Engagement Session

One of my favorite things to do is an Engagement Session before the big day! Not only is an engagement session a way to celebrate and announce your engagement to friends and family, it also allows me to get to know you. Planning a wedding is a lot of work, and I completely understand all the time (and stress) that goes along with it, having been married myself in August of 2018. So my ultimate goal for your engagement session is to make it a fun and memorable experience, it should be something you both look forward to and look back on and smile. My sessions are prompt led, meaning it’s less about the poses and more about interacting as a couple and capturing real, genuine moments between the two of you.

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Should I have my hair and makeup professionally done?

Professionally hair and makeup always looks great and really brings your pictures to the next. But if you’re planning on having hair and makeup done be sure to give yourself a significant amount of buffer time in case the hair/makeup appointment runs longer than expected. Now isn’t the time to try a new haircut or makeup style that you’re not 100% on board with.  Avoid those new-hairdo tan lines.

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Should I go tanning?

I don’t recommend tanning in the days leading up to your session. A tan may look good in person however cameras are sensitive to skin tones and natural color is most flattering in photos. And I never recommend spray tans, even professional spray tans can come off orange and unnatural in photos.

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What should we wear?

Think simplicity,  solid colors I feel work best as opposed to patterns and stripes as they often conflict with other elements of the photo. Neutral colors like beige, white, black and grey, often photograph the best.  Bold colors tend to take away from the focus of the image and are harder to edit, so I never recommend bright colors such as bright pink, lime green or yellow.

When you see beautiful engagement images on Pinterest, one thing they all have in common is what they are wearing. You rarely see images with worn out jeans and ill fitting tops, you see beautiful dresses and men wearing well-tailored pants and shirts. Of course this doesn’t mean you need to go out and spend a fortune on outfits for your engagement session, it just means you should spend some time finding outfits that compliment each other and photograph well. Avoid baggy clothes, make sure the outfits you choose fit you well and are free of wrinkles. Avoid logos whenever possible as they’re often distracting.

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Can we change outfits?

Changing outfits is not necessary, however, if you’d like to go for a couple different looks during our session please feel free. I don’t recommend more than two outfits just so we’re able to maximize the time we have together. Be sure to keep in mind how you will change if there is nowhere private to dress in.

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What if I wear glasses?

If you normally wear glasses, I’ll do my best to session accordingly. A great way to avoid glare to to take the lenses out of a pair of old glasses if you have ones similar to you currently wear.

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Does it matter what i wear for shoes?

Keep our session location in mind when selecting your footwear. If you plan on wearing sandals or heels bring a pair of walking shoes with that you can switch in and out of if needed.

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What if I have items I want to bring along?

I recommend having your hands free throughout the session so for example not carrying extra clothing, purse, drinks etc. If there are some things you need to bring like props, phones, drinks then bring a bag where everything can stay. This keeps us mobile as we’ll have less to lug around  and worry about.

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Can we include our pets?  

This goes with the hands free recommendation previously.  I love pets and they’re certainly welcome however, they can sometimes slow things down a little because, well their priority isn’t necessarily waiting around for your photos. In these cases I recommend bringing a friend/family member to watch your pet when they aren’t “needed on set” and then take them back home when they are done, I always start the session with pets and they are usually done within 15 minutes.

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What is including in editing?

Editing is the process of adjusting color balance, brightness, contrast, saturation, etc.  Advanced retouching (such as blemish removal, skin smoothing, stray hairs etc.) is ONLY included with physical printed products purchased through me. Any additional images start out $10 each depending on the request.

 

When will we see our photos?

A digital download for your edited images will be sent no later then two weeks from your session date.

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What types of payments do you accept?

Retainers must be paid online with a credit card, the remaining session fee is due the day of and can be paid either by invoice, cash or check made payable to Paige Leier.