Having been recently engaged myself, I understand the excitement that comes with taking engagement photos. It’s a chance to celebrate an incredible milestone and have nice pictures captured together, to share with friends and family.
Before taking our photos, I spent hours scouring the internet in search of inspiration. I wanted them to feel personal and not resemble some of the cookie-cutter types of photos I’d been seeing lately. So with the help of an incredible local photographer, I created a mood board, sourced some inspo photos, and decided on locations that meant a lot to us as a couple.
What we ended up with, are the engagement photos of our dreams! Below I’ve shared the five things I kept in mind while planning our photoshoot. I hope they can help you with planning this exciting experience!
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When it comes to your photo session, there are a lot of great ways to capture the special moment to celebrate your upcoming wedding. One of the most popular times to have a photo shoot is during the golden hour, which is typically the last hour before sunset and the first hour after sunrise.
Remember that every engagement session is unique and specialized to you.
1. Take Them to Your Favorite Places That Hold Meaning
My fiance and I mapped out all of our favorite local hangs. Having lived together for a handful of years, we’ve built up quite a routine for ourselves and definitely spend a lot of time in these meaningful places. With that in mind, we got permission from our favorite bakery and coffee shop to shoot photos inside.
These types of meaningful settings often lead to some of the most unique engagement photo ideas.
2. Focus on Storytelling Instead of Posing
Once mapping out the places we wanted to take our photos and gaining permission from the establishments, we had our photographer ‘shadow us’ on our typical morning routine. This made the photos feel incredibly authentic and natural.
Neither my fiance or I are naturally comfortable in front of the camera, so by focusing on storytelling, we felt less robotic and posed. We were also able to capture more candids than we would have otherwise.
3. Incorporate Movement For More Dynamic Engagement Photos
Some of my absolute favorite photos from our engagement shoot are those when our photographer captured movement. The slight blur of the frames gave the photos an artsy feel and left us with portraits that felt worthy of framing!
Movement also helps break up the stiffness that can come from standing still. Even something as simple as walking, turning, or laughing mid-motion can create photos that feel much more natural and dynamic.
These movement shots also helped us loosen up and release any photo anxiety. With guidance from our photographer, we got a few beautiful candids and ended up with quite a few laughs.
4. Use Props That Fit Your Relationship Best
Props can be different for everyone, whether for a picnic set up, flowers, or even a cup of coffee as we did. Since we chose to shoot some of our photos in our favorite local coffee shop, it only felt natural to grab a coffee and the baristas made lovely art in the foam, perfect for photos! Your engagement ring is also the star of the show. Don't forget to show it off.
The key is to choose props that feel like a natural extension of your day rather than something overly styled. When done right, they add texture and interest without taking attention away from your connection.
You can even repurpose some of these props later if you’re planning a cozy celebration at home. Many small backyard engagement party ideas incorporate photo shoot elements like string lights, flower arrangements, and picnic blankets for an intimate, budget-friendly setup.
5. Recreate Photos From Early in Your Relationship
We wanted all of our photos to feel incredibly intentional so that when we looked back on them later in life, we understood the storytelling aspect. We took a few of our photos in front of our first home together. These photos mirrored some taken very early in our relationship and felt especially meaningful in the context of the new chapter we’re entering together.
It doesn’t have to be an exact recreation either. Even capturing a similar setting or moment can be enough to reflect how your relationship has evolved over time.
Recreating photos together can be a unique way to show how you’ve grown and changed together over the course of your relationship thus far.
Make Your Engagement Photos Feel Like You!
No matter how you choose to take these photos, the most important thing is that they feel authentic and true to your relationship. My biggest piece of advice when sourcing inspiration and planning out your photoshoot, is to really reflect on your relationship.
At the end of the day, the best engagement photo ideas are the ones that feel true to you as a couple.
Think about how you can incorporate some sort of nod to the things and places that have had an impact on you both as a couple. Wishing you the very best in this new chapter! Follow along with our blog and stay in touch on Instagram for more tips, tricks, and inspiration on every celebration you encounter!
Additionally, as you start planning what comes next, creating a registry is another meaningful way to reflect your life together and what you’re building. You can explore and set up your own registry on Celebration.com to make it personal, thoughtful, and completely tailored to you both.