Family Session Prep Guide
You've just booked your session with Kirby LeAnne Photography, and you're super excited (so am I!). But you're probably wondering: "what's next?" This guide will help walk you through the steps you need to prepare your family for your photography session. I'm so excited to work with you and your family. If you have any questions along the way, please just let me know. I love to help!
First and foremost, my main focus is to capture your family in this season of your lives! I want to capture moments not poses. And I want to embrace all the beautiful imperfections. At our session we will play, adventure, snuggle, tickle, run, jump, and maybe even get a little dirty. We'll start off our session by getting that perfect posed photo out of the way. I usually like to do one standing and one sitting pose. And then we'll start our adventure. Be thinking of things that you like to do together as a family, little games or small things you want to remember.
Family Session Tips
My number one tip that I give to all my families: unless I specifically tell you to look at my camera and smile, don’t look me.
You heard right: don’t even look at me. Keep your attention on your loved ones. Snuggle in and stay close, soak in your child’s arms and breathe him/her in. Tell your husband a joke or tickle your toddler. Put your baby up on dad’s shoulders or swing around with your toddler, looking up at him. This is the time to spend time with your family and make some memories – all while getting joyful and timeless imagery of your family to look back for years to come. Treasure this moment.
Avoid threats and yelling - I know you want your kids to behave but no child has ever done well in a photoshoot after getting yelled at or had the threat of a treat being taken away. This is where having some stories, songs, or jokes ready will come in handy. If your child thinks they have to come sit still and smile they may conveniently turn off their listening ears. If you ask them to come sit with you while you tell them a story or tell them you have a secret and whisper a joke or silly nonsense words in their ear the session will go from feeling like a chore to feeling like a fun time with mom and dad!
Session Day: "It's finally here!"
Make sure no one is hungry before your session. If your session will be before dinner time, at least have a little snack. Hangry people don’t do well at photoshoots, whether they are kids, dad, or mom!
Moments over poses: after we get the posed everyone looking at the camera and smiling photos out of the way, you don't have to look at the camera anymore. You totally can if you want, but it's not required. I prefer to capture connection and real moments. You can totally pretend I’m not there and just play. I will guide you into general positioning and then you are free to enjoy the moment while I capture the interaction.
Always touching: be sure that you’re always touching someone. Whether it's a hug or snuggle, or just a tender hand on the shoulder. Make contact with your family. This shows connections and love.
Don't stress: if your kids are nervous or acting a little wild, that's totally ok! I embrace children in every aspect of themselves. We're focusing on moments, so a shy kiddo can get extra snuggles and a wildling can have extra run time. Most kids don’t have the attention spans to sit still, look exactly where they are told and have the perfect expression. That’s normal. That’s why we trick them into it a little bit. You can tell them a story, sing a song, tell a joke. Doing something that makes them want to look at you and makes them laugh will result in those perfect photos that feel like a memory. It goes from feeling like a chore to feeling like a fun time with mom and dad, THAT is what we want!
Bring extra “clean” snacks, bribing candy or treats if you aren’t above that — as in anything that doesn’t melt or get colors/dust all over faces and hands (ex: fruit snacks, smarties candies, goldfish crackers, carrots, apples = GOOD… doritos, chocolate, skittles, cherries = BAD) , water, and extra change of clothes in case someone gets too messy for the car ride home.
Have fun and don't stress!
Special Tips for Beach Sessions
Best Time to Photograph at the Beach
The most important thing to consider when planning a family beach portrait session is the time of day. Beach photo shoots heavily rely on the natural light, even more so than any other location. Which is why I only photograph families two times per day: sunrise and at golden hour, 30-60 minutes prior to sunset. Just those two times. This is because there is no open shade on the beach, and harsh contrast leads to dark lines and shadows on faces, which do not look good on anyone. Not only am I able to get that soft look and bright, clean style that it is common in my work, but I am also able to get gorgeous pastel-colored hues in the sky once the sun dips down below the horizon.