Engagement Session or Bridal Portraits: Which Should You Choose?
- May 19
- 4 min read
Updated: Aug 3
If you book Wedding Package 2 or 3 with me, you automatically get to choose between an engagement session or a bridal session!
And while you might immediately know which one you want, you might also be sitting there thinking, ok, but which one should I pick?
The good news is that there really isn't a wrong answer. Both give us a chance to take some beautiful photos without the timeline and craziness of a wedding day, but they each give us something a little different.
Why I Love Doing a Session Before Your Wedding
One of the biggest reasons I love engagement and bridal sessions is that we have time.
On your wedding day, a million things are happening. We have a timeline to follow, family photos to take, a ceremony to get to, and a reception waiting for you.
Your engagement or bridal session is completely different. We can walk around, try different things, explore a location, and just have fun with it.
It also gives you a chance to get comfortable in front of my camera before the wedding. You'll get a feel for how I direct and prompt you, and when your wedding day comes around, taking photos won't feel like this brand new thing you are trying to figure out.
You've already done this before!
Why Choose an Engagement Session?
Engagement sessions are one of my favorite ways to document this little season before you are officially married.
And they don't have to feel like an hour of standing around and posing for photos. We can make it feel more like a date and plan your session around things you actually enjoy doing together.
The engagement session you're seeing throughout this blog took place in New Orleans City Park, which is one of my favorite spots because there is so much we can do without ever leaving the park. We can hang out underneath the eak trees, walk around, find little tucked-away spots, and have plenty of room to actually move around and have fun.
But City Park is definitely not your only option! I've had couples choose Audubon Park, locations around New Orleans, and places that are meaningful to their relationship. Your engagement photos can be as dressed up or as casual as you want them to be.
The best engagement sessions give you photos that feel like you two right now. Before the wedding, before you are officially married, and while you are in this really exciting season of planning what's next.
Plus, you'll have plenty of photos to use for save-the-dates, your wedding website, invitations, your guest book, or just to hang around your house.
Why Choose a Bridal Session?
If you have been waiting for the moment you finally feel like putting on your wedding dress, this one might be for you.
Your wedding day goes FAST, and while we will absolutely take bridal portraits that day, a bridal session gives us so much more time to focus on them.
You get to put on the while look! The dress, veil, shoes, jewelry, flowers, and actually enjoy it without wondering where you need to be next.
It's also basically a trial run before the wedding.
You get to see how your dress photographs, how everything moves together, how your hair and makeup look on camera, and how you feel in everything. If there's anything you want to adjust before the wedding day, you'll know ahead of time.
And we can have a lot more fun with location.
I've photographed bridal portraits at some gorgeous spots around Louisiana, and your bridal session doesn't have to happen at your wedding venue. We can go somewhere completely different to give you another look.
You could do something classic under the oak trees in City Park, go somewhere elegant, or even make a little trip out of it. Places like The Southern Hotel in Covington can give your bridal portraits an entirely different feel from what you'll get on the actual wedding day.
And yes, this is also your excuse to wear your wedding dress more than once!
So... Engagement or Bridals?
This is where it gets hard because I genuinely love both.
If having photos of you and your fiancé together before the wedding is important to you, or you want the chance to get comfortable taking photos together before the big day. I'd lean toward the engagement session.
If you are obsessed with your wedding look and want more time to create beautiful portraits in your wedding dress without worrying about the wedding day timeline. Bridals might be the way to go!
Think about which set of photos you would be more excited to have years from now.
And remember, this session is already included when you book Wedding Package 2 or 3, so take advantage of it!
Whether we are running around City Park for your engagement photos or putting on your wedding dress and heading somewhere beautiful for bridals, the goal is the same: have fun, get comfortable in front of the camera, and give you even more photos from this season of your life.
Now you just have to decide which one you're picking!
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