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E-session, engagement session, love shoot – whatever you call it, it’s one of the essential pieces to a great wedding photography experience. A lot of couples are faced with the choice whether or not to include the engagement session with their wedding photography package. If you want my unsolicited opinion – do it. Let’s take a look at both sides of the argument:
Reasons to Have an Engagement Session
– It can be and should be an enjoyable time for you and your fiance
– You will end up with a whole set of images that you wouldn’t otherwise
– You can take photos at a totally different location than your wedding venue
– It’s a no-stress practice run for your wedding day
– You can use the images for save the dates or your guest book
– You get to know your photographer a little bit better
– Your photographer gets to know you both a little bit better
– You are able to get comfortable on camera before the big wedding day
– Everyone gets to understand what to expect from one another
– Your wedding day photography goes much more smoothly
Reasons Not to Have an Engagement Session
– Additional cost
The Verdict
Now that we’ve listed the pros and cons, it’s easy to see why opting for an engagement session is a good choice. In fact, it’s such a good choice that we at Blueflash don’t let you choose; An engagement session comes standard in all of our packages. We feel that it’s so beneficial that everybody should have one. We don’t want to miss an opportunity to get to know our brides and grooms a little bit better. We get to learn about your personalities, the things you like and dislike, and what makes you smile. What’s better than knowing that when heading into a wedding day?
A Common Misconception
Just to clarify, an engagement session is a photoshoot of an already engaged couple. It is not typically photos of a couple as they actually have their proposal (though I have photographed that before and it was pretty cool). Had to mention this as it is a question that comes up from time to time.
A Few More Perks
Love wedding albums? Why not have an engagement album to compliment it? Most of our packages come with an included engagement album so you can enjoy those photos as much as you do your wedding images. Do you plan to send out save the dates? Using an engagement photo is a great way to do it. You could even bring some props to the engagement session that have your date written on them (I’m sure Pinterest is loaded with ideas like this). If you plan to have a guest book at your wedding for people to sign, you might consider using your engagement images to make a photobook that people can sign instead of the traditional book with lined paper. Best of all, in twenty years you can look back on your engagement session images and remember how it all started.
Series information
Next we’ll be talking about the importance of having two photographers at your wedding.
If you missed the intro to this series, you can catch it right here – How To Choose Your Rhode Island Wedding Photographer Series Introduction.
