I know a lot of times people are  confused or so curious about where they should take their engagement pictures.  I always suggest a location that is meaningful to you two as a couple.  Where was your first date, where did he propose, do you have a special spot together, or even your home.  It will give you a more emotional attachement to those photos and they will have so much more meaning to the both of you.  Some may be thinking, what if we are new to the Dallas and Fort Worth Metroplex, what location do we use then?  Think about what you both do as a couple.  Do you frequent the  Farmer’s Market in Dallas, or do ride bikes often as any of those things are great to incorporate into your session.  Plus it will allow you both to be more relaxed and be more yourselves together.  And that makes for some really fun, personal pictures and as your wedding photographer is really helps us to get to know you as couple and that’s always a good thing so the best pictures possible can be captured ;).  And of course we are always here to help you brainstorm as well.  I’m including a few photos and ideas to help get you started on finding the best location for your engagement session.

Stacy proposed to Courtney at the Dallas Arboretum so it was really important to them to take their engagement pictures there.  I did have Stacy reenact his proposal and it allowed for some really beautiful, very emotional pictures that they both can look back on and remember fondly.

Ben and Kristina opted for part of their session in a library.  Kristina is a lawyer here in Dallas and Ben works on local political campaigns so they both love books.  It was perfect for them and allowed us to get some different and really fun pictures.

Nathan and Laura go to the State Fair of Texas every year and wanted to continue that tradition with their engagement photos.  It really makes for a relaxed but super fun setting for your pictures.  And maybe your groom to be will win you a stuffed animal in the process 🙂  Or just crash into to you lots of times at the bumper cars hahahaha.  Either way it will be tons of fun and I can capture lots of smiles and laughs 😉

Or maybe you are huge baseball fans and want to incorporate that into your engagement session like Mark and Deena.  The Rough Rider’s Stadium in Frisco is picture perfect.  You can kiss on homeplate and cheer in the stands.  Don’t forget to bring a glove, ball and bat for some fun action shots.

A romantic picnic in the park is also another really great idea for engagements.  It’s classic and timeless and ultra romantic.  You can set the whole scene up to with deserts and a picnic basket.  I know Kaci and James enjoyed it for their engagement pictures.

You can incorporate the fun things going on around Dallas like Trip and Lindsay.  Dallas started with whole campaign with the letters B & G and with you standing in the middle it spells BIG.  Well B & G can also stand for Bride and Groom.  Hahaha perfect for wedding engagements.

Jennifer and Vincent opted to take their engagement pictures at the wedding location, the Stoneleigh Hotel in Dallas.  They have a beautiful wall of stained glass where they would exchange vows.  We used it for a more unique, artsy engagement that can later be there own personal artwork in their home.  Plus when they look at this they will be transported back to their wedding day and remember the vows they exchanged and the excitement they had on their wedding day.

This shot is actually from Sergio and Lacey’s anniversary session but they same concept can apply.  They live in loft apartments in Dallas and we took their photos in their home and around the complex.  They had this abstract painting that was huge and the colors really made for a fun backdrop.  They will remember this years from now and the memories of their first place together will flood back with they look at it.

For Mark and Jamie’s engagement session we incoporated some fun props.  For the picture below we went to the Soda Gallery in the Bishop Arts District.  These two really know how to make each other laugh and it allowed me to capture their natural interaction.  You really get a sense of their personalities.

We also used mini chalkboards as props.  Jamie is a teacher and they were using chalkboards as a main decor element in their wedding decor for the wedding at the Dallas Arboretum.  So to tie everything together, we used them here.  It worked out beautifully.  Also you notice the Farmer’s Market sign in the background.  Jamie and Mark usually go their on Saturdays and cook together that evening using the fresh produce they purchased.  Sweet right 🙂

For Anthony and Kelly’s session we grabbed some gelato.  It was a pretty hot summer day in Dallas and I know these two needed to cool down a bit.  So we grabbed this yummy frozen treat and I snapped some pictures of course.  Don’t be afraid to have ice cream, snow cones, etc in your session.  You can grab some really fun, candid moments.

This photo is also from James and Kaci’s session (they had the picnic session above)  I chose to separate the two as the ideas are different.  James was in the air-force and Kaci loves vintage so we combined the two loves and took pictures at the Vintage Flying Museum.  It was so great to find a way to include James’ military service into their engagement photos.

And the final 2 photos are from Ben and Christina and Lacey and Sergio’s session.  They wanted a more old, cinematic, classic bw feel to their images.  So we staged a street style shoot where they look like they are starring in a movie and these are stills from that.   This is great for those that love classic black and white films and love the movies of the ’40s and ’50s.

Well I hope this inspires you for your own engagement session and of course we are always here to help with ideas as well 🙂