Hey there!

Today’s blog focuses on why having an Engagement Session is so vital to the overall Wedding Experience and process.

By now you may have already picked a date for your wedding, found a photographer, and probably a venue as well, you can celebrate!   These are some of the toughest decisions in the wedding planning process and they can be crossed off the list! Hooray!! Now on to the fun stuff… like your engagement session! If you are on the fence, or perhaps you haven’t given it any thought, then this one’s for you! Below are 4 reasons to have an engagement session with your photographer:

1. During your engagement session, you’ll have the chance to get to know your photographer even more, experience in real life how they shoot, and handle posing and lighting.
2. Engagement sessions have a HUGE impact on how the wedding day flows. Your photographer will arrive on your wedding day already knowing how you two interact, what your best poses are and how to photograph you in a genuine way!
3. You will feel like such a pro on your big day because of the great practice you had during your engagement session, and that’s how it should be!
4. You can use the photos for save-the-date cards, other types of holiday cards, or to create a customized wedding guest book.

Ultimately I feel that what your wedding photographer will learn about you during your engagement session is invaluable! Your engagement session can be scheduled anytime before your wedding day. I normally suggest booking it at least 3-6 months in advance to avoid stress.  Most photographers, normally only schedule e-shoots on weekday evenings because the weekends are filled with weddings, and the time varies depending on the light and the time of year (for example, in winter months 3 – 5 pm is a normal time frame for an e-shoot).

As you start to plan for your engagement shoot, you will need to start brainstorming about location ideas.  I LOVE it when couples pick a location that is special or sentimental to them in some way! If you can’t think of anywhere specific that you would like to shoot, your photographer should be able to help you decide on a location!  As long as the light is great, great photographers can make ANY location look awesome! Farms, campuses, downtown alleys and even laundry mats, you name it.  Do not shy away from crazy ideas!  The more creative, the better!

p.s. Click here for My Top 10 Tips to Prepare for your Engagement Session!