Choosing a photographer, to me, is a very personal thing. I know when I was looking for a photographer to document the smallness of my second born it really was a labour of love. I Googled, researched, obsessed almost, researched some more, Googled, went back and forth and it was only when I spoke to our photographer on the phone that I knew I wanted to welcome her into our home to document this very special, intimate time of our lives.
And I think it might be even more personal with documentary family photography. Why is that you ask?
Well, it takes a level of vulnerability to just be yourselves in front of a stranger. To not smile and say cheese and act perfect (when we all know that there is no such thing!) It takes an element of trust to know that I won't judge you if you yell at your kids or refuse their request for sweeties for the tenth time today or give them sweeties for the tenth time today or that you carry them like a football up to bed because you're just absolutely done with the day.
I promise you that there will be no judgment here.
I've got two kids of my own who can be complete knobheads at times and despite my best attempts at gentle parenting sometimes I just can't so I get it! #didsomeonesayonlyhuman
Words that close friends and previous clients have used to describe me
I believe that every single family has it's own unique signature. It's own quirks. Traditions. Routines. Jokes. Connections. Your family has something about it that no other family has because there are no other people on this planet like you and your loved ones. So I ask you, why do you want your family pictures to look like everyone elses? Why keep up with the Joneses when you're are so perfectly imperfect as the Smiths?
Did someone say awkward?
Eeeeuw! No one likes feeling awkward and this might very well be everyone's number one fear about having pictures taken ~ looking awkward AF and nothing like themselves in the pictures.
It seems counterintuitive but I can assure you that a documentary session is far less awkward than any styled, posed, family of the year calendar photo session. Why? Because there is absolutely zero pressure on you to look and behave like anyone or anything other than yourself. You just have to pick your favourite things you and your family enjoy doing together, do them and VOILA! Zero awkwardness and 100% real goodness!
My shooting style is relaxed. I chat to everyone at the beginning of the session to make everyone feel comfortable and as soon as I see the tiniest connection or that your story has started, that's when I pick up my camera and start clicking. This is usually within 5 minutes or less of being together ~ LOL. I have an odd ability to "disappear into the background" during these sessions so you almost forget that I'm there. Don't believe me?
This is what Emma had to say about her sessions with me ~
"Your openness made me feel calm and not as awkward as I could have been. I felt as relaxed as I think I could have the first shoot, and by the second I barely remembered the camera was there and it shows. The newborn pictures we had with Annie and a different photographer look staged and not like me. The first shoot with you I’m pretty relaxed and I love the pictures. This is a huge improvement on the other photographer. At the maternity shoot the pictures I am absolutely in love with. I was so relaxed that my face looks like my face when I hanging out with my family and friends and I feel beautiful. "
If you feel like I might be the right fit for your family why not get in touch for a chat?
