Me, my husband and our three boys had our annual family photo session in the last couple of weeks with another photographer. I wanted to capture our family before my eldest is way too cool to have photos done 😉 And I wanted to be in the photos- not only because usually I am the one behind the camera, but also for them to look at when they are older- perhaps with their children! (Scary thought!) Maybe you have decided you want to capture how your family looks and feels right now. Perhaps you have had a new baby during lockdown or, like me, your little ones are just growing and changing before your eyes. It is understandable that you might have some concerns about arranging a photo session with social distancing measures still in place. Whether you choose me or another photographer I wanted to share my thoughts on why I think now is a great time to arrange one.
Get Outdoors
A photo session is as much about the experience itself as the photos. To add to the sense of having a family adventure or walk together, my sessions always run outdoors. I have a long lens which means I can always remain 2 metres apart- this isn't a Coronavirus adjustment- just a lucky coincidence! Being outdoors allows your family the space to breathe and connect with each other in plenty of fresh air and space. This is particularly important if you have toddlers or young children who have bags of energy to burn! Its a great opportunity to get outside together and explore somewhere new. All the images in this blog are from a recent session with an 8 week old (gorgeous) little boy. The great thing about my natural, baby led newborn sessions is that I can replicate the exact same session workflow outdoors with social distancing in place as I would indoors. Using an outdoor location provides so much variety in your final gallery of photos. We can move around and explore different settings. I will find the best spaces for the light and, particularly if you choose an evening session, the light will change and provide you with an even more diverse gallery! We can take advantage of beautiful trees, flowers and skies to frame and enhance your photos.
Flexibility of Time
Right now we have a bit more flexibility with our time than we usually would have. The children aren't in school, a lot of us are working from home, we don't have as many social events, weekends away or holidays in the diary. So we have a bit more scope to book in a session -even midweek or in the evening. The recent photo session that me and my family had was on a Wednesday evening. The boys were so excited to be running around in a field instead of having bedtime stories or getting ready for bed! And excited boys equals joyful photos! Win.
Connections
This year has been testing for us all in different ways. The lockdown has forced us to revaluate what is important and to spend more quality time with our loved ones. Our connections have been affected in the most bizarre way- worrying about how close is too close to be to other people, and not seeing our friends and family for several weeks and months at a time. The one thing that has remained close is our immediate family. Having been through this time together, and spent so much time with each other, we are likely to be closer than ever. Having photos taken and printed to keep forever is a really special investment to capture that, for you and future generations.
What sort of photographer am I?
I offer laid back, relaxed photo sessions capturing real connections in artistic photos for your family and home. My aim is not to capture posed photos of everyone looking at the camera and smiling (although I usually catch one or two of those to give to relatives!). My aim is to capture how your family looks and feels at this point in time in honest emotive images full of love, laughter and even some chaos!
I am currently booking for Heather and Autumn Sessions- you can find the links for more information and booking in the menu bar at the top of the page. Feel free to leave comments or questions 🙂 Helen x
