Oh how excited I am to share this session with you guys! I can't even tell you how much I adore these people and this session! It's definitely in my favorites...the colors, the location...it all just came together so nicely!
If you're on the fence about booking a summer session, I say do it! I thought I'd give a few tips for booking a Summer Family Session that will help you have success with your little ones or pets.
1. NAPS FOR LITTLES...(+ maybe Dad too ;) ) Typically in the summer you will want to get close enough to that golden hour as possible, which unfortunately for little one's is right around their bedtime. To avoid having them overly tired and cranky, try giving them a nap a few hours later than usual so that they are up happy and energetic for your session! 2. FEED THE CHILDREN!
There have been many times where families come and they plan to grab dinner afterward. I HIGHLY recommend having dinner prior to our session and just going for dessert afterward. Hangry..ahem...Hungry children will not enjoy having their photo taken. Hangry children = frustrated children = frustrated parents and that's just now how I like the experience to be!
3. BRING THEIR FAVORITE SNACK or TOY
Bringing something they love helps them to feel comfortable if it's the first time I've taken their photos, or the first time in a while. Usually I'm able to hold it for them and they will look toward the camera / smile because of that. If they don't have something special then bring a snack. Smarties for little one's (use your own judgement on snacks that are age appropriate) work amazing because they aren't gummy, they're small enough to be held without being seen and they melt quickly!
4. STAY HAPPY + PATIENT
I try to always tell my families that if they want amazing photos, we follow the kids lead! Don't get frustrated. No one knows what goes on behind the scenes of a session, no one knows your child wasn't obeying you or was crabby or _______ fill in the blank. I'm going to play with them, I'm going to follow them around and do my dead level best to get you amazing photos. Sometimes that takes a little bit to get them to warm up to me. THAT"S OK! One sure fire way to make a session go south is by throwing out threats like " OK! YA DID IT! NO ICE CREAM" 😂 Try to stay positive and really just let me do my thing! 9/10 times I get awesome photos! 5. ENJOY THE EXPERIENCE! I always think of how blessed we are to have children and how many Husbands /Wives would give their right arm to have to wrangle children during a FAMILY session! Slow down. prepare your outfits a month out so that you don't have to stress about it, go barefoot if that relieves stress... you want photos to hang because your children are growing ever so quickly or because they're already grown and you want the grandkids in pictures...Don't lose sight of that when we're photographing! It will all work out, you WILL get the photos you want and wouldn't it be better to look back on the experience with love instead of "Oh man, remember how little Johnny was screaming because he was hungry?!" I hope these tips were helpful! If you want to share more, leave them in the comments or on social media! I'd LOVE to hear them!
