It's our pleasure to feature a guest post today from one of Williamsburg's long-time favorite photographers, Gene King of Creative Worth Studios. Gene's explanation of why engagement sessions are so important can be carried over to other disciplines as well. Sometimes what may seem like an unimportant additional feature to you, might actual be critical to the process and to delivering a superior product on your wedding day.
Thanks Gene for your contribution and expertise!
The Engagement Session: Key to a Successful Wedding Day
An Engagement Sitting is part of this photographer’s wedding package no matter how big or small. Pretty much invariably it’s the bride that will call, or bride’s mother, to enquire about my availability for the wedding day. From that point on the communication is between them regarding details of timing, locations, special instructions, etc and me. It’s a rare occasion that I get to meet the groom before the actual day of the wedding.
Thus I make the engagement sitting the vehicle for meeting the groom and getting acquainted with not only him but also both of them together. The valuable thing is it affords me the opportunity to experience them interacting and responding to one another. Not only do I get to ‘fit in’ with them as their photographer but also I get some great shots of how they express feelings for each other. It’s about what they will be celebrating on the wedding day and I have already started being their private chronicler.
The ‘get together’ is very casual in manner, style, and technique. We meet at a location that is conducive to romantic and relaxed posing. There is no instruction manual given them about what to wear, how to primp, or when to exfoliate. You laugh but there are serious professional and published photographers out there who do; for me that’s a little over the top. There may be some questions about what to wear to which I suggest that they choose what they think is compatible, casual, and comfortable.
During the session we chat about how they met, what they do in the work-a-day world and maybe what they want the special day to be like. While this is going on I am doing some posing and some candid’s of them being together. Through this we create a light rapport that will spark acknowledgment and communication on the Day of.
The equipment I use is simple. One camera and on-camera flash for subtle fill light. I schedule these sessions, if at all possible, for late afternoon when sunlight is soft and enhancing of skin tones. The session is short, maybe an hour, but it creates a conduit for performing a professional contract and celebrating a very loving and personal event.
