SAY NO TO BORING ENGAGEMENT PHOTOS

View our Official Engagement Session Prep Guide here!

Clothing

This is one of the hardest parts of the engagement session, and most of our couples end up emailing or texting us with pics of what they’re considering. We recommend:

Coordinate. Think same color family. Don’t match exactly, we aren’t carbon copies, and it just looks odd.
Avoid the black & khaki, white & jeans. Get more creative.
Bring a few changes of clothing.

2 or 3 that are dressy. Seriously. Even if you never dress up. Find something, this one is a must. If you need ideas, tell me. Think black-tie formal. A long dress is a must (think about movement – there’s very little you can do in a short dress).

One casual

One that goes with the theme of your engagement (if you have one – like jerseys from your favorite team, etc).

Ladies, please bring one option that includes pants – some poses we just cannot do in dresses.

Jewelry is good.
Color is good, so are patterns – just make sure they don’t clash.
Wear shoes that are clean, and that you like. They will show in a lot of the photos. We cannot photoshop them.

Want some visual help? Read our blog post here for a few tips.

Makeup

There are a lot of misconceptions out there about makeup. Of course, airbrush is our favorite because it creates a flawless finish, but honestly, you can keep it simple and still look great. Some tips:

Less is more. Don’t overdo it.
Keep eyeshadow and eyeliner light, and neutral. Dark, heavy shadow close your eye area.
Check your nails. Make sure they’re clean, and that your polish isn’t chipped.
Do NOT overdo the highlighter. It reflects and then you look like a Cullen (or a ghost, you pick)

Hair

Since you’ll likely be in a lot of different poses and really close to each other, this is another “less is more” kind of thing.

If you want to color or cut your hair, do it at least 7 days before your session to allow time for grow-out.
If you want to have your eyebrows, etc, cleaned up, please go to a professional. It’s totally worth the trip and the minimal cost.
If you really want to wear a hat, bring it with you, but don’t put it on right away. We’ll want some pictures without it (and please let us know ahead of time so that we can bring appropriate lighting).

Posing

The GSquared style is based in posing – even a lot of the moments that appear candid – so yes, we will pose you. We’ll coach you into posing, and then ask questions to encourage interaction, laughs, smiles and more … and then we’ll click away. While we love those candid moments, it’s much harder to get them without some direction. We know you (ok, well, most of you) don’t want those “cheesy” poses, so we won’t do them unless you ask. ? Another thing to keep in mind: the poses that feel the most weird make for the best photos, so if it feels awkward you probably look awesome.

Intimate

Let’s talk about the giant elephant in the room. PDA. Yes, the kiss and all that other mushy stuff. This is an engagement session after all. Your time to celebrate finding the perfect-for-you person for the rest of your life. To live in your love and all that jazz. We’ve got some rules…. ish KISS like you mean it. None of that duck-face pecky crap. It looks ridiculous in photos, and it makes me think you’ve never kissed before. And also, you have to kiss for more than 3 seconds. At least…. or I will probably make you do it again. Fair warning ? We are also going to tell you to kiss – a lot. And snuggle, and touch, and hold hands. I know you’ll feel weird, but honestly, we’ve seen HUNDREDS of people kiss. Really, it’s not weird. It’s good. We like that you love each other – makes our job easier.

Creative

Yes, please! We want to shoot at unique spots, with awesome ideas. Want a camping themed shoot, or a kayak adventure? Want to shoot near the Hawks stadium, or in the glass garden? Maybe you really want a farm styled session, photos among the animals at the zoo, or you’re a huge travel nut. Did you guys meet on a co-ed softball team, or swing dancing – or you have a mutual passion for anything Star Wars. Whatever it is, we’ll bring it to life. We can even help you think outside the box and make this a session to remember.

Playful

We want you to have fun. We’ll probably ask you some questions, I may even give you some secret things to say to your partner that I know will get some smiles and laughs. We’re kind of dorky, and I almost always hurt myself on a session. I promise you’ll be smiling at the end of the shoot.

Final Thoughts

Plan your engagement session when you don’t have any plans afterwards (or at least not within 4 hours). If we get an idea, we want to be able to try it, and time constraints make that harder.
Bring a light snack (nothing that stains), and a water bottle. Sessions can get tiring.
Sleep well the night before, and make sure you’ve eaten a good meal before your session.
Don’t tan within 3 days of your session, and if you spray tan, go light. Tans make your skin look orange in photos, and flat/dirty.
We are going to ask to borrow your engagement ring, so make sure it’s clean. We’ll take a few ring shots with it, and give it right back.
It takes about 3 weeks to finish your engagement session photos, and up to 6 weeks in busy season. We try to shoot for less, but with the volume of sessions, we can’t promise it.