Engagement photo sessions are delightful in so many ways. Capturing the love between you and your fiancee is an easy caveat. However, finding the right location and photographer is a totally separate issue. Then there's the question of what to wear, how to pose, what to do...yada yada yada. An experienced photographer should come prepared with several ideas and suggestions, but keep in mind that you will need to do some legwork yourself in order to translate your expectations into a reality.
As an avid (aka totally obsessed) blog reader, I am constantly saving photos that catch my eye, then categorizing the images in separate folders. Using Google's Picasa, it is simple then to create a collage of my fave photos. So here's my two cents when it comes to booking your engagement photo shoot:
Number 1: The key word of the day is FUN! Repeat, fun fun fun!
2: Bring a collage of pics that have caught your eye, that you may want to try and recreate. This will definitely help your photo taking pro understand what you envision and expect.
3: Bring a change of clothes in an attempt to keep your shoot from becoming stale. Think outside the box. Not a dressy girly girl? Try on a pretty skirt. Put on some bold earrings. Put a tie or cap on your man. Curl or straighten your hair. Better yet, try on a fancy headband, flowers, or feathers...go for bright red lipstick or blue nail polish! Another classic idea is going all au naturel, which is completely timeless and beautiful right down to the very core.
4: Super freaking important! Find a photographer that you are comfortable with. Someone you can joke around with and be silly enough to experiment with ideas that may be a bit out of your comfort zone.
5: Color coordination is not important, but a colorless backdrop may prove to be disappointing. Pick your location(s) wisely, and see if your photographer is ok with hitting a couple different spots.
6: Think about how your photos will be used. For DIY save-the-dates, perhaps you will need to bring some signs or props of some sort (think balloons, sweet treats, mr & mrs signs, bicycle, umbrella, etc.)
As a closing to this post, I'll leave you with a few pics that have stunned, fascinated, and inspired me. Happy engagement photo shooting y'all!
