WR: How to prepare for engagement shoot?

JaniV123

did you do your own make up?  how did you go about deciding what to wear? 

We are still iffy about the location since it was a huge change of plans. But we are getting them done one the 23! 

emmaaa

I did my own hari and makeup because I wanted to just look like me. FI and I wore complimenting outfits but did not want to be matchy-matchy.

kat1114

I did my own makeup, but I practiced a couple of times leading up to the day of our shoot. I really only did it as a matter of convenience since I didn't want to take a half-day from work, but it would be a good time to do your wedding make-up trial if you already have your MUA booked.

As far as what to wear, I knew I wanted to do one "fancy" outfit and one more casual in jeans and a cute top. Our photographer also recommended against wearing flats. I'm not  great in heels, but I can do wedges. I had a yellow dress that made me feel confident and went with a pair of wedges I already had, so I wore that for the fancy outfit. I like the yellow and gray color scheme, so H (then FI) wore jeans and a grayish button-up shirt. 

My biggest advice is pick something that feels like you and makes you feel confident. I'm not typically a fancy dress-up person, so I made sure the dress I picked still felt like me. 

luckya23

I spent hours shopping and then consulted here about my outfit.

I got my hair and makep done because I can't do either on my own.

I also made the cutesy signs for mine, but they're not necessary!

I should have practiced the whole "looking at each other without laughing" thing beforehand!  I hate when my nose is all wrinkled.

pinkcow13

Yay! I can't wait till you show them off!

Personally, for us, we wanted the shoot to be natural and we wanted it to embody us. I did buy a new outfit, but it is something I would wear on a night out with friends, or for a date night. same with FI. We just went shopping, and chose outfits that we loved.

 I did get my hair done, but nothing fancy, I just got it straightened. I usually just do that myself, but since I haven't had the keratin in for a while, I decided to have someone else blow it out. I did my own makeup, as well. I wore a blue mesh sweater type top, gray skinny jeans, and black boots. Fi wore a dark blue top, dark blue jeans, and black shoes.

Other than that, my advice is to have fun with it. Try to be natural. It was a bit weird having a photographer pose us, or follow us, but after a while I got into it. 

labro

I had an easy time picking out a casual outfit. I went with a printed tank and a solid color coordinating cardigan with jeans and sandals (it was spring). I think bought about 5 dresses before finally choosing one for my dressier outfit. H coordinated with me to an extent but we definitely didn't go for matching. I think most photographers recommend sticking with 2 outfits...3 at the absolute max because otherwise you're losing all your time to outfit changes instead of pictures. My best advice for choosing an outfit is to pick something that first and foremost fits well! If you are uncomfortable it's going to show all over your face.

I don't wear makeup every day and the best I usually do with my hair is blow dry it straight so I had both done for my e-pics. I went to my regular salon and had a blow out style with some loose curls and I went to the Sephora make up counter to have my make up done. They knew it was for photos so they did it to last and also photograph well. It was 100% worth it. I also had a French manicure done.

ETA: e-pic examples

Couggal12

I did my own hair and makeup. Our pictures were at 10 am and I didn't feel like getting up super early to go get my makeup or hair done. Plus I do my makeup everyday and enjoy it. 

We also made some "Save the Date" signs that we used. Other than that we didn't really do much other than we each picked out a nicer outfit and then a more casual one. DH really hates dressing up so we took more pictures in the casual outfits and used one of the pictures from that for our STDs. 

dcbride86

I did my own makeup, but had my hair blown out.  I picked what I thought was a flattering dress.  And I had like 2 glasses of wine right before.  The wine was key.

JaniV123

@dcbride86 LOL at the wine was the key

thanks all. I will get to looking for outfits then. I think we are just going to walk around with the photographer through the historic part of the city square. Probably going to be at 430-5pm so that we can get some sunset shots at the end. 

I have this dress that I love that can be used during the day or at night. It is super me. 

but I dont know if I have shoes  

Other than that Id have to really look through my closet and if not go shopping

labro

@JaniV123 You probably noticed, but that's the EXACT dress I wore for e-pics. White House Black Market right? Anyway, I chose a pair of kind of camel brown colored heels to wear with it. Since you're shooting in December black may be more seasonal? I dunno...but there are a lot of options out there that will look good with that navy! You could also look into to a champagne, gold or silver metallic shoe.

JaniV123

@LaPeanut1018 I had not noticed because you are sideways, but yes! Its the same dress  

ETA: I think I have some cream colored wedges that I had considered with that dress before so IDK I will have to play dressup. If not then another trip to DSW is in order!

thisismynickname2

I think the dress you chose is great. My recommendation was going to be to choose something a bit more "classic" so you don't look back and cringe at your fashion choices. The dress fits the bill! 

bumbletiger88

I had my makeup trial and had my hair cut (it was due for it anyway) both that day. We also did 2 outfit types: one on the fancier side (local brewery) and the other more relaxed (plus we were in the park with our dog)

Choose things that you feel comfortable and confident in! If I could go back I'd probably choose different shoes for the first part of the shoot- walking in gravel in heels is hard!

audubonbride2013

We just did one outfit and only did an hour shoot.  We both went with something classic that we already owned and would wear anytime.  For makeup, I went to Sephora about a couple weeks before when they were having a VIB event and I got them to show me a couple looks.  I recreated my favorite look myself for the engagement pics, and I straightened my own hair.  We didn't put much preparation into it, and I think they turned out great (although I'm biased).

I wouldn't stress too much about it.  I'm sure they'll turn out great.

JaniV123

Thanks ladies! and @audubonbride2013 we are also doing only a 1hr shoot so I thought 1 outfit would be best plus fi hates pictures so having him change would have been and issue probably hehe

Would it be weird if I am taller than him in pictures? The shoes I was considering are pretty tall (about 5") and I am 5'9" as it is. Fi is 6'1" 

I may swing by DSW and check out their clearance section again, last week I went for the very first time and I found a pair of Nine West shoes for $35

larrygaga

I did my own everything. We each had one sorta casual outfit and one sorta dressy outfit. They looks good together but we refuse to match. Bleh

lovemyrunner

I'm getting mine done on Sunday.  We'll be in an aquarium for part of the time and then outside in our city's downtown area.  I'm only choosing one outit, because it's cold here and we'll be wearing our coats for the outside portion.  I did buy a cute new scarf though   I haven't decided what to do with hair or makeup yet.  @LaPeanut1018, what does Sephora charge for makeup?

labro

@lovemyrunner It's "free" but you're expected to buy $50 worth of product. Not hard in Sephora lol. I actually didn't mind that part because the makeup artist helped me select a few of the items she used on me to purchase. I ended up spending more like $100 but walked out with a really great foundation, an eye shadow palette from Too-Face that I love, and some primers. She wrote down all the other stuff she used and I've slowly been acquiring it.

ETA:

I also made an appointment ahead of time. Some Saturdays can be really busy at Sephora, especially if you try to go during school dance season.