It's the most wonderful time of the year: ENGAGEMENT SEASON! Whenever the holidays roll around, you better believe that some little darlings are getting an extra special box in their Christmas stockings or their boyfriend down on one knee when the clock strikes twelve on New Years! We want to congratulate all of you newly-engaged couples! This is such an amazing time...planning the details, looking at venues, choosing your flowers, being together :)

Being engaged was one of the most amazing times in my life. I loved announcing our engagement to all of our friends and family, I loved when people grabbed my hand to look at my gaaawgeous ring, and I loved loved loved making the decisions for the most important day of our lives with the man that was about to become my husband.

One decision that a lot of couples discuss is whether or not to have an engagement shoot. For us this was a no brainer: we wanted to document this amazing time in our lives, we wanted fun pictures that would represent us as a couple, and Tim was a photographer with all of the necessary photography equipment. No brainer! But for those of you who are engaged (congratulations!) and wondering "what's the point of an engagement shoot anyways", well then let me just point out a few fun ideas for you!

One great thing about having an engagement shoot is that it provides a great way to break the ice with your photographers. You get a sense of how they work and in turn, they get a sense of how you act together as a couple. That way when your big day is finally here, your photographers won't just be some random people standing there as you enjoy intimate moments with your new husband or wife and your friends and family; they're actually familiar faces that you already feel comfortable with, and hopefully even friends with! Your photographers will be your shadows for the entire day, it's definitely helpful if you've already established a relationship with them.

Some couples get married in a location where their ideal photographers don't live or it becomes too expensive to get them to travel there. An engagement shoot is a great way to get some pictures from your ideal photographers even if you can't have them shoot your wedding. If you choose to hire a different photographer for your engagement shoot than your wedding, an engagement session is also a great way to start feeling more comfortable in front of the camera as many people feel a little weird being lovey-dovey while strangers take pictures of them. An engagement shoot is a great way to get rid of those butterflies before your big wedding day.

An engagement shoot is also a fun way to get creative and do something different than what you may be doing at your wedding. You are able to chose a location or theme that is special to you and yours or even something completely from your imagination. You are also able to dress differently than a gown and suit so the photos can be more natural.

Another benefit of an engagement shoot is that the photos can be used for so many things! A lot of couples use them as their engagement announcements or their save the date cards. Sending a beautiful picture of the two of you to all of your friends and family is a great way to let everyone know the big news and the details of your upcoming wedding! A lot of couples also choose to integrate their photos into the wedding decor on their special day. One amazing thing we've seen is the photos used as table numbers; the escort cards were wallet sized images that matched a larger photo on each table! Another great idea is to make a photo book out of the images and use it as a guest book, that way your guests get a chance to see all of the beautiful pictures that the two of you took and then sign their well-wishes around your happy smiling faces. You can also get them printed out as postcards and send them as thank you notes after the wedding. They can be used as gifts for your family, you can make a calendar from the images, the possibilities are endless! You'll probably post these pictures all over Facebook as well, and believe me, that will definitely get everyone excited for the actual wedding!

Basically, engagement shoots are fun and easy going and should reflect who you are as a couple. The images represent a time in your lives that is full of anticipation, happiness, and love, and your faces will show it! I love when we have the opportunity to do these shoots and to get to know the couple during this stage in their relationship. It's a time of enjoying the present and looking forward to the future whole-heartedly, who wouldn't want to capture that!?

Right now we are so excited for all of you who just got engaged and to extend our sincerest congratulations we would like to offer you $100 off an engagement shoot with us when you contact us before March 15th. Make sure you mention that you read this blog post :)

Here's to a new year filled with love xoxo