When it comes to wedding photography, there are many factors that can influence your overall wedding experience and can make your special day that much BETTER! That is why I wanted to share the 4 reasons why my engagement sessions are complimentary to my wedding package. I know that some wedding photographers can add this as an additional service, but I truly believe having an engagement session, prior to the wedding day, is a game changer! Having an engagement session prior to the big day makes your wedding day flow easier and of course, provides you with even more AMAZING and genuine photographs, then if you went without, and here’s why:

1. ALLOWS YOU TO GET COMFORTABLE IN FRONT OF THE CAMERA

Most of my couples are nervous to be photographed because again, they’ve never been professionally photographed before. That is totally normal! It is a big reason why I provide my couples with an engagement shoot prep guide before our session to help prepare you, as well as give lots of instructions at your engagement session. After your engagement session, the wedding day feels so much more relaxing and at ease because you’ve done a lot of the posing before,  you know what it’s like working with me,  which then allows you to be more calm, and feel so much more confident when it comes time to taking your photographs.

2. GET TO KNOW HOW YOU TWO INTERACTBeing in from the camera can be intimating! I know that most people I photograph have rarely, if ever, been photographed professionally. This gives me the opportunity to real see how you two are together and how you both are in front of the camera. This is super important because each couple acts differently with one another when being photographed, so it is vital to get a feel for each couple to really ensure we capture some amazing portraits on the wedding day. 

3. ABILITY TO KNOW YOUR BEST POSES AND HOW TO PHOTOGRAPH YOU IN A GENUINE WAY

Because I’m shooting couples who are inexperienced in front of the camera, this allows me to figure out the best poses for you, find your right angles, and learn how to bring out the genuine emotion in each person so that I am able to truly capture YOU. Like I said earlier, it’s my chance to get to know you two, as a couple, since everyone acts and will need to be photographed differently. People’s bone structure, height, weight, comfort level, ability to listen to instruction, personality, and the overall natural interaction between each other, are things that make a difference and are factored into your engagement session. And when we get this practice together, this translates to better images on the wedding day and who doesn’t want that?!

4. HEIGHTENS THE EXCITEMENT AND ANTICIPATION FOR YOUR BIG DAY

After the big proposal, the excitement over your wedding day tends to die down a bit because let’s face it, there is a lot of information and exciting new things happening all the time. When you have a formal engagement session, you are able to then share the excitement all over again! And then you also have amazing photographs to display at bridal shower, on the save the dates, and the wedding day!

As you can see, having an engagement session with your wedding photographer truly helps your overall wedding experience! I know some couples who may not want to have one, for various reasons, but the benefits of having one, in my experience, are vital. Wedding days flow so much more smoothly and my couples go into their wedding day so much more confident. That is why this truly is a complimentary service in my wedding package because I want to ensure that my bride and groom’s have the best experience working with me and truly have no regrets! If you really desire natural photographs, that represent you as a couple, then an engagement session truly helps ensure your pictures don’t look too stiff or really posed. And as a friendly reminder, after your wedding day is all said and done, all you have left with you is your husband (or wife) and your photographs (and maybe a wedding video). Your wedding photos will carry on with you forever and I want nothing more then for you to LOVE them and for your personalities to truly be reflected in them!

Much joy,

Charity HOPE