a mom and dad hug and look at each other while their two daughters swing fast on a swingset

The most stress-free family photos you’ll ever take

If the thought of family photos makes you break out in a stress sweat, you’re not alone. But what if I told you it doesn’t have to be that way? My documentary-style approach is built around making your session feel natural, fun, and (dare I say it?) actually enjoyable. In this post, I’m pulling back the curtain to show you exactly how I create the most stress-free family photos you’ll ever take, so your whole family can wake up on session day feeling relaxed about what’s to come. Heck, I’m brave enough to say I think you’ll find the experience so easy and fun, you’ll probably want to do it again every year! 

a mom and dad hug and look at each other while their two daughters swing fast on a swingset

The inquiry and booking process 

If you’ve made it here, you probably stumbled upon my website from a quick Google search or maybe you found me on Instagram and saw something you liked! However you discovered me though, it’s always a good idea to spend a few minutes getting acclimated with the style of photography I provide. My documentary family photography page is a great place to start as it lays out what it’s like working with me, and my documentary portfolio page is where you can see a visual representation of the type of moments I help my clients capture. I update my portfolio every year, so you’re always seeing the most up-to-date representation of my artistic style. 

When you feel ready to reach out about your own family photos, fill out the form on my contact page to get started! Most families book their session 2-3 months in advance, but if you’re hoping for a sooner date, reach out anyway and I’ll let you know my availability.

The very moment I receive your contact form in my inbox, I do a happy dance around my living room. No seriously… I really do! It’s the most exciting thing about my job knowing there are parents considering a documentary photo session to capture their memories in an authentic and unique way. The world is just a better place with more photos in it! 

Within 24 hours, I’m already responding to your e-mail to answer your initial questions. I’ll also send you a link to my calendar so you can pick a time for your 20-minute initial phone call to kick things off. If the idea of talking on the phone makes you cringe, maybe this will help: we spend 95% of the conversation talking about your family (your dynamics, personalities, and what you’d love to remember). The other 5% is reserved for going over my process + timeline so you know exactly what to expect if we work together. I have a firm “no BS” policy, so I won’t make you listen to any awkward sales pitches or pressure you (in case you need reassurance… I couldn’t even upsell apple pies at my McDonald’s job, lol). And because I know you’re busy parents, my pricing is extremely easy to understand and available to review before we even talk on the phone.

a black and white photo of a shadow of a family with two young kids holding their hands up in the air

By the end of our 20-minute call, most families feel ready to book, or they just need to double-check their partner’s schedule before committing to a date. I’ll send over an online proposal + contract so you can lock in your booking as soon as you’re ready! 

Last but not least, I will also send you a typed-out timeline for our project. I’ll let you know when everything is going to happen, including when your images will be ready. This is going to be super helpful if you need to communicate the process with a partner who might not have been present during the consult call, and to double check that the image delivery timeline works around things like holidays or other important dates. 

I’ve been working with families for 7+ years, and one thing I know for sure is that a quick phone call is the easiest and BEST way to make sure we’re on the same page & find a date together. But, I also realize we all absorb and process information differently; so if you have another reason why a phone call won’t work, just let me know and I’ll help in any way I can! 

Please know this: you DON’T need to feel 100% ready before reaching out to me. In fact, I’d say most parents are on the fence about one thing or another, they don’t know exactly what they want to capture, and they have a bunch of questions! But starting that conversation now means I can give you some clarity, help you brainstorm what a session could actually look like, and provide a clear timeline so you can start planning ahead.

Prepping for the session 

Once you’re booked on my calendar, the ball starts rolling fast! I’ll send you a link to my online client prep guide, which covers all the important FAQs like how to prepare your kids, ideas for your session, prepping your home + beyond. It’s full of easy-to-use advice that I’ve built over the past several years of photographing families in their homes and favorite places. But instead of a “do this, do that” checklist, it’s more of a guidance tool to help you think deeply about what matters to you, and HOW to put that front & center during the session. You get access to this link forever, and I update it periodically, so you’ll always be getting my most up-to-date advice. 

