You are about to have a blast making beautiful memories of a special time in your life! Below, you will find information to help you know what to expect and how best to prepare for your portrait session.
What to Expect from your Photographer
After contacting me about your portrait session, you will be sent a contract with directions and links to pay your non-refundable retainer fee. The contract is sign-able online, as is payment. The contract and retainer fee secure your photoshoot. Twenty-four hours before the session, the remaining funds will be due. All of this is done online so when we meet face-to-face have all the business out of the way so we can get down to fun part!
My heart for your portrait experience is that you would walk away glowing inside from all the fun and joy you all had together. Family portraits are about YOU and all that makes your family special! There will be moments of silly laughter, your kiddos’ precious sense of humor, maybe a little rolling around in the grass (depending on your location and wishes for the session) – but above all, it should be fun! So no stress!
Depending on your package selection, there might be multiple locations. We always start at an easy place to connect, then go from there. If you selected multiple clothing changes, we usually find a public restroom for those changes.
If your kids are into a certain sport or music activity, give me a heads up and we will incorporate those elements in the portraits. I LOVE creating a session built around the unique elements of the individual and group interests of your family so know that is my joy to work with you on some ideas for that!
What to Wear
Be comfortable Select outfits that will be comfortable for each member of the family. And if you have a little one who might have an accident, have a back up change for them. I know some kids out there who are never comfortable in itchy clothes (no matter how cute that sweater is) so be mindful first of getting the family comfortable so I can capture their natural, easy smiles.
Weather Wise Along the lines of comfortable, select clothes that will suit the weather for the day. I’ve taken photos where the family was dying in the late August heat (bundled for Christmas card photos) and well, they looked the way they felt!
Don’t match, blend! Don’t wear the exact same color. A sea of black shirts sort of gives the appearance of a multi-headed glob! Wear complimentary colors, but not all the same. Select one or two people in the group to wear a pattern, while the others take plain colors.
Shorts & Skirts If you have a little girl in a dress or skirt, select a matching pair of tight fitting shorts to pop under that dress. It’s a lot easier than fussing with her clothes during the shoot (makes her self conscious) and much easier than editing out My Little Pony undies in every other picture… which I have done on many occasions!
Cement that hair Don’t be afraid of hair spray. Wind and weather do some crazy things to hair!
How to best prepare on the day of your portrait session. These are my suggestions so you can have a stress-free, happy family portrait experience:
1. Don’t plan other activity for the day. Let your family portrait session be the main event for your schedule.
Especially with kids, over stimulation can decrease their ability to relax and then it is all the harder for me to get those natural smiles we all love so much!
2. Make sure everyone has eaten easy on the tummy and blood sugar happy foods. Hypoglycemic subjects rarely give great smiles! Same goes for kids who get carsick or got too much sugar right before. Whatever you know sets everyone up to be their happiest, most relaxed selves – do that!
3. Bring some back up sweaters or changes of clothes in case of spit up, potty accidents, or a plop down in a field where the grass is a little wetter than expected.
4. For little kids, in the middle of potty training, an extra potty chair can be a lifesaver. With the natural settings, sometimes we aren’t super close to a bathroom. Let me know if that is a concern.
5. Bring/wear shoes suited for the selected location. If we are trekking around a spot like Cuyamaca lake, wear hiking boots and change into the cute ones for the photos. I don’t mind waiting and it will make your experience a ton better!
What to Bring
- Child essentials (diaper bag, outdoor shoots can trigger allergies so inhalers or medicine can be helpful, whatever each child needs)
- Snacks
- Sippy cups or water bottles
- Wipes for messy hands or other messes
- Bobby pins (the wind can give hair a mind of it’s own!), hair brushes/combs
- For teens: extra face powder with a mirror in case of excess shine while we trek around in the great outdoors
- Stroller or wagon if we have a long walk (depends on your selected location and how many “child essentials” you are lugging)
- Backup clothes and a sweater (during the chilly months)
Life into Art – Your Portrait Session Products
Within two days of your portrait session, you will receive a sneak peek of your portraits. Within two weeks you will receive your gallery link. Within the gallery, you can select from digital downloads, prints, fine art prints, canvas, and metal prints. These products are self-fulfilled, meaning you can select and order them from the gallery on your own. The products below involve design and special order from me; to learn more, unfold each accordion below:
Cards & Calendars
If you are looking for custom announcements, invitations, or holiday cards, depending on the style of card, these start at $50/25 cards. Contact me to learn more about all the fun shapes and layouts we can do with these personalized cards!
Grandma’s favorite gift was always a personalized photo calendar! Calendars, like cards, come in a variety of layouts and paper kinds. Let me know what you’d like and we will make it happen! Custom calendars start at $50.
Albums
Albums come in a wide variety of styles! From accordion mini albums (which are a great gift when you want to remember a number of people who participated in a special event) to heirloom, leather-bound, lay-flat albums perfect for wedding and anniversary memories. There’s many choices and we can find the one (or ones) that are just right for you! Contact me for more information!
Ornaments
Ornaments come in a variety of surface choices:
– heavy weight loft board
– metal
– ceramic.
The flat ornaments are my personal favorite, but round, ceramic ornaments with a single flat side for design are available as well. If you are celebrating a wedding, anniversary, or family reunion, contact me for pricing and design options that are available when ordering a set.
Wall Art
If you are the type who will schedule the portraits, take the portraits, and then do nothing with them (you are not alone!), let me help! I can help with wall collage design from scratch or from an existing collage!
Framed portraits are also one of my favorite wedding party/family gifts! It is a really nice way to say “thank you!” to those who have poured into your wedding day.
I’m happy to help get your beautiful portraits framed and where they belong for their fullest enjoyment! Contact me for custom printing and framing service design and pricing.