Family Portrait Session Planning
FIND your style.
Vibrant. Authentic. and Inspirational - our 3 words that best describe our studio. We’d love to learn what 3 words describe your family and help tell that story with you. Email, text or direct message us your 3 words and we’ll tell your story by creating senior portraits that are beautiful and uniquely you.
Ideas for your words: Playful, Loyal, Adventure, Athletic, Sporty, Relaxed, Fun, Serious
PLAN your outfits.
This is the fun part, and we love to help out! Go shopping in your closet first because you know how these clothes look and fit. Then, add in new items as needed. Here are some of our top tips:
Choose clothing for the family that is all in the same tones. Mix black and white if you plan to do a very modern look, otherwise keep the whole family in clothing of similar shades so the eye will be drawn to your faces. Similar shades would be gray, navy and maroon or light blue, white and light gray.
You can go with simple solids or incorporate patterns. One fun thing to do is use a scarf or a child’s dress print to pull colors for the rest of the family. This gives great color harmony and allows the clothing choices to be more varied and playful.
Keep in mind the colors of your home decor. If your home is neutral with pops of bright colors, choose clothing that will complement. We can help you do this by coming to your home or texting images of your rooms.
For parents: Guys should be comfortable. Button-up shirts are a favorite because they can be more dressy or casual. T-shirts, zip sweaters, polos and jackets are all options for men and boys as well. For ladies, fitted jackets, jeans and heels are nice. Tunics and kimonos photograph easily. Keep in mind that short and fitted dresses can be tricky with posing, but if you want to show your figure, go for it. Accessories are always nice to add in - necklaces, scarves, fun shoes.
Kids should be comfortable. Bring extra clothing in case something gets messed up or doesn’t fit. Boys often balk at uncomfortable pants and new shoes. Bring some backups. Little girls should have diaper covers and avoid shift dresses that tend to ride up. Long, twirly dresses are always nice.
Unless the whole family is in light colors or all in white, avoid white. Putting white with brights is a typical combo in dressing for every day, but can be distracting in portraits.
Avoid glass in glasses. If it’s possible to do contacts or have the glass removed from your glasses, this is very helpful for the portrait session. Sun darkening glasses are particular difficult to shoot with.
Check out this pinterest board for more ideas. Feel free to make a pinterest board of your own and share with us and click on our family portrait gallery here.
SELECT your sets.
Picking the sets, backgrounds and locations is an important part of showing who you are. When we plan your outfits and discuss your session goals and ideas, we'll customize your session location or background just for you. We can travel around the city, meet at your home or shoot in our Shawnee studio. Our natural light studio has over 100 different sets and background options so you can choose bright and vibrant, traditional, simple or vintage to fit your style.
EXPERIENCE your images.
We offer a special time for you to view and choose your portraits with us in our studio, so we can help you with the decision making process. This is a wonderful opportunity for you to view all of your sweet, loving and playful family pictures. It's all about you and your family
CREATE your products.
During your portrait viewing, you can create custom products that are just for you - books, framed and matted portraits, holiday cards and digital collections - all with your own personal flair.
We are a wall portrait and album studio. It is very important to us that the priceless memories we capture for you are preserved in print. With over 20 years experience, we’ve seen the digital age and the changes in technology send unprinted images into obscurity. With that being said, we are happy to consult with you at our studio or you home to plan for portraits and outfits that will match your decor and tell your family’s story. We do also know that digital files are fun to have and share and we provide a digital copy of every portrait and album image purchased for social media and digital archiving.