Family Pictures Don’t Have to be a Nightmare Anymore

The fuming mother grabs the collars of her two sprinting toddlers and snaps them back into place. “No ice cream if you can’t sit still and say cheese!” she scolds. You can almost see the steam coming out of her nose. She thinks herself, why on Earth did I ever want to do family photos.

And I’m making pig and monkey faces, snorting and “ooh-ooh-ah”-ing to make an attempt at a laugh or smile or anything resembling a smile. Sometimes these tricks work, but this time the children look at me like I’m an alien.

This is the nightmare parents have about family portraits and why many parents – myself included – put off family photos for weeks to months to years to decades.

For years I struggled with photographing families. I didn’t have kids of my own, and had no idea how to consistently get a smile AND make parents have fun at a session instead of being stressed out and embarrassed of their children’s behavior. People (including myself) used to leave my sessions exhausted, frustrated, frazzled, and ready to punish their kids (if they hadn’t punished them already). About 75% of the sessions were fun, but the other 25% were pure chaos. They still resulted in great photos, but the experience the parents and kids had were comparable to going to the dentist.

7 years and two kids later, I cracked the family portrait and behavior code. I thought back to all of the portrait sessions that went smoothly and compared them to my own children’s behavior. It was then I realized what was working, why it worked, and what DID NOT work! I KNEW how to finally photograph families and children.

Why fight the energy these children have been keeping inside of them all day at school? Instead, why not harness the energy and use it as a benefit – and best of all – get moms and dads out of the humdrum of everyday life and make them feel more loved and appreciated by their children than they ever have. To make parents leave a photo session and think, THIS is why I love my family. THIS is why I am so proud of my kids. THIS is why I fell in love my husband.

And so I invented a brand new session and way of photographing families- the Family Ignition Portrait Session – and I use my “everyday fun” techniques to get families excited for the session, thrilled and invigorated during the session, and looking back on the day as if it were a mini vacation. The best part? It can work ANYWHERE. At your home. At our studio. In the woods or walking around uptown Butte – the concepts work the same, as long as you’re ready for fun, play, and are willing to do 10 minutes of homework before the session!

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