Engagement Sessions: Do's and Don'ts

I have so much to share that I barely know where to begin. As you've gathered from the theme of my last few posts, I've been obsessing over our Engagement Pictures.

Let me tell you, friends: obsession so worth it.
 

We had an absolutely fabulous time that exceeded all of our expectations. The entire evening was so much fun. Our photographers Jimmy and Kristy of Limelight-Images (clearly you should all be on a first-name basis with them as we are by now ;) ) were incredibly engaging and so much fun. It felt so comfortable and their experience and skills were so evident; they knew just how to catch the right shots of the city and just how to pose us. It was also fun to see them work together as a husband and wife team - they played off of each other so well and spoke in half-finished sentences the entire time. "Kris, could you. . .?" "Jimmy, why don't you grab that wide lens. . .?" Being a ginormous oober goober, I had what we refer to as "bursties" the entire time just witnessing them. . .and of course, staring into the eyes of my handsome other half for two hours helped as well.

I pinky promise that a reveal of our pictures is coming, but I wanted to share a few 'Do's and 'Don't's for engagement sessions. . . because you know, this being my one and only experience with them has made me an expert. ;)

• Do practice your hair and makeup beforehand, especially if you're trying something new.
• Don't take yourself, or anything, too seriously. In one of our shots, we were asked to run and high five each other - we did, and I got slammed in the face with his elbow. It was hilarious, and rounds two and three produced really awesome pictures.
• Do make sure you vocalize things you want. Our photographers are pretty. . .what do I want to say? I guess indie-alternative, but I don't mean it in an artsy fartsy or negative way. Basically, they're so experienced that they know what looks good and will opt for it over a typical picture by a fountain. But I wanted a fountain picture, damnit, so I asked for it and got one. 
• Do trust your photographers. You decided to go with them for a reason. They knew the areas in which we were photographing so extremely well and they had us hike a little ways to find this "green door" and railroad tracks. Kristy was in love with this "green door" and, admittedly, I was a little hesitant and in the 'ummmm' camp. Uh, friends, I'm a freakin' a-hole because that green door produced one of the most awe-inducing pictures of the day. Rev. Fun refers to it as "Christian Grey (Mr. PT's last name)". For real, it's yummy.
• Don't worry about how you're going to come through on camera. For instance, we took quite a few smiley and silly pictures, but we took just as many - if not more - 'serious' ones. Quite a few people have commented on the serious ones and asked why, but the truth is, we just went with their vision. Truth be told, we love the 'serious' ones and even agreed that they were so much easier than "smile! Now smile again! Okay, keep smiling! Be giddy!" It was way more "look at me. Do what feels natural." And the results are phenomenal. 
• Do pick a location that works for the both of you. The city of Pittsburgh has some really great locales - parks, riverwalks, awesome buildings and architecture, schools/universities, museums, amusement parks. . . and ALL of them make for kickass pictures. We went with the skyline because it's something we identify with on a personal level: driving in from our hometown, there's this one bend you take on the highway and suddenly the skyline is in view. It was always a breath of fresh air type of moment, especially when we'd be coming back from holiday breaks during college. It symbolizes a big transition in our lives: becoming adults, starting to call a new city home, living our own lives. . . plus, I mean, it's just freaking pretty. 
• Don't think you don't need engagement pictures. Honestly, even if you're not into photography and it doesn't rank high on your list, trust me on this one: it is so worth it and so not a 'cuttable corner'. If nothing else, you get to spend two hours being in love with your significant other. So amazing.
• Do print them all out! And pick favorites! And frame them! Think about it: how often in your lives will you have awesome, professional pictures of yourselves? Even if you're not a super sentimental picture loving crazypants like myself, it won't hurt to take advantage of one of Shutterfly's 101 free prints deals and get them printed while you're thinking about them - otherwise it'll turn into one of those back burner things you mean to get to but never really quite have time for. . .

I could go on and on forever - but basically it boils down to this: have fun. You will only regret NOT having a blast and enjoying yourself.

And because I don't want to bore you to death, here is a preview of the sneak preview to tide you over. . .

photo courtesy of Limelight-Images | One of my all-time favorite pictures, ever.