Bringing Your Pet To Your Engagement Session | Minneapolis Wedding Photography | Tips for Brides

I LOVE animals and I know I am not the only one! I love cuddling with my two cats who I swear have two goals everyday : one- must eat the moment their humans wake up and two- keep their humans lap warm! No complaints from me!(said human)  

Pets are part of the family! So I understand when you want to have them in your engagement photos; I have a couple of tips to make your fur babies photography experience great!

Bring a third party to look after your animal once they are done with photos! Majority of the time  your animal will only be in 1/3 of your totally engagment session. The other 2/3 of the time you want to focus on just you too and nothing with take up more time and attention then a cute distracted bored animal! To keep your focus on you having a third person their will keep everything running smoothly! 

It doesnt just have to be your dog in the photos. Dogs are the most common for sessions but you are welcome to bring any pet that you want to incorporate into your photos ! For bigger animals like horses it may be easiest to plan on going where they are housed over bringing them to your engagement spot ! 

Have treats at the ready. A photo session is exciting for even the most well behaved of animals. Having their favorite treat will help keep them motivated and help me to get their attention when he is the star of the photo!  

Bring a leash for all animals! Nothing would be more horrifying than losing an animal during the session! When we are out shooting in public, it is new territory for your pet and that can be intense for any animal. To make sure their fears and uncertainties don't cause them to flee , play on the safe side and put them on a leash or a harness to grab them at a moments notice if they get too overwhelmed.  If your pet is new to the harness definitely have them wear it a couple of times around the house to get used to it before the shoot! It is one less thing to trigger stress on the day of the shoot!

Same Tips Apply for the Wedding Day! <3

Do you have any helpful tips to add? Please leave a comment below to fill us in on things I over looked!  

When To Book Your Engagement Session | For MW Brides | Minneapolis Wedding Photographer

When is the right time to book your engagament photography session? I have got you, girl. 

Plan for your favorite season! Up here in Minnesota we have all four seasons! My favorite season is winter. The snow is makes the world magical. Plan on shooting the season you want to be a part of within the year of your wedding. 

Many use engagememt photos for their save the dates! To make sure you have plenty of time to shoot the session and your photographer has time to edit to perfection and deliver and then add in the time to order and be delivered. I would suggest to have your engagement session shot 2 months before you plan on sending out your save the dates. That will give you time for all the mentioned process above to take place!

From a photographers standpoint you want to avoid shooting your session too late in advance. I would suggest having your photos done not later than 2 months before your wedding. This will give you plenty of time to have your photographer shoot and edit and send back your photos. 

Do you need more engagement session tips? I have a handful of blog posts that will better prepare you for your engagement session!  
1) http://www.mwphotographymn.com/blog/2015/9/7/3-tips-to-rock-your-engagement-shoot
2) http://www.mwphotographymn.com/blog/what-to-wear-to-your-engagement-shoot
3) http://www.mwphotographymn.com/blog/howtoprepareforwinterengagementsession

Why You Should Have Your Engagement Session With Your Wedding Photographer

My dad has always been a photo enthusiast. In my his eyes having five kids is as good as having 5 miniature models;  my siblings and I have grown up very uncamera shy because of it! For us any excuse to take photos was a good excuse! 

If you have taken a gander at my packages you have probably noticed I don't charge for my engagement sessions when you book your wedding with me. Your engagement session is not just another opportunity to take more photos (which I know your fiance just loves) it is a chance to build our relationship. Through this crazy business adventure I am still building and learning what makes the best experience for my MW couples! This is one golden nugget that I have learned and will standby for my couples.  Here are 3 reasons why you should shoot your engagement session with your wedding photographer.

1) It allows you to get a feel for how your photographer works. Your photographer will direct you to make you look good and have a good time. You will be able to see how they set up a pose or if they make you feel comfortable in front of the camera. It is better to know that and know how to feel comfortable with the love of your life in front of your photographers camera. Do they have key words?  Do they have favorite poses to stick you in? You will find this all out on your session!

2) It allows your photographer to know how you work as a couple.   Each couple has a different relationship; this is the time before the wedding that your photographer learns how you work together. Whether you are high volumes of pda or a little more pulled back, your photographer can then gauge what things you will be comfortable doing on the wedding day! (Like jumping in a near by pool after the ceremony or being thrown in the air by all the groomsmen) This will help put you in poses and do things that are more YOU!

3) There are no bad surprises when it comes to your wedding day photos. After the engagement session, you will then have been shot by your photographer. So instead of feeling like another stranger is shooting your wedding, you will feel like it is  friend excited to be capturing the day along side you! On top of that, your completed engagement session will be the same style as your wedding photos. So you will have a glimpse of what your wedding photos will look like! 

 I  believe it is important!! ♡