What I Learned As a Family Photographer From My Own Family Photos
As a family photographer, sometimes it’s easy to forget what it’s like to be on the other side of the camera. It’s always a good experience to have my own family photos taken to remind myself of what it’s like on the other side, and to learn a few things in the process. Recently my family went on vacation to Isle of Palms, where we’ve been going almost every year since I was eight, and I thought it was a great opportunity to have our own family photos taken in a spot that means so much to us.
Here’s what a learned being on the other side of the camera…
I really tried hard to let go of expectations. Sure I wanted to have at least one good photo of us all smiling at the camera, but I cared more about photos that felt like us. Genuine smiles, playing, capturing the chaos… because Henry is four and wild and that’s the phase of life we’re in. However, saying all of this, it is hard to completely let go of expectations, and I recognize that too! (Being on this side of the camera is always a good reminder of that.)
Isle of Palms is a special place to our family, we’ve been coming here for years on vacation, and that’s part of the magic of these photos. I also stopped trying to dress like what I thought I was “supposed to,” and picked out outfits that felt like us. We were at the beach, so we wore swimsuits – that’s real life! You can still make real life beautiful 😉 I’m not a dress person but for the last several years of family photos I’ve worn a dress because as a photographer that’s what I told my clients to wear, and I thought that’s what I should do too. I feel the most confident I’ve ever felt in these photos, and that’s by stepping out of the mold of “should” and into what felt like me. I’m no longer suggesting long, flowy dresses to my clients (unless that’s what feels like you!) but instead I’m leaning into the real life. Babies? Put them in diapers! It’s so cute to see those little rolls and what’s more real life than a baby in a diaper? Mom? Wear jeans if that’s what feels right!
In the moment, as a mom it feels like things are CHAOTIC during photos, and it can be easy to think, “did we even get anything?” But I learned to trust the process, and I have to give a HUGE shoutout to our photographer who could not have made the process easier for us: Taylor Rae
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