WHERE TODAY'S COWBOY
LOVE STORIES ARE TOLD

Luke had been day-working here and there for Trista’s dad helping him gather cattle. And it wasn’t long before Trista was hearing about “Luke this and Luke that” when she was home on the weekends.

So while Trista had an idea of who he was, Luke had no idea she existed until he showed up to help the family brand one day and saw her for the first time. They laughed as they told me how, when the work was done and everyone was loaded and ready to head back to the house, Trista’s sister not-so-subtly rigged it so they were left riding together in the same pickup.

I can image that it COULD have been really awkward to be thrown together with no one you’d ever met before for the long drive back off the ranch…but it wasn’t. I guess big sis knew what she was doing because Luke and Trista started talking that day in the pickup and so enjoyed each other’s company that they never stopped!

Luke had grand proposal plans. He wanted it to happen at the end of his family’s 20 mile Good Friday Pilgrimage…inside the old church that contained so many family memories. But it was a cold and windy day so, while the family typically would have been outside eating lunch, everyone was huddled around the fire inside the church leaving no room for a private, romantic proposal and his plans were foiled.

After returning home that same day, he decided it was still a good day to ask….Well, that and he was so nervous she’d find the rings hiding spot in his pickup if he waited much longer. So Luke found Trista sitting on the front porch of his house where she was tying her shoes getting ready to go to her folks and got down on one knee, “I want to spend the rest of my life with you! Will marry me?”

Their engagement session took place on Trista’s 8th generation family ranch. I’ve shot on a lot of old family places around the country, but 8th get is a new record for me! It was so neat to get to explore around the place, especially the cabin were Trista’s dad was raised.

It was so much fun getting to know these two and I can’t wait until their wedding day!

Ps. The credit for the “Outhouse Pose” goes entirely to Trista’s dad. #thisisreallife