I am going to say something that might ruffle a few feathers — and I mean every word of it.
Your proposal session does not count as your engagement session. Not even a little.
I say this with love, with experience, and with the very specific memory of the countless couples who have come to me after their proposals absolutely dreading their proposal photos. The double chins. The facial expressions. The tears they did not see coming. The un-planned attire. Lack of hair and makeup. The angle their photographer chose that they will never forgive. The images that captured the most important question of their lives and somehow made them feel worse about how they look than any photo ever has before rather than complimenting.
This is not a criticism of proposal photographers. The proposal session serves a sacred, specific purpose — it documents the moment. The raw, unscripted, completely unguarded instant when your entire world shifts. That is beautiful and worth every penny.
But it is not the same thing as an engagement session. And confusing the two is one of the most common — and most costly — mistakes I see newly engaged couples make. Yet they choose to settle for what they have rather than taking the time, intention to thoughtfully take that next step to plan for their engagement session.
Here Is the Truth About Proposal Photos
When you are being proposed to, you are not thinking about your angles. You are not thinking about the light, or your posture, or whether your expression is reading as joyful versus terrified. You are feeling something enormous — and your body and face are simply responding to that feeling in real time, completely un-curated, completely unguided.
That authenticity is the entire point of a proposal session. But it is also exactly why those images rarely make it to the wall and curated in your home.
Most of the couples who come to me after their proposals share some version of the same story: the moment was perfect, but I hate how I look in every single photo. They want to recreate something. Recapture something. Fix something. And I always tell them the same thing: there is nothing to fix. Those photos did exactly what they were supposed to do.
What you are actually craving — what you are really asking for — is your engagement session.
What an Engagement Session Actually Does
Your engagement session is the first time I photograph you and your partner together — intentionally, unhurriedly, with full attention to light and location and the specific, beautiful way you two exist in the world side by side. For many couples, it is the first professional portrait session they have ever had as a couple. And that matters enormously.
Because here is what I have learned after over a decade behind the lens: the single greatest predictor of how much a couple loves their wedding photos is how comfortable they feel in front of a camera. Comfort breeds confidence. Confidence breeds presence. And presence — that quality of being fully, openly there — is what separates an image you scroll past from an image that stops you completely.
Your engagement session is where we build that.
Before I ever lift my camera, we have already talked through your vision, your style, your timeline. On the day of your session, I guide you through every movement — not with rigid direction, but with gentle, intuitive prompts that draw your attention back to each other and away from the lens entirely. By the end of our session together, most of my couples forget I am there. That is the goal. That is the point.
You walk away not only with images you genuinely love — images that feel effortless and alive and completely true to who you are — but with something just as valuable: the knowledge of how to be yourselves in front of a camera. So that when your wedding day arrives and the stakes are at their absolute highest, you are not starting from zero. You are already comfortable. Already confident. Already completely at ease.
Why I Believe in Capturing Both
I will always advocate for having your proposal documented. The moment someone gets down on one knee and changes the entire trajectory of your life? That deserves a witness. That deserves to be preserved. Book that session — do not hesitate.
And then, once the champagne has been poured and the calls have been made and you have both exhaled — book your engagement session. Separately. Intentionally. As its own experience.
Because your proposal was the question. Your engagement session is the answer — the two of you, fully present, stepping into this chapter together with intention and joy and the kind of ease that only comes from being genuinely, beautifully guided.
You deserve both. You deserve to walk away from every session feeling seen — not cringing, not self-conscious, not wishing you could do it over.
That is what I am here for.
Ready to Plan Your Engagement Session?
At Michelle Behre Photography, every engagement session begins with a full consultation — so that by the time we are actually shooting, all you have to do is show up and love each other. The rest is mine to handle.
Inquire here to check availability. I would be honored to be part of your story — from the very first frame to the last page of your heirloom album.
Thoughtfully Curating Your Moments
A moment this meaningful deserves to be remembered with intention. Whether you’re planning an intimate proposal and your wedding tucked within a quiet garden or a grand gesture overlooking sweeping views, having it documented allows you to relive the emotion for years to come.
At Michelle Behre Photography, we specialize in capturing proposals in a way that feels natural, refined, and true to you—so nothing feels staged, only beautifully preserved. From discreetly documenting the moment itself to guiding you through a just-engaged portrait session afterward, we ensure your experience feels effortless from beginning to end and curated with deep intention.
If you’re dreaming of a proposal that is not only unforgettable in the moment, but timeless in how it’s remembered, we would be honored to be part of your story, inquire within for further details on availability.
