Brandon and Victoria’s Yale Engagement

New Haven is a special city and a great place to get married. It’s filled with things to do, has an interesting history, and is just beautiful. But what’s really cool to me is learning about people’s attachment to it, the more I photograph wedding and engagement couples. A recent Yale engagement session taught me just that.

So, follow along with me for a couple of minutes. I’ll tell you all about Brandon’s surprise marriage proposal to Victoria, how he included their dog, and their Yale engagement session.

Proposing at Wooster Square Park

I first heard from Brandon when he called me from his car. He was somewhere in the Midwest at the time, driving to New York City from the west coast, in the process of moving. His plan called for me to meet them at Wooster Square Park in New Haven.

A man pulls off a surprise marriage proposal while down on one knee in Wooster Square Park.

His proposal to Victoria went off without a hitch! Their dog played a key role in keeping the engagement ring safe, too.

A couple and their dog walk together after a New Haven surprise marriage proposal.

When we were done in the park, we headed off to where Brandon knew Victoria would want their engagement session to take place: the Yale University campus.

Can Anyone Have a Yale Engagement Session?

Brandon knew that Victoria would appreciate taking portraits at Yale because that’s where they met three years earlier. As students at Yale Law School, these two spent hours together in The Courtyard. This was a perfect idea

A photo from a couple's Yale engagement session.

So, can anyone take engagement photos at Yale? In short, yes, anyone can take engagement photos on the Yale campus. But there are a couple of caveats to this:

Yale is a private institution. So kind of like owning the copyright to a song and dictating which DJ’s can play it, Yale can decide at any moment who has access to their property and who doesn’t.
Many portions of the campus are open and accessible for Yale engagement sessions. Sections of the school behind doors or gates, however, are a different story. When working with your photographer, be sure to ask them about their policies regarding obtaining permission.