Prepare for Your Engagement Session with these 5 Steps
If you’re reading this post, it must mean you’re engaged—Congratulations! This is such an incredibly exciting and wonderful time, and engagement is a beautiful journey.
As you begin this adventure, you’re planning for your wedding day and future. Before you get too deep into wedding planning, make sure to live in the moment!
You are only engaged once, so make sure to take moments to enjoy yourselves. Have date nights, laugh together, and cherish how far you’ve come! One of the ways you can do this is through your engagement session.
You can celebrate this incredible milestone in your relationship and capture the joy and love you both share.
This blog post will walk you through how to prepare for your engagement session (thanks to these 7, easy steps!)
So, let’s get to it!
I. Pick Your Photographer
As you and your fiancé start to plan for your wedding, I recommend looking at who you’d like your photographer to be. Your engagement session is a fantastic opportunity to work with your photographer before your wedding, and it gives you the chance to build more of a relationship with your photographer.
As you look for a photographer, consider these questions while you conduct your search:
What style of photos would you prefer? Light and airy, true to life, dark and moody, or something else? Do you want posed photos, more candids, or a mix of both?
What is your budget, and how many hours of coverage would you like?
What are the most important parts of the day you want captured?
Where and when would you like to take engagement photos? Do you want to take them inside a cozy cafe in the winter, or outside on the beach in the summer? Do you want multiple locations? If so, are they close to each other, or will you need to pay for extra time to reach all your locations? You don’t need an answer to this right away, but considering what season you want to take these photos can help with looking at calendars for you and your potential photographer.
As you consider these beginning questions, they can help you and your fiancé decide who the best photographer is!
I also highly recommend meeting with your photographer prior to your session as well over a cup of coffee or over video chat if in person isn’t an option. This will give you a chance to get to know the photographer you are considering and to see if your personalities compliment each other!
Want to work with
Hannah Clare Creative for your wedding day?
II. Schedule Your Engagement Session
Now that you have your dream photographer picked out, you can schedule your engagement session and bring that vision to life!
Once the session is scheduled, you photographer will work with you on details for making this vision come to life.
III. Pick Your Outfits
You have your photographer and your session date picked out. Now you can start to plan the details of how you and your fiancé want to dress for your photos!
I always recommend my couples wear at least two outfits: one that is more of a dressy option, and another that is more of a casual option. This gives you a mix of day-to-day photos of you as a couple, but also it captures the excitement and elegance engagement has to offer.
When looking at outfits, make sure to wear shirts with solid colors and minimal patterns, as the multiple patterns can be distracting and hard on the eye in photos.
I’m always happy to give recommendations or help my clients select an outfit for their session, so if you have questions while we prep for your session, feel free to ask!
IV. Decide on Your Hair and Makeup
When it comes to hair and makeup, it depends on the look and budget you are going for. Some clients keep their hair natural but get their makeup done.
Others get their hair and makeup done, while others get just their hair done and do their own makeup. Some do hair and makeup on their own, which is another awesome choice.
Whatever you choose will be perfect, and all options work great! Just consider what look you want to go for with your hair and makeup, so you are not scrambling to pick something right before your session!
V. Make Your Engagement Session a Date Night!
Now that the main details are all covered, your engagement session is here! Another way to make it more exciting and romantic is to make it a date night!
You’re both dressed up, so why not make it a date? Have fun taking photos, and maybe enjoy some champagne (or sparkling juice if you don’t drink). Get photos while taking a romantic walk, or slow dance with each other to your favorite song.
Have fun with each other, and laugh as you do fun poses and also get candid shots during your session. Make it a night to remember!
Once photos are done, you can keep enjoying the evening! Enjoy a nice dinner at home or your favorite restaurant, or go out for drinks or dessert to celebrate a successful photo session.
All that remains is waiting to get your beautiful engagement photos!
