Tips for a Great Engagement Session - Maryland Engagement Photography

Engagement sessions are all about your love for each other.

You’re engaged! Congratulations! Ready to show off that beautiful ring and share your commitment to each other with a fun engagement portrait session? Here are a few tips to help you have the perfect engagement session.

1) Be Yourselves
It is tempting to try to recreate all the amazing looks you see on Pinterest and your favorite wedding blogs. It is okay to get some inspiration from these places, but don’t try to transform yourselves into a different type of couple. If you are country to the bone, grab your boots and plaid shirts. On the other hand, if you are normally all about the excitement of city life, you won't want to give up your sophisticated evening wear and designer shoes to recreate a charming rustic engagement shoot you saw. Think about what makes you work as a couple and create your session wardrobe and theme around that.

2) Be Your Best
It is a great idea to have a professional do your hair and makeup for your engagement session. After all, these portraits will be on your save the date cards and will be cherished memories for years to come. In addition, your engagement session is a great way to test your hair and make up artist's skills or try a new style you aren't completely sure of before the big day. If you decide to tan, make sure you don't overdo it. You don't want to arrive at your session with that telltale orange glow.

Guys should plan to get a haircut a few days before the day of your engagement session and have a freshly shaven face or well groomed beard and/or mustache.

3) Choose a Great Location
You can certainly have your engagement session in a nearby park, but isn't it so much more meaningful to have your portraits done in the spot where you first met or your favorite restaurant? What about where your partner got down on one knee and asked for your hand in marriage? Every time you see your portraits, you'll remember your engagement session AND the special spot that helped bring you together.

4) Choose Your Wardrobe With Care
You want your clothing to reflect your style, but you'll probably want to shop for new outfits. You probably won't want to match, but your colors and styles should complement each other. One of you could wear blue and one could wear yellow or one of you could try a pattern and the other could pull a solid color from that pattern. Plan to wear darker colors in the winter months and lighter, brighter colors and textures in the spring and summer months. 

Remember that you are the stars of the portraits, not your outfits, so you may want to avoid funky, crazy clothing. If you do opt for something a little wild, you may want to bring along a more neutral wardrobe to change into for at least some of your portraits.

5) Don't Forget to Have Fun
Once your session time starts, relax and have fun. Your engagement session is all about celebrating you as a couple and your love for each other. Tell each other a silly joke, give your partner a tender kiss on the forehead, stop for a loving hug. If your partner is feeling self conscious, take five and regroup. The more you relax and have fun during the engagement session, the better your wedding portraits will be, because you'll already have practiced so many loving and sweet moments during the session!

And once you have selected the perfect date for your big day, you’re ready to order your Save the Dates!
Call today to schedule your complimentary consultation at 410-378-4521 or drop me an email.

Snow Queen Creative Fashion Shoot in Harford County, Maryland

One of the creative fashion shoots I've been planning for 2013 is a snow queen themed session. After months of planning, we finally were able to head to Harford County, Maryland to put it all together.

I always like to start with a few simple shots for the make up artist's portfolio. This way, stray raindrops, dust and whatnot don't have time to mess up the look before I get them.

Then, I get to move on to the fun creative shots. It was pretty cold the day we did this shoot, so I had to work fast and be sure my very patient model was able to take breaks to warm up.

I bring about 3 times the wardrobe pieces and accessories I think I'll need for a shoot. I also try to be sure I have a lot of flexibility in the pieces I choose. This coat reversed has a little different look than it does when worn the right way.

When you start to feel a little stale, start moving. In this case, I asked my model to twirl around holding her skirt, which helped "reset" her a bit. It ended up being one of my favorite images.

Wardrobe: Katelyn Thomas Photography
Make Up: It's Just Makeup
Model: April Crouse
Photographer: Katelyn Thomas Photography

Top Wedding Style Trends for 2013

You're engaged! Congratulations! Now, if you've been planning to make your special day a DIY event, you're probably feeling thrilled to be marrying your soul mate, but a little overwhelmed at the thought of putting your wedding together. There are so many color schemes, themes and venues to choose from. So many little details to decide on.

How about starting with a look at some of the top wedding style trends for 2013? Designing everything around a key piece or idea can help create a pulled together, inviting look you'll be proud of.

Wedding Color Trends for 2013

I do believe I've seen mint green just about everywhere. It is a lovely, romantic color perfect for a spring or early summer wedding. Another trend I've seen a lot of is the blush pink wedding gown. Think Easter egg colors - muted, soft and a little dreamy. Too soft for you? Try an ombre theme that uses different hues of the same color. If you're planning a late summer or fall wedding, you might want to opt for an elegant gold hue in your color palette. Red and black are also trending colors. (And while black is a bit severe for my taste, some of the black and white gowns I've seen on the runway were just divine. Check out Douglas Hannant's black and white print wedding dress or Alfred Angelo's gorgeous white gown with black accents and you'll see what I mean.)

