During the wedding planning process, one of the most exciting times for a bride and groom ( outside of the wedding itself) is when they have their engagement session. As a wedding photographer, it is one of my favorite moments because it is a time for the bride and groom to be alone together in front of our camera with not distractions. It’s also a chance for us to get to know them more personally so that on their wedding day, we are considered more like friends! That honestly makes a huge difference as far as our couples giving us relaxed poses!
When we begin the engagement planning, the bride and I usually brainstorm locations and clothing but one of the main questions we always get asked it “How can we make our engagement session more personal?” That’s a great question and while your engagement session will be absolutely perfect without adding a thing to it, we’ve created this blog with a few tips on making your engagement session more personal if you choose to do so!
Tip 1. Pets
This is probably the most used tip because many of us have pets and we consider them as part of our family. If you do decide to have your pet be a part of our engagement session, it is aways helpful to bring things like water, treats, and an extra hand to hold their leash while they are not being photographed!
In the photos below of Nichole and Andrew, Nichole included her family dog in her photos. She also used her family’s waterside home as their location!
Tip 2. Sports or Hobbies
Incorporate your favorite sports teams or even a sport that you love to play. One of our favorite sessions was when we photographed a couple on a golf course because it was their favorite sport to play! We had a lot of fun photographing them in their element and we really saw their personalities shine through!
Tip 3. Signs and Props
There are so many ideas out there when it comes to signs and props. There are so many creative ways to make them and you can put whatever you like on it such as your wedding date, favorite quote, or even a sweet message to one another! You can even color your sign to match your wedding colors! Pinterest has tons of DIY ideas and if you’re not a DIY kind of person, Etsy is a great place to purchase premade signs!
I love how Kylie and Joey not only used a sign, but they brought along their fur baby Pistachio and make a sign for him too! Double win!!
Tip 4. A Location with Special Meaning
This can be your wedding venue or the place where you said “Yes!”. The location can also be a city where you grew up or even the school that you all attended together. One memorable engagement session took place at a local Sweet Frog. It was the place where your couple had their first date, so to photograph them reliving that moment was so special to us.
Remember, the engagement session is already perfect with just the two of you in it! But if you decided to make it more personal and unique to your love story, we hope these tips will help!
Are you in the Virginia area and looking for a wedding or engagement photographer? CONTACT US so we can talk more about your wedding and engagement!!
