Are engagement photos worth the extra cost?!

My fiance and I weren't into the idea of engagement photos, we figured we would get enough formal photos at the wedding.

Instead, we took the opportunity to do something more fun for our Save the Date photos. I'm a welder, and my fiance is a mechanic, so he had the idea to do something to reflect our "blue collar" sides. I dressed in a Rosie the Riveter style, he did a casual greaser look, and we posed with my welding gear and his motorcycle. The pics came out so great! I was so excited to send out our Save the Dates, and a lot of people commented on our photos. And after the wedding, we will have our fancy wedding photos and our more personal photos to hang on the wall. And yes, it was great to have a chance to work with our photographer early on. So, there's an idea if you're on the fence!

I don't think they're necessary, but we got them and I'm so glad we did.

It helped us to feel comfortable with our photographer, but our other reason for getting them was because my fiance is 6'11" to my 5'5", and we wanted both him and us to have an opportunity to get an idea of how to shoot that height difference.

I definitely feel like we made the right choice - my sister and her husband didn't get engagement shots, and have ended up being really unhappy with their photos. While I genuinely think they just got super unlucky, after seeing their experience, it was really important to me to feel comfortable with the way our photographer worked, and also to see end results before our big day, when we'd still have time to make changes.

Their guy didn't only end up not delivering, he was a painful diva throughout the day, and you spend a LOT of time with them - probably more than your family or friends! I was so relieved to learn during our shoot that our photographer is super lovely to work with and spend time with, plus the photos turned out great. He made us feel confident and at ease.

We also now feel like we know what to expect from him on the day - and a chance to practise the suggestions he made! We've seen his results and I feel confident going into our wedding that we will get some nice shots because he knows us a bit better and can maybe anticipate certain things more easily.

My engagement photo shoot was a surprise! My fiancé hired my cousin, who is a professional wedding photographer, to shoot the actual engagement and then we did a shoot once the tears stopped flowing and I redid my make up LOL! But I have already used them for thank you cards, plan to use a picture for my save the dates and while I’m not getting big prints I also got a small coffee table album to remember the day. No it’s not the wedding day but it was a great reminder of the happiness and love between us. I should note the actual engagement moment is so emotional/raw that it will only be in my album ❤️

View Quoted Comment Thanks Hannah!

View Quoted Comment Such a fun idea!! Thanks Kelley!

Pre-covid I had zero interest in doing engagement photos. But covid honestly robbed so many prewedding experiences from my fh and I so we decided to do them and are happy we did. We won’t have a bridal shower or bachelorette/bachelor party. It’s too risky in our opinion with the state mandated wedding testing anything we did would be close to the wedding and we wanted to take no chances with anyone getting sick and not being able to attend. So we did our session as a way to have something normal during this wedding planning. Even cake tasting was in Togo boxes in our apartment so yeah. That’s my take. They’re not necessary or particularly something you’d miss but it’s something nice to have and experience during a year where so much has been taken.

Engagement photos weren't worth it to me. I don't regret it at all. We didn't use photos for save-the-dates, a wedding website, or thank you cards, and we don't hang photos like that in the house. We also don't post posed photos on social media. So an engagement shoot really would not have suited our style, then or now.

That said, I'm generally "for" anything that means having more photos with you and your FS. Inquire with your photographer, too - most photographers offer a discount if you also book your engagement photos with them.

They are nice if you want to include photos on your Save the Dates or wedding website and don't have a lot of other nicer photos of you as a couple to choose from. They are also a great excuse for professional photos if you have pets you want family photos with but don't plan on including them in your wedding. I would also consider whether you would really like some nice couple photos that differ from your wedding photos - for example by having a more casual wardrobe that shows off your style, ones that capture a different season (fall engagement photos complement an outdoor spring wedding beautifully), or that capture a place special to you or very different from your wedding (perhaps the location is where you went on your first date, or you are having a destination wedding and want some couple photos in the area where you live).

Doing engagement photos with your wedding photographer is also a great way to become more comfortable working with your photographer and being in front of the camera. You'll get a better sense of your photographers working style and building that relationship before your wedding can make your wedding day photos go even smoother.

I'm a photographer and have a few photographer friends. Prior to getting engaged, I asked one of my photographer friends to take some "family photos" of us with our dog so I already had great "engagement style" photos to use. My husband and I also had a pretty short engagement, so by the time we booked our photographer we were already past fall and into stick season and the next predictable nice outdoor weather would be in spring, when our wedding was scheduled. I would have loved fall engagement shots, but we missed the window, and I felt super confident with our photographer and loved her vibe, so we opted to skip engagement shots in favor of saving a little in our wedding budget.

We weren't going to get them but our photographer only charged $150 for a 2 hour session so we figured why not! We don't have a lot of nice photos of the two of us (he HATES getting his photo taken) so it's nice to have a selection of professional photos to frame. But I don't think we'd have regretted it if we didn't get them.

Why are you being charged extra? They should be included. It's a how the photographer gets to know you as a couple before the wedding and helping you relax in front of the camera. That is super important because you wil look stiff and nervous on your wedding day otherwise.

I did them, and I’m happy I did. I got to get comfortable with the photographer and I used that as an opportunity to work will all my vendors (hair, makeup..etc); and also got to learn his photography style and provide feedback.


It was no additional cost, my photographer included it in the package.

I don't think they're worth it unless it comes with your photography package.

My photographer did our engagement photos and the wedding and is even making us an album. I don’t really think it was so much. She making the trips since she’s like 45-50 mins away 3 times. Since ceremony and reception is split and not charging us for the travel.


If you don’t want them don’t do them if you find someone doing a decent package deal on it why not

I am SO happy we did them. It helps to get to know your photographer, so you feel more comfortable the day of - we also used one of the photos for our save the dates , and our website. it is nice to have a few professional photos done. It also can help you to see what angles look good and not so good for the wedding day