It’s that time of year when all of you couples out there are in the process of planning your big day and scheduling engagement sessions! Engagement sessions are meant to be a reflection of the two of you in a way that is natural, authentic and FUN! Many of my clients use these photos on their wedding websites, in announcements and save the dates, as décor pieces on the big day and to share with their friends and family during such a special and unique time in life. Many people, including myself, love to have these photos to hang around the house as something a little less formal than your actual wedding day photos. Engagement sessions are quality time spent with just you and your photographer which means you end up with a beautiful collection of photos taken when you have no other distractions and can really be right in the moment. There’s so much happening on a wedding day and the vibe of these two collections can be very different. Take advantage of some one-on-one time with your photographer and make it count!
How do you do that? Well, one of the best ways to make your engagement session special is to choose a location that is particularly meaningful to the two of you. We’ve often traveled further for an engagement session than we have for the actual wedding day just to utilize a location our couple loves. Some of our favorite sessions are pictured below where I will share a little bit of the couple’s story.
Sarah and Chris met while in the UW marching band and wanted to include this in their session somehow, so they were able to get us access to the field during a non-event day so we had the place to ourselves. Sarah’s very favorite animal in the world are giraffes and through a contact at the Woodland Park Zoo we were able to get up close and personal with these long-necked cuties. This collection had so much variety and personal meaning to the couple!
Mike’s family owns a cabin on Decatur Island and he and Mandy had visited this spot many times throughout their relationship together building memories and sharing time with family. Decatur Island doesn’t allow cars, so we were transported around this majestic island by golf cart, came across fields of sheep and played at the beach all before spending time back at the cabin playing cards and having a blast.
Belle and John had spent hours upon hours hiking around Heather Meadows up at Mount Baker and were adamant about including this magical location in their photos. Not only this, but the two of them love to ride their motorcycles together, so we had to find a way to tie these into our session, too! We met up at the mountain and the couple started in one outfit as we hiked around the Heather Meadows before heading down the hill a bit to Picture Lake for a quick outfit change, a bit of walking around this sweet spot and photos on their bikes. It couldn’t have been a more beautiful day!
BUT! Maybe you don’t have a location that really stands out to the two of you and that is TOTALLY FINE! A good photographer will be able to recommend locations that fit your style and interests. From there it can be as simple as creative props, accessories and outfits.
Lauryn and Joel love to play their ukuleles together, so we created a little picnic scene at one of my favorite local spots that offered an opportunity to tie in the beautiful PNW and simultaneously give us the perfect location for a romantic ukulele date. I helped pick out picnic accessories and style the scene to help them feel comfortable and create a session just for them!
Whether you want to find the perfect location, want to include accessories that really mean something to you OR you just want to keep it simple- your photographer will be able to guide you through the process to keep it stress free, light and FUN. That is always the most important part of any session together!
