“The laughter, the fun, the hand-holding, the love.”
Things get pretty boring and lonely for a mostly outdoor family portrait photographer in the south in the month of July. For some reason, most people don’t think first of July as the best time to book family portrait sessions. I get it. It’s hot. SO HOT. And there are only so many clothes you can take off before it’s a different kind of photography all together. But it was perfect for this family session combined with a One-Year Cake Smash birthday session. ☀️😉
But this portrait session shows how perfect a July photo session can be, and I am so excited about sharing it with you. I generally love all my sessions, but once in a while, I get one that just feels like magic.
If you’ve followed me for a while, you can probably guess that those sessions almost always involve young children. It’s no secret that the 1 – 6-year-old crowd is my favorite to photograph and this beautiful family had an (almost) one-year-old, a four-year-old and a six-year-old. I had taken their photo with Santa last year at Spring Station Middle School’s Holiday Marketplace, and they loved the Santa photos so they booked a family session. (Yes, Santa and I plan to be back at Holiday Market this year.) July was chosen in order to celebrate sweet baby Reya’s first birthday with One-Year Cake Smash photos.
It is so important for me to get to know my clients because taking photos is such a personal thing for me. The first step of getting to know a client is an online questionnaire they fill out when they book a session with me. Casey did a fantastic job of giving me a head start in getting to know her beautiful family. The answers don’t have to be too long…just enough information to give me a feel for each family member and to help me envision how to capture them for who they are.
Before each session, I study those answers and make notes for myself as I plan out the session in my head. I note things like the fact that Monroe is very outgoing and loves soccer and dancing, while Everly can be shy and loves unicorns and all things pink and glittery. These little things may not sound like a lot, but they help me get a feel for the girls, and to guide how I connect with them at the session.
But the thing I loved the most about Casey’s answers, is that when asked what she wants to remember about her family right now, she said “the laughter, the fun, the hand-holding, the love.” I wrote that at the top of my notes because it just seemed to perfectly sum up my desire for every family session. I hope that she can see all those things in the photos below. ❤️
Watermelon instead of cake for a one-year cake smash? Yes, Please!
Oh, and I just LOVE Watermelon as a replacement for a one-year cake smash. Reya seemed to dig it too because she was LOVING every single bite of it. There is just nothing cuter than a naked baby eating watermelon. I enjoyed getting big sisters in on the watermelon eating fun as well. Do you think it would be weird to bring along a cooler full of watermelon to every summer family session from now on and hand them out instead of my usual suckers? 🍉
If you’d like to schedule your own summer fun family session, you can book online now (and feel free to bring watermelon!!). I can usually fit in a summer session pretty last minute. But please note, if you are like the other hundreds of people that really want Fall instead, those are selling out fast so don’t wait toFamily Portrait Session at Winstead Park with Epic One-Year birthday Watermelon “Smash”If you’d like to schedule your own summer fun family session, you can book online now (and feel free to bring watermelon!!). I can usually fit in a summer session pretty last minute. But please note, if you are like the other hundreds of people that really want Fall instead, those are selling out fast so don’t wait to
