Why an Engagement Session with a Professional Photographer is Essential

Planning a wedding is an exciting yet overwhelming journey, and one of the best ways to ensure smooth sailing on your big day is be scheduling an engagement session with your professional photographer. Beyond capturing beautiful photos, this session helps you to build a relationship with your photographer, get comfortable in front of the camera, and create lasting memories before saying “I do”.

Building a Connection with Your Photographer

Your wedding photographer plays a crucial role in documenting one of the most significant days of your life. They will also be with you just about the entire day so it is so important to make sure you feel comfortable with them. An engagement session with a professional photographer allows you to get to know them on a personal level, helping establish trust and familiarity because they will be with you in some of the most intimate moments during your wedding day. You’ll experience their shooting style, understand their posing directions, and develop a comfortable rhythm, making your wedding day feel more natural and stress-free. An engagement session is a little sneak preview of what to expect during your wedding day.

Feeling Comfortable in Front of the Camera is Essential

For most couples, an engagement session with a professional photographer is their first professional photoshoot together. Being in front of the camera can feel intimidating, but this session helps you shake off any nervousness. You’ll learn how to pose effortlessly, find your best angles, and feel more confident, ensuring your wedding day photos turn out relaxed and authentic. Choosing a professional photographer who knows how to properly pose you, can help with this tremendously. If you are nervous in front of the camera and feel awkward, a photographer that doesn’t give you any direction during your engagement session is probably not the best fit for you. Again, your engagement session is essential in giving you a preview of how your photographer will work with you during your wedding day.

Best Tips for Preparing for Your Engagement Session

To make the most of your engagement session, a little preparation goes a long way. Here are some expert tips to ensure a smooth and enjoyable experience:

1. Choose a Meaningful Location: Pick a spot that reflects your relationship, whether it’s a scenic outdoor landscape, a cozy coffee shop, or the place where you first met or had your first date.
2. Schedule at the Right Time: The best lighting for photos is typically during golden hour – an hour after sunrise and an hour before sunset – creating warm, flattering tones. However, a skilled photographer will know how to work with any lighting situation.
3. Communicate with Your Photographer: Share your vision, preferences, and any specific shots you’d love to capture. Your photographer is there to bring your ideas to life! Also, make sure you put trust in your photographer. They are the ones to ultimately know what will look best in camera.
4. Relax and Have Fun: The best photos come from natural interaction. Laugh, be playful, and focus on enjoying the moment with your partner. My favorite moments aren’t even ones that I orchestrate between my couple. It’s the moments in between when we’re walking to a new location or when you’re waiting for me to set something up. I always tell my couples, “Never stop being cute”.

If you’re struggling to find the perfect location, we work directly in the southeastern area of Michigan and have a whole list of fantastic locations from city to beach. Check out our blog post on this topic!

What to Wear (and What Not To Wear) During Your Engagement Session

Your outfit choices can make a big impact on the overall aesthetic of your photos. Here’s how to choose the perfect look:

What to Wear:

• Coordinate, Don’t Match: Choose complementary colors and styles rather than identical outfits.
• Stick to Neutral and Solid Colors: Soft pastels, earth tones, and muted shades work well on camera and won’t distract from your expressions.
• Wear Something Comfortable: If you feel good in what you’re wearing, it will absolutely show in your photos. A lot of people may think, I have to dress up super fancy, or I have to buy a brand new outfit. I caution people in wearing something you would absolutely not wear normally. Some may not even think about confidence when it comes to professional photos. No matter how I photograph you, if you don’t feel comfortable in what you’re wearing, your photos will feel off.
• Consider the Location and Season: Dress appropriately for the setting, whether it’s a breezy beach or a cozy autumn field. If it’s in the cooler months and you want to wear a dress or something with short sleeves, make sure you bring a coat and layer up for in between photos to warm up. Footwear is the number one important part of making your wardrobe comfortable. I tend to do a lot of walking during my engagement sessions, I encourage anyone who wants to wear heels especially, during their session, to bring a pair of flip flops or slip ons to walk around in between photo locations.
• Bringing Props or Wearing Something Like Jerseys: If there is a special heirloom or other prop that reflects your relationship, bring it. We can incorporate these into a few photos. Make sure your engagement ring is clean and sparkly before your session so we can grab those close ups. I have many couples who have bonded over a favorite sport or team and want to wear their jerseys at their session. I have no problems with this and we will get a few photos of you in your jerseys.

What Not to Wear

• Avoid Loud Patterns and Logos: These can be distracting and take attention away from the connection between you and your partner. Graphic tees are not recommended unless you have an intent to correlate it to your relationship.
• Steer Clear of Neon Colors: Bright, unnatural hues can cast unflattering tones on your skin. Neon colors just don’t jive well with cameras and lighting of any kind.
• Don’t Overthink It: Your engagement session should reflect your personalities, so don’t stress too much about achieving perfection. Just be yourselves!

When in doubt, check with your photographer. I know, myself, I love to see what you’re thinking of wearing before your session. This way, I can recommend any changes or give the go ahead that your choices will work perfect!

Final Thoughts

An engagement session with a professional photographer is more than just a photoshoot; it’s an opportunity to bond with your photographer, ease any camera shyness, and create stunning images that celebrate your love story. I also like to think and have observed, an engagement session is a great way to break away from the planning and busy life, to relax and spend time together. I also recommend couples to even make a day/night of it and go have a nice meal afterwards (you’re already all done up anyways). By preparing thoughtfully and embracing the experience, you’ll walk into your wedding day with confidence, ready to enjoy every moment in front of the camera.

So, if you’re on the fence about booking an engagement session – go for it! You’ll cherish the memories and gain beautiful, meaningful images that mark this special chapter in your journey together.

If you’re still convinced you don’t need an engagement session (some couples don’t book their photographer until right before their wedding or elopement and they don’t have time for one), I highly encourage to still meet with your photographer, in person if able, to just sit and chat. Engagement sessions are included in all of my wedding and elopement packages. If a couple doesn’t want one or doesn’t need an engagement session, I require we sit down with some coffee or even a little meal and just chat, get to know each other, and go over any questions, concerns, and all wedding details before their big day!

To connect with me about your wedding or elopement photography, please reach out on my website, www.eblackphotography.com or Instagram!