How to Prepare for your Family Session and get Portraits You’ll Love

Your photoshoot in Hawaii

Are you thinking about booking a photoshoot in Hawaii? You’re traveling with your family to Hawai’i and you want to capture the magic of your vacation. Or you live here, and You’ve realized it’s been a year since your last family portrait, or many years, or you’ve never had one. Where do you start? I’m here to help you through this process so you can have the best experience possible.

 


Before the session


 

1. Research and find the right photographer for you.

 

Not all photographers are meant for every family.

You’ll want to look at the quality and style of their work, browse their website, read their reviews, and more. 

Questions to ask yourself:

  • Do you want a photographer that follows the trends or captures everything dark&moody, or light & airy? Or keeps the colors true to life? Do you like the fake and/or saturated skies that showcase the “wow” of Hawai’i, or would you rather it be more subtle? 
  • How much do you want to spend? Do you want to spend more and get personalized professional service, or are you on a budget and want to look for more of a high-volume or new photographer with less experience?
  • Do you want all portraits posed – looking at the camera – or include genuine interactions? (look at the photographer’s portfolio). I want to capture your family as happy, loving, and connected. The way your family plays and looks at each other, even if that means a hair out of place. I do include everyone looking at the camera smiling portraits, but not for the entire gallery. I want to tell your family’s story, more than what you look like in a pretty setting. But I do want to include the setting too, cuz, well, Oahu is gorgeous 😊.
  • Do you like the photographer? How would you even know if you like the photographer? When you book a photographer for your family portrait session, it needs to be someone you trust and get along with. Why? If you get along with your photographer, you and your children are more likely to open up and enjoy the session. Find someone you like based on what they post on social media, their website, and their communication with you. 

2. Decide on a location and time

Is there somewhere that is special to your family? Are the beaches at sunset what you want to remember about your Oahu vacation, or is it the dramatic green mountains? Or, if you live here in Oahu, do you have a backyard that you love or a favorite beach? Choosing a location you enjoy as a family will help ensure that you LOVE the images taken there.

Locations here in Oahu are a bit tricky because only specific beaches are permitted to have commercial activity, and some of the best ones require over $100 permit fees. This leads a lot of photographers to the same locations, but there are still some not-so-hidden gems. Your photographer should work with you to decide the best location for your family. 

Don’t worry if you don’t have a place in mind! Your photographer can help you choose somewhere based on where they’ve scouted and love, and often times they’ll know of a beautiful location that you would have never known. 

Regarding the time of day, most photographers prefer shooting during ‘golden hour,’ the hour generally before sunset or after sunrise or as close to as possible (here it’s more like ‘golden 20 minutes’). This is especially important here in Hawai’i because that sun is STRONG! The choice is simple: sunrise or sunset. 

Communication with your photographer is KEY. They will let you know how they can create the gorgeous images you see on their website for you, but you must also tell them about what will work for your family. 

3. Choose your outfits

Eeeek, have no idea what to wear for a family session? Maybe you haven’t even thought about booking a session because you have NO IDEA how to coordinate your entire family’s outfits. I remember being SO stressed when my husband and I had our engagement session, and I stayed up the night before trying on every outfit combination I owned. I picked out two outfits that fit me well, and I didn’t feel fat in them but weren’t well coordinated with my husbands.  This was 15 years ago, waaaay before I became a portrait photographer, and I’ve learned so much since. 

Choosing outfits can be one of the most stressful parts of scheduling a family session! I created a guide here that can help (it still needs to be updated for Hawaii), but if you book a session with me, I will go even further and give you personal guidance. I use a tool that can help you choose outfits and contain links to buy the outfits if you don’t already own something similar. All the stress is taken away! Most photographers can help with this if you ask, some more than others.

PLEASE, no characters or logos. Please. That’s all I ask 🙂 

4. Let the photographer get to know you

Many photographers (including myself) send a questionnaire before your session. Be open and honest and try to communicate as much to the photographer as possible! What makes your kids laugh, what makes you laugh, what kinds of playful things do you do together?  It might feel weird opening that much up to your photographer, especially one that you haven’t yet met, but it helps us do our job best! Knowing these things in advance can help your photographer create prompts for your session to help guide those genuine moments. 

Do your kids like games? Games such as hide and seek, chasing monsters, looking for bugs, etc? These are great for natural action shots. Every family has something that brings uniqueness to their photos; what’s yours? You can even bring or wear something personal to the session that you want included.

Also as an example, does your toddler LOVE a specific song? The photographer can play that song when you first show up to your session, easing the toddler in and getting him/her excited.

 

5. Prepare the day prior and day of

This includes SLEEP. Make sure you get enough sleep for your session. We all know how easily tired kids become cranky and less willing to go with the flow of the session.  Even if that means not staying up late the night before your session, as much as you might want to!

Make sure your family is fed well and hydrated. I don’t know about you, but I become very hangry if I don’t eat enough often, and my son is even worse! Bring your kid’s favorite snacks, and yours, just in case!

Mom – wear makeup, even if you don’t usually. At the very least, use tinted moisturizer and mascara. That will help even your skin tone and bring attention to your eyes. 

Remember to bring any favorite toys along. Also, a change of clothes and a towel for the car ride home, we usually get wet at beach sessions!

 


During the session


 

6. Relax and have fun!

It’s okay and normal to feel stiff and nervous at first; 97.36% of people are uncomfortable in front of the camera (and yes, that’s a scientific fact….j/k). That’s just your brain being a butt. Trust your photographer and go with the flow – you’ll gradually get less stiff, and it’ll be easier to be yourself. Try to forget the camera as much as possible, even though I know that can be hard. Focus on interacting with your kids while thinking about what you love about your family. Your photographer will guide you. 

7. Let your kids be themselves

This is not the time to be the strict parent – let your kids be themselves. We all know they can be….challenging…., but if they sense that you’re angry, the session only goes downhill from there.  Let them say all the poop jokes they want.

Another hint-  and this might be hard because it doesn’t come naturally – PLEASE don’t tell your kids to look at the camera while looking or making faces at them. I’ve had so many portraits ruined because a Mom (yes, mostly Mom), is making a weird face trying to get her child to smile, but the kid on their own was already giving me the best natural smiles. I will do my best to get their attention when it’s time.  

8. Lastly, turn your work “off” and be present

Moms and Dads can be guilty of this – Don’t think about your to-do list; don’t think about what else is worrying you. Keep your phone in the car. Be present with your family, and enjoy them. If you think it might help, on the car ride over, think about what life has given you. Imagine life without your family and how different it would be, and be reminded of the joy they bring you. Your portraits will turn out best if you feel the connection with them at that moment.


I hope these tips have been helpful, and if this post makes you think you might like me (I mean, common, cheesy, weird jokes thrown in there, who wouldn’t?), contact me so we can schedule a consultation!

 

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