Is an engagement shoot before the wedding worth it?
The real value is not the pictures. You find out how you behave in front of a camera on a day that can be repeated, rather than on the one that cannot.
What you actually learn
Most couples have never been photographed together by a professional. It is an unfamiliar situation, and the first half hour goes on awkwardness: what to do with your hands, how close to stand, when a smile has gone on too long. That half hour happens either beforehand or on the wedding day. There is a second thing that rarely gets said out loud: photographer and couple find out here whether they get on. Settling that in an hour costs less than noticing it on a day that cannot be repeated.
How a session runs
- One to two hours. Beyond that it turns into work for both sides.
- Late afternoon, the last hour before sunset. Midday light comes down steeply and puts shadows under the eyes.
- A place that means something to you rather than one that looks good. The stairwell of a flat you lived in carries more than a backdrop found online.
- Clothes you already own and can move in. New shoes are the first thing to bother you that evening.
When it is not worth it
If you are relaxed the moment a camera appears — some couples are — you would be solving a problem you do not have. And if the budget is tight, the arithmetic is the usual one: two extra hours on the wedding day buy images of people and moments that exist once. A couple shoot buys images of the two of you, and those can be made at any time.