Engagement sessions seem to be the first thing people want to cut from their wedding photography budget. They wonder what on earth they’ll do with all those photos of them when the true photo-sharing event is on the horizon: their wedding. Or they have a a friend with a nice camera and think they’ll just have them snap a few photos.I absolutely LOVE engagement sessions with my brides so I thought I would share why and how doing an engagement session can actually help you have better wedding photos (it’s true!)

First, let’s make sure we’re all on the same page about what is an engagement session:

Plain and simple, an engagement session is a photo shoot with you and your fiance in non-wedding clothes. A lot of couples choose to do their photos in a location that is representative of who they are. Go to the lake a lot? Let’s shoot at White Rock! Like to go for long walks? How about Arbor Hills Nature Preserve? Prefer a sleek city setting? How about downtown near the Dallas Museum of Art.

Here’s why I love engagement sessions (and you will, too!):

1. You can use the photos for your save-the-date and/or decor at your wedding reception.

I love when couples display a few framed images on their gift table or use their images in their guest book. And trust me, guests LOVE to look at your engagement photos.

2. It’s a relationship-builder with your photographer.

Whenever I talk to brides, I tell them I notice a huge difference in the quality of the relationship and images of a couple who I’ve done an engagement session with versus a couple I might’ve only met in person once for an hour at a coffee shop. By the wedding, you’ve been in front of the camera and know how much guidance/direction you need from me. You know what angles/poses you like and we can recreate them on your wedding day. We also know what didn’t work for you and avoid those. We also have time to talk to each other and learn about each other.

3. It’s a great time to do a hair and makeup trial before the wedding – especially if you’re not doing a bridal session before the wedding (can I get a haaaaay from all my Southern girls?!)

4. It’s a really sweet season to document and celebrate.

Being engaged is something that only happens once and the season often flies by. It’s a short time between dating and marriage, that deserves to be documented and commemorated. The engagement photos I did with my wedding photographer are still some of my favorite of us.

So I’d love to know: What do you think about engagement sessions? Do you want to do one?