Do You need an Engagement Session?

While an engagement session is another expense to your Wedding budget, there are some benefits that might outweighs the expense.
here’s my take on why you and your fiancee should consider to have an engagement session:

The Pros:

1. You, as clients will get to know the photographer in person, how he/she works and interacts.
   in my case, by the end of the day my clients will know what to expect from me on the wedding day also. It’s like a bonding time between me and the two of you!
2. With an engagement session, you get a good many pictures to show off before the wedding.
   Now, this is a good thing. It’s like a “test drive”. If the result is NOT to your satisfactory, why would you want the photographer to still cover your wedding??
   if you don’t like the e-session result, you should terminate the contract and find some other photographer for your wedding.
   Your wedding is once in  a lifetime event! it can’t be repeated! why get stuck with a photographer whose work you don’t like?
   in my case, I always want the best for my clients and if that means they have to let me go, I wouldn’t mind at all!
3. The Photographer will also get to know the two of you!.
   He/she will find out if your eyes blinks a lot, or if you need help in some posed shots(what do I do with my hands? should I look at you? look away? etc), along with the angles that looks best for your facial expression.
   with an e-session, I get to figure this out before the wedding, rather than finding it out on the wedding day. This will save time when creating a “timeless portraiture” on the wedding day.
4. Sometimes, clients display their engagement “photos” on tables or frames on their wedding day.
   If the photos are taken by someone else and is not seen as “professional”, there’s a possibility that some guests who look at the photos will see the photographer covering your wedding as incompetent. they might say:  “aha, these must be taken by this person, what a bad photographer!”
   in my case, they might look at me with their funny face. Bad photos from others = bad my image for the photographer.

The Cons:

1. The cost of paying extra for an e-session.
2. Setting aside time for an e-session (this applies to both you, your fiancee and me, as I can be such a lazy bum, I just want to do… “Nothing!”.)

So, while an e-session is not a must and I will still capture each and every moments according to my full capability, it can be beneficial.

All of my clients who went with me for an engagement session always say that they are glad that we went for it!..
Not only they get to know me better, they also confirm on their own decision whether to trust me(or not) as their wedding photographer.
The result of that trust is a lot of great pictures!.

So, do you need an engagement-session?
it’s up to you to decide, but if I’m the one getting married, I will definitely schedule for an e-session.