I hear this question all the time and wanted to put down my thoughts with the goal of illustrating why engagement sessions are so important for you and for us:) This is written primarily for how we like to work with our couples however this applies to anyone asking the question: “Why do I need an engagement session?” 

Build a Strong Relationship

Don’t be a stranger!

When you see us pull up on your wedding day we want you to say “YES!!! Matt + Mo are here, get the champagne, now the party can finally get started!” Ok, I’m not sure if anyone’s ever said that but you get the idea. Spending the time with us during your engagement session lets us get to know each other; what jokes make you laugh, what your lives are like together etc.  We love to pick your brains about your lives, your careers, hobbies etc. From your favorite movies, pizza places and true crime shows (Mo made me put this in:)  to sharing beloved pet photos we love learning about you.  And I can say 100% it leads to more meaningful, nuanced and diverse photos that better represent who YOU are.

Build trust with us

Unless you are a model, it’s weird being in front of the camera. Then add in your fiance and the level of uncomfortable climbs to 180 Lb dog thinking he’s a lap dog level; speaking from personal experience:)  When Mo and I are both clicking away, moving around a light or 2 and other people are staring at you wondering “Are they celebrities” you don’t need to think about anything but enjoying the moment with your partner.  The whole time we are there to reassure you, guide you and build trust that we will make you look great and just enjoy yourself; it’s the same thing we will do on your wedding day.

Learn how to communicate with you

Having worked with us for an engagement session lets us communicate and direct you easier and will ultimately lead to higher quality photos.  You will already know what to expect from us and we can all just get to having fun and creating images together. It feels like picking up right where we left off at your engagement session. It’s like riding a bike, once you get the hang of it you can hop back on in no time.  And that analogy only gets better if you literally bring a bike to your engagement session:) More on the infinite prop and creative possibilities below!

Learn our proofing site

Once the session is over we send you the link to view your images. This gives you a preview of what it will be like to view, share and download your wedding photos. It’s not a very difficult process either way but it does give you a leg up when it comes to selecting album images down the road:)

Great images

“We don’t have any nice photos of us”

Unfortunately this is something that Mo says to me on an intermittent basis. We actually have to force ourselves to be in front of the camera! On one hand we know how important it is to document our lives, and on the other it can be hard slowing down and taking quality photos together. So if it’s hard for us to put down the camera and get our photos taken I can imagine that you’re struggling with this too.  An engagement session helps to fill that gap and will provide you with amazing photos that you can look back on years in the future. 

Save the dates, prints, wall art

We love opening up the mailbox and seeing your save the date with a photo that we created from your engagement session. Btw, we keep every single one and it truly makes our day:) There are so many places to use your e-session photos from save the dates to prints and wall art. Once we showed up to a wedding ceremony to find a giant canvas print of a photo we took during the couples engagement session, see below:) You might decide to make several prints and have them displayed throughout your wedding reception.  You can have a guest book created with the photos and have your guests look through it and leave you a note. There are so many great uses for the photos we will create at your engagement session. Even if you have already sent out save the date cards there is always something you can use them for. But if you forgo an engagement session the images will not exist at all:(

Do something unique to you: Pets, children, breweries, bikes, horses!

This is your chance to create photos that either due to logistics or location you can’t do at your wedding. Whether it’s bringing your fur babies; dogs or cats, still waiting for someone to bring their Iguana:) or your real children, we love to include important elements into your photos. If you are having a fall wedding consider doing a spring engagement session to add contrast.  If you are having a country wedding why not schedule a city engagement session to get the best of both worlds. 

Lifestyle or Traditional session?

A lifestyle session is tailored more to what your interests, hobbies, daily lives are like and a traditional session is typically heading to a beautiful location and focusing on you instead of what you are doing.  We love to do a mix of lifestyle and traditional for most sessions and that leads to us creating very personal and meaningful images for you. We can go to your favorite date night spot, brewery or the location where you got engaged.  Maybe your first date was ice skating together and you want to recreate that. I am pretty good on ice skates btw; Mo not so much… We would love to talk with you to see what crazy ideas are floating around your heads:)

Posing / Comfort in front of the camera

Explain basic posing: Find your side… 

During every session we go over foundation posing which gives you the confidence to look your best in front of our cameras and for the rest of your lives! We guide you about where to put your hands, how to stand, how to look natural in front of the camera etc.  We introduce all of these elements early on so that we can direct you clearly and effortlessly as the session goes along. If you have a preferred side or any other concerns we will find those out during your session. You will find this super helpful and confidence building when your wedding day comes around:)

Practice makes perfect!

Your engagement session is basically a fun, low pressure trial run for your wedding day. Our sessions are normally two hours long so that’s a whole lot of time to break down your uncomfortable barriers about posing with your partner and discover what works best for you. Two hrs sounds like a long time but trust me time flies when you’re in front of our cameras! You can try out lots of different poses and see what feels the most comfortable to you while we are right there to guide you. When we take photos we are very carefully watching to make sure you look comfortable and natural. The continuous feedback that we provide is super helpful as a learning experience and we’ve heard from couples that they are more confident having their photo taken after working with us!

It’s also a perfect time to do a trial run of your hair and makeup This will give you an idea what to expect for the wedding day and if you need to make any changes. Looking through the set of images from your engagement session can give you a good idea of what you like and equally as important what you don’t like.

Discuss your wedding + vision

Moodboard – Understanding your vision

Our goal is to create images that you will love that are tailored specifically to you and your partner. Every couple has different ideas, styles, preconceived notions etc. when it comes to photos. And since we can’t read minds, (yet!) the best way for us to see through your eyes is to have you share images that you like. We will have you use pinterest to pin 10-20 images that move you and add a brief description of why you like the image.  This helps us understand what is important to you in a way that talking can’t do. The moodboard guides us stylistically throughout your shoot and lets us craft something specific to you and your partner. Ultimately this translates into more personal wedding photos because we are able to better understand what you are looking for. 

Ideas + Timeline discussion

The more time we get to spend with you the more ideas and brainstorming we get to do together! We’re always trying to pull ideas out of you and create images that are meaningful to you. We will also have plenty of time to talk through your wedding schedule and give you our suggestions for how to plan your wedding day.

Overall Improved wedding images

In the end we find that 98.5% of couples that have engagement sessions with us feel better prepared and more satisfied with their wedding photos. Ok I just made that statistic up, but honestly the real statistic would be even closer to 100% because that’s just how important they are. Engagement sessions lead to:

• Building a stronger relationship/communication
• Great photos you can use for the rest of your lives
• Better comfort and ability to pose in front of the camera
• Improved understanding of your wedding vision and timeline
• And most importantly… a better experience on your wedding day that lets us create amazing images in less time which means you can actually enjoy your wedding day!

So this article is just a long pitch for us to hang out with you and get to know you more before we put on the fancy shoes and step into the pressure cooker:)  If you have any questions or would like to set up an engagement session with us email me at Matthew@mcmastersphotography.com or call 215-815-1185.