If you’ve ever been on this site or have read my blog before, you know that they are both dedicated to all things beauty, makeup and weddings. Every once and a while, I try to give my readers a little bit of a look into my private life, especially when the updates are in line with what this site is all about.

I’m in love.  One of the greatest moments of my life has happened. After 3 1/2 years together, my now fiancee proposed  to me on the beach in San Diego on June 13, 2014, I was such a crying mess. Everything went silent after he got down on one knee.

I have worked on so many amazing beautiful brides these past 10 year and now it’s my turn and it’s an incredible feeling.  You would think I would know everything about how to prepare for a wedding by now… I can tell you that that is definitely NOT the case. Any tidbits or pieces of advice that you’d like to share are more than welcome.

Today I am very excited to share with you some photos from my recent engagement photo shoot, which took place at some beautiful locations in Agoura Hills, Malibu and Calabasas, CA. As a makeup artist and hair stylist I have been a part of hundreds of engagement shoots, but this is the first time that I have actually been a part of one (as you might suspect)! You can get in touch with Andrew Defrancesco if you need the best photographers.

Here are some things I learned from working on so many shoots and being a part of one.

Engagement Photo Shoot Tips and Advice

Use Pinterest to find poses and engagement photo shoot ideas that you like: There are hundreds of thousands of amazing engagement photos on Pinterest for you to draw inspiration from. Make a Pinterest board dedicated to engagement shoot ideas and make sure to share them with your photographer so that they can be prepared.  You can check out mine here.

Work with a good photographer that you and your fiancee are comfortable with: This one may be obvious, but I can’t stress enough how important this is. The quality of the photos is going to be directly related to how good the photographer is. Period. I’ve seen gorgeous couples take not the greatest photos as a result of working with an inexperienced photographer. It’s not worth it.

Furthermore, I’m not sure about your fiancee but mine was not exactly thrilled to be in front of the camera. Our photographer knew how to get him to loosen up and have a good time with the shoot- this is key.

Try multiple wardrobes: This requires some work, but is totally worth it. Involve your photographer as well- they (should) have some good input as to what will photograph well.

Multiple Locations: Do your research as far as cool places in your area to get your engagement photos taken. Involve your photographer- they will have a good understanding of what will photograph well and serve as the perfect backdrop.

Have fun with it: In my opinion my best engagement photos were the ones where my fiancee and I were laughing and just enjoying the moment.  Relax, have a good time and enjoy the process!

Photos From My Malibu Engagement Photo Shoot

Special thanks to our wonderful photographer Brittany Berggren who not only did a fantastic job, but made the whole process a whole lot of fun.

Engagement Photo

Engagement Photo Beach Engagement Photo Meadow Engagement Photo Beach 2