THE TALK : HOW TO PREPARE FOR YOUR IN HOME FAMILY PHOTOGRAPHY SESSION

I’m pretty old-school, folks. Every year for almost ten years, a day or two before every session, I’d hunt through the “note” pages of my paper planner to find “the talk” – that little bulleted checklist of “things to things to think about” and “how to prepare” items I run through with each of my families before their sessions. It’s really important that I help you prepare for your in home photography session, especially if this is your first time. Every January, I’d manually re-copy that list into the current year’s planner. Last year, I did something crazy — I typed the list out, printed it, trimmed it down to the size of one of my planner pages, and used a glue stick to fasten it in to the back of the book.

See? I can evolve.

But this year it occurred to me: why not share this list digitally … on the good old blog? So crazy high tech! (And why didn’t I think of this sooner???)

Here it is … in all its cryptic glory. I flesh this out with my families on the phone before every session, and we chat through all the little things they might be worried about. This is one of several steps in my families’ session prep that ensures we’re all feeling relaxed and comfortable on the day of the session.

For funsies, I thought I’d make this a little series here on the blog. Grab your pencil with me, and let’s mimic that satisfying “check” motion as we browse through the items, shall we?

(If you don’t have a session scheduled with me and are just poking around trying to get a sense for what I’m about, what are you waiting for? Drop me a line through the ‘contact’ tab above).

Timing/Rough Game Plan

This is going to depend on:

the time of year (sunrise/sunset;

the age of your kids; and

whether any of your photos will be outside. Lots to balance, so phone is the best way to chat.

House

Your home is where your story happens. We talk about how to prep (or not) so that when you look at these photos years from now, your memories are in sharp focus on this authentic backdrop. There are a million ways to say this – one of my favorites is HERE.

Kid Behavior

This is an important one! (I talked about it HERE).

The Talk

Pets?

They’re part of the family, right?

What to do if …

You don’t know where to put your hands … or you’re not sure what to do … I give you an idea of what kind of direction you’ll be getting from me.

Grown Up Prep

That psychology I mention with kids works on grown-ups, too!

Clothes

Everyone’s favorite — what to wear! I’m not a stylist and I want you to do YOU, but I do have some guidelines for you to keep in mind.

Newborn Thoughts

Special considerations for the littlest family member? Of course. I chat about some of those HERE.

Questions/Concerns

Anything I didn’t cover? What’s the latest covid protocol? This covers all of that.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this behind the scenes look at this phase of my session process. As you can see, much of the “work” work to make a family photography session at home run smoothly is done in advance. Don’t worry – I’m here to make it easy. Check back as I update each item on the

Thanks for looking,

~Jaye