Need to buy the children more clothes – check, preparations for the next school year – check, visit the new park with the children – check, arrange for the family portraits to be updated – not checked.
Too often we think about booking a family photo session but we neglect to check off the next step and actually make the booking.
Sadly many of my clients will wait months if not years, before they will actually make the booking. By that stage, the kids have grown older or you missed the actual reason why you were planning to make that booking in the first place.
I get why if can be difficult to make that booking. As head of the household, it can be downright busy making all the arrangements. There is the car that needs to be serviced, the kid’s annual dental check up to be planned, school visits to meet the teacher.
There is barely enough time in the day to meet all your family commitment, let alone plan and book a family photography session. However, the hesitation to booking a family photo session is generally down to worries or uncertainty that you might have.
I am an experienced portrait photographer, photographing many couples around Canberra and surrounding areas. I am therefore here to answer your questions to address any concerns that you have – so ask away.
Five reasons why you have been putting of booking your family photo session
Here are the top five reasons that my clients tell me are the reasons why they have put off booking a family photo. None of these are likely to be a surprise to you.
1. You’re worried the kids won’t behave
What is one of your biggest concerns when you leave the house whether it is to go shopping or go out for dinner? The toddlers will have a meltdown or your baby will throw up over you.
This is the most common reason why clients postpone or delay having family portraits. The potential embarrassment from kids not behaving or cooperating is just so great that families are happy to wait until the kids are older.
I am a father of two teenage kids. I know firsthand that kids are not going to be on their best behaviour each time they leave the house. I have also photographed plenty of families where the children are either shy, grumpy or just not being their normal self. By the end of the photo session, we are generally best mates.
Experience tells me that I need to be on my game at each photo session as I do not know which type of child is going to turn up. Ready for every occasion.
My see my role as your family photographer to:
· Put every single family member at ease;
· Keep the session going in the right direction, yet relaxed and fun
· Be ready for anything and expect the unexpected!
· Get to know the whole family and what makes your family tick – this happens well before the photo session occurs.
I can’t guarantee that the photo session will not have its up and downs or be super-smooth the whole time as we navigate the sometimes challenging behaviour of kids.
What I can guarantee is a Family Photo Session with me is a fun experience where you get to relax, reconnect as a family, appreciate each other and be yourselves..
2. You (or your partner) hate having your photo taken
What is more awkward than someone thrusting a mechanical box in front of your face and expecting you to pose!! I get it…. Not many of us in the world today enjoys having their photo taken. We all feel nervous about this because we aren’t used to having our photo taken in a family photo session scenario.
With everyone having mobile photos most of us are just used to the occasional selfie. Now there is this pressure, to be super awkward as someone tries to pose you.
However, with my photo sessions there are no cheesy statements like smile for the camera or worse still, there are no fake poses that make you feel like a runway model. My sessions are fun and full of candid shots.
I am a natural at capturing those natural moments between yourself and your children. Partly as I like to take the time to get to you, your partner and your family, find out what is special and what makes your family tick. This makes it so much easier to capture those special moments. Best of all there will be no need to bribe your partner.
3. You are worried you’ll not like the finished photos
One of the reasons that hold a lot of my clients back from booking their photo sessions is the great unknown about the quality of the finished products.
Photography is an investment. These are photos that you will place on your walls for a very long time. Therefore, you want to look fabulous, you want your kids and your partner to cooperate and just be cute and adorable.
I can guarantee that you will love the photos from our photo session. If not, I am happy to re-shoot the session when it is convenient for you.
I know that you are after those genuine moments that parent’s share with their kids. These are the photos that you will treasure for an eternity.
My best advice that I can give prospective clients before any session is do not be put off by how your children are behaving on the day of the photo session. Just roll with it! I have this ability to make even the most stubborn of children turn into wonderful angels to ensure that we get a selection of fantastic images from the day.
4 I am so busy that I have no free time – for booking a photographer and planning a family photo session, let alone for the photo session itself
All mothers are busy and struggle to find time given that they are running from one kid’s activity to the next. There just does not seem to be enough hours in the day.
While every parent wants super fun photo shoot to document important milestones, unfortunately it is my experience that these photo sessions sit on the to do list for years.
I get that arranging a photo shoot can be overwhelming for some people. Like where do you start as there are so many photographers in the Canberra market.
Well you have done half of the hard work already by coming to my website. From here you can:
· Book a non-cheesy consultation call to me where we can have a casual chat to see if I am a good fit for you;
· Book the session with me and leave all the arrangements to me – this includes location setting, advice on best clothes to wear and also best time for the photo session;
· A session with me will be super chilled and relaxed and can be combined with a family outing therefore not taking any extra time impact for you and your family,
5. Should not I wait to we move house or renovate our home
A growing family can sometimes mean house renovations or upgrading to a new house.
This is a big one for my clients. Sometimes it is not limited to a growing household, but you simply want to wait until your youngest child has grown out of the terrible twos.
These are just excuses.
Kids grow up so quickly that you are missing fantastic opportunities to capture those special moments with your kids. It feels only yesterday that my kids were at school. Now the eldest one is at university.
Let me into your family’s inner sanctum to capture all those beautiful moments so that you will have many memories for years to come.
Call me for a non-salesy consultation to discuss your photography needs.