Why you just need to show up and relax
Now I know you are thinking what is she talking about just show up and relax? Im talking about newborn portrait sessions. Moms tell me all the time that they didn’t do newborn portraits because they just kept putting it off or thought it was gonna be a ton of work. I’m here to bust that myth today. I make it easy for moms. All you have to do for great newborn portrait sessions are come with baby and relax.
Ok, ok I know you are saying it can’t be that easy.
And you are right there are a few things we need to discuss before it can be that easy. The day of your session though it really is that easy. Get up, grab baby (maybe feed baby) and then head over. I can literally take care of the rest food, coffee, hair and makeup (ok that’s my awesome make-up artist queens), baby whispering we’ve got all that covered!
Ok so now your asking what do I need to do before the portrait day?
It’s really pretty simple. We have a conversation where I ask a bunch of questions to find out what you really want your portraits to look like, feel like and what medium you will want them displayed in the future. If you choose a home visit I can come and make suggestions for wall art locations, style to fit your home. Portrait needs check
I even help with clothing, color choices and send you a style guide before your session.
If you want to work with a stylist I can arrange for one to come visit your closets. She will help you pick the family’s portrait day outfits. Speaking of clothing we have a closet full of gowns for moms to feel glamorous and not have to buy a dress. How’s that for easy? Clothing check
Spouse and kids, I know you have concerns
I know poor husbands get a bad rap, it’s not their fault really they are trained to act foolish about emotional stuff. Let’s be real portraits are full of emotions and feelings. But don’t fret I’ve got a few tricks in my arsenal for your spouse if they aren’t into long portrait sessions. Most adults can be reasoned with and if that doesn’t work I can always act like a bratty kid and get them laughing. Usually when I explain I need them to smile, participate and have fun for 20 minutes and then they can leave. They almost always agree.
Kids are a bit more complicated than I can explain in this post, but again trust me I’ve got tricks, jokes and last resorts a plenty. It all boils down to planning. I’m gonna ask questions about their ages, likes, personalities etc so I can be ready to get them to participate. Also for newborn sessions with siblings I always have a helper, they make great comedians, tickle monsters, and toddler chasers.
Have more specific questions?
Leave a comment, send me a message or just call 803-336-5125 and I’ve got an answer. Let’s collaborate and make your newborn portrait session perfect for your family. Let’s create a plan. So you can just show up and relax on your new baby’s portrait day.
Begin with a plan
Begin with a plan that keeps the end in mind!
You know you want to have a portrait made to celebrate the birth of your baby, but what are you going to do with it? Before I pick up my camera to capture those tiny little features, we need to discuss what is most important to you. How do you want to remember your new baby?
Do you have a spot above the crib all picked out? Are you a mom with two older children, and you need to add to a family gallery wall you’ve already started in the playroom? Or do you need some inspiration? I am here to guide you! Your personal planning consultation will help me fill your unique needs and create a tailor made plan just for you. This is how we begin with a plan.
The Details: Planning Appointment & Design Consultation
Meeting in person to start your portrait session plan is the first step. Getting to know your family and also answering all of your burning questions — probably a few you didn’t even know to ask! What should I wear? Should we bring extra clothes? What will it cost? How should we prepare?
We will also schedule a portrait date based on baby’s due date; this usually gets changed a bit but assures you space on my calendar. Getting all the details, and finding out what is most important for you and your family, ensures we have an amazing portrait session. Planning out your wall designs, your clothing choices and your backgrounds ensures everything will look and feel amazing in your home.
Portrait Session
Now that we have made a plan together it is time to create your beautiful baby’s portraits! I work hard to capture your new baby’s tiny toes, lovely lashes and that button nose, everything that makes your baby the one of a kind miracle she is. Capturing all the details that will become cherished memories for a lifetime.
Viewing and Ordering Appointment
After the session you will come in to view a slideshow of your portraits. Mockups will be created with your portraits displayed on your walls. If you’ve expressed interest in albums, album mock-ups will be ready too. Every viewing and ordering appointment is customized to create artwork your family will love for a lifetime.
Delivery and Installation Appointment
Installation of your wall art is included! This is all part of my personal service to you! I can’t wait to meet you and start a plan for your newborn portrait session.
Ready to Begin with a plan? Just pop a contact number in!
Mom and Daughter Portraits, Fort Mill, SC
Do you want a pause button for your fast growing kiddo? Many people think I offer portrait services, but what I’m really giving you is a window back in time. You see, when you buy a photograph from me you get to stop time for a second and take that memory with you forever, and that, my friend, is priceless.
These are just awesome for mom and daughter. Imagine in ten years how much these will mean to mom! Imagine what these will mean to this little one in a few years. She will look back at these and see how much mom loved her and how much she loved her mom as a toddler.
