Let’s Get Personal: My Makeup-less Engagement Shoot (a guest post!)

A few weeks ago I saw this post on Facebook (what do you know, Facebook brought some good) by Michael Munoz Photography. It was a gorgeous engagement session (his sessions always are) but what struck me was that the bride to be decided to go makeup-less for the shoot. Now, I have my own personal struggles with makeup and the need to wear it, but that’s not what this post is about. This post (a guest post from the bride to be, Shalini) is about empowerment and doing what you feel comfortable doing – even when it comes to your wedding or engagement pictures. If you would normally go without makeup, NOT dressed to the 9s, then why wouldn’t you do the same thing for your engagement pictures?

At the very least Shalini’s poss “My Makeup-less Engagement Shoot” gives us all something to think about, and though it was originally posted on the blog, Body Loving, I thought it was too important to not re-share here for my readers. A special thanks to Shalini for sharing and to Michael Munoz Photography for sharing his images from the engagement session!

Let’s Get Personal: My Makeup-Less Engagement Pictures (A Guest Post)

About a month ago, my fiancé, Scott, and I had one of those popular (read: overdone) engagement photo shoots. I spent the days prior considering what to wear, what image to portray. Cute and girly? Sophisticated and timeless? “Effortless” and casual? These are pictures that I hope to pass along to our future children and grandkids, so I wanted them to truly represent who we are as a couple.

More confusing than what to wear clothing-wise was whether or not to put on a full face of makeup and go for a “flawless” look or to stick to the bare face I am learning to accept. The ladies at Beauty Redefined have written about photoshopping ourselves out of reality, and I feel like when I wear enough makeup to create a “perfect” image, I no longer look like myself, and am indeed doing just that. It wasn’t until the night before the shoot that I decided: I want to look like myself in these pictures, “imperfections” included, because that’s the Shalini that Scott loves. I also didn’t want to spend an extra 40 minutes primping, or have to worry about getting concealer on Scott’s shirt, or having to re-apply makeup halfway through the shoot. These are often the reasons I don’t wear makeup on a daily basis anyway; it’s just so much easier to go without it.

I was a bit nervous opening up the photos last week, afraid that I’d look horrible, and that I’d made a poor decision in not giving in to societal standards of flawless beauty. I wondered, what if my grandkids remember me as ugly? But then I thought of the pictures I’ve seen of my grandparents in their youth, and it’s not their looks that I notice; rather, I see the love, hope, certainty, and excitement in their eyes, and that is the most beautiful thing you can witness in a couple. When I look at our engagement pictures, I see Scott and myself in our element, happy and goofy, and so in love with each other for who we truly are. I am lucky to have found a man who sees beauty in my “flaws” and has challenged me to see it for myself. I’m slowly starting to see the beauty, and for that, I am ever grateful, Scott.

I’m at a loss for words with how eloquently Shalini described the true importance of engagement pictures (and really, I am going to extend this to all of weddings in general). The love, the hope, the laughter, the emotions – so much more important (and classic) than the material side of things. So I turn this to you Romancers – would you go make-up less for your engagement pictures?

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