3 ways to make your engagement session personal

Engagement session ideas

In today’s blog I’m talking you through 3 ways to make your engagement session personal, to hopefully encourage you to make a few small decisions that will make your session all the more unique and memorable.

I love engagement sessions! I get to meet with couples face to face, hear more about their wedding plans and get to know them and their relationship. It’s also a great opportunity for the couple to experience being in front of the camera and getting to know me better too. The whole experience is designed to help couples relax ahead of the big day so I like to keep the sessions really natural and super fun. It’s all about creating awesome photos and creating wonderful memories.

But before the session takes place there are three decisions you should make together that will help make your engagement session really personal and unique to you. Take a look at the three sections below and discover how personal you can make your engagement session.

1.  Location

Choosing a location for your session can be a hard decision but there are some factors you can consider to make this decision a little easier. One option is to have the session at home, if home is your happy place and you’re not one for the great outdoors then this could be the perfect option for you. Grab a cup of coffee, pick up the guitar for a little jamming sesh or even cook a meal together and let your photographer document it.

Alternatively if you love being outdoors you could choose a special place you love to go together, such as a walk you enjoy or a wood you have visited with family since being a child. Maybe you got engaged in a beautiful outdoor location that could be the perfect setting for your engagement shoot.

If neither of the options above offer you a clear answer then how about having your engagement session at your wedding venue? I offer a venue visit with all of my wedding photography packages and have combined this with the couples engagement session on numerous occasions. Why not explore the grounds of your wedding venue with your photographer and have some fun capturing some awesome photos at the same time? You could choose to do the session in a different season to your wedding day to get very different results or visit exactly one year before to get a better idea of how it will look on your big day.

Below are a couple of examples of an engagement session taken at Fanhams Hall in Spring

2. Include your pets

This is an idea I love and always encourage. If you have pets that are a huge part of your lives then why not include them in your session. Every creature is different and their behavior and relationship with you couldn’t be more personal. Whether you have a hamster, a dog, a horse, a chicken, a rabbit, a llama or a snake, anything goes!

If you are really camera shy and very nervous about being in front of the camera then including your pets is a great distraction. Not only will they give you something to focus on but they always do something unpredictable and hilarious, from a dog licking your face to a hamster crawling into your jumper, the reactions and laughter that follow are incredible.

Bringing pets into the session is a great way to get the shoot started to help you both relax and start having some fun. Once the session is in full swing it’s nice to start bringing the pets out of shot for a few photos here and there so you can get some epic photos of just the two of you as well.

3. Activities

This is where you can let your imagination run wild if you want to. This is all about including hobbies, activities and interests into the session that you share as a couple. This could be anything at all, big or small, from photos at the beach with your paddle boards to bringing your nan’s old blanket for some relaxed photos at the park.

If you love going to a fair ground in the summer then take me with you, lets get some epic photos on the bumper cars. If you enjoy painting lets head to your studio for some fun. If you enjoy a champagne picnic then lets pop that bottle open.

Alternatively if you have a theme or colour palette planned for your wedding day then why not bring a hint of that into your engagement session.

If you like the idea of creating a personal engagement announcement to share with family and friends then bring a sign along, or better make one!

If nothing stands out to you as an obvious idea then don’t feel pressured to find something, sometimes the simplest sessions have the most powerful message.

Whether you make one decision or multiple decisions from this list of ideas, it all goes a huge way to make your engagement session more personal to you both.

I would definitely encourage you to discuss ideas with your photographer, we can help turn your ideas and plans into reality. You photographer will also be able to advice on other details such as time of year and time of day to suit your location best.

If you would like an engagement session or already have one booked in then please get in touch to discuss ideas. I would love to hear how you plan to personalise your engagement session xx