Finding the Perfect Location for your Engagement Session

There are two main things to decide with my engagement session clients: when and where. The “when” part is usually pretty easy to figure out, but often there’s a lot of back-and-forth needed when it comes to location!

My full engagement sessions include up to two locations, but they have to be within close distance to each other to stay within the 2hr session timeframe (for example, starting at the Venice Canals and walking right over to the beach). When we’re switching locations is also a great time to change into your second outfits!

I always ask my clients if they have a specific place in mind for their shoot (for instance, one couple held Griffith Observatory near and dear to their hearts, so they were set on doing their session there). However, most clients are pretty open to suggestions! Which is where the following list comes into play.

While some of the following suggestions are my tried-and-true, some of these I either haven’t had the chance to shoot at or maybe did video at a venue instead of photography, so I’m including some photos from other photographers. They are all credited in the captions! :)

A note about permits:

I’ll often hear other photographers talking about permits at locations, and many people think you can just “sneak” and get by without paying. I never advocate for this and like to go through the proper channels for permits. Most places will cite you if they catch you without a permit, and the fines are much heavier than the permits. Some places even go so far as to checking out geotags on social media to try to catch photographers who don’t follow permit rules. If you have a problem with paying permits, there are plenty of options for free locations.

Permit fees in SoCal can range anywhere $50–500 generally, so keep this in mind when planning your engagement session. These fees go towards keeping the property & grounds looking beautiful!

If you love architecture and gardens…

Greystone Mansion - Jeremy Chou Photography

Greystone Mansion - Beverly Hills

These grounds are absolutely stunning, and we can get a ton of variety within this one location so we can spend the entire two hours there without driving to another location.

Permit fee: $349/hr, issued two weeks in advance (cheaper if you’re a Beverly Hills resident)

Villa del Sol d’Oro - Becca Maas Photography

Villa del Sol d’Oro - Sierra Madre (Pasadena)

This location is absolutely stunning and makes you feel like you’re in Europe with Italian Villa-style architecture! It’s also a popular film location. You might recognize it as the high school in The Princess Diaries or the sorority house in Legally Blonde!

View a full engagement session at Villa del Sol d’Oro here.

Permit fee: $500 for 2hrs

Los Angeles County Arboretum - Pasadena

The Arboretum has lots of beautiful spots for garden/outdoor photos. The potential downside of this location is that the park closes before sunset in most months, so we’d have to do the shoot earlier in the day when the sun is higher (not my ideal).

Permit fee: $75 + $15/person admission

Griffith Observatory - Becca Maas Photography

Griffith Observatory - Central LA

I live pretty close to Griffith and have shot there a few times now, and I absolutely love it! We can start the shoot down on the trail/in the park then move up to the Observatory for golden hour. Alternatively, this is a fantastic location for sunrise sessions because it gets SO busy around sunset but is pretty empty for sunrise!

Permit fee: none

Kestral Park - Santa Ynez

This gorgeous outdoor wedding venue is a place of dreams with 19th century English-style architecture and accompanying gardens and fields. There’s a lot of variety, and you really can’t go wrong!

View a full engagement session at Kestrel Park here.

Permit fee: $750 for 2 hours

Pasadena City Hall - Pasadena

A popular location for photoshoots because of its gorgeous, clean architecture. There are so many nooks here to get tons of photo variety! You may also recognize the front as Pawnee City Hall (from the tv show Parks & Rec).

View a full engagement session at Pasadena City Hall here.

Permit fee: none

If you love the beach…

El Matador State Beach - Becca Maas Photography

El Matador State Beach - Malibu

This beach is so beautiful at sunset and has a lot of cliffs/rock to add some beautiful interest to your photos. However, this is the most popular beach in the Los Angeles area for photographers, and it can get crazy! For that reason, I can only shoot at this location for weekday sessions. Even then, it’s not preferable.

View a full engagement session at El Matador here.

Permit fee: none

Point Dume State Beach — Becca Maas Photography

Point Dume State Beach - Malibu

This beach has gorgeous dark rocks that I absolutely love. It’s ideal to shoot here during low tide so we don’t have to physically climb over the rocks to get to the good shooting part of the beach. There are also great opportunities for shooting on the cliffs at this beach!

View a full engagement session at Point Dume here.

Permit fee: none

Venice Beach - Venice

While El Matador is a great beach, it is always packed with other photo shoots. Venice is a great alternative as well! The sun setting behind the rocks is such a beautiful scene, and it’s easy to avoid other people as long as our shoot isn’t a peak weekend day (such as a summer Saturday).

View a full engagement session at Venice Beach here.

Permit fee: none

Bluff Cove - Palos Verdes

This location has amazing cliff views and a rocky shore. The sunset here is truly spectacular!

Permit fee: none

If you love mountains and open fields…

Malibu Creek State Park - Becca Maas Photography

Malibu Creek State Park - Malibu/Topanga

This is a great go-to location of mine, because it has a nice variety of roads/trails, fields, and beautiful mountains in the background. Plus it usually ends up being pretty secluded since other hikers and photographers tend to be pretty spread out!

View a full engagement session at Malibu Creek here.

Permit fee: $65

If you love the desert…

Joshua Tree National Park - Twentynine Palms

A southern California staple, J. Tree is such a fantastic place for photos! From desert sand, to rock formations, to those iconic Joshua trees, there’s so much to see. I love to just enjoy the nature here while shooting!

Permit fee: $120 + $30/car admission

Vasquez Rocks - Santa Clarita

Such a beautiful gem of a spot with amazing rocky landscape, just a short drive from LA! This is a fantastic alternative for couples who love the Joshua Tree look but don’t want to drive that far or pay the fees.

View a full engagement session at Vasquez Rocks here.

Permit fee: none

If you want more documentary/lifestyle photos…

Your home!

In-home sessions are super fun and often meaningful. For a lot of couples, this home is often the first one they had together, so they want to document this special place in their relationship. These are best in bright homes on sunny days.

Permit fee: none

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