Wedding Look Trends for 2013

If color isn't as important as the overall theme of the wedding, you may want to draw your inspiration from one of the vintage themes that are trending in popularity this year. The 1920's flapper inspired wedding dress trend is just gorgeous, as are the more structured peplum 40's style bridesmaid dresses that have been coming down the runway. Need inspiration for the 20's trend? Watch The Great Gatsby. For the 40's trend, check out the classic Thin Man movies, especially the last three, which were filmed after 1940.

If you aren't inspired by retro style, you might want to consider a classic trend - nature. I've seen a lot of little birds, moss and bark. I must admit, I wasn't sure that feathers would still be going strong after the last few years of fluffy goodness, but I was happy to see they are still being featured by several designers. I think feathers and 20's style go together like ham and eggs. They just belong to each other, you know?  The nature trend also goes beautifully with delicate floral crowns, which some designers were sending down the runway with their 2013 wedding gowns.(Claire Pettibone is my new favorite designer. Her crowns and beautiful gown details...Just yummy. But Oscar de la Renta also had some nice floral crowns in his 2013 collection.)

Is there a wedding trend for 2013 that you're excited about?

On Location Christmas Portrait Photography in Harford County, Maryland

I love doing on location Christmas portraits with children. They just relax and have fun so much more easily than when we are in the studio. This sweet little girl and her mom met me in Harford County for her session. Isn't her coat downright gorgeous? It is totally perfect for the little princess wearing it!

Every year, I feel a little blue when all that gorgeous fall foliage is gone. And every year, I have a session soon afterward and realize that I adore the look of winter sessions, too. The only sign of autumn leaves is in the debris on the ground, but the amazing light and the lovely tree trunks completely make up for it, don't they?

 It is a bit late to schedule sessions for Christmas cards now, but there's always Happy New Year's cards! Call me at 410-378-4521, drop me an e-mail, or message me on facebook to set up your on location family or child portrait session.

On Location Senior Model Portrait Session in North East Maryland

Meet Kendal, one of KTP's senior models for 2014. I'm excited to be working with this young woman, who is very involved in her school and a number of extra curricular activities. I'm not quite sure how she finds the time to do it all!

It is a good idea to go with at least one outfit change for added variety. I encourage seniors to also consider at least two locations. If we start at a park or the stable, we can move to a more urban area, or at least go to a nearby town.

My senior models all receive professionally printed rep cards.

It is time to start booking your class of 2013 senior portrait session now. I work with seniors in Cecil and Harford County, Maryland, the Newark, Delaware area and the Oxford, Pennsylvania area. Further away? Ask about my travel plans.

I am still looking for 2014 senior models for several area schools. If you are outgoing and love glamming up, please feel free to fill out the senior model application.

Maryland High School Portraits - on Location in Port Deposit

We've all been there. Halfway through the day, a ketchup stain on your shirt, hair gone limp and it is finally your turn to spend about 30 seconds on the stool in front of the same backdrop you sat in front of the year before. Yup. School picture day. You so don't want to send that mugshot to your family and friends. Don't you wish you could have a do over?

That's where your local portrait photographer comes in handy. You can have a do over. A session focused just on you, either on location or in studio. Can't decide? Do a split session and have both. School portrait sessions are also perfect for homeschoolers who want to be able to send wallets to family and friends just like everyone else.

Not your average school picture. On location in Port Deposit, Maryland

A smile for mom...

Vintage look with a fashion edge

Another smile for mom.

(One of my favorite things about my business is the wonderful people I meet. This talented young woman is going places.)

Has your family's school picture day experience been less than epic? Wishing your homeschooled children could have school pictures, too? Contact me at 410-378-4521, e-mail me, or facebook me to set up a session.

Styled Wedding Portraits in Havre de Grace, Maryland

Wedding photography on the day of the event doesn't always translate to gorgeous wall portraits. Maybe your special day didn't have the best weather. Maybe you didn't hire a professional photographer and regret not having some lovely photos to commemorate your day. Maybe there just wasn't time to fit some fun and creative on location photography into your tightly scheduled program. Whatever the reason, why not pull out your wedding gown and tux, find a great spot for on location photography and get some styled wedding portraits you can proudly display on the wall?

For this on location wedding portrait shoot in Havre de Grace, Maryland, I coordinated a makeup artist, hair stylist, bridal model and groom model. (If you were happy with your wedding day look, I recommend that you have your makeup and hair done by the same stylists you used then so that you don't struggle with trying to get it to look the same way on your own. If you want a different look, I have several excellent artists I can refer you to.)

Despite stormy skies, I worked with my bride and groom models to create some edgy fashion forward portraits.

Since we didn't have a bouquet for the bride, I created one with paper roses from map pages.

The bridal beauty portraits are the ones that go in a frame on the groom's desk for years to come.

Sometimes, you fall in love with more than one gown. A quick change, a new location and you get double the portrait fun.

Wishing you had some lovely wedding images to display in your home or in a beautifully designed album? Contact me at 410-378-4521 or by e-mail to set up your on location bridal portraits in the Cecil or Harford County, the Newark, Delaware, or the Oxford, Pennsylvania area.