So it’s officially that time of year again – wedding season!   And after spending the afternoon with one of our wedding clients last week I thought that this would be the perfect opportunity to talk about engagement sessions and what they mean for Vasili and I and more importantly, what that means for our clients.  First of all, I hate the term ‘engagement session’ because it brings with it a connotation of awkwardly staged portraits.  And while this works for some, here at Simply by Suzy we offer free engagement sessions to our wedding clients so that we’re able to have a day together to get to know YOU better.  Much like a ‘trial run’ you would have with your hair dresser or make-up artist, it’s important that we also have a ‘trial-run’ with our clients.  Going through those photos will help us figure out what kind of situations or things we said made you feel more at ease, or even what are your most flattering angles.  But even far more important than aesthetics, having time to hang out together before your wedding is so valuable to us because when we show up on your big day, we feel more like friends meeting up again and that creates for a much more relaxed environment which equals much more genuine moments captured and amazing photos that does make 🙂

Anyway, with that being said, Tamara, Brian and I had a chance to spend some time together last weekend getting to know each other before their wedding next month at the Sofitel Hotel in Chicago. We started off at the place where they had their first date and then walked through the pedway over to the lakefront and ended at North Avenue beach (which made me realize how unbelievably out of shape I am after a very long and sedentary winter).  We talked about their very first date at LuxBar and the smart phone addiction that Brian and I share… he serenaded Tamara with the Spinners and we even had a show-down with another couple who was shooting along the lake as well LOL! We were finishing up and we saw another photographer shooting what was clearly another engagement session and we all agreed it felt like something out of a Friend’s episode where Monica and Chandler felt compelled to ‘out-do’ the other couple (kidding of course).   And best of all, at the very end, Brian gave me the ultimate groom-to-be approval when he said “This was a lot more fun than I expected.”

Thank you B&T for a great afternoon, Vasili and I can’t wait to see you again in a few weeks!

… and because a good photographer is always at least a little self-deprecating lol (now if only I could find the blog preview of this photographer’s engagement shoot.. Anonymous Photographer, if you come across this please feel free to send me an email and say hi!)