1. Check Your Travel Route in Advance
And then leave 10 minutes of wiggle room too! We all know CT highways are notorious for jams, and the last thing we want is to have to cut our session short or rush through these beautiful candids!
2. Fitbits and Transitions Lenses
Apple watches and Fitbits are glued to us day in and day out, so much so that we forget they're even there, but most of us won't want them in our photos. Also, try to remember to keep cell phones and keys out of pockets to avoid weird lumps! And finally, while transitions lenses are super convenient for blocking out the sun, we do want to see your beautiful eyes during our shoot.
3. Participants Only Please
Because I need your full engagement during our session to get these intimate moments, I ask that you don't bring extra family or friends to our shoot to watch (not counting Mom during senior portraits). While some think this could be comforting, it almost always is much more of a hindrance than a help and breaks the ambience we need to create some magic together!
4. Pets
So I will totally level with you here — As much as I absolutely adore dogs, I've learned that my type of photography just isn't really compatible with them. My style is much more intimate and organic than your average photoshoot (which I'm sure is why you wanted to book with me!), though this means that I do need your full attention to get you fully immersed in the shoot, and all of your limbs available, which doesn't usually work out well when you're tethered to your furry friend for an hour. If you're more into photos with simple posing that would more easily accommodate your pets, I can definitely recommend photographers who cater to that style of work!
5. Styling and Advice
After skimming through my style guide and inspiration boards, you're totally more than welcome to ask me for advice, show me options, or even have me help search for pieces with you, because I absolutely love to help. However, please don't wait until the last minute! If I'm asked the day before our shoot if something clashes, we may not have enough time for me to give you very useful feedback.
6. Ordering New Pieces
If you decide to order anything new, make sure you do this ahead of time as well! I hate hearing that the pretty dress you just ordered is coming two days after our shoot, which means you'd need to choose between either finding a different last-minute outfit, or doing a full reschedule :(
7. Iron New Clothing, Especially If It Just Came In The Mail.
That's it, that's the whole rule.
8. For families: Candids Rock!
Remember, the majority of my family sessions are very candid and lifestyle-based, so we want to break away from the traditional mindset of making everyone sit still and "smile at the camera!" (though occasionally I may ask them to look at me!) I find it's also great to let parent #2 in on this method as well, so that we're all on the same page and can just get right into the fun!
9. For families: Bribery
And finally, I usually recommend having a game plan if things go awry. By letting kids take the lead and have fun we're already taking good measures to avoid this, but sometimes things still happen! Pumping kids up ahead of time about how much fun these photos are going to be + making it a positive experience usually does wonders, and even having some ideas about treats post-shoot is a great backup option as well. If you think they might get hungry, you can totally take a snack break (and breastfeeding intermissions are 100% welcome, and even a beautiful photo-op for those comfortable!)
One thing to potentially avoid is using screen-time as a bartering tactic. In my experience, once the smart phone is out, it's hard to take away again!
One thing to potentially avoid is using screen-time as a bartering tactic. In my experience, once the smart phone is out, it's hard to take away again!