Planning Our Wedding: Shopping for Engagement Outfits

I think the most common question I get from brides after we've scheduled their engagement session is: What do I wear? That is a pretty difficult question for me on a day to day basis, let alone when I'm considering what to wear in photos that I'll cherish forever. Talk about pressure. So when it was my turn to have my engagement pictures taken, I used all the advice I normally give my clients and went shopping!

Before I really get going, the pictures you see in this post were not taken by me because I'm in them (I'm not that good). Instead, they were taken by the amazingly talented Angela Fortin.

1. Have a general idea of what you're looking for before you go shopping (and know what you already own)

Before you open the doors to your local mall I would have a game plan of what you're looking for. I generally tell my clients to have 2-3 outfits ready for their session. That way they'll have some variety between pictures but also have enough time in each outfit to get some good pictures. I also suggest that the outfits should be a mix of dressy and casual.

Blake and I knew that we only wanted to do two outfits - one dressy, one casual. We weren't going to buy a new suit for Blake so we already knew that he'd be wearing navy, which meant I just needed to find a dress that would go with his suit. The casual outfit was a little more up in the air but we knew that we'd probably only need new shirts for this outfit since we could wear pants and shoes we already owned. So at this stage we were looking for a new dress shirt and tie for Blake's dressy outfit, a dress and necklace for my dressy outfit, a shirt for both of us for our casual outfits.

2. Start timeless

I always tell my clients to stay away from giant logos, crazy patterns, or anything that's super trendy at the moment. You're going to have these pictures for a long time and you don't want to look back at your pictures like an episode of "Friends" and go "what were they wearing!?!" - try to stick to solid colors, classic patterns (stripes, polka dots, plaid), and timeless silhouettes. 

When Blake and I were looking for our casual outfit, I found a solid burgundy t-shirt and Blake found a nice blue and white striped t-shirt. The building blocks to your outfits should be timeless.

3. But don't be afraid to go big

This is going to sound like it's in direct contradiction of the last tip, but it's not. Find a good balance of classic staples with trendy accessories. I don't want my couples showing up to sessions in plain, frumpy, nondescript clothes that don't show off their personality at all. So if you find something that makes your heart stop - buy it!

After I bought the solid burgundy tee, a ridiculously large floppy hat also caught my eye. So I bought it. I am fully aware that the hat might look silly in 10 years (if it doesn't already) but I wanted it in a few pictures and took it off for the rest. Blake's dress shirt that he ended up finding was chambray. Chambray is very in right now, but it might not be in the future. That's okay, because the solid navy suit he was wearing should stand the test of time. Like I said, find a balance.

4. Never be afraid of accessories

Accessories are exactly what Emeril was always looking for to take something up a notch. Throw in some amazing accessories and BAM!! Your engagement session just made your photographer swoon. I always tell my brides to bring heels to their sessions if they are heel wearers at all. They don't have to wear them for every outfit, but having heels in just a few pictures will be magical. At the risk of sounding like the man from Men's Warehouse - You're going to like the way you look; I guarantee it. 

That being said, I want to acknowledge that I did not follow my own rule for this - I am vertically blessed as a girl and Blake is my height (or an inch taller if you believe him) so I don't wear heels around him. But if you and your partner are a good mix of heights and heels work for you, please bring them to your session! Since I couldn't accessorize with woman's real best friend, I bought a super cute necklace from J. Crew for my dressy outfit and the hat I mentioned before for the casual outfit. They were the perfect small things to make the outfits pop.

5. Be comfortable in what you're wearing

This tip needs to happen on two levels. You need to feel physically comfortable in what you're wearing. Make sure it fits correctly and makes you feel good about yourself and your body. But you should also feel comfortable with what you're wearing in a personal sense. Is that an outfit that feels like you? Is it something that you might normally wear or your ideal you would wear? It's okay to dress a little nicer for an engagement session than you normally do, but the outfits should still reflect your style.

When shopping Blake and I went to our local outlet mall to get some great deals on some bigger brands we normally only dream about wearing. And we found some great bargains and were able to curate outfits that felt like us or at least the us we wished we could afford to be. Except for one thing - I found a pair of shorts that fit me fine and that I felt I looked good in, but after taking them home and trying them on with the rest of the outfit it just didn't feel like "me". So I returned them and wore a pair of shorts I already owned.

If anyone has any other great tips for what to look for when shopping for engagement sessions please leave them in the comments below! If you're looking for outfit inspiration check out my Pinterest board or check out the engagements gallery on my website! I love the effortless yet fashionable styles my clients always bring to their sessions.

Keep smiling!
Kaylina

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Using Pinterest as a Professional Photographer

Hello, my name is Kaylina and I'm a recovering Pinterest Addict. When I first discovered Pinterest I was in college and spent most of my part time job as an office assistant on the site pinning crafts I would never complete, recipes I would never attempt, and decorations for a house I would never own. Pinterest is kind of known for that I think - aspirations of a picture perfect life most of us will never have, but it's always fun to dream. I will say though that I've found three very useful purposes for Pinterest as a photographer.

