Not everyone feels that they are or can be photogenic, especially brides who are busy with day to day life, while also planning their wedding day. However, we want to help you to thoroughly enjoy your engagement session, and to love your portraits for the rest of your life! So, we have compiled a list of 7 remarkable tips to for an unparalleled engagement session! Trust us, you’ll love these tips!
1. Have your Wedding Photographers Photograph Your Engagement Session
This is number one on our list, and for a good reason. You’ll truly thank yourself later for having your wedding photographers photograph your engagement session, versus a friend or family member doing so. Sure, a lot of times, your friends or family will offer to photograph your engagement session for free, which can be very tempting, but you will be doing yourself a great dis-service in the process. Why and how, you might ask? Well, first, if you allow your wedding photographers to photograph your engagement session, you will connect better with them. (And we know all about the Importance of Connecting with Your Wedding Photographers…) As your wedding photographers work with you throughout your engagement session, they will help pull you out of any awkwardness you might feel throughout the shoot, and push you more into your comfort zone. This, allows for more natural smiles to occur, which also allows for better portraits overall to be taken. You’ll also get to know, intimately, the style of your chosen wedding photographer, as well as how well you work with them! You’ll basically be able to “try” them out before, the big day!
2. Planning a Wedding is Hard Work – Make Up Lost Kisses and Hugs during your Engagement Session
With all the extra work you are doing, I’m sure you’ve noticed a slight decrease in your ability to have some goodhearted cuddles and kisses with the one you love most. Well, the Engagement Session is the perfect time to make for any and all of those lost tender moments. And best of all, they truly make for the best engagement portraits imaginable! Being all lovey-dovey with each other during your engagement session is good for your health, and if you have these portraits displayed on your walls, you will fall even more in love with one another! Not sure about showing lots of affection publicly? An easy way to show how connected you are with your significant other, is to simply make sure that multiple points of your bodies are touching (heads together, arms wrapped around one another, torsos close to each other, etc.) Remembering this small tip will never fail to create the most intimate and memorable portraits of all time!
3. Wear the Outfits that Make You Feel Like You’re in the Movies
If you feel you look good, you’ll feel good. Think about the romantic movies you love, or the romantic moments in the movies that you love. If you’re anything like us, perhaps moments from movies such as ‘The Notebook’ or even scenes from ‘The Lord of the Rings’ have come to mind. (And trust us, if you want to do a Lord of the Rings styled Engagement Session, please let us know sooner, rather than later!) These are the moments where the stars look their best, and all the feels just hit you, right in your heart! This is what we want to “duplicate” for you. The feelings. The moments that make your heart sing! So, if you feel you look good, you will have one less worry on your mind, which will allow more of these feelings to take root in your engagement session. We even have a style guide to help you coordinate your outfit with your significant other, so you have even -less- to worry about! (Check the right hand side, or below this post on mobile phones, to download your free Style Guide!)
4. Meaningful Locations Mean Meaningful Portraits
While Jeff and I are fanatics (almost) when it comes to engagement sessions in the woods of Michigan, or up north in front of the waterfalls around Munising; the best locations for our couples, have always been the ones that -mean- something to them. Whether that is a special coffee shop where you had your first date, or a special place on the beaches of Lake Michigan where he proposed to you, or even a special spot you like to visit for vacation every year. No matter the location, so long as it gives a special meaning to you and your significant other, you will not regret having your engagement portraits taken there. These spots are a part of your story, and your story, is what we want to tell with our photographs.
5. If you want dreamy light in your engagement pictures, schedule them 1.5 – 2 Hours before Sunset
Photographers have a special description for this magical time of day, and we call it “Golden Hour”. The reason we call it that, is because it is at this time, each day, that the light becomes practically magical, majestic, and golden for portraits. It is simply the most beautiful time of the day, and helps to create breathtaking portraits! This is when the sun isn’t too harsh, and is perfect for our next tip as well…
6. Use your Engagement Session as a Precursor to a Date Night!
Treat yourself, all day! This is a great day to take some time off of work, and wedding planning, and just treat yourselves. When was the last time you had a date night? When was the last time you dressed up, and felt simply beautiful and wanted to show off for your significant other? Well, if it has been a while, this is a perfect “excuse” to making the most of your time! Not only will your mind be set into “lovey-dovey” mode, you’ll be able to spend some quality alone time with your best friend! And, if you plan your engagement session 1.5 – 2 hours before sunset, it’ll be the perfect time for a romantic dinner, afterwards!
7. Last, but definitely not least, have fun!
How else do you think we achieve such natural looking smiles in our photographs? Isn’t it obvious? We like to have FUN! And we want you to have fun right along with us. Not only does having fun correlate to better pictures, but it also sets the mood for the rest of your day, and you’ll know that you can have fun on your wedding day too! Be yourself, that’s what your engagement photos are all about. If you need to sing, dance, bring special props, make silly faces, or make bad jokes, do it! We’ll capture those natural and fun smiles for you, and when you look back at these portraits, you’ll remember just how much fun the session was! You’ll truly thank yourself later on in life, for allowing yourself to have fun for these pictures. And the best part, is there is no right or wrong way to interact with one another. That’s just another way of you, being you.
I hope you enjoyed these tips, but if you have any questions, please feel free to reach out and ask away! Jeff and I have way more tips than these, but these are truly some of the best and most rewarding tips we can offer you. Make the most out of your engagement session, and love each other more each day.
xoxo,
Jess
