Our engagement sessions are so much fun, they are included in all of our wedding collections.  I firmly believe that an engagement session is a key element in the experience of being a Cassie Jones bride.  It not only allows you to get to know me, but it also allows me to get to know you and your husband-to-be on a more personal level.

An engagement session is the pre-game before the wedding.  Almost like a pep-rally.  It’s where you and your love get to spend an hour or two creating images that are passionate, creative, genuine and romantic to document your love.  It’s an exciting time in your life– you’re about to marry each other.  What better way to celebrate the love and dedication the two of you have than going out and celebrating it?

Practice makes perfect. Most likely, you and your love haven’t been in front of a professional’s camera, and the task can be quite daunting.  The first 20 minutes of an engagement session are usually always awkward, as I’m asking you him to nuzzle on her (but don’t worry, I start off easy!) in front of a complete stranger.  Chances are, we’ve not spent much time together yet –and this is a fantastic way to get all those jitters out before the big day.  If you’ve been in front of my camera before, you know how easy it is to look like models on wedding day, because you’ve already done it at your engagement session.  This is especially beneficial for the man in your life, because most likely, he’s not half as excited as you are to “go take pictures.”  I can’t tell you how many grooms I’ve drug out to a field only to have them sad when the sun goes down that the whole thing is over.  Then, for wedding day, picture taking time is easy, smooth and looked forward to.

In the midst of wedding planning, it’s great to take a night off and truly focus on your relationship.  There’s nothing better than getting all dolled up and taking time to walk hand in hand, show one another some serious affection (I’ll just tell you right now- there’s lots of kissing involved) away from the world.  For two hours, you’re completely cut off.  Most likely, both your phones are in my bag, there’s no tv, just good conversation, fun memories and some walking in a beautiful place.  (One of the best parts is that you’ll most likely get to watch the sunset!) Engagement sessions are relaxing.  I promise, they’re not hard.  Your job is easy — all you have to do is hang out with your best friend — I do all the hard stuff.

I believe in the power of a beautiful engagement session — that’s why I strongly recommend taking the time to do them.  Because I believe so strongly in them, I rarely shoot a wedding without having first done an engagement session.  (There are ALWAYS exceptions– but they’re rare.)  So if you’re tempted to talk about cutting out the engagement shoot, look at the benefits over what you’ll save.  Most likely, it’ll be an investment you’re glad you made.

This marks the beginning of a small series on engagement sessions.  Next, I’ll be taking a dive into scouring for locations, what you can wear that looks great on camera (and what doesn’t) AND a little look in the behind the scenes of our editing style — how we take your images and polish them into beautiful works of art.  I hope it helps as you begin planning out your engagement session and you can make the most out of the time we spend together.

We have lots of fun.  Promise.