Advice for getting the most out of your family portrait session

Advice for getting the most out of your family portrait session

Life seems to speed up as we get older and busier. One minute your little ones are cute gurgling babies and the next they are teens! Luckily family photographs can take us back in time and preserve these precious moments that we are experiencing now for generations to come.

There are so many different types of approaches to family portraiture and you need to decide on the right style of photography and photographer for you and your brood. As for me, I would aim to create you a set of images that will tell your unique story. I’m not that sausage factory type of photographer that does the same old boring pictures at every single session. Nope I would love to work with you to create something special that you will hang on your walls and be proud of. Personal pieces of art that are emotive, artsy and out of the box!

Here are a few pointers to get the best out of your family portrait session

Choose a location that suits your family and tells your story

If you love the beach and that’s where your family loves to spend time, this totally makes sense as a location, however if you’re more of the city slicker types and hate the sea sand then perhaps an urban environment would work better? I’ve shot family sessions in private homes, on farms, in factories and rice paddies! If you work with me we will chat through different locations but the more information you give me about yourselves the better I can serve you

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Time of day

If you are going to be doing an outdoor location session it is best to shoot either very early in the morning or late in the afternoon. This is when you get that golden, soft and flattering light. When the sun is directly overhead Ie Noon it creates nasty shadows under the eyes which isn’t very pretty. I call it panda eye! A good photographer can of course use external lighting and other means to correct this, but it gets tricky with small kids who are running around and want to have fun and not sit in one place! The best time to take photographs is generally 90 minutes before sunset and 90 minutes after sunrise. If it is cloudy, the light is softer and it is actually a bit more forgiving.

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Plan your outfits

If you are going to all the trouble to commission a family portrait session best you plan your outfits so that they work well in the photos and with the location that you are using. The outfits you choose will also determine the over-all feel and style of the shoot. I would advise wearing something that suits your personalities and wont date in years to come. If you’re super casual it wouldn’t make sense to pull out that suit that only gets worn to weddings and funerals but if you love to dress up a family portrait session could be the perfect occasion. Definitely don’t include any crazy branding on clothing or wear outfits that will date terribly. Pick colours that work well together, you don’t all have to match but you don’t want to clash. Be careful of sideways stripes as they can make one look bigger. Click here to read more about this and see some examples of outfit combinations that have worked for my past clients.

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What do you love to do together as a family? Perhaps use this as a theme for your session. 

If you want to make your session really meaningful for you and also alot of fun, it might be an idea to actually include an activity that your family engages in on the weekends or free time. Bring out the surfboards, horses, bikes or even the chess-board if that’s a memory worth preserving.

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Creative 'UP' themed engagement shoot at the Luxury Oyster Box Hotel shot by top South African Photographer, Jacki Bruniquel

South African music artist, Guy Buttery,  Photographed by top South African wedding and portrait photographer Jacki Bruniquel in KZN indigenous forest

Have your hair and make up done

I always advise my female clients to get their hair and make up done for family portrait sessions. Unless of course you are into doing a totally real “day in the life of” documentary style session. But if you want to look your best a make up artist and a hairdresser will definitely help you along the way!

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Prepare your kids for the shoot 

Talk to your kids beforehand about the session but don’t train them to do that awful “cheese face” It’s way better to have them relaxed and natural and ready for some fun. Bribery goes a long way for small kids I have found, but only if they get their reward after the session is over!

Have lots of fun and be natural

The more relaxed you are the better the images will be – so play, run, jump, throw your kids in the air. Have fun with it! The more you interact with your kids the more natural and emotive the photos will be.

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Make sure your kids and you are well fed before the shoot and have some snacks on hand 

This goes without saying but hangry is not a good look! A full tummy will definitely result in happier pictures and less time waisted on snack delivery but it is always an idea to bring something along for just in case! Also don’t give your kids too much sugar beforehand – sugar highs and sugar crashes are real!

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Creative family shoot photographed by top South African photographer Jacki Bruniquel in Ballito, KZN.

If your kids are tiny tots here’s what I advise

You know that bag of tricks you have to haul around everywhere for just in case. Bring it along! This should include an extra change of clothes, some snacks and their favourite toys. Bubbles, and toys which make a noise that will delight them and will get them to look in a particular direction can be a great help!

Get the Grandparents involved

If Gran and Gramps are close by why not invite them along to get a few pics. This will probably cost extra as most photographers charge more for larger groups, but the photos will make wonderful gifts and will become a priceless treasure one day.

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Get your pets in on the action

If your pets are very special to you and your brood why not get them involved? Our fluffy friends don’t last as long as we do so it’s a great way to get some beautiful images of you all as a family.

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Family garden portraits with dogs, photographed by to South African photographer Jacki Bruniquel in Kloof, KZN

Make sure you have enough time to get ready

Don’t arrive late as you will be wasting precious time especially if the sun is going down!

Make sure you give your photographer all the information they need to make your shoot

A professional photographer will always ask the right questions but ensure they have the right address for the location of your session, the names of your family members along with ages and gender and any other information that might be important. I once photographed a family that had a little girl who was petrified of dogs – they wanted a beach session and unfortunately a dog arrived and it became a bit of a drama. These are important things to know.

And lastly. Don’t put this off for when you are thiner, fitter, more tanned, in a different house etc etc etc. Life goes by too quickly and there is absolutely no time like the present. We are more likely to regret the things we didn’t do than the ones we did!

If you would like to do a family portrait session with me drop me a line here

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Girl with Horse – Tegan + Anna

Girl with Horse – Tegan + Anna

My Father owned horses when he was young and told us countless stories of how he learnt to ride a horse bare back; he told us stories about galloping through the fields and holidays spent at the stables. When I was a litttle girl I always wanted a pony but my riding experiences were limited to outrides in the mountains on family holidays. At the ripe age of 36 I decided enough was enough and that it was time to fulfill my lifelong dream to learn to ride a horse properly, and so I begun to hang out at the Umdloti stables. This is where I first met Shelley and Tegan Knoop!

Shelley mentioned to me that she would like some pictures of her daughter Tegan with her beautiful horse Anna. Then she mentioned the words, creative, drama and art piece, and my mind started racing. I had a chat with my friend Drew Christie who is a wonderful stylist and hair dresser and he got EXCITED! I should have known then that a simple “Girl with horse” shoot was no longer an option, and simple had just flown right out of the door!

We decided to do three very different looks for this shoot all drawing on different elements of Tegan’s personality. One soft, dreamy and ethereal, one classic with show jumping riding gear, and one dark, mysterious and grungy. The very talented Charelle McAllister was called on to do make up and  and Drew did hair and styling. My wonderful assistant Tash and my fiance Stu helped with the photography side, Luyanda helped with the horse and Shelley ran around all day making things happen. Thanks must be given to Tracy Laubscher from Olivelli Durban for lending us the black wedding dress! As I am sure you can now tell, the “girl with horse” shoot was anything but easy and anything but simple, it was production but it was totally worth the effort! With all shoots of this nature you are only as good as your team and in this case I had a dream team!!

If you are a photographer and interested in techie stuff. I used my Nikon D4 with the 70-200mm  for pretty much all of the shoot. I only used natural light as we didn’t want the horse spooking and bolting off into the distance! This is the first proper photoshoot Tegan has done, she isn’t a professional model and she totally rocked it!!!!

If you would like to see a behind the scenes video about this shoot click here

Hair and Styling: Drew Christie 031 83 77 334
Makeup: Charelle Mc Allister 072 025 44 53
First Assistant: Tash Schoeman
Black Wedding Dress: Olivelli Durban
Groom: Luyanda
Huge thanks also to Stu and Shelley

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