7 things you shouldn’t do during your family photo shoot

When you hire me to photograph your family, I’ll do a lot of things differently to what you might expect. It’s called Documentary Family Photography for a reason: I document. I don’t orchestrate, pose, arrange or request anything that you wouldn’t do if I wasn’t around.

Let me walk you through some of the things families might feel like they need to do before or during a photo session and how I’d respond to those.

Let’s start with a biggie!

I get it, you want nice photos of your kids but asking them to behave for me and my camera means they might feel weird around me. There’s nothing they’re not allowed to do on my part. They can run and scream or take some downtime or have a tantrum. As long as I get the feeling that they don’t mind me being around them, I will photograph what they do.

Because let’s face it… Raising kids isn’t always sunshine and happy days. There are tears and fits over “nothing” and while you may not think that you want photos of your children “misbehaving”, in a few years’ time, you might actually appreciate those images. They will show you how things used to be (the good and the bad), how far you’ve come or how much your kids may have changed over time.

There’ll be plenty of giggles and smiles for me to capture – just don’t ask your kids to perform them for me!

This one goes hand in hand with the first point. If you train them to say “cheese” or smile for the camera, your children will automatically do this in the future over and over. And the message we’re sending with this is that they’re only being photographed happy.

But I’m sure you want your children to feel like they can be whoever and however they want – that shouldn’t change just because there’s a camera involved

The aim of our session is not to capture you and your children in your Sunday best but in clothes that feel the most “you”. And while I appreciate that you don’t necessarily want stains all over your or your children’s clothes – it’s part of your life. Pencil markers, snot, food, dirt… You’ve seen it all.

Documentary family photos are not about capturing the most beautiful moments of your life but those that are the most honest. These images will mean so much more to you in years to come than an image where everyone is dressed properly, clean, and smiley. Because every little “fault”, stain or mark will tell a story of today.

As an extension of my previous point – this one if for you.

Again, I want you to feel confident and comfortable while I’m with you and especially once you see your images. But if you censor yourself during the shoot, constantly adjusting hair or clothes because you are worried about how you look on camera – this will transfer onto your photos. You will most likely look tense and uncomfortable so try and relax, enjoy the time with your kids and let me be the one to worry about how you look through my lens.

I won’t deliver photos that will look super unflattering, look inappropriate or unnatural. This is where you’ll have to trust me to do right by you. My aim is to capture beautiful photos of you and your children. But I also want to make sure you love looking at them without scrutinising yourself! I got you, I promise!

My family sessions last about 2 hours. However, I won’t drop everything after 120 mins and rush out the door. I’ll stay with you for however long I need, to get the images I know you’ll want. That can be 90 minutes or even up to 3 hours. It all depends on what we’re doing, where we are and how you all feel.

Usually there’s a natural dip in the day after a certain time. That could be after lunch when your little one(s) get ready for a nap or after an exciting afternoon outside when we get back home knackered. It’s my job to read the room and move with your family’s energy.

I do recommend not planning any other events too close to our session just so you don’t feel like you have to rush off either.

In preparation to your family session, we’ll most likely talk about which moments you’d like to have captured. If you’re unsure, I’ll be asking you loads of questions and am able to give you prompts or ideas as to what we should do.

During a documentary family photo shoot, I only photograph what you would do even if I wasn’t around. Usually, your regular schedule will give you some sort of structure. If not, I’m sure your kids will give you hints as to what they want to do once they lost interest in my camera. Just follow their lead and don’t worry about downtime while I’m around. Calmer moments are great for me to capture images of connections and cuddles.

And as an extension to the above… when you prepare for your photo shoot, feel free to have some activities in the back of your mind you can do but don’t try and plan too much. Follow your children’s lead or just let the rhythm of the day carry you.

It’s fine to prepare some games or plan a trip to the park but if you are trying to incorporate too many events or activities, the session might feel stressful to any or all of you which will not result in the images you’re probably hoping to get.

Trust that your family dynamic will take a course that feels natural and right to you and I’ll be sure to have my camera ready for whatever happens.