Engagement Photos Ideas | Fun Engagement Photos | Creative Engagement Photos Ideas
All photos taken by Kathryn Cooper Weddings
Not into the typical cheesy, staring-into-each-other’s-eyes engagement photos?
You’re in the perfect place!
These 45+ unique, fun engagement photo ideas will help you get shots that are more you (and way more fun). Here’s how to get creative, have a great time, and get incredible engagement photos that people will remember forever
Creative Engagement Photo Ideas (because most are kind of overdone)
If it’s time to get engagement photos done but you really don’t want to do what everyone else does, you’ve come to the right place!
I’m a full-time photographer, and of course a creative engagement photographer, here at Kathryn Cooper Weddings, and one of my favorite jobs is dreaming up unique ideas for my couples. Most of my clients are offbeat, quirky, and non-traditional. So why would they want to do what everyone else does? Look, not everyone is cut out to snuggle and have photos showing heart eyes. I’d feel hella awkward myself if I had a photographer capturing that.
So, I came up with this massive list of funky, fun engagement ideas.
Despite being a creative wedding photographer based in New York and California, I’ve photographed awesome engagements everywhere from Hawaii to Indonesia, and from Central Park in NYC to mountains in New Zealand. The point is, you can get amazing photos anywhere–yes, even in your own home!
These wacky engagement photos ideas aren’t just for engagements, either. These ideas are perfect for couples who are eloping, or for couples who want to do a fun couple’s shoot, anniversary shoot, friends shoot, or adventure session.
So…here we go!
Cheap or Free Engagement Photos Ideas
| You don’t need a huge budget to get fun engagement photos! These ideas are free, or just 10 bucks |
| Go roller skating, skateboarding, or bicycling in your neighborhood |
| Start in white outfits, then slowly paint each other with hands, brushes, or just thrown paint. Great for engagement photos with kids! |
| Hike at a local spot with a lake, cave, woods, or lookout point |
| Find some unique murals or street art around the nearest city, and get colorful images in front of it |
| Wintertime? Go ice skating or sledding, make snow angels in the snow, and start a fight (snowballs) |
| Take photos at your favorite waterfall, then get IN the waterfall |
| Get light sticks, light sabers, and/or glow-in-the-dark paint for a truly unique set of images |
| Enjoy photos and quiet time at an independent bookstore or local library |
| Roam a park or botanical garden for splashes of color and tons of photos opps |
| Bring some drinks and a charcuterie board, and head to a beach for sunset |
| Head to a seasonal attraction such as an ice castle or corn maze. So fun, and so unique. |
| Take your motorcycles or convertible (or rent one) to get shots in motion…and go somewhere cool! |
| Cats, dogs, sugar gliders, or bearded dragons…whatever your pet(s), have an in-home shoot together |
| Play your favorite video games or boar games, and enjoy hot cocoa or coffee without leaving home |
| Get into a pillow fight for some fun, in-home photos |
| Dress up like you’re in the 80s and have an awkward 80s photo night. Include cats and lasers, naturally |
| Get Holi powder and throw it at each other for awesome shots inside or out |
Adventurous Engagement Photo Ideas
| Consider an adventure engagement session for some of these 4+-hour activities |
| Go up in a hot-air balloon |
| Find a river and go river tubing–like a lazy river but with a change of scenery, and in actual nature |
| If you know a pilot or local hangar, get some cool shots in, around, or even on a small plane |
| Into rock climbing? Pick a spots where your photographer can get shots from below AND above |
| Head to local sand dunes or a hilly beach, and rent ATVs or sandboards. Or, just run (or roll) down! |
| Do an underwater shoot with thrifted wedding outfits. For confident swimmers or SCUBA divers only! |
| Head to an amusem*nt park, carnival, or pier for interactive games and rides. Also, cotton candy… |
| Rent an open-air mountain Jeep and 4-wheel all over rocks and dunes. Sedona, AZ is the perfect place! |
| With the right budget, you can go into ice caves in Iceland, or heli to a glacier in Alaska! |
| Do a sunrise hike to an incredible vista, and you’ll likely have the majestic views to yourselves |
Unique Ideas for Engagement Photos that May Cost Some $$$
