So now that you decided to do an engagement session… where should you have it?
An engagement session can be done virtually anywhere: the beach (the #1 place here in California, of course), a garden, a park, a modern building, an antique building, a university campus, a bowling alley, or even your backyard! I would say almost anywhere will work….
With that said… here’s a few things to keep in mind when choosing your location…
What look are you looking for? Do you want something romantic? Something modern? Something sweet?
If you want something romantic – you might want to stay clear of super public places. Remember that romance requires a level of intimacy from you guys that you might not be comfortable with if you have a crowd of on-lookers. If you don’t feel comfortable having a camera follow you around while you hug, kiss, caress, etc – then you add the fact that there might be a crowd just watching you… then you might want to stay clear of public places. A beach can be crowded, but most people at the beach will stay in their own ‘space’ so that give you some room for intimacy. Locally, I love Laguna Beach – it has a great combination of rocks and sand – for that perfect romantic look.
An even more intimate setting for amazing romantic shots would be a garden. Most gardens won’t have too many on-lookers – which means that you’ll have a nice sense of privacy. Gardens also usually offer a wide variety of wonderful and amazing backgrounds and photo opportunities. Here in my neck of the woods, there are the UCR botanical gardens… which are absolutely beautiful and offer tons of different shooting locations. They have wood benches, grassy areas, wooded areas, walking paths, a rose garden, a beautiful gazebo, and even more tropical areas as well!
If you want something modern consider a modern building as a good setting. Even a modern office building (with great architecture) would be good. You probably won’t be going inside the building – but if the outside of it has good lines and structure –then you have a perfect modern and sleek setting.
What style of photography are you envisioning?
Do you want something classic and traditional? Or photojournalistic? This is something that you should consider no matter what location you choose. We all know that photojournalistic photography looks beautiful… but what most of us don’t think about at first is that it looks amazing because the personality of the couple truly shows through. If you are outgoing, energetic, and love photography – then this is a perfect style for you. If you are more shy, then I always tell my clients to start with a more traditional look (usually involves me doing some guiding), then as the minutes pass the couple will naturally begin to get more comfortable and therefore less guidance is needed.
The key to a successful engagement session is to be comfortable, be happy, and most of all, be yourself!!!!
Enagement session at the UCR Botanical Gardens
