Claire and Haley are the absolute BEST and we are obsessed with this lesbian proposal. Honestly, we are obsessed with all couples who get together with a mom’s gentle shove. It starts with Haley coaching Claire’s mom in tennis. Haley and Claire’s mom get along GREAT! Claire’s mom sees a potential love match here. So, when Haley invites Claire’s mom to her graduation party, Claire’s mom insists that Claire accompanies her. You see where this is going. The pair had met briefly at a Farmer’s Market a year before, and Claire’s mom knew that she had a thing for Haley. A mom always knows! The officially “met” at Haley’s graduation party where their dogs also met. Their love story took off from there and led to this moment in Missoula.

When Haley tells the story, she admits that she knew from the get go that Claire was the one for her. As such, Haley was ready to get down on that fateful day in mid-October and asking the burning question – will you marry me? Ahhh I am getting goose bumps just talking about it again.

Claire and Haley live in Missoula so proposing in their town was very special for them. What is the most popular place to propose? Honeybee Weddings Photography has had a few sessions in Maclay Flats which is about 7 miles from downtown Missoula, Montana. It is still relatively under the radar making it one of our favorite places to capture couples. For Claire and Haley on this perfect autumn day, the air is crisp, the leaves are popping!

Photographing LGBTQ+ Couples

Something I am very intentional about with all my LGBTQ+ photographers is making sure I ask their pronouns beforehand so I can make them feel very comfortable. Another thing to be mindful of is posing. Heteronormative society has taught us from a very early age alllll about gender roles. You know the ones, right? Those masculine and feminine gender roles. Where the “male” is strong and holds the smaller “female” close? Yup. Those. Those are the ones we want to throw right out the goddamn window. 

I talked with a queer couple recently and they shared about how they get assigned gender roles. If one of them is wearing a suit and one of them is wearing a dress, they’ve had photographers assign the suit-wearing person into more masculine energy poses, while they assign the person in the dress to the more “feminine” role. It just puts them into a category they don’t fit into. ALL couples, not just our sweet queer couples, fluctuate between their masculine and feminine energy. We all have a variety of identities and it’s important to embrace all parts of ourselves. 

Why I’m an LGBTQ+ Ally

I don’t think it happens on purpose, but we have a responsibly to make our couples feel comfortable and be aware. What I did for this lesbian proposal was letting poses happen naturally. Say, “hey can we do a piggyback ride?” The couple will automatically go to the positions they feel comfortable in. Our sweet LGBTQ+ community needs to be assured of the like we’re not trying to fit them in any box. We want all our couples to express their cute, lovely little weirdness that they are!

Be an Inclusive Photographer for LGBTQ+ Couples

She says YES!

Back to this fall lesbian proposal! When Haley gets down on her knee, I’m off in a corner, ready to capture the big moment! Claire is just so excited; I’m not sure what she even said. BUT there was a lot of enthusiastic nodding. After the big moment, we go take a ton of fun photos around the area. The whole vibe is very fun. If there is a couple most likely to jump on a couch over their relationship, it would be this pair. We capture so many just freaking happy photos and I know that I’m capturing a moment in time that they will remember forever! We end the day, and I let them go get all up in their FIANCEEEEE time together!

Surprise Proposal Guide – 6 Tips

If you’re ready to bend the knee on your own proposal, let’s get to it! We are here to help you plan the ultimate surprise for your nature loving, adventure seeking, totally rad partner! Tell me all of your marriage proposal ideas and let’s blow it out of the water! Or the mountain, cliff, beach, etc. Can’t wait to hear your vision and alllll about your fiancé to be.