How do you capture “The Question”?

"It almost goes without saying, but communication with the person proposing is paramount. Agreeing exactly where the moment is going to happen, the clothing he/she will be wearing, and the time window when it will happen are absolutely nonnegotiable. And a phone number that you can text to. One time, I arrived early and was standing by a gazebo, the agreed location, thinking it was exactly where I needed to be. Turns out, in this one small village by the water, there were three structures that qualified as a gazebo. I ran with two camera bodies to get to the correct location and fortunately didn’t miss the moment, which occurred a distance away on a dock by another gazebo. After the initial panic, it all worked out and was thrilling.”—Rob Tannenbaum, Merrick, New York

"I like to do a scout with the person proposing if I’m able. That way we can talk through their ideas and frame out the location. If it’s an out-of-state couple, which I also have done many times, I make sure to clearly discuss places to stand and I just mill around pretending to take photos of other things around me.”—Dani Weiss, Decatur, Georgia

"I’ve shot over 100 surprise proposals at the Grand Canyon. … I always tell them don’t act nervous; it’s always a dead giveaway. Since I stick out with two cameras, one equipped with lighting, they can’t miss me. Once I have eye contact with the guy, I have him follow me to the point and then I act like I’m photographing for a newspaper (my husband is my assistant) and I’ll talk about shots my editor wants, talking loudly so she can hear. … After the initial proposal I take the couple to a few other spots to take nice couple pictures.”—Veronica Tierney, Flagstaff, Arizona

"If it’s a popular location, the proposing partner will share their location with me if they have an iPhone. A few tips we tell people when they are getting ready to propose to their partner: One, you will be nervous and that’s totally OK and normal. Two, just make it to your mark—we set that up with the client and send them a map with an X—and make it an easy location so they can get the shot they want. Three, script out the day. We tell our clients to come up with ways to have a reason to go to a location, and suggest they do a spa day a few days before if their partner does their nails.”—Amber DePangher, Portland, Oregon

"We focus on doing an amazing job helping plan and pull off the proposal of our client’s dreams. Then we deliver photos and video within hours so they can share with their friends and family and on social media. We follow up by sending a beautiful booklet of favorite images along with information about our wedding photography. If it rains, we reschedule with our clients. We once did a whole second shoot the following day because the girl really wished she’d worn a different outfit. We ended up booking a full engagement, a full bridal, and the largest wedding package we offer all in a destination wedding.”–Esther Griffin, Savannah, Georgia

"Set the area where you as a photographer want them to be. I’m mostly a flash photographer, so where they stand is key to having the best available/natural light possible. The client doesn’t usually care or know about lighting, but we do as photographers, so we have to direct them as best we can before they propose. If there’s an ocean or beach involved, I usually tell my clients to have their [partner] facing the beach, so that I can lurk and get closer, and/or adjust my angle without them noticing me.”—Nelson Navarro-Zayas, CPP, Ponce, Puerto Rico

Amanda Arnold is a senior editor.