You're engagement! And its time celebrate this exciting memorable time in your lives! I love engagement sessions for SO many reasons! They really give me a chance to get to know you so much better, to understand your relationship and learn all of the little things you love about one another! These sessions are also such a great way for us to build on our friendship! All of this creates an amazing comfort between us which can give me the opportunity to capture you as authentically as I possibly can!!
So with that... I have some tips and advice to help you two kick ass at your engagement session!!
CAPTURING WHO YOU ARE!
The main goal of this session is to put your relationship into photos and a way to help make that work is to do something that is YOU. If you are outdoorsy and adventurous, let's go find a remote location in the bush, and build a fire at sunset! If you are more of a stay in kind of person, let's have a date day at home where you snuggle on the couch together, eat pizza and have some drinks! Or if you want to go and do an activity we can definiltey do that as well! Let's hit up a carnival, go take a swim in a lake etc! Whatever you think will capture who you are - it can be done! And if you just want to be together in a beautiful location, we can do that too! But whatever it is, I want to make sure that we do what feels right to who you are!
LOCATION!
To continue on from the section above... the location is super important for your session! Is there a location or spot that is sentimental to you both and your relationship? Or somewhere you like to go together and walk your dog?? This can sometimes be a great way to make the session feel more personal! And of course if you just want to check out one of the amazingly beautiful locations we have around us we can do that!
Something to be mindful of when thinking of a location is that different locations look better in different seasons!! if you have somewhere in mind let me know! Depending on the location that is chosen it may not look as nice as you had hoped during certain times of the year! So definitely keep that in mind.
Look through some of my photos see what you are drawn to more! Is it the lakes and mountains? Or maybe a big open field with tall grass! And of course don't worry... my brain is constantly filled with about a million great locations in this beautiful area that we live in! We will come up with somewhere amazing together & I have a large gallery of suggestions for a starting point!
Once we have a location picked we will set up a time based on the sunset in that specific place and the time of year!
RELAX! No one ever wants to hear that and I'm sorry, but I have to say it!! Honestly, you will get more genuine, candid, amazing moments if you just relax, enjoy the time, enjoy being together, and put the stress aside! Maybe have a drink before hand, or have multiple drinks during! I don't care!! Do whatever you need to do! It is impossible for me to capture the love you two have for each other and give you photographs you will be stoked to look back on in the years to come if you are stiff, uncomfortable and not yourself! I will bring my speaker and play some of your favourite tunes and that is a great way to make it more fun! Its just us 3, hanging out, having the time of our lives! Nothing to worry about - I GOT YOU! I PROMISE! Oh and consider bringing champagne and glasses to end the session, thats never a bad choice either!
OUTFITS!
I know the second we mentioned the engagement session your brain instantly went to "OMG- But what am I going to wear!?" And trust me, I AM THE SAME! When I am about to be in photos I turn into a crazy person who goes through my entire closet and then magically doesn't have a single thing that will work! I promise I can help with this! But I feel like this needs to be a post completely on its own!! SO click here to read that one!
PREPARE YOUR FIANCE!
If you're sitting there thinking "ohhhh they are definitely going to be so awkward during this" you're not alone! SOOO many couples worry that one of them just wont be into it and wont reciprocate on their end what I am trying to get out of them for the photos. And 99.9% of the time I get a message shortly after a session that goes a little something like "you made us feel so comfortable! And we had so much fun".. I mean... It is my job after all ;) ! But if you are a bit nervous about how your fiance will be, spend some time with them looking through my page or website, get a feel for what types of photos I am looking for & some things I might ask you to do.
There sometimes tends to be that one person who is not quite as excited as the other but I don't really understand why since for roughly 2 hours they will pretty much be all over you and up in your personal space, if you ask me thats usually a pretty good time for them don't you think? ;) Prepare them that PDA is definitely ideal! I completely understand that for some people this isn't as comfortable or doesn't come as naturally when in front of others, but we need to show your love and the best way to do that through a photo is definitely a lot of physical touch!
Making a date night out of your session is a great idea in so many ways! You look nice, you're already out celebrating your love and relationship, AND it gives you both something to look forward to at the end!! Not that we need rewards... but lets be honest, they definitely help!!
And lastly, I cant stress this enough... If for some reason you two end up in some sort of disagreement on the day of your session, or have a heated discussion that has not been resolved... please just postpone and reschedule. It will 100% show in your photos, you will not enjoy it as much as you normally would and no one wants to remember "oh ya that session was so fun even though we were arguing like cats and dogs earlier in the day"
And no matter what, please remember to be patient with each other, I'm only going to assume that this might be your first time ever having photos taken, it is a new experience for everyone and it will take a bit for everyone to feel comfortable in the moment and that is OK!
TRUST ME!
While I know first hand, looking for inspiration on Pinterest can be so much fun, I am not those photographers. You hired me for me! And for what I provide. Every session is different, every couple is different, every lighting/location is different. You are a new work of art, and not for replicating! Trust in me when I'm asking you to do stupid things and you feel silly doing them, it will all be amazing!! I got you - remember!?! I will fix your hair, adjust your shirt, move you from unflattering angles, its my job to worry about the outcome and those little details... its your job to be in love and have a damn blast!