AI engagement photos
Pick a moment, add one selfie each, and see the two of you on a planned engagement roll: barefoot on a beach, at a bookstore window seat, crossing a city street under flash. Use it to try places, light and outfits before you book anything, or to make a save-the-date when a real shoot isn’t on the cards.
- One selfie each
- Free
- From $49
Eight engagement moments to start from
A moment is a ready-made brief. Choosing one sets the place, season, light and feel in a single tap and puts its pose first on your roll. You can change any of it afterwards.
Barefoot at the water's edgePose: Walking hand in handAI example · fictional couple 
Crossing the street, after darkPose: Candid laughterAI example · fictional couple 
A window seat in the bookstorePose: Sitting togetherAI example · fictional couple 
Wildflowers, late afternoonPose: Sitting togetherAI example · fictional couple 
On the overlookPose: The classic embraceAI example · fictional couple 
Laughing in the snowPose: Candid laughterAI example · fictional couple 
At the ranch fencePose: Side by sideAI example · fictional couple 
Among the rosesPose: The whisperAI example · fictional couple 
Out on the rowboatPose: Sitting togetherAI example · fictional couple 
Under tall trees, by the fallsPose: Hug from behindAI example · fictional couple 
Joshua trees at sunsetPose: Side by sideAI example · fictional couple 
Between the vines, almost a kissPose: The almost kissAI example · fictional couple 
The skyline at blue hourPose: The classic embraceAI example · fictional couple
What goes into an engagement roll
The studio paces an engagement session in chapters, the way a photographer would pace an afternoon. Choose as much or as little as you like; whatever you leave open gets planned for you.
Arriving
Walking in, warming up, getting used to the camera.
Golden hour
The light everyone books the session for.
Close and quiet
Foreheads, whispers, almost-kisses.
Playful
Twirls, piggybacks and the laughs in between.
Second look
A change of outfit for a second set. Appears when you add a second outfit.
After dark
Flash, city lights and a little champagne. Optional, for an evening set.
- Where
- Beach & coast, City streets, Cozy indoors, Ranch & barn, Lake & waterfront, Garden, Mountains, Wildflower field, Forest, Desert. Under “More places”: vineyard, city rooftop, coastal cliffs, snowy forest, forest waterfall. Or type your own, like the coffee shop where you met.
- Light
- Golden hour: low, warm sun, morning or evening.
- Overcast and soft: even, flattering light on a cloudy day.
- Rainy, with an umbrella: wet streets, reflections and a shared umbrella.
- Blue hour: just after sunset, deep blue sky, the first lights coming on.
- Night, with flash: direct flash after dark: crisp, candid, a little editorial.
- Season
- Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, or winter with fresh snow on the ground. The season changes the leaves, the ground and how warmly you’re dressed.
- Feel
- Candid, Playful, Romantic, Editorial, Vintage film, Black and white. The feel decides which poses get picked: candid leans on in-between moments, playful on movement, romantic on close framing.
- What you each wear
- Each partner picks their own outfit, or you start from a coordinated pair in the outfit lookbook. Add a second outfit and the roll gets a second set.
- Extras and roles
- Ring close-ups, and your dog (from one photo of the dog). Each of you is a bride, a groom or a partner, in any combination.
Three steps, selfie to contact sheet
- 01 · Choose
Tap a moment, or name a place
Start from one of the eight moments above or type somewhere of your own. The brief shows up as chips (where, season, light, feel) that you can tap to change.
- 02 · Add faces
A front-facing selfie from each of you
Take it in the browser or upload one. Partner somewhere else? Send a join link: they add their selfie from their own phone, with no account, and the link lasts seven days.
- 03 · Shoot
Shoot the planned roll
The plan is free: eight moments, one collection, each with a short direction like a photographer would give, mixing close and wide framing. Untick any you don’t want; each moment you shoot uses one photo from your package. Buying a package asks for an email, never a password.
What comes back: proofs, then the ones you develop
Proofs first
Every frame lands on your contact sheet as a proof of about one megapixel, big enough to judge faces on a phone. In our tests the first proof of a roll arrived in roughly 30 seconds and a six-frame roll filled in under two minutes.
Develop the keepers, free
Developing re-renders a proof at about four megapixels (1824 × 2288 for a portrait frame) using the proof itself as the only reference, so faces, pose and background stay where they were. On six test proofs, the developed versions kept the composition at 0.96 structural similarity; re-running the same prompt at full size scored 0.21, which is a different photo. You can develop up to half as many photos as you buy (photos and retakes together).
A favourite steers the roll
Heart a frame and the next frames in the same place, light and outfits use it as an extra reference, so the colour and setting hold together like one afternoon. Across 23 anchored test frames it never copied the favourite’s pose.
Colour or black-and-white film
A warm colour film finish is applied after each frame is rendered. Flip any frame to black and white in the viewer; it costs nothing and nothing is re-rendered. A frame that fails to render isn’t charged; a reshoot (closer, new light, new pose) uses one of your package’s retakes.
Emma & Jordan’s contact sheet
Emma and Jordan don’t exist. They are the fictional couple we test the studio on, made from one selfie each, wearing the cream wool coats look in an autumn vineyard and on coastal cliffs.
Walking the rows 
The twirl 
Almost a kiss 
Laughing 
On the cliffs 
Cheek to cheek 
Foreheads together 
Over the shoulder 
A whisper 
Almost a kiss, in black and white
All ten frames are AI-generated and show fictional people. The last is frame 03 with the black-and-white finish.
Will it look like the two of you?
It’s the first thing couples ask, so here’s what we measured on fictional test couples, and what we can’t promise. For the longer story on reference photos, read our guide to AI wedding photos that look like you.
