Does the thought of having your family professionally photographed fill you with dread?

Here are my top tips for a relaxed family photo session that won't turn your hair grey!

A lot of people I talk to say that they’d love to get some great images of their families, but they’re worried about what it will be like. They say they don’t know how to pose, worry that the kids will misbehave and feel like the images they have in their head aren’t possible for their family.

Your family photo shoot should be a fun experience in itself. It’s not only an investment of your money but also of your time and let’s face it – who’s got either time or money they can afford to waste?

Whether you want the photographs for your own wall or as gifts for the rest of the family, whether your children are small, teens or even furry – the experience should be something remembered with fondness and smiles.

I want to make sure you enjoy making photos with your family, creating memories and having fun. My sessions usually combine posed group shots, action shots and both posed and candid individual shots. I like to walk and shoot, stopping occasionally for set ups and capturing shots on the move as well. I do direct people, I will ask you to walk in a certain direction or look at each other. I will try to make you laugh and I may fall over (happens more often than I’d like).

I flex my approach depending on who I’m with. If your kid is loving the camera and wants to do cartwheels in their photos we will do it. If your teenager doesn’t want to look at the camera at all that’s fine too. Above all else your photos should be true reflections of who you are and your relationships with each other. Family life is beautiful – it’s rarely perfect though and I think that’s what makes it awesome!

See more example of the kinds of photographs you can expect from your family photo session over in the Outdoor Family Portraits Gallery

In 2019 I photographed Amber Evans (editor of Muddy Stillettos Surrey) and her family at Box Hill near Dorking. With two teenagers, husband and pooches in tow we headed out on their first ever professional family photo shoot and she’s been kind enough to write about it.

You can read her article here