I thought today I would dedicate my blog to settling your concerns about how your child or children might behave during a photo shoot with me. Depending on how old your kids are, how many of them you have and what their personalities are, you may be thinking, "I would love to get family photos taken, but that would be such a disaster."
Let me tell you: it'll be fine, trust me.
When my own daughter Evelyn was two, we wanted family photos taken. We used Studio 6.23 (out of Grand Rapids) who have been our beloved photographers since our wedding in 2009. I mentioned in an email that I was really concerned that the photos wouldn't go well because Evelyn was 1) really busy/fast moving and 2) absolutely disinterested in smiling for the camera or following directions (much to my disappointment at the time.) Ben's response was one that really stuck with me. He basically said that although they had some tricks up their sleeves, what they would definitely be able to guarantee me were some truly genuine, authentic family moments, even if that included the fussy, hungry, shy, tired or stubborn moments. He helped me realize that whatever pictures we got would beautifully represent our family just as it was at that moment in time. What I didn't have the foresight to comprehend at the moment, but now realize, is how precious that genuine and authentic window into our lives then would become to me as our daughter grew. (Also, our photo session went off without a hitch, Evelyn fell in love with Ben and Mindy, and we have some incredible photos as a result.)
This picture is one of my all-time favorite examples of what I'm talking about here. These two brothers sat down for a few pictures together during their family's session and this absolutely fabulous, highly authentic and impeccably genuine moment happened. While his older brother was distracted by the nice lady behind the camera, the younger brother seized his opportunity... and licked his brother's face. We all laughed at the time, but it quickly became one of my favorite photos from the session. Their parents loved it, too, and framed it on the wall of their dining room. I've highlighted this photo on my website and used it for marketing on Facebook. It's just so real that it catches your attention again and again.
In every photo session, there are going to be moments of stress and your child or children will probably not listen, or fight or pout at some point. The best thing to do as parents is remain calm and don't start letting your stress or anxiety show. When you stress, your kids will pick up on that and then the session really will get derailed. There may well be a moment where your older son grabs his little brother's face to keep him from putting a leaf in his mouth... and I promise that I'll include at least one of these gems in your final gallery because, let's face it, it will look GREAT in his slide show at his graduation party.
Your newborn baby will cry and fuss and not be sleepy like you want. But isn't the scrunched-up face just the sweetest thing ever? No, you don't think so now, but give it 6 months or a year and you'll be amazed at how sweet that tiny, helpless, crying face with the squinchy eyes melts your heart.
Your two year old will want to pick things up and throw giant rocks and run away. It's life. It's YOUR life, and that's the most important thing of all. It's why we're taking these pictures together in the first place. But if you stay calm and let me work my magic, there will always be plenty of really lovely moments captured as well. I promise you that there will ALWAYS be more photos that are lastingly lovely than not. So honestly, relax. It'll be fine... trust me.
