When planning your engagement session, there are so many things to consider; the location, jewelry, hair and makeup, and of course, the outfit! What you decide to wear for your engagement session will drastically impact the look of your photos! Your outfit really does determine the look and feel of your engagement pictures! That is why it is so important to pick an outfit that matches the vision you have for your session. So, here are some easy tips to help you plan out your outfits (because if I’m being honest, you are probably going to plan out your man’s outfit too!!)

1. Choose a color palette that makes you happy!

I personally LOVE pastel colors because they photograph beautifully! If you want your photos to feel bright and light like most of my work, pastel colors look best. Light pinks, light blues, dusty blues, muted light colors, and any other soft colors just create such soft and beautiful photos. Stay away from darker colors like red because they usually tend to photograph darker.

When thinking about the color palette you want to choose, look around my blog for inspiration! What colors do you like in each photo? What about the colors really sparks joy in you? Pick colors that will make you happy because that will shine through in your images!

2. Coordinate, don’t match.

I can’t tell you how many white shirt pictures I have of my family and with Josh on the beach. And yes, they are still adorable, but there’s just something about matching colors that don’t work well! Coordinating colors will look nice together, don’t clash, and will give interest to your photos without distracting from each other. So for example, if I wore a light blue long dress, I would put Josh in a navy suit with a purple or white button-up shirt underneath. Even though Josh has a million and a half blue button-up shirts, I wouldn’t put him in one of those because it would be too much of the same color.

3. Choose one formal outfit, and one fun or casual outfit to create variety!

When I was getting my engagement pictures done, I knew I wanted to make the most of our session. We decided to start in a more formal outfit, a dressy-jeans outfit, and a jerseys and shorts outfit! We are so much more comfortable in jerseys and shorts, but I knew I wanted variety and a few options for outfits in our pictures. I am so happy we did all three because we were able to have fun, but also get beautiful portraits in pretty outfits.

My only regret is not getting a flowy dress for our pictures. I didn’t know any better at the time, but flowy, long dresses photograph so BEAUTIFULLY!! They create movement, are very flattering for all body types, and look super feminine and bridal. I absolutely love photographing long dresses!

When picking your outfits, I suggest wearing your casual fun outfit first and then changing into your more formal outfit later. Two outfits are plenty for an engagement session! Plus, when you are changing, I get to photograph your new ring!!

4. Accessorize! Jewelry really pulls the entire outfit together!

Big statement necklaces, statement earrings, or fun bracelets really make your entire outfit come together. Pick one statement jewelry piece and then keep the rest of your pieces simple! That way, we can focus on that one beautiful piece of jewelry, like your amazing earrings without getting overwhelmed or distracted!

5. Plan to have your guy wear a suit! You’ll thank me later!

Guys look amazing in suits! I don’t know what it is, but suits photograph so well! They look broad but fit and overall put together. Plus, you can hold onto his jacket for some snuggly pictures to show off the new bling!

6. Rent when you can!

Rent the Runway is my favorite, go-to place to get engagement session outfits! You get to rent a gorgeous dress for a fraction of the price, and it makes your pictures look AMAZING!! They also offer gorgeous jewelry (I rented my earrings for my wedding!!)!

So, if you have time, rent from them for your fancy outfit! Because chances are you won’t wear the dress again anyway!

I hope this was so helpful when planning your engagement outfits! What did you wear for your engagement session? What are you planning on wearing? Give us some more advice below in the comments!

With love, Hanna