Simple, classic mom and daughter portraits like these are treasured memories when this little girl is an adult. Mom of course will cherish these forever. And on the tough days these portraits will bring her so much joy. And isn’t that why we take family portraits in the first place.
Share Joy my friends!
Customer Service for photographers needs work
Customer Service for portrait photographers has been on my mind lately and it makes me really sad how much we as a group haven’t been serving our clients.
I lump myself in to this group because I was there in the beginning of the digital photography wave and am totally guilty of giving just digital files. Which equals horrific customer service. That is for sure my biggest pet peeve but we’ve been over that on a previous blog post. Check that out here for my feelings on the disc being all you might have in ten years. The disc is the worst offense because it puts all the work on busy moms and as a mom of two I know Moms do not have time to organize, backup, cull, print, deliver, frame and hang their portraits.
We have to stop showing moms 1,000 and one images, she’ll get a headache
But this brings up more point where we photographers have been failing our amazing clients. Culling, don’t know what that is I’m sure it’s an industry word, sorry. Culling is basically looking at all the amazing images from your portrait session and picking the very best ones. I know I know moms want to see all the cutest ones and pick the best smiles, and they love laughing at all the crazy outtakes. But seriously we are here to save moms time, not give them 150 images to choose from on the reveal day. Science says too many choices lead to paralysis.
We’ve all been there.
We go to the store for a birthday card and 20 minutes later we are still reading cards! What gives? Choice overload makes our brain work so hard it becomes more impossible to make a decision. So let’s all agree moms make ten thousand decisions a day for her kids. We need to give her the absolute best of the best for her family portrait wall options. This is just good customer service and should be a priority.
This is where to pre photoshoot consultation comes in handy!
Asking questions before ever picking up my camera makes this culling process so much easier. Knowing that mom wants a photograph to go over the fireplace or couch and that she is leaning towards one amazing image tells me she needs a horizontally oriented image and that I need everyone looking their best. This means I need to narrow down to the best of the best and not even shoot any vertical family portraits.
Asking moms if they loved posed images or prefer candid family interactions is another great question. If mom is looking for everyone to be smiling at the camera then those sweet tickle shots with Jimmy’s eyes closed tight are great for social media. But they are not going to be mom’s choice for the wall. So just take them out of the decisions for the fireplace wall. I’m not saying to delete those wonderful portraits. I’m just saying moms need us to do a better job of listening and making it easier to make these decisions. This should be an industry standard customer service practice from all of us.
Beach Maternity Portraits
Do you have too much on your to do list before baby arrives to plan for a maternity photo? Thinking that maternity portraits aren’t really something people like you do? I get it most moms I talk with don’t feel beautiful during pregnancy. Let me guess you feel sleepy, full and not yourself. Well let me just say you are a rockstar, you are actually growing another human and that’s a miracle. And miracles should be celebrated.
These aren’t really portraits for you right now.
These are memories for your baby, maternity portraits tell your baby how much they were wanted, and loved and waited for. These portraits are also for your future self. Trust me in ten years you will be saying wow I really looked great in those pregnancy photographs. Don’t believe me go look at your portrait from ten years ago or better yet ask your mom how she feels about photographs of you and her when you were a kid. She will tell you she loves and treasures those photographs.
Celebrating your pregnancy with portraits is a great way to relive this special time.
I know that sounds a bit cheesy but it’s true, passing the maternity photo on the wall or flipping through the album is like a window back to this stage in your life that only lasts a short time. Stories and photographs are the easiest ways to remember what it was truly like.
Let me help you create gorgeous portraits of your pregnancy so you can easily remember your special time with your baby. And so you can tell them all about a time before they were born.
And just in case you need more convincing I deliver your final portraits to your door ready to hang on the wall. Installation is even included. Don’t add more work to your already busy life by trying to DIY your maternity photos, let me help you create timeless art for your home.
Call me if you are ready to chat about maternity portraits 803-336-5125
Planning ahead for baby photography – Fort Mill
When you are expecting baby number three it’s easy to think oh I got this I know what is coming next. Moms who plan ahead are my spirit animal. (serious over planner here). Plan ahead moms make their life and mine so much easier. I distinctly remember chatting with this mom about where she wanted portraits to be displayed in her home. How she wanted them to feel and how having a photograph of the three kids together was so important to her.
Why newborn portraits matter in the grand scheme of things
Having photographs of this special time is a once in a lifetime opportunity and something this mom didn’t want to forget. The newborn stage goes by so fast and it’s easy to forget the small details. Having newborn portraits on the living room wall will remind her that she was wanted and loved!
