10 Tips for Your Engagement Photos
“Is there more to life than being really, really, REALLY ridiculously good-looking?” -Derek Zoolander
If you’re getting ready for your engagement photos, you likely have a few questions and concerns! For most of the couples that I work with as a Temecula wedding photographer, this is their first time having their pictures taken professionally and announcing their engagement, usually via a save-the-date! Here are 10 Tips for Your Engagement Photos to help you feel prepared for your session.
See more photos from this Claremont Engagement Session here.
1. Book Your Engagement Session 8 Months or More Before Your Wedding
According to The Knot, you should send out save-the-dates six to eight months before your wedding date, erring on more time if the majority of your guests are traveling. With this in mind, if you’re sending out physical save-the-dates, you’ll want to book your session about eight or more months before your wedding. This will give you enough time to get your photos taken , get your gallery back and get cards printed. You’ll also want to consider seasonality and your photographer’s schedule. During peak season (May – September for me) you’ll want to get your engagement session on the books a couple of months before your desired date, and often I am only able to schedule sessions during the week. So, in summary, book your session well in advance of when you’d like to receive your photos!
2. Choose a Location You Like
What outfits do you want to wear to your session? What backdrops do you want in your photos? Your photographer should be able to give you some suggestions! Most couples either want more of an urban / downtown setting, or a nature setting. Seasonality is important! In Temecula, many outdoor locations get preeeeeeetty dry in the summer, so spring is ideal is you want rich green grasses. Here are some location suggestions and engagements I’ve photographed for Southern California couples!
Inland Empire Portrait Locations
Temecula Engagement Photo Locations
Balboa Park Engagement Photos
Old Town Temecula Engagement Photos
Claremont Engagement Session
Irvine Engagement Session
See more photos from this Old Town Temecula Engagement Session here.
3. Be Aware of Permits and Travel Fees
Many locations I photograph in do not require permits, but some do! If you’d like to be photographed in a location that requires a permit, you will need to pay the permit fees. I photograph sessions anywhere from Corona to Fallbrook at no charge; if you’d like your session to take place outside of these areas, make sure we connect so I can get you a travel quote.
4. Bring Up to Two Outfits (Dressy & Casual) and Keep It Coordinated
I recommend couples bring a maximum of 2 outfits, usually a dressy one and a casual one. Popular options for dressy portraits include a button-up shirt and pants / dark jeans for the gents, and a dress for the ladies. Maxi dresses are great options because they give your hands something to play with and the wind looks great blowing through them! I also see guys wearing a suit with no tie.
From a color perspective, I welcome rich colors and patterns! I recommend looking coordinated but not matching. You’ll be snuggled up a lot during your session and if you’re both wearing black, for instance, it creates a distracting visual block in your photos. So try to break up the colors – maybe someone can wear a black top and the other can wear a striped shirt in gray and black.
Try on your clothes well in advance of your engagement session and make sure you like them! Sometimes a top is a bit more sheerer than you thought or grazes your body in a weird way. You want to make sure you both look and feel great in your outfits!
Another tip is you may need to be prepared to change in your car! Sometimes there are not accessible restrooms or it would eat up too much time to go back to the closest restroom mid-session (unless you’re parking right next to one). If I’ve photographed in a location before, I’ll be able to give you more insight on changing in that area.
Avoid very small patterns (smaller than a dime) or skinny stripes. These create a optical illusion called moiré in digital photos.
See more photos from this Avensole Winery Engagement Session here.
5. Get Your Hair and Makeup Done
TREAT YO SELF! This is a great opportunity to get a hair and makeup trial for your wedding day! Makeup tends to look more understated in photos than it does in real life, so this is a great way to see how your makeup will look in photos on your wedding day. It also helps you feel more confident going into your photos!
6. Don’t Get a Spray Tan and Be Mindful of Tan Lines
As a person who regularly coats herself in sunblock, I’m here to say pale is okay! What I sometimes see is one part of a couple gets a spray tan, and when the other one does not, it creates a color imbalance that’s very difficult to correct! One person will have golden tones, and the other person will look cool-toned in comparison. Of course if you are melanin-blessed, you can ignore this advice entirely!
Most photographers (including myself) do not touch out tan lines in every single photo. So be mindful of any tan lines well in advance of your engagement session. I have a perpetual smart watch tan line, which I have attempted to correct with self-tanning drops with some success, but definitely test that out well in advance! A bracelet also works as a way to hide your watch tan line!
Speaking of smart watches, I recommend a regular watch, if you have one, for engagement sessions. This is because the screen of smart watches is highly reflective and can be a distraction during photos. Analog watches are less distracting and a bit more classic!
See more photos from this Irvine Engagement Session here.
7. Plan on Ample Drive Time
I plan my engagement sessions to start about an hour and a half before sunset, sometimes slightly later if couples would like to stay until after the sun sets and get some off-camera flash images. As we all know, Southern California traffic is brutal so it’s critical that you plan on lots of drive time, particularly if you’re headed to a location where parking may be a challenge. If you have a long drive, I also recommend hanging your outfits and changing once you get on site so that you don’t have wrinkles on your clothes in your images.
8. Bringing Pets or Props
Couples are more that welcome to bring pups or props! If you have a puppy, I highly recommend bringing a minder to take them away after a certain point, since they can be pretty distracting, even if you’re able to leash them somewhere! Older dogs are usually okay to hang out in your car (if it’s not a hot day, of course!). Props are also welcome, I’ve had couples bring albums they love or books! One of my favorites was a couple that brought along a few Harry Potter books – it just made their session magic (pun intended)!
9. Be Yourselves
You’ve made it to your session on time, you’re in some banging outfits, but at this point, you’re probably a little nervous! This is when you can relax! You’ve done all the hard stuff, and I take it from here! My sessions are super interactive and I always give you stuff to do. I know from experience there’s simply nothing worse than having a camera pointed at you and not being sure where to look, what to do, where to put your hands! I’m very involved in helping you get into cute, snuggly positions and bringing out your natural reactions to one another. You don’t need to worry about a thing during this part of the session, just be yourselves and I take it from there!
See more photos from this Balboa Park Engagement Session here.
10. Treat Yourself to Dinner
DID YOU KNOW professional modeling burns 1,000 calories an hour? Probably not, because I just made that up! Regardless, you’ll likely be hungry after your shoot, and still looking completely fab, so go out to a dinner with your fiance and take advantage of this time together!
Thanks for checking out my 10 Tips for Your Engagement Photos! Check out these other links for more wedding planning resources and articles!
Everything You Need to Know About Getting Married in Temecula
California Botanic Garden Wedding
Wedding Timelines for Every Season
Everything You Need to Know About Having a Wedding Day First Look
