How to Prepare Your Home for Your In Home Photography Session

The majority of my family sessions are held in home and one of the questions I’m asked the most is how to prepare the home. A lot of Seattle area homes are old with small windows and the number one thing I’m looking for is the quality of the light. If you walk around your home a few days before your scheduled session time, take a look at where the light is the most abundant. These are likely the areas we’ll be using for your photo session.

You don’t need to redecorate or go crazy styling your home. The point of having an in home session is to photograph your family in the space in which they are most comfortable. You will want to keep in mind that anything left out has the potential to make it into your photos, so if you don’t want it photographed, put it out of sight.

Top things to do:

1. Make beds

2. Clean up countertops

3. Open all shades

4. Turn off overhead lights

5. Tidy up main living spaces

6. Make sure any picture frames / artwork are straight

7. Remove water bottles and phone chargers from bedside tables

8. Fix any broken windows

9. Clean mirrors (I use them a lot during my in home family sessions)

Not sure how to prepare your family for your photography session? Read this.

Ready to book? Let’s connect.

A Fun Family of Three {Seattle Lifestyle Photographer}

I love it when my friends ask me to take their family photos! We traveled over to Whidbey Island for this cute family session. I photographed their baby when he was a newborn and it was an honor to be asked back to take their family photos again.

Embracing Motherhood {Seattle Lifestyle Photographer}

As a lifestyle photographer, there is nothing more beautiful to me than images of a mother with her babies.

We’ve all heard before about how mothers are rarely in images with their kids. We are the memory keepers, the family historians, and more than often than not, the photographers in the family, whether we’re professional photographers or not. It is so important that we are in images with our kids. We love them so much and one day that will be all they’ll have left of us. It’s so important that we give them a tangible gift that they can keep with them long after we’re gone.

It’s so easy to say that we’ll do it later. When we’ve lost weight, when we don’t look so tired, or when we have new, nicer clothing to wear. Just for a second, I want you to close your eyes. Think of an image you have of your mama. Do you care if she’s a few pounds overweight? Do you care if she has bags under her eyes? Do you care about what she’s wearing? Chances are, none of that matters. You see strength. You see beauty. You see yourself as a child when she was the only source of comfort you ever needed. Your children deserve those memories too. Now is always the right time. If you would like to preserve these memories for your kids, please send me a message. I’d love to chat with you.

I hope you enjoy these images of this lovely mama with her two sweet girls. These images were all captured within about 5 minutes, so if you think your kids won’t make it though a photo session, rest assured. Magic can happen in mere minutes.

A Beautiful Lifestyle Newborn Session {Seattle Family Photographer}

Photographing newborns in their homes is probably my most favorite type of family session. Being able to witness families as they welcome a new little being into their lives is an honor I don’t take for granted. II was so happy to capture this family again when they welcomed baby Anderson. I first photographed them for their maternity session and it was so great to their home and capture them as they transitioned into the role of parents. You would never have known he was their first. They were as laid back as parents welcoming baby number three or four. Little Anderson was just as laid back as them too!

One of the reasons I love in home lifestyle sessions so much is because you capture so much of the real. They are so authentic and capture life exactly as it is in those first few days. The cuddles, the feedings, the bouncing up and down. We can photograph baby exactly how he is, with no need to spend hours rocking him to sleep. If he’s happiest in the arms of his parents, then that’s exactly where we’ll keep him. Mostly, I think these sessions are so great at capturing the love and connection within the family. There is so much emotion in those first few days of a new baby’s life, and I believe it’s so important to capture it.

Choosing the right photographer for your family can be a tough choice, especially if you’re not sure what kind of photography session you’re after. If you would like to talk it over, please feel free to contact me. I’d love to go over what I can offer you so that you have a better understanding of how my newborn sessions go. In the meantime, enjoy looking through these images of sweet baby Anderson and his loving parents.