even though it doesn’t feel like it yet, these are the old days

Let’s start here. Imagine yourself looking back at your photos 10, 20, 30 years from now. What will be important to you then? Will you be more concerned with how perfectly posed and behaved the children are or will you want to look back and remember what this season of life really felt like? Since you’re here reading this, my guess is the latter. Here’s how we achieve that.

1 - enjoy one another’s company

2- what to wear? oh, just be yourself

There is no wrong answer here. If you want to wear matching outfits, that’s great. Have a common color scheme? That’s great. Allow everyone to dress like themselves? That’s great too. I always wear a solid t-shirt when we get family pictures, because I want my kids to look back and remember the real me, the daily dad outfit circa 2023.

OR dress like this guy and embarrass the kids.

3 - we will try our best to get the perfect shot

4 - and then we’ll capture the chaos that ensues

It’s not always chaotic, but when it is we embrace it

5 - choose a sentimental location when possible

If you’re new to the area or visiting, no worries. The fact that we’re taking photos here will make it sentimental.

6 - let the kids be kids

If they need to hold a stick to smile for the photo, by all means let them hold the stick

misc things to note:

I typically start every session with the more formal portraits in a nice shady area to ensure we capture everyone in a nice soft light.
From there, our session will slowly devolve into full candids, so feel free to have an activity ready, whether it’s yard games, changing into swimsuits and jumping in the lake, cracking beers and throwing steaks on the grill, or all of the above.
Transition lenses will likely look like sunglasses. I’m perfectly fine with this, but if you’d prefer to avoid it consider bringing a regular pair of glasses.
Feel free to jump behind me and be a cheerleader for the little ones!