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Taylor Benedickt and her fiance, Nate, posed for their engagement photos at the beach where he proposed.
by Matt bieker | mattb@newsreview.com
courtesy/ t aylor Kern
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chose the coastal town of Brookings, Oregon, for her backdrop—the same place her fiancé, Nate, had proposed to her a few months earlier.
“Choosing the location was important for me,” Benedickt said. “Choosing what we wore, what we were doing, like, I wasn’t going to make a big deal of something that [wasn’t important]. And that kind of goes back to what I promote to my clients as well, is that, you know, be yourself and show your authentic self.”
Rather than opting for an elaborate shoot, Benedickt hired Taylor Kern, another local photographer whose work she was familiar with, as both her engagement and wedding photographer. Kern followed her and Nate to Brookings, where they hiked down to the beach
pictuRe and took photos until well past dark. Benedickt saw the value of the trip as another way to make memories with her fiancé and her wedding photographer, instead of just Photographers talk about paying for pretty pictures. “It was worth it for the Anyone who uses social media has probably noticed a specific type of post standing out between the car selfies and eerily specific advertisements—the adventure engagement photo. how to get the perfect engagement photos memories we got for the photos, and also just connecting with Taylor,” Benedickt said. “She is going to be capturing, like, one of the biggest days of our life. Being able to have those experiInstead of the usual prom-photo poses or unflattering ences where, you know, she saw the funny camera flash, your friends are suddenly bathed in magi- moments or vulnerable moments, it brought us cal light, looking very much in love, surrounded by a closer, and it makes me want to trust her more to stunning mountain/forest/ocean backdrop. capture that important day of ours.”
Professional engagement photos can be as elaborate Benedickt said having a personal connection both as a West Coast roadtrip or as simple as a backyard with her photographer and with her own clients is stroll. However, couples hoping to have the perfect pics important. In the sea of competition for wedding vendors should know what goes into making them happen. in Reno, the last thing she wanted was an impersonal
“Documenting this part of me and my fiancé’s life experience motivated by the bottom line. was important to me—and doing it in a way that spoke “When you’re choosing someone, you’re looking at to our relationship,” said Taylor Benedickt, who had their work and what they offer, but you’re also looking her engagement photos taken in September. “So, like, at their personality, because personality is what’s going I could go to Tahoe and take pictures where there’s a to set you apart and your product apart,” Benedickt said. pretty background, but, to me, telling the story of who “Personalities don’t always go well together, and that we are in this moment of our lives is important.” could be a big problem on your wedding day, especially
Benedickt, who is herself a wedding photographer, with a photographer, because they’re the person you’re knew that she wanted her photos taken somewhere that going to spend the most time with during your day.” had a meaningful connection to her relationship, so she
Kern, who has been photographing couples and weddings for the past three years, also agrees that making a personal connection with her clients is a must—you could say she only works with people she considers her friends. Feeling mutually comfortable with her clients, Kern said, is as important to the final product as technique, so couples should prepare for a potentially intimate interview process.
“We schedule our shoots five months to six months out, sometimes, and then we start prepping it about four weeks prior,” Kern said. “And so, I just start asking them like, ‘What’s your vision? What would explain you? Like, does your fiancé like motorcycles? Do you guys like hot springs? What kind of people are you?’”
Even though she is informal with her couples, often bringing beer and firewood along to shoots, getting the right shots on a specific day in a specific place requires a game plan. Still, she said, a little spontaneity can make for better photos—and more fun.
“Sometimes I’m just like, ‘Oh, this is a really pretty area, let’s pull off here,’ and that’s kind of what makes it more adventurous,” Kern said. “And I really read my couples and see if they’re the type of people that like to do that, because some people are very much the planners, and they need an exact place where we’re going at all times.”
Most of Kern’s clients find her through Instagram, she said. The platform is vital to her business as it’s the only form of marketing she has invested in, and many of her clients come to her with a specific idea they have from their feed. Most requests revolve around a feeling of authenticity, as opposed to the formal poses and generic settings of traditional wedding aesthetics. “I feel like engagement photos in the past have been in studios or just, like, the idea behind them was not who their relationship was,” Kern said. “I think that now it has broadened … and you could do that with just you two and your home that you just moved into that’s really special to you, or to tell a story behind your engagement photos.”
Picture Perfect
Social media is prone to exaggeration, though. Jeramie Lu, a commercial and wedding photographer and owner of Hatch Studio, said that sometimes the happy couple can look a little too perfect—and they very well might be.
“The other biggest thing that couples need to realize is that not all photos posted on Instagram are from real weddings or engagements,” Lu said. “They’re called ‘styled shoots’ that are super popular right now, and I hate them.”
Lu said that certain photos couples find online could be more for the photographer’s benefit in terms of social media likes. They can set up unrealistic expectations of what a typical couple’s time and budget will allow for.
“Imagine taking a beautiful girl you know, and you know this beautiful guy, and they don’t even know each other,” Lu said. “You hire them. You guys go to Yosemite. You do an amazing engagement shoot because they’re professional models. You’ve got six hours to do the shoot. You’re waiting for the location to happen and you create this amazing shot, but then you throw them on your website, and all of a sudden you call these engagement or wedding shots.”
