The gates of Daigoji Temple opened, and we were the first ones through. He had arrived a little early, and so had I — which meant that for a short, precious window, the temple grounds belonged to just the three of us.

That was the whole plan. Daigoji is one of Kyoto’s great temples, and on most days it fills up as the morning goes on. By being there right at opening, we gave ourselves a completely empty setting for the proposal.

As we had arranged, I walked up to them as a tourist and asked if they would mind taking my photo. She was so kind about it. She took her time, framed the shot carefully, and handed the camera back with a smile — not a hint of hurry or hesitation. When I offered to take one of the two of them in return, she agreed with a huge smile, completely unaware of what was about to happen.

Then he got down on one knee and held out the ring.

She jumped. Actually jumped — straight up, hands flying, pure joy all over her face. I have photographed a lot of proposals, and reactions like that never get old. The two of them held onto each other and celebrated right there in the empty temple grounds, and I just kept shooting. It was one of the happiest few minutes I have seen behind the camera this year.

After that, we explored more of Daigoji together. Every pose I suggested, they went for with real enthusiasm, and every spot we stopped at gave us something new. By the end we had a wonderfully varied set of photos — quiet moments, playful ones, and a lot of laughter in between. When I showed them the results, their reaction made my whole morning.

The two of them have the kind of smiles that light up a frame, and they treated me like a friend from the very first minute. Being their photographer for this was a real gift.

Congratulations, both of you. Please come back to Japan someday — I would love to see you again.

If you are dreaming up a surprise proposal at one of Kyoto’s temples, take a peek at my Kyoto packages.