| Whether for an artist, a helicopter flight, or museum admission, your extra bucks will be well used! |
| If heights are no issue, head to an amazing rooftop spot (often a bar) in your nearest city, and get images looking out over an amazing view. Bonus points if your photographer can get views above you! |
| Rent a boat and get romantic shots of you on a lake. Or switch to kayaks and have some fun splashing! |
| Get hand-painted by a bodypainting specialist. The more unique, the more you can do with it |
| Head to a museum that’s interactive, such as the Museum of Illusions, Candytopia, the California Science Center, NYC’s Color Factory, etc. Even Chuck-E-Cheese has a great ball pit! |
| Head to an animal rescue, rehab aquarium, or ethical zoo for some close-up animal encounters |
| Fly out to your first-ever vacation spot, or the place where your proposal happened |
| Take a chocolate-making class and enjoy getting a bit messy |
| Enjoy “U-Pick” farms or orchards. In addition to the free samples, you can enjoy other farm activities |
| Go to an arcade, pinball museum, or game center for action shots of you (skeeball, b-ball, air hocky) |
| Find your favorite candy store, pizza shop, or ice cream shop and stop for a bite |
| Rent a cool/unique AirBnB in your own state or another one, and do your engagement photos in a cool new place. Tree house, anyone? |
| Head to an amazing travel spot and get a local photographer (or fly yours out) to snag unique shots |
| Cook a dish together and have fun in the kitchen. Fudge and whipped cream can’t hurt…right? |
| After your “traditional” engagement photo session, jump into a pool or lake (clothes on), and then get a 3rd set of images lounging around or splashing around with inner tubes, unicorn floats, etc. |
| Rent out a sports field and get shots of you in a famous, TV-worthy arena |
| Hire a chalk artist to create a custom sidewalk scene for you |
| Go to a thrift store, and (with approval from the owner) get dozens of different (and funny!) shots as you pick out outfits for each other to try on. Don’t forget the feather boa. |
| Get a caricature artist to paint you on the street, or doing your favorite activity |
| Pay an amazing graphic artist to collaborate with your photographer and create otherworldly images of you floating, or in a sci-fi scene, or Photoshopped into custom artwork |
| Dress up in your favorite festival wear, complete with glitter, tassels, wigs, and more |
Below examples of a few of my engagement photos, explained from L to R:
Walking around near Palm Springs, California
Waterfall beauties in Upstate New York
A flower bearded couple in Queens, New York
Getting close at a temple in Bali, Indonesia
Standing still for a long exposure in Manhattan, New York
Hiking around waterfalls in the Poconos, Pennsylvania
Walking alongside a cliff on Big Island, Hawaii
Posing in a quirky museum in Manhattan, New York
Hiking in Upstate New York
A dip at Glacier Point, Yosemite, California
Want Creative Engagement Photos? Dream Up Ideas Together!
Whatever you choose to do, I encourage you to think up things the two of you love, and to enjoy doing that activity together. These candid moments are a million times better than 100 images of the same, cookie-cutter engagement photos of leaning on a person’s shoulder that one too often sees. In fact, my unique engagement photo ideas and images were featured in last year’s Offbeat Wed article.
And if you want romantic photos, you can absolutely still get them while having fun, too! These cool ideas for engagement photos are to diversify your thinking on what they can be–so let your imagination run wild. Collaborate with your photographer to ensure you’re doing something that feels very you. I mean, why be subtle?!
There are no canned, here’s-what-I-do-every-time plans here! It’s all about discussing ideas and coming up with a location and plan that’s perfect for your adventure level, budget, and comfort level. As a creative engagement photographer for my company, Kathryn Cooper Weddings, I work one-on-one with couples to present original and customized ideas for their pre-wedding sessions, engagement photos, or adventure engagement photos.
After all, it’s about getting used to being in front of the camera and having a good time just as much as it’s about getting great photos. You’re in good hands here~
Kathryn Cooper Weddings: Fun Engagement Photos | Engagement Photo Ideas | New England & New York Engagement Photographers
