If you’ve ever wondered why you should have engagement photos taken (or maybe you are trying to convince your fiance!), then this post is for you! I loved my own engagement session when I was getting married, and am so glad I made the time for it. Because I believe in the many benefits, most of the BBP wedding packages even include a complimentary engagement session!

1. So you, your fiance, and your photographer can all get to know each other better.  Think about it, wouldn’t you like to have the person taking photos of you on your wedding day be a familiar face that you trust and have spent time with beforehand? Personally, I feel it’s very important to get to know my brides and grooms before their wedding day. I have couples fill out a questionnaire together about themselves that asks fun questions so I can get to know more about them and their story. I encourage them to visit my About Me page so they can learn more about the person behind the camera. We have several phone calls, and meet in person if possible. But to me, the engagement session is the best time for all of us to get to know each other more. I believe the better we all know each other, the better the photos will turn out. I want us all to feel comfortable with each other on the wedding day, and I often leave that night knowing I gained two friends.

2. To have more time to get comfortable in front of the camera.  A lot of the time, my couples have not had professional photos taken of them together before. Everyone feels a little camera shy at first- why not get that out of the way before the wedding day? This is also a great time for your photographer to get a feel for how you two interact with each other while taking photos. Some couples want a lot of direction and posing assistance, some don’t. Some couples want to be more serious and romantic in front of the camera, others like to joke and laugh more. Knowing this will help make the bridal portraits the most reflective of the couple’s personality.

3. To do a trial run for your wedding day hair and makeup.  This is the PERFECT time to test out your bridal hair style and makeup! I know I would have felt more confident on my wedding day if I had known for sure that the hair style and makeup I chose was going to hold up the way I hoped it would. With an engagement session, you will be able to see how it holds up for a couple hours, and also how it shows up in photos! This is especially important for makeup since it is recommended to apply more than usual for the purpose of photos.

4. To have high quality photos for your entire engagement season (and afterwards)!  I used our engagement photos all throughout our wedding process. They were the Save the Dates, they were on our wedding website I created, and they were in frames at my bridal shower. I even made a wedding guestbook that was more of a photo album with the images and I still have it today. I still have canvases hung up in my house of photos from our engagement session. That was such a special season in our life and I love looking back on it. Those photos help me do so.

5. To have a fun, stress-free evening with your fiance!  Let’s be honest, wedding planning can become all-consuming. During your engagement season, make sure to carve out some time to have FUN with each other without discussing the wedding! An engagement session is the perfect opportunity. A lot of my couples have told me their engagement session felt like a date. Many even plan for it to be a date night and go out to dinner or drinks after! I love that.

Want to learn more about BBP engagement sessions? Contact me here.

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