I hate my engagement photos. Advice?

May we see a visual?

You definitely got jipped, honey! You need to call that photographer and tell them to send you the raw unedited files if you paid her anything.

I'm sorry you had to deal with this. I would start looking for a new photographer and really look at reviews. Ask them to show you a full wedding that they have shot. not just the few promo pics they usually have on website. I have my photographer in instagram so I see their photos go up every week. gives you a little more of an idea of their quality. Also you might even be able to find a photographer in your budget that includes engagement shoot in their wedding package. Good luck in your search

Can we see a couple?

This is the one where she cut out flyaways, and our heads are all jagged.

He's talking to me in this one

The first photo looks like you guys are photo shopped in the scene!?

I'm super nervous about our engagement pics. We take em tomorrow!! Yikes!!! But if your unhappy with them you should definitely talk to the photographer. They might not give you all your money back but maybe a partial refund. If they don't just threaten to yelp them...jk. But you can not use them for your wedding pics.

And I'm talking in this one. I realize I'm probably just being nit picky but I take family photos a lot, and I've taken photoshop and photography classes. And these mistakes that she made are so easy to avoid, and they're just not something I want to send out to my friends and family. It just seems lazy, not even like she's untalented. I'm more disappointed, maybe hate was a strong word.

It does look a bit photoshopped. Were these taken outside or in front of a green screen?? No shade real question.

They were taken outside

With all due respect, using the engagement session as a lab rat test for the wedding shows lack of vetting and due diligence on the front end. Someone's style doesn't just change overnight. And more inexperienced photographers are all over the map or changing regularly. But their lighting, technical, and post-production skills shouldn't get worse. How did you qualify this person? When hiring a wedding photographer, the whole idea is to have no doubt this person's work, style, and personality will bring the goods. By the time a couple hires me, they've scoured my work and are sure the documentary approach is for them. If they want Pinterest and staged, they're looking in the wrong place. These look like composites and like "Photoshop effect" experiments gone wrong. I'm sorry you're going through this, but you have to ask yourself, did you look through her engagement photo work and see consistently good photos to your liking? ( Not just a few dubious decent ones). Or did you pick her because of price? Because the latter scenario is what shows. Before you can move forward, you have to identify the root of the problem. Not just that these are inadequate.

The only one that looks iffy is the first one. The rest of the photos are actually quite beautiful. 100% staged photos are actually not the best. I think what your photographer was trying to do was capture you both in raw element. The use of natural light is also stunning. It's just the first photo that looks out of place.

I agree with PP. They are beautiful except the first one is a bit awkward

What did the photos in her portfolio look like? If they look the same and you didn't ask to see it or failed to think that the same thing would happen to you, you really can't be mad at anyone but yourself. If the portfolio looks completely different I would demand a refund or a redo, and if you think the portfolio was plagiarized I would look into local photography associations or something that you can report her to.

At any rate, be honest with how you feel and before you hire a new photographer look at his or hers portfolio and ask for references. I had a friend who did wedding photography and she had previous brides who, in exchange for a discount, were willing to personally tell you about there experience.

That first photo is so weird because you guys look photoshopped into that scene haha, like your weather people standing in front of a green screen. The second one is cute!

They look great

They are cute pictures, but don't look professional. But try not to worry so so much about not being able to do a "trial" run with another photographer. Meet with some. If they're professionals you'll be able to look through hundreds or thousands of pictures they take. Ask enough questions and talk long enough that you get a feel for their personality. You can find a great photographer without having them do your engagement pictures.

I think the one with you talking is adorable. But I like more candid shots.

Oh, and @Kylee C., this may be due to ignorance but "jipped" is politically incorrect.

I don't think they're horrible, honestly; I"d use them for engagment photos, but I'd keep looking for a wedding photographer.

Look at entire albums not cherry picked images.

And while an engagement shoot is good to see if your personalities mesh, it's not such a great indicator of wedding work; a wedding is totally different, with a rapid time line and ideally, your wedding photos should tell a story, not just random photos, which is what these look like.

Cut down in other areas and interview some really good photographers. I don't necessarily think that engagement shoots should be used to pick your wedding photographer, and the truth is that lots of couples don't even do them but still manage to get great wedding photos.

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