Why I Want Every Couple to Do an Engagement Session

Almost every couple says the same thing when we first talk: “We’re so awkward in front of the camera. You have no idea.” And I do have an idea, because I’m awkward in front of a camera too. Which is exactly why the engagement session matters so much to me.

The awkward part is over in 10 to 30 minutes

On a wedding day, you often only get a few minutes of just the two of you and me. I don’t want you spending those minutes nervous. So we do the engagement session first. The awkward part is usually done within the first 10 to 30 minutes, and then we get beautiful photos. By the wedding day you already know what to expect from me, I know what works for you two, and nobody is thinking about the camera.

That’s why an engagement session is included free with every wedding package of eight hours or more. If you truly can’t fit one in, I’ll usually swap it for an extra hour of wedding day coverage or rehearsal dinner coverage instead.

Prompts, not poses

I don’t tell you where to put your chin. I give you prompts, and sometimes we play games. It feels a little silly in the moment, and that’s the point. It breaks the awkwardness, it flatters you both, and it gets photos that actually look like your relationship. You still get full guidance the whole time. Candid looking photos still need a photographer who knows how to make you look good.

Where we go

Anywhere photos are allowed in the Las Vegas Valley, and the choice is yours. Some favorites:

• Red Rock Canyon
• Valley of Fire
• The Wetlands
• The dry lake beds
• Lake Las Vegas
• The Smith Center
• Mount Charleston, which is about thirty degrees cooler than the valley in summer
• Urban spots all over town

Locations an hour or more away can carry a small fee, but most of these don’t.

And if there’s a place that means something to you two, tell me. One couple took me to a hockey rink.

What to wear

The session time belongs to you, so outfit changes are your call. My advice is exactly one change, especially for the ladies. We often don’t know how a dress will photograph, and more than once a bride has brought two dresses and ended up loving the one she thought she liked less.

Visiting Las Vegas?

If you’re in town for a trip and want an engagement session while you’re here, I’d love that. You don’t need to be getting married in Las Vegas. Plenty of couples fly in, get photos at Red Rock or the lake beds, and fly home with something they’d never get back home.

Plan on blocking at least two hours, even though the session itself is an hour and a half. They tend to run long because we’re having fun. Expect roughly 60 to 90 edited images, which is a conservative number.

Standalone engagement sessions are $500. If you’re booking your wedding with me, let’s talk and I’ll share everything up front.