5 Tips On How To Include Your Dog In Your Engagement Or Bride And Groom Session

I love dogs and whenever possible it can always be fun to get our furry friends in pictures with us! Here are a few tips on planning to have an engagement session or portrait session with your pet.

1. Confirm that pets are allowed and it’s a safe location to have pets. Most public parks and hiking areas allow pets, but locations that are historical or maybe a manicured estate may prohibit pets in the location. Call or look up online if your pet is allowed in the location. Some engagement or bride and groom session locations may be near high overlooks or busy roads. Plan ahead of time if that works okay with your dogs temperament! Keep in mind the weather as well. If your session is in an urban location, hot summer days can be painful for your pets feet for a duration of time and the same goes with the winter.
2. Bring a friend to help! Though we want to get a good amount of portraits of your dog in the pictures, the majority of the time will still be of just you and your fiancé. To ensure you don’t feel stressed out about tying your pet to a tree while the session continues, bring a friend who can walk your pet around and release his/her energy while not in front of the camera.
3. Dress up! Sessions with your pet can work out wonderfully with them naturally as they are, or dressing them up a bit in a way that compliments your outfit. But don’t overdue it! If you do decide to dress them up, you don’t want it to take attention from you and your fiancé. A little accessory like a dog tux, bow tie, sweater, or blinged out collar, or in more outdoorsy locations dressing your pet in a garland or leaf wreath can look great.
4. Bring treats! This is incredibly important! After a few photos and as excitement or anxiousness builds, your pet may want to run around and play instead. For some energetic pets there’s a point where they don’t want to participate at all, but the treats will be a huge help in getting them to focus.
5. Be realistic and enjoy! Sometimes it can be frustrating when your pet just doesn’t want to participate at all. In this case treat the session with your pet just as if you are interacting with him at home! Those can make beautiful candid shots with your dog. But if your dog refuses to sit still for any pictures at all, don’t let it ruin your session :). Let your friend helping get out some of the energy out from him/her, and enjoy the session with each other.