If you’re looking for ways to personalize your engagement planning, I always recommend starting with your engagement session. Telling your story in a way that feels meaningful and unique to you will feel much more special to you and your partner than just finding a pretty location to take photos at. Your engagement session is a chance to connect and spend time together, and most importantly, it should be fun for both of you! Don’t be afraid to do something different!
Keep reading for three unique engagement session ideas to personalize your photos!
Engagement Session Ideas: 3 Unique Ways to Personalize Your Engagement Session Photos
Go to a spot that’s personal to you and your partner
You and your partner can choose to recreate your first date, go to a spot you enjoy for date night, or return to the location where the proposal took place. If you and your partner want to have your engagement session at your favorite coffee shop, restaurant, or in your home, you absolutely can! There’s no “right” answer to choosing an engagement session location.
Also, if you’re feeling anxious about your upcoming session, I personally like to recommend choosing a location you’re familiar with versus somewhere new. The reason for this is that you already know what to expect by being there, and the goal is that you’ll feel much more relaxed and like yourself over choosing a random location.
Both of the couples featured in this blog post chose to go to a spot that was personal for them for their engagement sessions. For example, H + M told me before their engagement session that they wanted to re-create their first date because that’s how M proposed. We went to the exact Zippy’s restaurant they had dinner at, bought and ate malasadas from the same Leonard’s food truck, and ended the night with a short hike to watch the sunset, which is exactly how their first date ended.
The spot where we watched the sunset is also where M asked H to marry him, so it was so fun and special going to each place with them as they remembered the conversations and awkward first encounters with each other.
The other thing that stood out is how much more comfortable they were having their engagement session since they loved going back to these places and felt like they could truly be themselves.
S + A is another couple I did an engagement session with, and they wanted to go back to Magic Island, where A proposed. They showed me the exact spot on the grass where it happened, and recounted the cute picnic setup her friends and A put together and surprised her with.
They also told the hilarious story about how S finished getting ready so early that A had to lie and tell her he was late to picking her up for dinner because he got lost in town so he wouldn’t spoil the surprise.
If you can’t go back to a personal spot to you, try incorporating foods that you love or mean something to you in your session
Since H + M already had two food places in mind that were close by, we were able to go to both places and share some food. They mentioned to me during their session how M had never been to any Zippy’s prior to their first date, so H is the one who had to let him know what they were most known for and hope he liked it.
When we were eating malasadas, they told another funny story about how M bit into his malasada on their date and the filling went everywhere… and then guess what? The exact same thing happened when we were taking photos too! It was the best moment of the whole day!
Another idea that I love is that you and your partner can plan a picnic and bring along your favorite drinks, snacks, food, etc. This is such a cute way to get pictures, and you and your partner can cozy up together!
Bring along props or significant items that are special to you
S’s mom has been a huge help as they plan their wedding, and her mom made wands with ribbon, bells, and sunflowers that will be used as decor for their wedding. It was so fun to include this because S loved how much care her mom put into them, and they’ll get to use them again at their wedding later on. Such a sweet detail that we got to include in their session!
Some other props/items you could bring along with you to personalize your session are:
- Family heirlooms
- Champagne and flutes
- A blanket
- Ring box
- Cute engraved signs
- A bouquet of your favorite flowers
- A polaroid camera to take some photos of each other
Bonus idea – don’t be afraid to have fun with your engagement outfits!
A special way to get creative with your engagement photos is the outfits you choose! You can always go for the traditional engagement outfit ideas, but I always think it’s fun to throw in a pop of color or a unique accessory during your session if that’s your vibe. You can add shoes with color too! Color can dramatically change your photos (in a good way), and they can add more movement to your images.
Ready to Hire Your Wedding Photographer?
I hope this guide with different ways to personalize your upcoming engagement session was helpful!
And… if you’re still looking for a Hawaii wedding photographer, I’d love to connect! I’m for the couple who doesn’t need a checklist of photos crossed off, but space to feel and experience their day fully. If you love hard, feel deeply, and hope this day will be more than just a blur, I can’t wait to meet you!
You can head over here to learn more about my wedding services or get in touch with me here. Let’s talk about how to bring your dream wedding vision to life!
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