I’ll also send you an online questionnaire to fill out. This is the final piece in customizing your session experience. It’ll help me understand what types of things you love doing as a family, what we might need to be mindful of (including any kiddos who need a more specialized approach), and what details you’d like me to capture for you. Don’t stress about planning every moment though! Some families come up with a few small activities, and others want to capture one general thing (like baking cookies) and we mold the session around that. I often encourage parents to have a glass of wine and fill out the questionnaire together as a date night activity. I, too, will have a glass of wine while I read your answers… we’re all in this together, ya know!?

About 1 week before your session, I will send you the tentative session plan. I’ll use your input from your questionnaire, plus my recommendations, to put together a LOOSE idea for how we can structure our time together. If you want to take something off the agenda, or add a fun idea we hadn’t discussed, this is a great time to tell me! A documentary session is a very co-creative experience, and your input is the most important piece… it’s the secret sauce that makes the session uniquely yours!

A mom and a dad and their 11 year old son lounging on a tan couch in their living room

The Session – just another fun day!

If you ask any of my past clients, they’ll tell you that a photo session with me feels like a playdate. Just a bit  s  l  o  w  e  r  and with more intention, so you actually get to enjoy the memories with your family instead of feeling “put on” for the camera. When I first arrive, I’ll do a quick home tour so I can get an idea of your space, and so the kids (and pets!) can warm up. This also gives us a chance to put any worries or stressors to bed once and for all. 

Ready for the best part? You don’t have to clean your house before I arrive. Some of my favorite images have been made in lived-in spaces, with UNO cards scattered on the table and Fruit Loops on the floor. I love those little details because they reflect real life and give context to the special day you had. I’ll maneuver around anything I have to, so you can relax and focus on being present. 

From start to finish, most sessions last about 2 hours. This is actually on the shorter side as far as documentary sessions go (a lot of documentary photographers will do 4 hour, 6 hour, and even full-day sessions!) but for me personally, I love the happy balance between capturing a part of your day while also keeping the rest of your day free for other things.  On the other hand, I realize 2 hours might be much longer than any photo session you’ve done before, so you’re probably wondering what we DO for 2 whole hours! The answer is: whatever you like.  Imagine you had 2 hours of uninterrupted family time, with no screens and no distractions – what would you do together (baking? Board games? Twister? Gardening? Snuggling?) I’m simply there as an unbiased and judgement-free observer to document it artfully. My clients say it feels like hanging out with a friend who just happens to have a camera!

A mom and her 3 year old daughter laugh on the bed which has a bright red blanket

The extended session time is a huge help for kids and pets (and adults too!) to fully warm up to me and show their true personalities. The best images happen when everyone is unstressed and relaxed, so my main goal is to help you all feel comfortable and settle into a groove. I’ll keep us on track, laugh with you, and provide gentle guidance without overdirecting. And if you really that a camera-aware portrait where everyone is looking and smiling, we can certainly do that too – in your style, of course!

Doing activities you actually enjoy is going to be a huge help in making sure your images look like YOU, vs. looking contrived or staged. So when you’re brainstorming things you’d like to capture, don’t worry at all whether something is going to look good on camera… Just focus on having a great time, and I promise that will always give you the best final result. I know a lot of parents worry about how they’ll look in photos, but your kids don’t see the imperfections we do! They will only see how much they’re loved, and the way you made them feel.

Speaking of your kids – if you’re worried about how they will behave for 2 whole hours… don’t! I’ve photographed hundreds of kids – shy ones, wild ones, ones who refuse to wear pants — and there is no ‘bad behavior’ in a documentary session. But if you want your kids to be happy and the best versions of themselves, something that has a huge impact on the outcome of the session is to praise your kids OFTEN. Let them know that there is a fun photographer coming over (hi, nice to meet you!) but the main event is hanging out and enjoying time as a family. And when the inevitable happens and the kids start being kids, keep smiling through the crazy. I know it feels scary to let anything and everything happen during a session you’ve invested so much money on, but trust me, setting strict expectations or bribing your kids to be on their best behavior will backfire every time… and it’s not going to impress me, and it won’t make your photos better. Just enjoy your kids, love on them, and have fun together. I will handle the rest. 

