Tips for getting the most out of your family portraits

We want you to get the most out of your family portrait sitting. We use a neutral warm grey textured backdrop and even lighting to give you the opportunity to use colour, style, props and people to make your portraits uniquely yours.

What to wear:

We suggest you start with a Google Image search for "Family Portraits". Look through the images and decide what look you like or don't like. Some popular options include:

Jeans a plain t-shirts. Denim photographs well, and plain white, black or coloured t-shirts mean your faces become the star of the show.

Different colours for different generations. If you will have grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins involved in your sitting, one option might be to have each generation or each branch of the family wear a different colour.

Team colours or jerseys. If your family is passionate about a particular sport or activity, show your pride by wearing your team colours! You could even all wear different team colours to show your rivalries!

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Scroll to view examples

What NOT to wear:

Avoid tight or ill fitting clothes that restrict movement.
For babies, avoid overall or "bib & brace" style outfits. They are very difficult to work with, and often end up covering part of their face!
Avoid mini skirts or dresses and short shorts. This will really restrict movement and poses available to us.
Don't worry about shoes. We won't see your feet, and we would rather you just be comfortable!
Cover anything you don't want showing in the photos. If you don't like your arms, wear sleeves. If you don't want to show your knees, cover them. If you don't like visible bra straps in your photos, ensure they can't be seen.
Avoid busy patterns or clashing colours. You want the focus to be on your beautiful smiles, not trying to figure out where one shirt ends, and the next begins!

What to bring:

You are welcome to bring whatever people, pets or props you feel will help to make your portraits uniquely yours. However, some points to remember to make your sitting run smoothly are:

We love working with pets, but please check with your host organisation first! Many schools don't allow pets on school grounds, but some will.
Your session time is 10 minutes. This is usually enough time to take several poses, but any time spent on "costume changes" will cut into our photography time.
Check our package options here. This will give you an idea of prices and what photos you will want us to capture.
We do not shoot onto a "floor", so anything you bring should be able to be hand held or placed on a small bench or table.
Our photographers are very experienced working with children, and have a range of toys and techniques to get the smiles. But if there is something in particular that helps your child smile, bring it along. If you have a young baby consider bringing a bottle or anything needed for feeding in case they need a feed to help them settle.

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Before you leave home:

Preparation is key! Here are some tips to make sure you're ready to get the most out of your session.

Decide who your portraits are for (Grandparents? Christmas cards and gifts? Just for you?)
Decide if you prefer digital files, photographic prints? Or canvases? What do you already have at home?
What SIZES do you need? If you need to match to a certain size you already have at home, measure it and write it down. Photos are usually measured in inches, but mm is useful too. If you have a space you plan to fill, measure the size you want (it can be very difficult to judge the correct size later, in a different space!) If you have a particular frame you want to use, check what size photo/s you need for that.
Bring bribes for your children if you think they might help ;) We don't judge, we just want you to get the best photos you can. But please leave any lollies or snacks until AFTER the photos are finished.
Leave the chewing gum at home. It is an absolute nightmare trying to photograph someone chewing gum. It is almost always visible, and will ruin your photos.

Leave your camera at home.

Our photographers are experienced, trained professionals. We have worked hard for years to perfect our craft and rely on package sales to earn our living. Please don't disrespect that effort by trying to take photos over our shoulder while we're working. It only makes our job harder.. So please, leave the camera at home, and let us do what we do best.