Having family photos taken can be a little stressful, especially if it your first time or with multiple young kids. It doesn’t have to be. This complete guide to family photo shoots will help get you as ready as you can be for your family photo session.
- The Kids are in Charge
- Parents – Listen and Keep Smiling
- Photo Shoot Locations
- Coordinating Your Outfits
- Family Photo Shoot Posing
- Adult Sibling Posing
- You’re Going to have Great Memories Captured
1. The Kids are In Charge
First thing is first, the kids are in charge. The kids don’t need to know that, but parents and photographers need to accept it. You are not going to get good photos if you are making the kids do something they don’t want to do. For babies it could be a certain way they are being held, and for pre-teens it could be that you are making them hug their sibling that they were just arguing with in the car.
If your kid wants to go do something over in a different are, go over there. If they want you to put them down, put them down; or if they want you to pick them up, pick them up. Every family is a little different in what is going to work and what isn’t. Honestly, each day can be different with young kids. If you go into your photo shoot and just make sure your kids are staying happy, everyone will be happy.
2. Parents – Listen and Keep Smiling
When you are doing a photo shoot with the kids, don’t constantly tell them to smile or what to do. If you are directing them the whole time, that doesn’t look good in photos either. You don’t want the one time they laugh or to smile be right when you are not looking happy too. I always like to tell the parents, or all the adults in a group, that they need to listen because most likely the kids won’t be listening to me. If you are at least smiling it is better than having a cross face telling your kid to smile or something like that.
3. Photo Shoot Locations
When choosing a location or locations for your photo shoot, it can be a little trickier than just a photo shoot for just a couple. Here are a few things to consider:
- With a family you may not want to drive as far as you might be okay with if it were just you and your partner. There are more people that may need to use the bathroom, or even just get irritated for a longer car ride.
- The kids may not want to walk around too much or too far, especially if it is during the hotter or cooler months depending on your location. Remember, we want the kids to stay happy as long as we can.
- A location with something fun to do or something to climb on could be entertaining for the kids to keep busy and smiling. Tip: Make sure you don’t go somewhere with rocks or trees that you are not allowed to climb on if they are going to want to do that.
4. Coordinating Your Outfits
I always say you do not need to all match for your photo shoot, but coordination is key. Consider coordinating your outfits with not just each other, but the landscape or background that you’ll be in. You also will most likely display some of the photos in your home, so you’ll want the photos to look good with your home décor and wall colors.
Comfort is something else that is so important for all of you, but mostly the kids. If a frilly itchy dress is going to make your little one uncomfortable, there probably won’t be much smiling. Also, there is no need to dress everyone in clothes that are too cold for winter months, or too hot for the summer months. Make sure you consider the time of year for your photo shoot because the outfit options change from season to season.
5(a). Family Photo Shoot Posing
Posing is going to look very different for every family. Every age range of kids is going to be different from the next. For example, a newborn baby can’t be moved around too much, but a two-year-old can be held in all kinds of different ways. My biggest tip for posing is going to be to just be yourselves rather than try to exactly mimic photos you find on Pinterest. Genuine laughter and interactions together are going to be a lot more memorable to look back on.
Here are some general posing ideas to think about:
- Hugging: Having your arms around each other in various ways is going to keep everyone nice and close.
- Laughter: If your kids are at the age where they are going to laugh at your jokes then keep them rolling. Or ask your kids to tell a joke. Another good way to make them laugh is tickling and kisses. You know what is going to work best for your family.
- Getting at different levels: If you want to pick up your kid and throw them on your shoulders or spin them around it can create some fun photos. If there is a fence or a bench that some of you can sit on and some can stand next to, that also is great to break up the height differences. You don’t want all of your photos to be you standing in a stagnant line the whole time.
- Get on their level: Often with families there are going to be adult sized people and much shorter kids. Crouching to get at their level can be another way to get your heads all close to each other to interact with them more closely.
- Games: Depending on the age of your kids, games can be fun to get their mind off the camera and to get them laughing. Something quick like tag, hide and seek, or even ring around the rosy can be super cute for photos. If there is a game that is there favorite, it almost always works to cheer them up.
5(b). Adult Sibling Posing
You have decided to have a photo shoot with your siblings to surprise your parent. Shooting as a family with kids and shooting with siblings after you have all grown up can be very different. Once you are all grown up it can be easier to work with in the sense that adults will listen, but how to actually pose a group of adults? Every sibling group is going to be different. The key is going to be yourselves and don’t be afraid to be silly. Lots of jokes, laughing and hugging are what is going to make your parents melt when you give them these photos. Walking together or even running can be fun to mix it up.
Something else that can be fun is to recreate silly photos you took as siblings when you were a kid. Everyone has at least a few very awkwardly posed photos from when you were kids together. Pull that up on your phone to show your photographer and it will be so fun to see the then and the now version!
6. You’re Going to Have Great Memories Captured
Once your family photo shoot is done, no matter what happened, you had great memories captured to look back on. If one of your babies was crying the whole time or wouldn’t smile once, that is okay. Family sessions are not going to go perfectly every time so don’t take it too seriously.
Nine times out of ten parents are astonished by how many good photos were captured during their session. Especially when a baby s being fussy, parents tend to think there was not a single good photo, but there will be. I promise!
Let me know if this complete guide to family photo shoots and these inspiration photos helped you get ready for your family session. Remember, keep smiling and just be yourselves. That’s how you are going to create beautiful genuine photos that you’ll look back on forever.
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