Styled shoots often use an entire team of off-camera vendors to produce a certain look, ironically making them the opposite of the authentic, minimalist experience most customers might have in mind.
“It’s kind of like reality TV compared to real life,” “It’s kind of like reality TV compared to real life,” Lu said.
Choosing the right photographer and setting is important if Insta-worthy pics are on your engagement important if Insta-worthy pics are on your engagement agenda, because the going rate for most photographers agenda, because the going rate for most photographers can be upwards of $500 an hour. Lu said choosing a photographer is not an area where you want to scrimp, photographer is not an area where you want to scrimp, however. If there’s a particular photographer’s style that ticks all the boxes, Lu said reaching out to him or that ticks all the boxes, Lu said reaching out to him or her directly is worth the asking price.
“Just hire that photographer, even if it’s a little bit more, rather than trying to make somebody who bit more, rather than trying to make somebody who doesn’t do that style mimic that style,” Lu said. Ω Ω
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Big day
Blueprints lueprints
Use this checklist to help plan your marital merger
18-12 months out
• Nail down your budget. How much are you and your spouse-to-be contributing?
Is anyone else pitching in? (Be prepared— those with a financial stake often want a say in things like the guest list and menu.) • Select an officiant (minister, justice of the peace, etc.). You can book one, or you can talk a friend into getting licensed and ordained.
• Pick your wedding party. People are going to start wondering about this as soon as they hear you’re engaged. Having your party selected will make it easier to get them outfitted and plan for events like bachelor/ bachelorette parties and the rehearsal dinner. • Figure out how many people you’re inviting, and start a guest list spreadsheet. You can use it to track names, RSVPs, contact info for thank you letters and the like. • Pick your date and book your venue(s).
The earlier you decide, the better your chances of getting both the date and location you want. • If you’re going to hire a wedding planner, this is the time to start shopping around for one. If you don’t want one, that’s your call—just make sure you consider all of the hypotheticals before you decide. For example, you might plan to decorate your venue the night before but find out that there’s been a last-minute booking for that night, and now you can’t decorate until the morning of—can you deal?
12-8 months out
• Book your photographer and/or videographer. • Will you be booking a band or a DJ? Either way, it’s time to get this done. • Whether you’ve got guests coming from out of town or are planning a destination wedding, it’s time to consider lodging. You may want to consider booking a block of hotel rooms.
• It’s time to make some decisions concerning the menu for your big day. Does the venue offer catering? If not, this is a good time to start meeting with caterers. • It’s time to buy or order whatever outfit you want for your wedding. Between ordering and altering, a wedding getup may take upwards of six months to be ready. • Get your wedding registry up and running.
Maybe you’d like to consider something in lieu of a registry? How about a “honey fund” to help pay for your honeymoon? • Speaking of which, it’s probably about time to start planning your honeymoon.
7-6 months out
• If that honeymoon you just planned involves a great escape to foreign shores, it’s time to get your passports up-to-date and make sure you’ve got any immunizations you may need. • It’s time to get your wedding party outfitted.
It’s important not to put this off, because they may need multiple fittings to get their outfits just right. • Send out those “save the date” letters, emails, texts, smoke signals or whatever you’re using. If you’re sending invitations, get them ordered. • Meet with your officiant to plan the ceremony. This is especially important if your officiant is a friend or family member who doesn’t have experience in the wedding arena. You’ll want to make sure the person who’s doing you the honor is confident and comfortable with leading the ceremony. • Book your florist. You should know your wedding colors and theme by now.
5-4 months out
• Book the venue for your rehearsal dinner. • Choose your cake and order it too. • Start making lists of music. Decide what you want playing during key parts of your wedding day. Make sure you also have a list of songs you don’t want to hear. Send this off to your band/DJ. • If you’re having your hair and makeup done, now’s the time to start shopping around for the right person(s) to do it. 3-2 months out
• Check in with your florist and caterer. Make any changes to the menu or floral arrangement based on what’s going to be in season and likely to be available. • Give a heads-up to anyone you’d like to have speak during the ceremony or reception. • If you haven’t already, now’s the time to buy your wedding rings. This should leave enough time for them to be sized, if necessary. • Write a provisional schedule for your ceremony and reception—what will happen when. Give copies of this to the people who will provide food, music and flowers. This will give you plenty of time to make adjustments and answer any questions they have. • Send out your invitations about two months before the wedding, and ask everyone to
RSVP within two or three weeks. If you’re asking people to travel long distances, do this around six months out instead.
1month out
• By this time, you should be sending out as many final payments as you’re able. • It’s time to get your marriage license. If either of you are changing your names, get several copies. • Send out the invitations to your rehearsal dinner.
• You should have the number of guests nailed down by now, so—if you’re having booze—go ahead and order it! • If you’re assigning seating at the reception, you’ll want to take care of that soon.
• Don’t forget about bridesmaids and groomsmen gifts.
1week out
• Pick up your outfit(s). • Call all of your vendors to make sure they’re all set. • Send your final guest list to the caterer. • Don’t let little worries stress you now.
This is it. Take a deep breath. Take a nap.
Smoke a joint. Take a Valium. We’re not here to judge. Ω
