The Importance Of An Engagement Session

I could probably talk for hours about how much I love engagement sessions. From a photographers point of view, it is so fun to photograph people in only beautiful light (because wedding days happen no matter what kind of light you’ve got lol!) The truth is this…

An engagement session is the most important part of our journey together.

Okay that’s a bold statement, I know. I am going to give you my top 5 reasons why that is 100% true, and I really think you will see that having an engagement session (by your actual wedding photographer!) is so important!

1. This Is A Great Practice Run Before The Big Day

You only get your wedding day once, so there is no chance for trying out something to see how it will go. I know I started off a little deep, but it is so important to realize that! Engagement sessions are a great practice run not only for us, but also your hair and makeup. You get to see what it looks like and make sure you feel perfect. PRO TIP: After you approve the hair trail, ask your stylist to change it up just a bit so your engagement session is different than your wedding day.

2. We Get To Know Each Other

I do not want to walk into your wedding not knowing what you look like. That is literally the worst. When I become your wedding photographer, you are truly becoming a friend. I am not only there to capture your big day, but I am there as your support. How can I tell you that you’ve got spinach in your teeth if we only met 5 minutes ago?!

3. You Learn To Trust Me

When I ask you to do something for a portrait at your engagement session, you might think it is strange. But when you see the final product you will think it is incredible! You will learn from how amazing the engagement session was to trust my ideas and go for it! Building that sort of trust is literally invaluable on the big day.

4. I Get Your Groom On My Side 🙂

This should be #1. This could even be the only reason and it would be enough lol. Guys… I don’t know what it is about y’all… BUT GETTING PORTRAITS WITH THE LOVE OF YOUR LIFE IS TOTALLY COOL.

Ah.. okay… sorry for yelling. But for real… guys need this time to warm up to me and to know what to expect on the wedding day. I once had a groom straight up refuse portraits because we didn’t have an engagement session and he didn’t think that was “part of the deal.” The bride was devastated. Luckily he let me pose them for a few minutes so I had something to give my bride, but it was hard. If your guy is extra camera shy, an engagement session is a must.

5. You Learn My Systems

One thing everyone looks forward to most on their wedding day is spending time and having a blast with friends and family. I am NOT the photographer that will make you spend 2-3 hours on your portraits. In fact, we can get everything you need for your portraits within 30 minutes if we had to. How? You learn my amazing systems at your engagement session and it all comes flooding back to you the day of your wedding. We save so much time so you can have incredible images and enjoy your guests! Win-win!

Bonus Tip: We Get All The Kinks Out

Is one side of your face more photogenic? Are you worried about the height difference? There are so many things my couple and I discuss before the engagement session that wouldn’t be possible to overcome on the wedding day.

Bonus Tip #2: We Create Incredible Portraits

I mean.. this one is obvious lol. But I have to mention it! You will have stunning images of the two of you in non wedding attire. These images are great for save the dates, wedding websites, Christmas cards, and just staring at at night when you’re totally obsessed (or do I just do that lol?)

What is an engagement experience like?

Great question! I do engagement sessions a little differently because, as I mentioned above, the engagement session is more about the experience than the timeframe or the images. All of my couples get an in-depth guide of what to expect and how to prepare for their engagement session. But, here is the cliff-notes version:

• The engagement session lasts about 2 hours.
• I always recommend 2 outfit choices and 2 locations when possible. If you’re going to get all dressed up (check out my outfit guide HERE!) then I want to give you variety!
• I always shoot the engagement ring! I tell my brides to make sure they have their ring cleaned because I love having that detail shot. The rings are usually photographed while my couple is changing outfits.
• Your engagement session will be published on the blog! I always publish my amazing couples on my blog in an editorial and beautiful blog post. It is something I love to do and link it to your wedding blog as well.

Beautiful Engagement Sessions I’ve Photographed:

So that you are completely convinced that an engagement session with your wedding photographer is a must, I want to share some of my past engagement sessions to get you excited. A couple of things to note, almost all of these couples said they would be awkward in front of the camera (if you can believe that!) And, we really have as much fun as it looks!

Julia and Ryan | The Cummer Museum Gardens

Kelsey and Andrew | The Garden and Beach

Taylor and Caleb | Great Smoky Mountain National Park