I would like to interrupt the big engagement ring reveal with something that’s been on my mind lately—engagement photos!
We are having our engagement photos taken soon, and I am racking my brain for ideas and inspiration.We want to do something fun and different for our e-session, but it’s hard to step away from some of the beautiful ideas that have been trending lately. In case you have been living under a wedding rock, here are some e-session “themes” that keep popping up:
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Sources, clockwise from top: One: Image via Green Wedding Shoes / Photo by Glass Jar Photography; Two: Image via 100 Layer Cake / Photo by Kate Harrison; Three: Image via 100 Layer Cake / Photo by Trent Bailey; Four: Image via 100 Layer Cake / Photo by Stacey Ramsey
I keep seeing blankets everywhere. Either people are wrapping themselves in blankets, lying on them in a field, or using one to picnic in a garden. The more handmade the blanket, the better. Bonus points for quilts. I think blankets give engagement photos a warm, comfortable, and homey feel, and I can see why they are so popular. We don’t actually own a handmade blanket (or blankets with any character), so I don’t think we will be using this idea in our own engagement photos.
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Sources, clockwise from top: One: Image via Green Wedding Shoes / Photo by Picotte Photography; Two: Image via Green Wedding Shoes / Photo by Nessa K Photography; Three: Image via 100 Layer Cake / Photo by The Why We Love; Four: Image via 100 Layer Cake / Photo by Gaillard Mathieu
You can’t really go wrong with a beautiful country field as the backdrop for your photos. This is one trend that I absolutely love—especially the ones with the golden evening sunlight. This is definitely a must have for our engagement shoot!
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Sources, clockwise from top: One: Image via 100 Layer Cake / Photo by Emily; Two: Image via Green Wedding Shoes / Photo by Caroline Tran; Three: Image via Style Me Pretty / Photo by Anika London; Four: Photo by Forester Photo
These bicycles are totally adorable, but we don’t own any cute vintage bicycles to use for our engagement session. This is another trend that I’ll just have to leave behind!
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Sources, clockwise from top: One: Photo by Wildflowers Photography; Two: Image via The Chriselle Factor / Photo by Jana Williams; Three: Image via 100 Layer Cake / Photo by Esther Sun; Four: Image via 100 Layer Cake / Photo by Trent Bailey
Like the blankets prop, balloons give a certain flavor to engagement photos. When I see photos like the ones above I think of the couple as being fun and playful. Although I think we are a fun, playful couple, I’m not sure that balloons fit our engagement-shoot vision.
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Sources, clockwise from top: One: Image via Style Me Pretty / Photo by Soda Fountain Photography; Two: Image via 100 Layer Cake / Photo by Delbarr Moradi; Three: Image via Green Wedding Shoes / Photo by Alison Conklin; Four: Photo by Ravenberg Photography
Suitcases like these can give any engagement session an instant vintage feel. I think these are really cute, but also not really our style.
And there are so many more themes/trends that you might often spot in engagement photography:
I’m still not sure what we will do to stand out in our engagement photos, but sifting through these photos has really gotten me thinking!
What is your favorite engagement-session trend?
Fields! I worked with wheat and grew up close to a wheat field, so it’s a platonic affair to have pictures on a wheat field, but we didn’t do it, we ended up in gorgeous colonial town with no props and no idea of what we where doing. It was perfect.
Not sure what my favorite trend is…but I’ll tell you which e-shoot bandwagons we jumped on!!
1. Field….except our “field” was on the side of the highway. You’d never know from looking at our pictures! And it was extra fun getting honks from people driving by!
2. Chalkboards…We did the “I said yes” and the “thank you” and also did one where we each wrote something about each other, and then our photographer caught the moment we showed each other. That was so fun, and made some of my favorite shots!
We had blankets and fields for sure, both which I love: I loved balloons too, but we decided to go easy on the props. We did jump on the “holding your wedding date for save the dates” trend and love how that turned out, and we also wore Disney world bride and groom ears for some of our pictures to signify our Disney wedding!!
We definitely had a touch of field in our photos. We had so much fun!
Aww…such cute ideas! I wish I had brought some props for our engagement shoot…I think some of the pictures would have come out more playful and fun.
All of those photos are really pretty and I like the e-session trends. We didn’t do any of them though, just pics outside and by the water at sunset!
You guys are both teachers! Can you take some photos in your classrooms? (I don’t know if that would be against the rules…) I think themed engagement photos turn out best when the theme really fits the couple. Maybe you could ask your photographer if they have any ideas for bringing in the teacher theme? Or, I remember that you traveled a lot. Does your fiance travel too? That could be a good theme.
I guess we for right in with the trends…we sat on a horse blanket and took pictures in a cotton field next to my moms farm! We also took pictures in the barn. Those and the cotton field were some of my favorites 
the BEST one I’ve seen lately is a “day in the life”
http://www.mondayswithmac.com/2012/11/day-in-life-courtney-and-steve-ottawa.html
Seriously. How awesome is that??
@bebefly: That is amazing!
I did the field photos, something about tall grass or flowers is just like a fantasy!
I LOVE e-seshes in fields and out in nature. So dreamy Our e-sesh had so so many of the trends you listed above: picnic with a vintage wedding rings quilt, cupcakes, and coca cola in glass bottles, out in a field right at sunset. And a vintage suitcase to boot hahaha
We are doing a winter session – complete with snowmen, four wheelers and coats. We are outdoorsy types and my fiance is a super ice fisherman. I love the feel of winter engagements – more than likely we will be doing the blanket thing. I just need to get my hunting tie blanket put together.
@Miss Blue Whale: You know, I toyed with this idea for a while, but our school is new and ultra modern looking. I wish we could get photos in an old school house with a real chalk board. It’s something I might have to look into!
@Mrs. Wallaby: Your engagement photos are GORGEOUS! I love them!
@bebefly: Haha that is so cute! I don’t know how I feel about a photographer hanging out in our bedroom while we are snuggled in bed though. I would be a little embarrassed (plus I would have to furiously clean everything first…)
I think your engagement pics will stand out just because they’ll be of you and your fiancee! (Although those balloons are adorable!) We thought about using props or shooting in a unique location, but none of it felt like us… it felt forced. So even though we had an awesome heirloom quilt and I scouted photo locations at the park, I’m glad the rain forced us into Plan B. The pictures we got were much more natural and our personalities really shined through.
We SO struggled with this, too… so much pressure! In the end, we went with straight-up boring. The theme was US. No signs, no wacky props. No vintage-y looking sodas. Just Pete and me, a fab dress and nice shirt and a gorgeous sunny day. We’ll adore the photos forever and ever and never look back and think “how silly!”
I LOVE fields and blankest! Something that we will employ for sure during our engagement shoot.
Miss Camel, Athens, GA Age and Occupation: 29, high school teacher Fiance's Age and Occupation: 35, high school teacher Engagement Date: March 2012 Wedding Date: May 2013 Venue: Cloverleaf Farm About Me: I'm a high school social studies teacher who started her career teaching English in Japan with the JET Program. I love photography and history. I also like to travel and take naps---two things that you would think contradict each other, but somehow they don't. My heroes are Dwight Schrute, Liz Lemon, the Dude, and T.E. Lawrence. I traveled the world throughout my 20s only to fall in love with the social studies teacher in the classroom next door to mine. He just happened to be the kindest, most compassionate, and selfless person I had ever met and each day I'm so thankful to have him in my life. We are planning a whimsical, relaxed countryside wedding with a little Marie Antoinette flair thrown in for good measure. Please join us on our wedding planning adventures!
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