A dad holds his newborn baby near the window while across the room a mom snuggles her 4 year old daughter in the bed

After the session: reliving the magic

As a consumer of photography myself, I can agree there is nothing better than getting that e-mail your photos are ready. There is so much magic in re-living all the moments again, and being surprised by the details you’d forgotten. It’s crazy how the images already feel like a memory even though the session was only a few weeks ago! And who can deny that incredible feeling of being so grateful – and so damn proud – that you took the brave step to book the session for your family. You did it. 

Because of this, I’ve made the photo delivery experience extra-special for my families! Instead of putting all the images into a gallery where you can view all the tiny thumbnails for the first time in line at Costco (or somewhere equally anticlimactic), I will put all of your images into a slideshow set to music. This way, you can queue it up on the big screen and make it a family viewing party, experiencing all your memories in full glory for the first time together. And you’ll definitely want to get out the tissues… because there is a high chance you’ll cry! Watch an example slideshow here.

The turnaround time from your session until seeing your slideshow is typically about 4 weeks, but I can provide a more accurate turnaround date at the time you book based on my current workload. In less busy times, like winter or the middle of summer, you might get your gallery even sooner! 

After you’ve watched your slideshow (probably 27 times, let’s be honest) you can submit your final payment right there in the gallery. Once that’s done, the full gallery with all of the images will open up – and stay open – for two full months. All of your images are yours to download, share, print, and keep forever. 

The gallery software I use has some pretty great features, like the option of sharing to your friends and family via e-mail, hiding images you don’t want other people to see, and creating favorites lists for organizing. Best of all, your gallery is linked to my professional print lab which is stocked with the highest quality products. I’ve hand-picked a selection of fine art prints, frames, and albums that are all durable and stunning ways to preserve your favorite moments. Most of the families I work with decide to invest in a photo album, which you can design yourself in the drag-and-drop software. Or better yet, treat yourself to the photographer-designed option with a vegan suede cover for something extra easy and way special!

A brown suede photo album, opened to a page that shows a picture of a little girl with her tongue sticking out

Making this a tradition

One of the biggest reasons why this is the most stress-free photo experience is the relationship we build. I’m not just here to take your picture; but to really get to know the core of your family, to be your family historian, and to ebb and flow with you as you grow and change over the years. Being flexible and rolling with the punches is how I capture moments with intention, and in a way that is personal to you. 

Because I value our relationship so highly, and because I want the BEST for my clients each time we work together, I created The Photo Club to make family photos an easy and seamless part of every year. It’s a yearly session subscription with an automated monthly payment plan, discounted pricing, and tons of perks so you can customize how your family is documented over the years.

In the base membership, you get a full family session each year, priority access to my booking calendar & first dibs on weekend dates (at no extra charge), discounts on products in the gallery store, and a couple special gifts throughout the year. There are some upgrade options available, like adding short sessions anytime you need it! The short sessions aren’t available to the general public, but because we’re already familiar with one another, it’s a seamless and easy way to capture things like maternity photos, kids’ milestones, or the excitement of getting that new puppy! It’s truly the easiest, set-it-and-forget-it solution to have a consistent and beautiful archive of family memories over the years.

A family with a young son and baby daughter reads a book in their bed together

Whether you’re a seasoned pro at doing family photos, or this is your first time even considering it, my goal is to make this as fun as humanly possible and ensure everyone gets the space to shine.

I promise to tell your story honestly, beautifully, and in a way that celebrates the best version of yourselves — whatever that may be. 

Family photos can become mini time capsules that will unlock memories for your kids one day. I want to make doing that 1000x easier for you.

I want you to be IN the photos, making fun memories with them, while you’re at it.

You in?

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