Welcome to this photographer’s guide to including your dog in your engagement photos! Let’s look at some steps you can take to prep your dog, and yourselves, so that your engagement session goes without a hitch!

Oftentimes, couples haven't had real, organic-feeling photos taken of them. It's hard to get out of the "look-at-the-camera-and-smile" mindset that we've been conditioned to do every time we see someone point a camera at us! So, let's briefly review some of the basic rules of getting "unposed" pictures during your session or wedding.

Brianne and Loren are such sweet folks with, obviously, the cutest pups! I’m a sucker for a good hunting dog… We spent some time on their family’s farm land, and hopped around to another couple of cool spots around Gillespie for some late-evening photos. It was a blast!

Thanks for the hangs, Eric and Megan! Thanks for letting me pet you, Rex. Check out some of my favorites from this Carondelet Park couple’s shoot!

This was, by far the coldest engagement session that I’ve ever done, but of some of the warmest souls that I’ve ever photographed! While their wedding is at another venue entirely, I have to give a shoutout to the kind folks at Boo Cat Club for giving us an indoor venue in which to take some beautiful photos and keep out of the frigid temps for a little while!

This St. Louis engagement session was an insane amount of fun! Amanda and Alex are fantastic people. Check out this blog if you want to see some cool photos of a great couple and get some tips on how to plan a zoo engagement session!

Stephanie and Zach’s late-fall engagement session in Highland, Illinois at Silver Lake Park was gorgeous! We did this session during a week where I had about 6 other shoots and, let me tell you what, every single one had this amazing, warm light.

It feels like just yesterday that Alysa contacted me to shoot her wedding! Well, it wasn’t yesterday, but it WAS just two months before the wedding. Dang, 2020 is weird, right? Anyways, here’s a beautiful wedding at Stone House of St. Charles that I had the privilege of photographing. Check it out!

Lauri and Matt’s Peoria, Illinois engagement session! Check out some of my favorites!

I love the pictures I made with Michalah and Zach. Checkout out some highlights from their Peoria, IL engagement session.

Holden and Rachel’s Taylorville, Illinois wedding photography!

Heather and Coleman’s Springfield, Illinois Engagement Session. EPIC.

Being in front of the camera doesn’t have to feel foreign! Here are a photographer’s 5 best pieces of advice for those planning an engagement session.

Easy, memorable, and affordable, these wedding send offs are a great way to end your big day without breaking the bank!

Emma and Kurt’s Hillsboro, Illinois engagement session!

Katie+Kyle+Puppy = a great time. It's just simple math, guys.