Well Christmas has happened, New Years has happened, and Valentines day was a few weeks ago. This means that we now have a bunch of couples who have just recently become engaged. Of course, couples are creating budgets, checking schedules, looking over colors, and trying to get a handle on the big life choice to get married. One decision is absolutely impending, and may put you in an expensive contractual agreement. I am talking about the photographer. Photographers will tell you that the quality of pictures is important, because after you are married, only the picture and the person you will share residence with are the only thing left after a wedding ceremony has passed.
So let's get down to it! Your engagement shots are maybe one of the first large decisions after engagement. If you do it right, you will ultimately find the photographer who will do the wedding...and have end up with a set of flattering pictures for all things pre-wedding.
Most people don't think about it enough, so they take pre-determined pictures in matching shades of black and white, often times at the urge of an uncreative photographer. In my opinion, those pictures often don't say much about the people in them. To me, those kinds of engagement pictures lack...well...personality!
When I'm working with couples for their weddings, I often tell them to let the wedding begin with the engagement pictures by sharing pieces of their personality in those shots. Even if you aren't sure of a color scheme, there are still ways to to tailor your engagement pictures to share the story of who you are, and what friends, family, and colleagues might experience.
In my planning life, I advise couples to let their engagement shots have a point of view. In the past, I've done a bunch of different shots. For an early morning, I had a couple take pictures intimately sharing a morning cup of coffee. For a couple who met in college, and had planned a wedding during their homecoming, the shots featured their alma mater. For the couple who loved church, we had to do their shots in a church. For my wedding, we decided on a few settings but the pictures from our carousel shoot really shaped what people would experience at our reception.
A note of caution: make sure the shots aren't cheesy or inappropriate. I've seen quite a few ridiculous shots, particularly involving sports activities. I do believe there is a way to do sports well, so I would tell that couple to ere on the side of iconic or romantic, rather than a little league football game. It may be appropriate not to make the pictures so very literal. Instead of wearing jerseys of your favorite sports theme, why not use the colors in either a casual, preppy or upscale set of pictures...even if you choose to take them on the field, track, or court.
Seek to tell a story about your love creatively through the visual media. That way, people are more likely to connect to your vision. Too, creative visual media make it easy to be used
Share your passions, tell your story, and start with your Engagement pictures!
Great article! I agree the engagement photos should capture the personalities of the couple. It is an introduction of their love story and journey!
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