Kids & Photoshoots
You may look at my photos and think that everyone else’s kids look so calm and well behaved but I’ll let you in on a little secret… this is usually not the case.
Being a mum of two myself, I know first hand how testing it can be to get out the door with everyone dressed, shoes on, bags packed and on time for daycare drop off. Throw in ‘witching hour’ and wanting your children to cooperate and listen, more often than not, this can be why some people don’t get around to booking in an outdoor family photoshoot.
My family sessions are very much child-led. They tend to go at their own pace and that's completely fine. We want to capture them just as they are. We want their personalities to shine and their little quirks and characteristics that make them them come through.
Allow me to put your mind at ease a little and share with you a few of my top tips for family sessions with young children.
For younger children you could schedule your outdoor family photoshoot in the cooler months between April - October where the sun sets are earlier (sessions start around 4pm) instead of the middle of summer (sessions start around 6pm).
Don’t stress too much about the time of day. My outdoor family sessions are held at sunset for the most magical soft golden light and I understand that this is usually the dinner/bath/bed wind down period. But I promise, the kids are having so much fun they often don’t even realise it’s almost bed time.
Get the kids excited! I would talk to them about all the fun we are going to have on this adventure; exploring this cool new location, what animals we might see, games we might play, things we might find along the way. They will have your uninterrupted attention for an hour and will absolutely thrive on spending time all together.
Wait until you arrive at the photoshoot location to dress your children. Not only will this avoid any stains or spills from water & snacks in the car but it will avoid wrinkles and creases on their beautiful outfits.
Choose an outfit they are comfortable in and maybe include them in pulling their outfit together. We don’t want them trying to take their shoes off because they rub their ankles or pulling out the bow in their hair they didn’t want to wear.
Make sure they have full tummies and bring additional snacks and water bottles.
A strategic nap can help if you know they are usually tired in the afternoon.
Go with the flow and embrace the moment. This is probably the most important one! When I meet your kids, my aim is to become their new best friend for the afternoon. I immediately find some common ground with them based on your pre session questionnaire and I continue the conversation around how much fun we are going to have. Yes some kids can take a little bit longer to warm up than others and sometimes there are mid session melt downs and kids just being kids, so we just take our time and follow their lead. Try to keep your cool and laugh through it. In between the beautiful chaos are even more beautiful authentic moments of connection.
Bribery does help most of the time - a treat like ice cream or a Happy Meal on the way home can encourage most kids!
At the end of the day, whether your session is outdoors or in your home, we just want to let them be kids. The session will be full of laughing, playing, tickling, and snuggling, and this is how we’ll capture the REAL moments. Trust me when I say their personalities will shine.
I hope these tips from a fellow mum help put your mind at ease a little when it comes to booking in a photoshoot with young kids. I am now taking bookings for the cooler months, get in touch!
Check out some of my recent family sessions below xx