Sometimes, it’s the hardest thing to decide about an engagement shoot and the first question I get asked after we set a date, “But WHERE do we go?” Picking a location for your engagement shoot can seem daunting, but if you start with what you know, engagement locations can become a breeze to plan.  Here are just a few things to consider.

1. What kind of look you want — scour pinterest, devour photography blogs, pull out those magazines you love.  Find some inspiration and decide what kind of look you want.  Rustic, romantic, the warm glowy light of a sunset, country, urban, modern or a mix of a couple.  Narrowing down a look or two can really help narrow down the areas we want to go.  If you decide you want something rustic and also a dressy downtown feel, we can rock that.  I know that we need to find a field and a woodsy area as well as an awesome downtown area that will suit that little black dress of yours and his bow tie.

Which brings me to point 1a. Your outfits.  We can completely plan an engagement session around outfits.  If you have outfits already in mind, shoot me a photo of them.  I can help from there!  There will be a whole new blog post on outfit inspiration coming soon 🙂

2. Sentimental meaning — you may have a place (or two!) that holds strong sentimental meaning for you and your hubby to be.  Did you meet in a coffee shop? Or spend friday night at the laundromat? (Yes, i’ve done sessions at a laundromat) or where you went to college?  If a place has sentimental meaning it’s more likely to also amp up the sentimental value of your images.

Just having an idea of what direction you want to go is something we can run with.  From there, if you’re wanting something seriously styled, we can talk props — or not, if you’re going for a much more natural look 🙂

If you’re still completely at a loss as to where to go for your engagement session, here are a few of my favorite locations:

1. Heber Springs : Heber is awesome for engagement sessions.  They have a gorgeous creek area, a great sandy beach with cliffs (I die.) and oh my stars. The boats.  They have a yacht club.

2. I absolutely LOVE Magnolia Hill in Little Rock for an engagement session.  They have boats you can paddle out on a lake in, a lovely lake, covered roads, gorgeous manicured fields, a huge roped swing and stunning classic cars.  The whole property is surrounded by a classy white fence, and you can be super relaxed and super glam-ed up in the same place!

3. Urban areas: We native Arkansans often don’t know how fortunate we are to have so many adorable historic downtown areas.  All of these sweet little towns that used to be hoppin’ when the rail roads were big make amazing backdrops for shoots.  Also — somewhere as “modern” as Little Rock with funky architecture can work so great for a shoot.  Specific buildings with elements you love are fabulous, such as old churches or cathedrals, Museums are often open to portrait sessions, Libraries and so much more!

4. Backroad Adventures:  Anytime you’re up for an adventure, I am too.  Arkansas is home to some of the most gorgeous country — creek beds, wooded areas, private farmland and cliffs with beautiful views — I’m all up for a little walk or drive down an old dirt road!  (I might not be opposed to mildly trespassing ).  I love heading off on a new adventure and finding what we find.