Have Some Fun With A Pre-Wedding Shoot

Our expert panel member Maria Sundin, is back with her top wedding photography tips and advice. Today, Maria discusses the benefits of having a pre-wedding/engagement shoot with your chosen photographer.

Hello brides. When you’ve booked your photographer, I would suggest having pre-wedding photos taken (also called an engagement session or save the date session) with the same photographer. It gives you a chance to get to know your photographer and try out different things, you can also use your favorite image within your wedding invitation or ‘Save The Date’.

Forever memories captured on camera: You’ll get some fun and relaxed photos of you and your fiance together and you’ll have a few of yourself. This is probably also one of the only times you can get your photos taken professionally with your man, except for your wedding day. Most men (in my experience) tend to shy away from the camera in general, so make the most of this chance if you can.

I love shooting engagement sessions both in Sweden and in the UAE. In Europe you get those gorgeous pastel skies and washed out greens, and in the UAE, you get the crisp beige sand dunes, both at the beaches and in the desert, against the bright blue sky.

Think about your shoes ladies: Having a super relaxed session or a dressier session is completely up to you, but think about shoes if you want to be photographed on the beach. Heels and sand are not the best combination. Personally I love long dresses with lots and lots of floaty fabrics and if you’re like me, this is your time to layer on the silky lengths, dress up your handsome man, and your dog if you have one.

Choose the location wisely: Think of a place  you both love to be and make sure it’s not overcrowded! These couple’s sessions last from one to two hours and are usually shot in the hour/s before sunset. If you pick a busy part of the beach, especially on a weekend, you’ll have lots of people in the background.

For my own engagement session with my now husband, we picked the desert, because he’s not so keen on the beach and I love the countryside, so the desert became ‘our’ place.

Above: Photography by smallpigart

That’s all from me this month. Hope you enjoyed the read!

Xx Maria Xx

Looking for more wedding tips and advice? Click here.