One phrase I hear ALL. THE. TIME… “We’re not sure if we want an engagement shoot – they just seem sort of cheesy.” Oh man, I get it. I have worked so hard these past few years to get rid of as much cheesiness in my sessions as I can and believe me it’s not easy. Luckily our brides & grooms are some of the coolest people on the planet and they are awesome when it comes to trusting us with their shoot. We do our best to keep it real and natural which is our aim for all the work we put out there. If you’re still not convinced here are my top 5 reasons why you SHOULD do an engagement shoot even if you think it’s sort of lame ;).
- YOU’RE PROBABLY AWKWARD: I don’t mean that to be rude, it’s just a fact for 99% of people. In my 5 years of working with couples I have literally only met one pair who told me they loved having their photos taking. The fact of the matter is most of us are uncomfortable as hell the second a camera comes out – this is so very normal (cue “Chandler” smile from Friends). Now imagine it’s your wedding day – not only will your photographer be snapping photos all day but so will about 100 other people! Let’s get rid of those jitters BEFORE the wedding.
PERSONALITY: You’re probably putting as much of your personality into your wedding as you can, but you’ll still be limited by location/timeline/etc. This is your chance to be totally authentic. You get to choose a location that means something to you, you can wear something you’re comfortable in, and you get to hang out with the love of your life (plus your photographer :p). This is your time to literally do whatever kind of shoot you want (within reason of course lol).
- SELFIES: The only other photos you likely have of just the two of you are either selfies or the ones your mom took in front of the Christmas tree. This trend will probably continue as your marriage journey happens. Wouldn’t it be nice to have some nice photos without someone’s outstretched arm in the foreground? If kids happen one day you’ll NEVER get shots of just the two of you – it’s nice to look back and see a more casual (yet professionally captured) side of how things once were.
- WE WANT TO BE YOUR FRIENDS: Doing a pre-wedding session gives your photographer a chance to know you. What makes you laugh, what are your most flattering angles, how do you two relate to each other, etc. This is so important to us on the other side of the camera! We don’t want to feel like you’re strangers when we show up on your wedding day – let us spend some time with you first, we’ll totally appreciate it.
- YOUR WEDDING WILL BE BUSY: Like REALLY busy. The engagement session is a chance for us to take our time, get creative, and just have fun! It’s also a great time for you two to connect without paparazzi following you around and your Aunt Edith making you pose a million times.
At the end of the day the most important thing is to do what’s best for you, but having said that we genuinely love our time spent with you at your engagement session and selfishly hope you’ll take us up on the complimentary session we offer with all our wedding collections! Cheers friends!!
xo ~ Jen.
