We met Zahid & Poonam in Seattle for their shoot.  We found ourselves caught up in the moments and very at ease with each other, which lent itself to an amazing session.  We wound up at Golden Gardens just before sunset...the light was unbelievable.  After stealing a few shots beneath the tall canopy of trees, we wandered out through the grass and onto the sandy beach.  In a moment of spontaneity, I asked Zahid if he would give Poonam a piggy-back-ride out to the water.  I think she made the decision to jump onto his back before what I had said actually registered to Zahid :)  They both fell to the sand and we all had a good laugh.  

What happened next wasn't in the script.  As they stood to their feet, Poonam's left arm flew outward to balance herself.  As it did, her engagement ring slid right off her finger.  Nobody saw where it went; it was gone.  We were standing in deep beach sand, with a quickly setting sun and no place to begin.  The four of us spent the next hour on our hands and knees, sifting through the grains of sand and playing the odds.  It was nearly dark and our hope was dwindling fast.  All of a sudden, we turned to see Zahid on his hands and knees, head hung toward the sand, and hand held high.  He found it!  Somehow, some way, Zahid managed to find the ring that had been buried somewhere in the sand.  The two vertical images toward the end of this post show Poonam's emotional response.