The Walters - Extended family Session at Heritage Forrest
When I’m including pets in a family portrait sessions there are so many different options available around Launceston. The Walters had three beautiful dogs to include with the nine humans I was photographing so Heritage Forrest, which is just around the corner from Ebony’s house was an obvious choice!
I always like to photography everyone individually first, especially children, as it gives them time to get used to me and we can have a chat about things that interest them. Scott was a bit shy and needed some extra encouragement from his mum and aunty Ebby to spend some time chatting with me, but once we got talking about the dinosaurs on his shirt we became fast friends!
The leaves had started to fall (I can’t believe it’s already autumn") so asking Eliana and Scott to build a pile of leaves to play in kept them entertained while I photographed the rest of the adults and then we had a grand old time tossing them in the air! Although the bits of leaves I continued to find in my hair that afternoon were less welcome!
I like to make sure I’m photographing all of the smaller groupings within a larger family which can sometimes be harder to keep track of when photographing large extended families, so as an exercise in connecting with the children I ask them to help me keep track! It keeps them busy and makes them feel involved and an important part of the process.
Towards the end of the session the two little ones started getting a bit cranky and running out of patience and we’re co-operating as much. This is completely normal, and I take it as my cue to make sure I’ve got all of the photographs I need and to start wrapping it up! I normally tell parents that it will be the youngest members of the family that will determine when the shoot is over! I make sure I’ve got all of the combinations I need which is helped along with some snuggles and tickles from Nanny and Poppy.
Did you know I don’t cap the number of people in your portrait session? The session fee is a flat rate regardless of how many people are involved, which means that big family groupings like this won’t cost you any extra!
If you’re considering your own family portrait session, book in a time to sit down with me and we can have a chat about what you would like to achieve.