August 5, 2021
Engagement sessions are one of my favorite things to shoot, and after doing this for years, I’ve noticed that the couples who enjoy their sessions the most almost always have a few things in common. They came prepared, they came relaxed, and they came ready to just be with each other.
Here’s everything I share with my couples before we shoot.
Pick a location that actually means something
The best engagement sessions happen in places that feel personal. Not just pretty, personal. A spot you both love, somewhere you’ve been together, a place that tells part of your story.
Northern California gives us an incredible range to work with. Coastal cliffs, redwood forests, urban architecture, garden estates, river banks. If you’re not sure where to start, that’s exactly what my location map is for. I’ve personally scouted locations across California, and I love helping couples find spots they didn’t even know existed close to home. If you want to take a look at what’s available, get in touch and we’ll figure it out together.
Think about what you’re wearing and how it works with the location
This is something most couples don’t think about until the last minute, and it makes a bigger difference than people realize. The colors you wear interact with your surroundings in ways that either make you stand out or cause you to blend in. I go deep on this in my color theory guide for engagement session outfits, which I’d highly recommend reading before you start planning what to wear.
The short version: coordinate without matching, think about how your colors contrast with the environment, and when in doubt, send me a photo of what you’re considering. I’m always happy to weigh in.
Don’t leave grooming to the last minute
Get haircuts, manicures, or anything else you’re planning done a few days before the session rather than the day before. This gives everything time to settle and means you’re not walking into the shoot with a fresh cut that doesn’t quite feel like you yet. The same goes for breaking in new shoes if you’re planning to wear them.
Bring a change of outfit if you can
Two looks give your gallery more variety and let you show two different sides of who you are as a couple. I usually suggest one more casual and relaxed, and one slightly more dressed up. It doesn’t have to be a dramatic change, even switching from jeans to a dress makes a noticeable difference in the feel of the photos.
Think about how much time you need
If you’re planning on doing a location change, an outfit change, or both, I’d strongly recommend booking at least a two-hour session. An hour goes faster than most people expect, and trying to squeeze changes into that window usually means feeling rushed, which shows up in the photos.
Two hours give us the breathing room to actually settle into each location, make the most of each look, and not feel like we’re racing the clock the whole time. If you’re on the fence about session length, more time is almost always the right call.
Bring anything that feels like you
Pets are always welcome. If you have dogs, bring them, at least for part of the session. Beyond that, if there’s something that genuinely represents who you are as a couple, whether that’s a blanket you always take hiking, a book you’ve both read, or something more unexpected, bring it up, and we can talk about whether it makes sense to incorporate it.
The keyword is genuine. Props work when they tell a real story, and they fall flat when they feel staged.
Plan to arrive without a strict schedule
One of the best things you can do for your engagement session is to give yourself a little buffer around it. Don’t book dinner reservations for an hour after we’re supposed to finish. Don’t rush to get there. Come in relaxed and give yourself permission to just be present for a couple of hours.
The photos where couples look most natural are almost always the ones where they stopped thinking about what they were supposed to be doing and just started enjoying themselves.
Trust the process
At the start of every session, I tell my couples the same thing: your only job is to focus on each other. Make each other laugh, have fun, get cute and cuddly if that’s your vibe, and let me take care of the rest.
I’m going to give you directions and prompts throughout the session, but the goal is never for you to perform for the camera. The goal is to give you something to do together so that real moments can happen while I’m capturing them.
Every couple feels a little awkward in front of the camera at the start. That’s completely normal, and it usually disappears within the first fifteen minutes. By the end of the session, most couples tell me they forgot the camera was there. That’s exactly where I want you to be.
Ready to start planning your engagement session? Let’s talk.
