Procrastination seems to be one of my “vices” throughout my adulthood (maybe childhood as well). Case in point - I had a revelation last night that if I sit on this shoot any longer, Emma and John will be married and publishing engagement photos afterwards might be, just a tad too late, and inappropriate...

This was my last photo shoot before I moved to California. It was a chaotic period on my end - packing (a LOT of useless stuff accumulated from the past years), buying a car during the pandemic, finding an apartment in Cali remotely, going through a surgery, etc etc. - basically problem solving mode every single day. Right in the middle of all these mundane “to-do’s”, Emma reached out and asked if I could take her engagement photos before I left. Of course I would love to, but I was not extremely confident about my ability to quickly switch from my “problem solving mode” to that “creative mode”. So, I gave her a firm “Yes”, but promised her no offense taken if she later decided to hire another photographer for a second engagement session - truthfully, no offense will ever be taken even if I were at the peak of my creative mode!

There is no shortage of magical places for engagement photos in New York, plus every couple has their own special places, from their little apartments to a corner bakery, all the way to the Central Park and Brooklyn Bridge - I was never worried. However, when Emma told me she actually wanted to go to The Met for this photo shoot, I did get a little anxious: Is it that she preferred having a thousand other people in the background (and foreground), for some reason? I couldn’t imagine asking the visitors to “excuse us” all the way through this photo shoot. Or… is it that she liked those Egyptian mummies so much that I gotta figure out a decent composition with them two AND the mummies in those glass coffins in very low lit settings? Either way - I did got a bit worried this time. 

Luckily, it was neither and my ignorance taught me a lesson - never say “No” too quickly as there is always more to it. Emma told me about this little secret Chinese garden court that I did not know at all! It is a bit tucked away but is her must-visit spot every time she goes to The Met. It’s cozy but calming (which is a hard-to-get quality in the center of New York), and makes her feel connected with her roots. Given the uncontrollable situation caused by Covid, this was her compromised solution to incorporating “something Chinese” while she was not able to go back to China before the wedding.  

Now, all makes sense and the rest is history - one little secret Chinese garden, two love birds, some kisses, a ton of fun, and just occasional “excuse-us”s.