Congratulations on your engagement! Engagement sessions are so much fun for so many reasons. The first being most of the time it is one of the first wedding related activities you and your partner get to do together! Also, it is also a great way to meet and work with your photographer ahead of your actual wedding day. The engagement sessions included in some of my wedding packages are an hour long. That is plenty of time to get an outfit change in, along with some great sunset photos if that is your jam. If you want a little more time, you can choose to add on a 90 minute engagement session. I know you probably have a ton of questions about the process, so here are some of my best tips that I compiled into an engagement session guide!
Location
When you book your session with me, I have a whole location database for you to look through. I also location scout for you and make recommendations based on what vibe you are going for when we talk on our scheduling phone call! But, in the spirit of some more general tips, there are a couple different ways you can go about your engagement photos. You can pick a place that means something to you as a couple, OR you can pick a place that fits the vibe you want for your photos. Both are great options. You can lean into memory-making by picking an activity you both love to do, and have your photographer tag along on your date. If you already live together, doing an in-home engagement session is really special. An in-home session makes it really easy to include your animals If you have pets you want to include. If you pick somewhere like the canal walk in Richmond, you can also go grab coffee in more casual clothes, or walk down a street that has meaning to you during the same session! There are so many options to talk through with your photographer.
What To Wear
The first thing to take into consideration is the location you chose. If there is a darker location then I would recommend wearing lighter colors etc. In general, I always recommend neutral colors because they draw more attention to your faces. For the girls, dresses always look beautiful in photos and I love the movement they add. Most of the time it is the first time you get to wear a white dress for a wedding event, so that is always a safe and fun choice! You should also pay attention to how your hands look. If you are someone who likes their nails painted, make sure you get a fresh manicure. If that’s not your vibe, just make sure your hands and nails are clean! There will be close up photos of your hands at some point, so that is just something to keep in mind. Adding layers also helps create variety in your gallery without needing to do a full outfit change. A lot of the time people choose a more formal outfit and a more casual outfit for the session.
Time Of Year
Thinking ahead to what you will be using the photos for, you need to give yourself time to get your save the dates printed. A lot of the time, that dictates when during the year you need to get your photos done. People usually send save the dates 6 to 8 months before the wedding…sometimes a little farther out than that if it is a destination wedding. There are pluses and minuses to every time of year! During the winter your session will need to be earlier in the day since the sun sets so early, while during the summer you have more flexibility on timing. BUT during the summer it is so hot. That means you usually want to have your session in the morning before it gets hot or right before sunset when it starts cooling off a little. You can find beautiful locations for any time of the year, you just have to lean into the season.
What To Bring
The most fun part of any engagement session is making it unique to you as a couple! Do you have a favorite activity to do together? Do that! If you have polaroids or sentimental objects from any part of your relationship? Bring those things! Blankets are always a great idea to get some shots laying on the ground without getting dirty. You can also bring pets depending on the location you choose. I always love including people’s dogs for engagement photos if they can’t be included in your actual wedding!
What To Expect
During your session you will get to practice some of your photographer’s go-to poses and prompts! It will help you be more comfortable on your wedding day, not only because you will already be comfortable in front of the camera but also because your photographer won’t be a stranger. It really does go a long way to making your wedding day be a more comfortable experience.
I hope this engagement session guide helped you in some way! If you are interested in hiring me as your wedding photographer, I will link my contact form below! My top 2 packages include complimentary engagement sessions because I find them SO important to making your wedding day the most comfortable experience that it can be.
Or check out more of my work linked HERE
Read more about my favorite photo locations HERE
Read more about why you should take engagement photos HERE
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