How to plan your family session

Family photos are like a time capsule to the past. When planning, you want something that reflects your family and your unique personalities. So how do you choose your location, your outfits, and what your vision is for the perfect session?

When the Ponton family reached out to me, they wanted a location that was special to their family. For decades they’ve been traveling to northern Minnesota to a cabin, but they were worried it wouldn’t be the right place. I asked her to send some inspiration photos so I could plan the session that would best reflect their family.

The day of the session we had to shift some things around a bit, the weather was supposed to be clear but by the time we got there it looked like rain was in our forecast. We decided to just embrace whatever came our way and everything turned out to be the exact day we were looking for.

They wanted a fun and relaxed session, they chose outfits that they felt comfortable in and it felt like any other family day at the cabin. They walked along the beach, played together, and even brought bubbles to the swimming dock. They let the kids be excited and run out some of their energy instead of only having perfectly posed photos, the perfect way to help them remember their kids personalities in this specific time.

We did a mix of classic photos and individual photos that showed off each of the kids individual personalities. They had a blast just throwing rocks in the water and we even got some photos of them fishing- one of their favorite lake activities. This was such a special session, one that reflects their family and memories they will forever fondly look back on.

So how do you prepare for a family session? Choose your location- somewhere that means something to you and your family, somewhere your family cherishes, somewhere you’ve made forever memories. Choose your outfits- something that reflects your individual style. Choose your vision- something that says this is who we are. I love helping my clients create these memories that will be a postcard from their past and I always love when I get to a part of the session planning.