One clear selfie per person was enough
From a single front-facing selfie each, our test bride and groom were recognizable in all 28 poses we rendered, judged by eye. A two-groom couple came out the same, and so did a two-bride spot check.
Turned-head selfies help side-on poses, a little
In ten profile poses, adding a selfie turned to each side didn’t change whether a pose worked, but it brought details like beard density, hairline and freckles closer. Worth adding, not required; until you do, the planner leans toward poses that face the camera. Turn your whole head so one ear shows, not just your eyes.
Facing the camera matches best
Kisses, profiles and wide shots where faces are small carry less of you. Frames that look straight into the lens are the safest pick for anything you print.
What your reference selfie should look like
- Your face straight on, filling most of the picture
- Taken recently, with today’s hair, glasses and beard
- Soft, even light, like a window or open shade
- No sunglasses, and nothing across your face
- Only you in it, not a group photo
About our face check
Each frame is scored against your selfies by open-source face models (YuNet finds faces, SFace compares them). It runs in shadow mode: it records a score and does nothing else. It doesn’t reshoot, block or refund frames, and we don’t use it to promise a frame is you. Profiles and faces under 40 pixels wide can’t be judged reliably, and our fairness tests found it confused look-alike strangers more often for some skin tones than others. Until that’s fixed, you’re the judge: if a frame isn’t you, reshoot it.
AI engagement photos vs a real engagement shoot
They do different jobs, and we’d still book a photographer for the engagement session if you can. It’s rehearsal in front of the camera with the person who’ll shoot your wedding, and the pictures are of a real afternoon. AI earns its place before and around that shoot.
| AI, from your selfies | A photographer’s session | |
|---|---|---|
| Where and when | Any of the places, seasons and light above, in one sitting | One real place, on one day, in that day’s weather |
| Cost | From $49 for 24 photos in 3 collections | About $200 an hour, typically 30–60 photos (Thumbtack, 2025); sometimes part of a wedding package |
| Turnaround | A plan instantly, proofs within minutes | A session of an hour or two, then several weeks of editing (Thumbtack, 2025) |
| Likeness | Built from selfies: usually you, sometimes off | It’s you |
| Practice for the wedding | None | Yes, with the person who’ll shoot it |
Where AI helps around a real shoot
- Try a beach, a ranch and a snowy forest before choosing where to shoot for real.
- Test outfits together, each of you picking your own, before buying anything.
- Show your photographer a few frames of the two of you in the light and mood you want.
- Make a save-the-date when a session isn’t possible: long distance, a tight budget or a short engagement.
What engagement sessions and wedding photographers cost, by source, region and guest count: wedding photographer cost.
Using an AI photo on your save-the-date
Save-the-dates are where AI frames are most practical: the card needs one strong picture, often months before any session could happen. Choose a frame where you both look at the camera, develop it, and download it into whichever card design you use. The studio makes the photo, not the card or its lettering. If guests ask, say it was made with AI.
Will it print?
A developed portrait frame is 1824 × 2288 pixels. At 300 pixels per inch that is about 6 × 7.6 inches, enough for a 5 × 7 card (trim a little for its slightly narrower shape) and plenty for a 4 × 6 postcard. Undeveloped proofs are fine for an emailed or texted save-the-date.
Engagement photo prices
Planning is free and a shoot is the only thing you pay for. A planned set is eight moments, one collection; each package covers a number of collections, with retakes included for the photos you want to try again.
| Package | Photos | Retakes | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engagement session | 24 (3 collections) | 12 | $49 |
| Engagement, the full shoot | 48 (6 collections) | 24 | $79 |
| Engaged to married | 96 (12 collections) | 48 | $149 |
Prices in US dollars. Photos that fail to render are not charged. Unused photos stay in your account and work for any occasion. Developing favourites to full size is included, up to half the photos and retakes you buy.
Questions about AI engagement photos
Can you make engagement photos with AI from two selfies?
Yes. Here you need one clear, front-facing selfie of each partner, and nothing else. If you are apart, one of you sends the other a join link and they add their selfie from their own phone, no account needed. A selfie with your head turned to each side is optional; it helps a little with side-on poses.
Will AI engagement photos actually look like us?
Usually, but not every frame. In our tests with fictional couples, both people were recognizable in every pose we rendered from one selfie each, judged by eye. Frames where you face the camera match best; kisses and profiles carry less of your face. If one comes out wrong, reshoot it: a reshoot uses one of your retakes. We do not promise likeness, and our automated face check only records a score for now.
Should we use AI instead of paying for an engagement photographer?
If a photographer fits your budget, book one: an engagement session is practice in front of the camera with the person who will shoot your wedding, and the photos are of a real afternoon. AI is cheaper and faster for trying places, light and outfits, showing your photographer what you like, or making a save-the-date when a session is not possible.
Can we use AI engagement photos for our save-the-dates?
Yes. Pick a frame where you both face the camera, develop it (free) and download it into your card design. A developed 4:5 frame is 1824 × 2288 pixels, about 6 × 7.6 inches at 300 pixels per inch, which covers a 5 × 7 card. The studio makes the photo, not the card.
How much do AI engagement photos cost here?
Planning a session is free. You pay for a shoot, in collections of 8 photos with retakes included: Engagement session $49 (24 photos in 3 collections, with 12 retakes); Engagement, the full shoot $79 (48 photos in 6 collections, with 24 retakes); and Engaged to married $149 (96 photos in 12 collections, with 48 retakes). A photo that fails to render is not charged, and developing favourites to full size is included.
Plan your engagement roll
Related: engagement photo poses, what to wear.