1. I use Pinterest to get a feel for my brides on a personal level 

When I first meet with a couple I ask if they're on Pinterest and, if they are, to send me a follow request because I find that I can learn so much about a person from their Pinterest boards. Not only can I get a sneak peek at their wedding from any wedding boards a bride might have, I normally can get a good understanding of their sense of humor, if they're animal lovers, book worms, movie fans, or fashion forward. Now obviously, I'm making a lot of assumptions by doing this (if you looked at my profile you'd think I like to cook. I actually like to eat. I have no idea how to cook), but it gives me a rough idea of who the bride is as a person and allows me to interact with them on another level before the big day.

2. I use Pinterest to guage my brides' photography style

If a bride doesn't already have a wedding and engagement photography board, I ask her to make one. And no, it is NOT because I want to copy all the pictures she pins. I ask a bride to make a photography board so I can see what kind of pictures she is drawn to and what kind of pictures she would like to get out of the experience. I might notice that a bride has posted a lot of super snuggly, flirty pictures so I know to plan for a fun, candid session. If I notice that a bride pins more editorial, high fashion images I'll plan for more serious, intimate poses. Sometime brides will post 5 or 6 different pictures of the same pose so that obviously lets me know that we should at least try out that pose or something similar.

3. I use Pinterest to give some last minute tips to my brides

I normally check out my brides' boards about 2 weeks before a session to gauge their style and give out any last minute tips. If I notice that the bride has posted a lot of pictures of girls in heels, I'll suggest they bring heels to the session, even if just for one outfit. You'd be surprised how much high heels can change a picture. If they've posted a lot of pictures with props (blankets, baskets, balloons, etc.) I'll check in and see if they're planning on bringing anything with them to their engagement shoot. I also check in to make sure the pictures she's been pinning are realistic. If she's the same bride that posted a bunch of snuggly, flirty pictures but her man is adamantly against PDA, we're going to run in to a problem. 

Again, the idea is not to copy any of the pictures from Pinterest - I've just found it to be a helpful tool to make sure that both myself and the bride are on the same page going in to an engagement shoot or wedding. Knowing a bride's style and expectations before hand makes the experience more enjoyable for everyone. And getting another person addicted to Pinterest is always a bonus.

If you'd like to check out my style or make assumptions about my personality, you can look at my Pinterest boards here.

Keep smiling!

Kaylina

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The Real Questions to Ask your Wedding Photographer

If you've read my blog before, you might have noticed something: I'm a big fan of Pinterest. If you check my Pinterest page you'll see that it might border on "addiction". I have not one, but four boards, dedicated to weddings. Everything from wedding photography that inspires me, to decor ideas, to info graphics on how to properly plan a wedding.

The other day I found a pin linking to a Buzzfeed article titled "These Diagrams are Everything You Need to Plan Your Wedding". While I found most of the info graphics interesting and helpful, I had to laugh when I got about halfway down the list and found two related to choosing your wedding photographer. You can see them below.

 

I think it is important to get an answer to the questions mentioned above and to have an idea of what sort of photos the photographer will be capturing throughout the day. But what scares me about these graphics is that I get an overwhelming feeling that the relationship between the bride and the photographer is nothing more than a business transaction.

My "meetings" with clients are not business meetings, they're get togethers that allow me a chance to get to know the couple, their style, and how I can best serve them. I want to establish a friendship with my clients so that my services are less about an exchange of goods and more about capturing the love and emotion of their special day in a way they can cherish forever. 

I have no problems talking about how many weddings I've done, the kind of camera and lighting I use, or how many pictures the bride will receive after the wedding, but what I really want to establish in our first meeting is that the couple and myself are a good fit. That we'll get along. Because a wedding can be a little awkward when you have a complete stranger with a camera following you all day instead of someone you trust and shares common interests with you. 

So I would encourage any bride out there looking for a wedding photographer to not only get the answers to these questions, but to dig a little deeper. Are you a huge Netflix person? Then find out what the photographer likes to watch on TV. Love animals? Does your photographer have any pets? Yes, these answers might have nothing to do with their skills as a wedding photographer, but it will make the day more enjoyable as this person spends hours with you and your closets friends and family.

And please, if you don't trust your photographer enough to capture "the couple's first kiss" without having writing it on a list, find another photographer.

Keep smiling!

Kaylina

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Do it yourself

A few weekends ago I went home to my parents house to visit and got enlisted to help my mom in her latest Pinterest project. We spent 40 minutes traipsing around their property (and maybe some of the neighbor's property) to find all of the letters in our last name. We learned a few things, like Ns and Rs are not easy to find, people with Ls, Is, and Xs are surprisingly lucky, and I'm glad we only have six letters in our last name. All joking aside, it was great to spend the day with my beautiful mother, doing something new. To everyone who has a Pinterest board out there full of DIY projects waiting to be done- just pick one and complete it this week. You'll feel accomplished when you actually do it yourself.

Keep smiling,
Kaylina

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