I LOVE engagement sessions! I believe they are such an important part of the overall wedding photography experience so I include them complimentary in my wedding packages! I talked briefly about engagement sessions in my Wedding Photography Glossary post and wanting to dive in a bit deeper today. Over the past few years, I’ve only had handful of brides ask if they could omit the engagement session for various reasons. A few reasons may include that they have pictures of their proposal (good job groom for setting that up!! ), they’ve had their engagement pictures taken already by a friend or other photographer or they just feel like they don’t need them. This is why I love having this For Brides series, so I can be a resource to my brides (and other brides) and share my thoughts on why I feel it’s not only necessary to have an engagement session but to have one with your wedding photographer! So read on!
5 reasons why the Engagement Session is important
1. You get to know your wedding photographer before the wedding
This, my friends, is HUGE! The relationship between a wedding photographer and a couple should not just be a transaction. It should be a friendship! Instead of booking your photographer via email or through an in-person consultation at Starbucks and then only seeing them on your wedding day, this is how you grow your relationship ahead of time! You’ll get to understand how your photographer poses you two, chooses locations and natural light preferences. You’ll even get to know their personality and sense of humor. Imagine how much more comfortable you’ll be with your photographer on your wedding day! And the more comfortable you are, the more amazing your images will be!
2. Your photographer gets to know you before the wedding
This is equally as important as #1. The better your photographer understands your relationship, the better they’ll be able to capture it. Your photographer will be paying attention to what poses you feel comfortable in, how naturally you two embrace each other and little quirks like what makes you two laugh. Again, it could be a disservice to everyone involved if your photographer has to figure these things out for the first time on your wedding day!
3. It’s a confidence builder
We all have our awkward moments and most people feel uncomfortable in front of the camera for the first time. Think of your engagement session as your trial run for your wedding! Half way through your engagement session, you should feel way more at ease in front of the lens (and the photographer).
4. You deserve real life photos of yourselves
Your wedding pictures will be beautifully placed around your house but you should have ‘real life’ images on display, too! Pick one or two cute outfits for your session, get cuddly and share as much as you would your wedding photos! Your engagement pictures don’t have to just be shared on social media. You can use them for your save the dates, wedding website, guest book album and so much more!
5. Your engagement is an important chapter in your life. It should be documented!
Live in the moment friends! Your engagement is not just a countdown, it is a chapter in your lives that should be enjoyed. Document it as much as you can. Your wedding day will be amazing and it will go by quickly (because time flies when you’re having fun)! I blogged some tips for enjoying your engagement here and I hope you’ll check it out!
I hope that puts some things into perspective for you! There’s more to an engagement session than just getting pretty pictures 🙂 For more wedding planning advice, click through the For Brides category!
xoxo
