early hours of the morning. However, he ended up photographing the wrong people.

Image source, Jenny Pham
Image caption,
Hold on, there may be a professional photographer in the background...

David Le and Jenny Pham have been together for two and a half years. It was David's idea to surprise his girlfriend by proposing to her while out hiking.

He had no idea another couple planned to do exactly the same on the same morning. He also had no idea they were running late and had hired Jacob to photograph the event.

Jacob, who had no phone signal to text or call, automatically assumed David and Jenny were his clients.

Jenny said yes, and later wrote that she had a perfect weekend and was lucky to call David her fiancé.

Image source, Jenny Pham
Image caption,
Jenny and David

"We love hiking and David was planning this special trip that he wanted to be perfect. Now I know why he was a bit stressed!" Jenny told the BBC.

"The view was breathtaking. He asked me to film the sunrise, which at first I thought was a bit sentimental, then I turned round and he was on one knee holding a ring. It was perfect. It felt like a movie." she added.

As for David, he was very relieved everything went to plan:

"It was beyond what I expected. I'd tried to hire my own photographer but no one was available. I thought we'd have just our own photos."

However, the couple were surprised to spot Jacob in the background as Jenny took her own photo of the moment.

"When we looked at our photos and found out about Jacob - spotting him in the distance - I got in touch. He was really kind-hearted and wouldn't take a dime off me," said David.

And after Jacob posted his photos on his Facebook page, to try to contact the couple, it didn't take long for David and Jenny to realise images of their engagement were spreading across social media.

Image source, Facebook
Image caption,
The mystery started to unravel on Facebook
Image source, Jacob Peters Photography
Image caption,
Jacob Peters took several shots of the couple, unbeknownst to him, they were not his clients

Although Jacob did not take payment for the photos, he told the BBC he was pleased he had some great shots for his portfolio:

"I mainly do weddings. I thought it would be a great experience for me."

Jacob thought the man who had asked him to take the photographs "underestimated how long it would take to hike up to the focal point. I was there on time, but they'd arrived a bit late.

"I wasn't to know that I was shooting the wrong couple. I wasn't given a description. It was nobody's fault. There was no signal as the area is quite mountainous. I didn't realise until I was back home what had happened."

Jacob was not too happy about the mishap and so made the appeal on Facebook to find the couple. "This whole thing is bittersweet," he added.

"On one hand I've made one couple's engagement very memorable in a good way and on the other someone didn't get anything."

The couple who commissioned Jacob did not want to reveal their names, but he hopes they will get their dream photo soon.

Compiled by Sherie Ryder, BBC UGC and Social News Team.