Great Job Mom
Shout out to mom on her clothing and styling choices for this session. I feel like she could teach other moms how to style a family and make it look effortless. These kiddos always look put together yet casual for portrait sessions. But don’t let that fool you it’s never as effortless as it looks. I recall tears from little D last year when he had to take off his batman shirt for picture day!
Perfect little sister
Little miss was a dream baby model, I’m not sure she cried the whole session. And only woke up to eat near the end. She seems to be an easy going little sister and that will help mom out immensely with two active older brothers.
Are you planning ahead for baby at home?
Check out my best baby soothing tips here.
Have you heard about Charlotte Aquatics’ Baby Bonding Class?
I had not either, my friends and neighbors rave about the swim lessons and how Charlotte Aquatics taught their kids to swim like fish. But Charlotte Aquatics’ baby bonding class seems to be swimming under the radar. Since I spend a ton of time with new moms and babies I thought we should talk about the baby class today!
Sensory experience and infant development
Did you know that proper infant development and growth require sensory experience and movement? One of the most important sensory inputs for the development of the brain is touch. Skin-to-skin contact and touch enhance bonding between parents and baby. Babies crave contact with their parents. They need physical contact to build trust in their parents, and the world around them. Self esteem and trust that baby’s needs with be met, is built through contact with parents and caregivers.
The science behind the class
“Scientists now believe that to achieve full development of the mature brain, stimulation in the form of movement and sensory experiences during the early developing years is necessary. Neuroscientist Carla Hannaford, author of Smart Moves:Why Learning Is Not All In Your Head, explains that beginning in infancy, physical movement plays a vital role in the creation of the nerve cell networks that are at the core of learning. The more children move, the more information they are gathering about their environment and themselves.” In addition, the hydrostatic pressure of the water magnifies the sensory stimulation that your baby receives as they move through the water.
The Baby Bonding Class helps you get baby moving while having fun!
Getting babies out of car seats, strollers and carriers is essential to their development in today’s busy go -go world. A fun way to get that critical skin-to-skin contact and provide optimal stimulation is to join a Baby Bonding Class at Charlotte Aquatics.
Babies and parents alike will enjoy the class and the company of other new parents. Allow your infant to experience touch and movement all while having fun in the water!
To learn more about Charlotte Aquatics’ Baby Bonding Class call (704) 341-9673 or learn more at https://charlotteaquatics.com
Real Kids Portrait Session
Mister serious here isn’t the most serious little guy I’ve met but he is one of the most polite. He is growing up to be a well mannered, fun loving guy. His parents are doing a great job with him. It was an honor to create his portrait in our Fort Mill, SC studio. He came in with his little sister to help create a special art piece I had in mind during this real kids portrait session.
She was all smiles for her portrait day. Also just as polite as her big brother and happy to try any pose or prop I suggested. Her outfit was so fun! Sequins and a big bow are great to accessorize and show off her personality without distracting or taking away from her sweet expressions.
Real Kids create Art in the Studio
The idea behind our art piece was to show off the fun of all the kids not just the Human kids! So we had to bring in the furry littlest sister for the portraits. She did such a great job for being so young and full of energy!
Just a few images from this fun #Real Kids studio portrait session!
sitting so pretty 
outtake
Had a blast with these three kids creating some fun portraits for their parents and making an art piece for the home. Creating custom wall art pieces of your family to enjoy for years to come is the goal of our real kids portrait sessions! Having fun while creating them is one of the many reasons I love what I do. When the kids leave with smiles on their faces and talking about what fun they had then I know I’ve created a positive experience for the whole family! Portrait photography is supposed to be a fun time. Art is fun, call me today if you want a positive experience from your next photo day!
-alicia
Mini-Session event to support the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
“Life should not only be lived, it should be celebrated.”
You’re their first cheerleader…
Their first friend….
And their biggest supporter, as their mommy.
They are your whole world.
But we moms soon forget that they used to LOVE meowing instead of speaking or had a huge fascination with airplanes. Or that picking out her favorite outfit before school was the best part of her day.
To celebrate the littlest baseball star or tiny fashionista in your family, by creating a fun portrait experience that’s all about them at this stage of childhood.
I’m working on an event just for kids to raise money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
For just a $100 donation, you can schedule a 15-minute mini-session on May 18th with me at the studio, and we’ll create great images of your kiddo all about his or her favorite things.
It’s a bit different than the usual larger session we do every few years, but the focus is just on getting a few images of your child to capture what makes her special.
I’ll gift you a metal desktop print of your favorite image from the session.
I only have space to do 12 of these mini-sessions so I wanted to be sure you know before it’s too late.
Call now to book 704.313.5125!
See you soon!
Alicia
PS. Tega Cay Concert Series will have a fun Photo Booth this Saturday 6-10 at Runde park I will be there taking donations for the great cause. Come see me.