Stop-Motion Proposal Atop Fairview Mountain [RF Video of the Week]

February 21, 2014

By Laura Brauer

Washington, D.C.-based wedding and portrait photographer Lindsay King documented the trek up Fairview Mountain in Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada, with her photo assistant, graphic designer and now-fiancé Greg Wlosinski.

But this was no ordinary trip for King and Wlosinski — they got engaged at the mountain top and looped together their nearly 2,000 photographs taken before, during and after the big moment to make an adorable stop motion video.

This photo-themed proposal is especially fitting for King and Wlosinski, who met about four years ago before embarking on a long-distance relationship for a year while she finished her photojournalism BFA at Corcoran College of Art + Design in D.C. and he still lived in Buffalo, NY. They eventually settled in together in D.C., and last August, the pair decided to climb Fairview Mountain. Wlosinski thought it a perfect opportunity to propose.

While they packed their Canon 5D Mark IIs and a variety of lenses, including a Canon 16-35mm f/2.8, a 40mm f/2.8, a TS-E 24mm f/3.5 and a 24-105mm f/4 (which must not have been the easiest to trek around with, but these people seem dedicated), Wlosinksi secretly packed away a ring that he bought months before.

They documented the entire journey, from the moment they’re at the airport in D.C. waiting for their plane to take them north, through the car ride to the hiking site, while they’re cooking a quick meal and then during their six-mile hike through the rocky terrain to the top of Fairview where Wlosinski pops down on one knee and proposes.

Set to the upbeat clapping rhythms of the song “Celeste” by the indie/folk musician Ezra Vine, the jump from scene to scene is pretty seamless, but there are some especially impressive moments when the photos flip by and look almost exactly like a recorded video — the airplane’s wing flying through the air, King’s jump over a fallen branch, the stars’ steady movement through the dark sky, the waterfall’s cascading current and mist that slowly materializes into a rainbow and more.

Check out more Videos of the Week, and email Libby Peterson with submissions.