Scheduling Your Session

You can choose to have your portrait session take place in the studio, in your home or at one of the beautiful parks or gardens in the area. I would be happy to provide recommendations.

Sessions typically last one hour, with your child’s needs always coming first. (Please note that newborn sessions may take more time, as newborns are especially unpredictable, and their needs tend to require more time and attention. I will, however, try to keep the amount of time spent to a minimum, and ensure that the experience is not stressful for you or your baby!)

When deciding on a time to start your session, please take your child’s nap schedule into consideration. For most children, mornings are their happiest and relaxed time of day, so I recommend scheduling your session around 9:00 or 10:00 am (after they are fully awake but before their lunchtime hunger or afternoon sleepiness set in).

What’s the Best Age to Capture?

Honestly, all of them! No matter when I start photographing their children, my clients always say that they should have hired me sooner. The first year, in particular, goes by extremely fast and the changes are greater than at any other point in your child’s life. I highly recommend scheduling sessions every few months during that year, starting when your child is a newborn.

The newborn “look” is unique and only lasts for a month or two. Your child will never again be this tiny or this fragile, and whether this is your first or your fourth child, you do not want to miss having this special time cap- tured by a professional. As for scheduling this first session, you may either schedule a tenative date in advance (I suggest picking a date approximately two weeks past your due date), or have your partner contact me after the baby is born. Either way, I suggest that you have me come over as soon as you feel up to it. (Note: Almost all newborns experience “baby acne” and “cradle cap”, two skin conditions that usually appear between three to six weeks of age and clear up on their own after one or two weeks. You may either reschedule your session when this appears, or accept it as part of their journey!)

Other milestones not to miss during the first year:

2-3 months: Baby is now mirroring your facial expressions, “cooing” and flashing their first smiles. The “new- born look” is gone, as baby has gained weight, roundness and a few rolls to go with it. While babies of this age cannot sit up on their own yet, they can lift their head up and can be safely propped up in various positions.

6-9 months: My absolute favorite time to photograph babies, and one not to be missed! This is when babies are really showing their personalities, can sit up on their own, flash many different facial expressions, and are at what I call the “peak of their chubbiness”. This may also be the last time that they sit still until their thirties!

One year: What a milestone for all of you! Your baby is on his or her way to becoming a toddler, so I like to fo- cus on what is still “little” about them, as well as their attempts to become mobile. I am also available to cover your child’s first birthday party, or at the very least, I can incorporate a few “cake” photos at our session.

When to Reschedule

If your child becomes ill before our photo session, please contact me as soon as possible to reschedule. Illness is difficult to disguise in photographs, and we both want your child to look and feel his/her best. If your child has a minor visible injury such as a scratch, it can be retouched in Photoshop, so no need to reschedule.  However, a black eye, fat lip or broken bone would be cause to postpone!

If you have your heart set on outdoor photos, and the weather turns too cold (think red, runny noses), windy (bad hair, watery eyes) or it rains (more than a sprinkle), I strongly advise that we reschedule. If the sky is overcast, then celebrate our good luck! Nothing beats the soft, even light of an overcast day.

What to Wear

The best clothing choices are those that flatter your figure without drawing attention away from the most im- portant aspect of the photograph – your face! Choose simple, classic styles that are free of fussy collars or busy accessories, and most importantly, are devoid of bold patterns (i.e., stripes, plaid, logos, etc.) as these pull focus from your faces. For color photographs, I recommend that you choose a palette of three to four complimentary and similarly toned colors for the whole family (for example, everyone is dressed in a combination of khaki, light blue and yellow), but avoid wearing matching outfits. White clothing is acceptable for color photographs, but may appear a bit ‘blown out’ in black and white.  Black clothing tends to show every single piece of lint and hair that could possibly be attached.  Therefore, I recommend sticking with light to mid-tones. I also love the look of timeless children’s clothing – denim overalls, cotton sundresses, etc. – and it always photographs well.   A full guide on What to Wear can be found on my blog - click here to check it out.

When will my order be ready?

Beautiful prints and carefully organized albums take time, but are well worth the wait!  You can expect your online gallery to be ready one week after your session, and your final order completed two to six weeks after the placement of your order, depending on the size and complexity of your order. I will certainly do my best to minimize the wait!

Can I reproduce the photographs on my own? Who owns the images?

As the photographer who took the images, I retain exclusive, full, and lifelong rights to those images. The im- ages may not be sold, licensed to a third party or altered without written consent from me. I do extend a license to you (the client) to reproduce those images for personal use as an additional purchase to the session fee (either as a part of a product or collection, or “a la carte”), except where exception is given.