Being engaged is a beautiful thing that many people dream of. The moment your lover gets down on one knee to ask you to be his or hers for all of eternity; it’s a big deal! Most times the question is followed with tears, love, joy, and hopefully, “yes!”. In most cases where all of those descriptions hold true, being able to capture that moment is priceless. Now, while you’re an emotional mess (in a good way) you won’t have time to bust our your phone to take a post engaged, selfie, and even if you do, it doesn’t quite capture the moment that your forever truly began together. Just as you would want to document a graduation, your wedding, and even your most treasured moments, an engagement is just as pertinent to be captured with intent. 

Now, I’m not engaged just yet, but I do have a handful of friends that have been engaged. Some decided to capture the moment, some decided to keep it intimate with no flash photography, and I was honored enough to be able to get behind the camera on another occasion of a friend’s engagement. Whatever the circumstance may be, I am completely bias to getting photos of literally everything! So, I asked around from those who decided to get a photographer and those who didn’t. 

“I decided to get a photographer for my wife and I’s engagement because she’s basically obsessed with pictured memories. The amount of joy in her eyes left me pretty speechless, but being able to see that face all over again, as many times as I”d like, was worth every penny. You know what they say any way, happy wife, happy life. She never prompted me to get a photographer, but all men who have picture loving wives are kind of familiar “

“I experienced my engagement with no photographer and I enjoyed the intimacy of it all. I loved the fact that it was just my fiance and I present for that special moment. Although that is what I personally prefer, I’m always in agreeance with capturing moments. I feel like an engagement is personally for you and your better half, but a post engagement photoshoot thereafter would have been amazing! The overwhelming joy and love I felt on that day would have been amazing to look back on. It’s now just a feeling that was left on my heart, but the moment is forever stained with me. Photographers, in my opinion, are like tools to keep a record of the highlights of your life, and an engagement is definitely photo worthy!” 

I was able to get both perspectives, and I wholeheartedly loved both! For me, it isn’t about the money I get out of the work that I do, but the beautiful moments I get to spend with my clients. My heart is in the smiles I bring when sending sneak peaks; or the butterflies fluttering off of couples behind the camera for the first time. I like to think that being a photographer gives me access to seeing the journey of someone’s life captured in these moments. So, whether you’re getting engaged, about to get engaged, or planning a wedding, have that conversing with your partner. Decide collectively on the moments you’d love to capture or keep for yourselves. And hit your girl up. I’ll be there every step of the way!