How To Have a Successful Session

 I get asked this question a lot: What do I do if my child/children/husband doesn’t want to have his/her/their picture taken? And the answer is simple: bribery.

I am not opposed to that at all, and if it works, so be it.

Seriously though…be creative! If you can afford a new nice shirt for your husband, take him shopping with you to pick it out and surprise him with a nice dinner afterwards. If you can’t afford it, DO NOT WORRY! Make him wear what he has and don’t sweat it. Promise a Netflix and chill night if he will just spend an hour with you (and me) in front of my camera. I promise I’ll do my part too. Let me know if he likes sports, what team, or tell me what interests he has before we meet. I’ll try to do some research so that I can engage him in some conversation. OR not - some guys just aren’t into that, and that’s fine too! The main goal here is to get him to relax and be comfortable - or at least to give some good genuine smiles. And if we can’t prepare him for that, don’t worry. I have a few tricks up my sleeve to pull out when we are together that usually works, so no worries. :)

Children? Seriously. Jack Frost. After photos - ice cream. Candy. Whatever it takes. Bring some toys with you, something he/she likes. It’s ok to have toys in their photos. A blanket, a snack, a pacifier…whatever calms them, bring it. We will work with it. No biggie. If they just don’t get into it on the day of our session, we can always reschedule for another day. I’m perfectly ok with that! I’ve never had to do that, but don’t worry. It’s an option. And I won’t be upset if we have to do that, ok? Ok. Just try to avoid red juice and sticky, icky candy until AFTER the session. Again, you just need to trust me on this one.

What to wear - I say, stay away from the blue jeans and the same color shirts. That’s so 2008. Pick coordinating colors in the same color family and lay it all out on the bed, side by side. If it looks good there, it will look good in a photograph. Don’t use clashing colors/prints, and try to avoid shirts/tops with any lettering or words across the chest. That tends to “date” your photos and takes away from your beautiful faces and smiles. Solid colors mixed with prints can work well if they are well thought out and coordinate with each other. Again, just lay it all out on the bed and take a look at what everyone will be wearing. Look around Pinterest (search for “what to wear for photos”) and you will get a ton of ideas if you still need suggestions. Or, once you are scheduled with me, feel free to shoot me a text, email or message me more questions. I love to help!

LADIES - If you wear make up, wear a little extra to your session. It takes A LOT to show up in photos, and even though it may feel unnatural to you to have extra on, it won’t look that way. Bring your lipgloss or lipstick, a hairbrush, and a hand towel, just in case you sweat. It happens, and a small towel has saved the day more than once. A compact with some pressed powder isn’t a bad idea, either, especially on those hot, humid summer days here in the mountains.
Whatever you do, whatever you wear, just come as YOU. Be real. Be authentic. That is the ONLY 100% sure-fire way to make a photo session perfect! And AGAIN…trust me. (See a pattern here?) I promise ya. It will be A-OK! Let me capture personalities - the real, the perfectly imperfect, the crazy that is “life.” It’s yours to enjoy and one day, all you’ll have left are memories.

It’s ok if your photos are uniquely…you. It’s all about personality. It’s not about perfection.

So, to recap - let Pinterest be your friend. And if that doesn’t work, I’m just a phone call/text/email away.

See you soon!