Did you just get engaged and are starting to plan your wedding? Ready to book your Grand Teton wedding photographer? No matter who you book for your wedding photographer, read more about why I recommend that you get engagement pictures done before your wedding day!

Reasons to Get Engagement Photos Taken by Your Wedding Photographer

We had a friend take photos of us when we got engaged to put on our engagement announcements and I’ve always regretted not having a professional photographer take our photos. Getting engaged is such a fun, important decision in your life. And the love you feel now is amazing. I remember the butterflies and pure excitement that came with getting to be with my best friend for the rest of my life. Love changes through the years. As someone who has been married 12 years, I can tell you the way I feel about my husband is different than it was when we got engaged. And it’s a JOY to have our life journey together documented in photos. It’s fun to see ourselves younger, skinnier (haha), and engaged.

There’s a few reasons why I believe engagement photos are important for every couple. Engagement photos allow you to truly become more comfortable with your photographer which can help your wedding day just go that much better.

Engagement Photos Allow You to Get to Know Your Photographer, and For Them to Get to Know You

I understand it isn’t possible for everyone to have an engagement session before their wedding, but if you can swing it, I highly recommend it! It can be fun to include locations that are important to you as a couple. It’s an opportunity to do something like an adventure session! You could spend a couple hours taking unique photos in adventurous settings.

An engagement session allows us to really get to know each other better before your wedding. When we can get to know each other a bit more, talk, & just connect, it can really help both you & I to feel more comfortable on your wedding day. It amazes me how every couple fits together and interacts differently. As your photographer, we’ll be spending A LOT of time planning together, emailing & texting back & forth, timeline planning, not to mention, we’ll be spending your whole wedding day together. That’s a lot of time & the more we get to know each other, the less it’ll feel like just another vendor & more like friends collaborating to make your day the best!

Engagement Photos Allow You to “Practice” in Front of the Camera

It has probably been a while since you’ve been in front of a professional with a camera. An engagement session allows you to kind of have a practice session in front of the camera with your photographer. This also may be your first time ever taking professional photos together! An individual portrait session is much different than couples’ photos. I can see how you laugh, cuddle, kiss, and fit together. I can find flattering poses for you, as well as get you interacting with each other in natural and fun ways.

An engagement session is about the two of you. You’ll be able to get a feel for how it is being in front of a camera. A photographer’s job is to capture how comfortable you are with each other & your connection with each other. Each photographer may work a bit differently, but even if your engagement & wedding photographers are different, you’ll be able to get much more comfortable in front of a camera.

When to Use Your Engagement Photos for Your Wedding

Your engagement photos have a variety of uses other than photos of an important time in your life. You can use your engagement photos in things like save the dates, invitations, or announcements. You can also use your engagement photos for wedding day details. Put the photos in an album or canvas with a lot of white space to use as a guest book for your wedding day or your reception.

Engagement & wedding photos may be one of the last times in a long time that you have professional photos of yourselves. The wedding photos are great but the engagement photos will document you in your favorite pair of jeans in a special spot such as where you met, where your first date was, or where he popped the question.

These photos are your chance to show your personality- you can change up your outfits, do an in-home or van life session, include your pets, do your favorite activity together. There are a lot of ways to show your personality throughout your engagement photos. You also don’t have to limit your engagement photos to just a few poses in a short amount of time. A longer session allows for more changes of clothes or locations & allows for things like really fun adventure sessions! I always recommend at least two different outfits.

How to Prepare for Your Engagement Session

To prepare for your engagement session, follow the tips below:

• Think about location. You can choose a place with special meaning or a totally new location. Be sure to talk to your photographer about timing for the location for best lighting & weather. I always have some amazing ideas for the weather and time of year that you will need your photos done.

• Choose nice outfits that are most “you”. You don’t want our engagement photos to feel fake, but you also want to look nice! You can also bring an extra outfit or two if you want to change.

• Don’t go overboard with hair & makeup. These are going to be nice photos but a bit more casual than something like wedding photos. I’d say for for something just a little nicer than your everyday hair & makeup. You want to feel and look like YOU!

• Please skip the spray tan & don’t burn yourself trying to get tanned. Cameras & editing pick things up slightly differently than our eyes. Sometimes the higher-end spray tans by professionals can look ok, but my advice is to just skip it altogether.

• Plan fun activities. You don’t have to just stand around staring at the camera the whole time. Bring your guitar, go on a hike, pop a bottle of champagne, or include other fun activities during your engagement photos!