Family Session
Fort Wayne, Indiana
10/2020
“Let us find magic in all the little things in life.”
I love family sessions. They are filled with chaos and imagination, laughter and cuddles. The opportunities for precious moments really are endless. Notice how I didn’t mention Pinterest or perfect once. :) I have found that the experience can be fun for each and all- you and me- when communication is open and expectations are understood and set far before the session even begins.
To do this- I’ve learned a couple tricks that really, really help in creating this type of atmosphere for all. It all starts with communication. In every email I send to families, I ask parents to bring their kid’s favorite things which I lovingly refer to as “comfort objects”. I call them this because as natural as picture taking may feel to me, it’s quite a foreign concept to children. For my daughter- she had something at every stage of her childhood that was her most favorite thing. When she was 2- it was a stuffed lamb named Chopper. When she was 3- it was a blanket named Dotty. And when she was 4- it was a bright pink fox named Coral. As I’m sure you can imagine- having something to cuddle and reassure them while they build confidence in front of the camera goes a long way.
Another thing I always include in my emails to you is a questionnaire. These questions and your answers to them are designed to help me to get to know your family. They also open a dialog to so much more. Such as- creating a shot list, picking a location and outfits, understanding personalities and family dynamic, etc. It really helps me create a complete flow and vision of your session in my mind. It is also my hope that getting you thinking about all the details will help you to feel engaged, involved, most importantly, excited for your session.
So-- when this sweet Momma returned the filled out questionnaire within 24 hours of receiving it and pulled “Mr. Bear-Bear” out of the car to introduce him to me, I couldn’t have been happier. I knew that we had already done everything to pave the way to a magical night.
As you can see it turned out to be exactly that. From now on- I’m going to live by the quote above and I’m going to invite you to do the same. “Let us find magic in all the little things in life.” It truly is all around us. It is there every time I sing a song or wear bunny ears that brings a sparkle to a child’s eye or a smile to their face. Help me find and create more magic!
-Yvette Cherie