Engagement Session Guide
Craft a
Killer Session
Engagement photos are all about your vibe as a couple. These can be as classic or as out-there as you want! I have shot everything from beautiful bluffs at sunset to downtown alleys to neon lights in arcades.
There is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ place, outfit or idea for your session. There is only you, your partner and the visual idea of the love you share. I’ve created this guide to give you confidence that you are not going to look ‘weird’. You’re going to look in love and we are going to have fun!
Location
This is all about you. Do you and your partner have a favorite date night spot (that will give us permission to shoot there)? Does your home feel like your safe space to cozy up with your love? Let’s shoot there. Do you want to see some skyline in your images, or would you prefer to be in a park or garden?
If you have a 30 minute session to plan, please choose the one space that will best reflect you, and give you the images you are looking for. If you have a one-hour session, I like to plan for two locations as it can give you some really fun variety in your images. For lighting’s sake, if we are going to two locations I recommend they be no further than a 15-minute drive apart.
Location Ideas
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![a couple hugs in a park]()
Local Gardens
May require permission and/or a fee.
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![a couple hugs in the courtyard of the nelson atkins]()
Museum Grounds
May require permission
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![a woman smiles at her partner while sitting at a bar]()
Cafe/Bar
Requires owner/management permission
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![a couple stares at one another while at a lookout point in weston bend state park at sunset]()
State Parks
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![a couple holds hands on a parking garage]()
Parking Garage
May require permission
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![a couple holds hands, walking down the stairs of a campus dorm]()
College Campus
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![a couple laughs in front of ameoba records in los angeles]()
Downtown Streets
Location Permission
This is the boring but SUPER IMPORTANT part where I remind you a lot of public businesses and locations will require permission and/or a fee to shoot in their space. Currently, local to KC spots that are popular but require permission and fees are:
Loose Park - $50 fee and must be scheduled in advance
Nelson Atkins - no fee, but must sign in when shooting (this is something I handle)
Union Station - $100 fee and must be scheduled in advance
All businesses, coffee shops, hotel lounges or bars (Hotel Kansas City, Hotel Phillips, Green Lady, Cheval, Tom’s Town), etc.
Who handles what?
If you love the look of an interior space and want to shoot there, you must call the business and secure permission at minimum one week prior to us arriving for your session.
Unfortunately, there are photographers who show up unannounced and disrespect local businesses and their patrons. This has led to a lot of businesses either charging a decent fee or outright refusing sessions to occur in their space.
But what if we only go in for a few minutes?
The only way I will enter a business for your session is if you have secured permission for us to shoot in that space with business management. I generally pack light equipment for engagement sessions and I am extremely aware of other people in the space and keeping a low profile.
A lot of places are happy to be accommodating, but only if we go through the proper channels first! Getting kicked out of a business during your session is not the memory we want to make during our time together. If you don’t want to hassle with finding out fees and permissions, I am happy to suggest free alternatives, just keep in mind that we may be shooting outdoors!
OKAY, BACK TO THE FUN STUFF
What to Wear?
First question: do you feel like you in what you’re planning to wear? Do they? This one question will make sure your session doesn’t feel stiff or unhappy. Of course, you’re getting photos taken and you want to look nice. But don’t dress to impress at the cost of your ability to melt into one another!
Casual
For one hour sessions, I recommend the first half of your session be more casual.
Casual means different things to different people. To me, casual is pants you are comfortable moving and sitting in, tops that are easy to move in and shoes that, you guessed it, you can easily walk (or run or jump) in.
If you are bringing a four-legged friend along, this more casual time is where I want them to be! As a fellow dog person myself, I would not wear a white dress to a park where I know my silly beagles are probably going to be jumping on me.
Semi-Formal
Just like casual, formal means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. I mean it this way: this will be the second half of your one-hour session. This will be the time where the sun is at its most romantic and glowy, and we have the best chance of seeing some incredible dramatic light behind you. These are going to be the ‘wow’ romantic images, and I want you to feel proud of how you appear in these images.
That does not mean you are required to wear a ball gown and suit and tie. Do I think a beautiful formal dress or skirt and heels with a suit and tie would look AWESOME at sunset on the grounds of the Nelson? For sure, yes. If that speaks to you, please go for it!
However, if you and your honey are not big on getting dressed up, don’t sweat it. You don’t even have to change, I have a good amount of clients that skip the outfit flip and I love that for them! Formal can mean whatever it means to you. This part of your session may be a bit less physical, but we will still be moving, walking and dancing into blue hour.
Neutral Colors and Minimal Patterns
I’m going to go a little bit ‘photographer-ese’ on you here, but understanding this will really help you plot the best outfit(s) for your session. Have you ever heard of ‘moire’? It’s an effect that can happen to images when patterns that are too dense appear. It creates an optical illusion where dense patterns almost look like they are making waves or wrinkles that aren’t really there. AKA, something we want to avoid.
Another thing we want to avoid are loud, bright neon colors. Neutrals are your friend, as are muted tones. Again with the photographer-speak, whatever color you are wearing will reflect back onto your chin and face, almost like the large silver reflector disks some photographers use. This light bounce-back might be slight in real life, but when I am editing your images, those tones will really pop.
If you are dead-set on wearing highlighter neon yellow, I will not stop you! We will photograph a super fun session and play with color and light. But most of my clients are looking for photos that will be a little more timeless, and to that I say: neutrals, muted tones and minimal patterns.
GOLDEN HOUR
Golden hour is the delicious hour of soft, golden light one hour before sunset or one hour after sunrise.
If we’re going to be outside at any point and aside from other scheduling conflicts, I require all engagement sessions to occur during golden hour. I will work with you to determine when that may be on your desired session date, but trust me: it is so, so worth it.
I WANT TO MEET YOUR DOG
I have a few guidelines to make it a great experience for all participants including the four-legged ones.
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We will shoot with your pup for about 15 minutes. It is generally all the attention span dogs will really have to sit and look at a weird lady waving a black box in their face.
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Bring a friend to take care of your dog when this 15 minutes is up. They will need to either take your pup home, or take them on a walk away from us. It’s not to be cruel, but if your dog is in eyeshot of you, they will not understand why we can’t keep playing!
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If your dog has a favorite toy or treat, bring a few. I volunteer at the KC Pet Project, and having a favorite distraction to wave around is a fantastic trick! Even better: bring a fave squeaky toy.
If I haven’t answered your questions, please reach out! I want to give you full confidence as you prep for your session.
Questions?
Office hours are M-F, 10a - 4p.
