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Last summer, I got to be on the other side of the camera during my family’s first documentary photo session. It was about time I got to feel the way my clients feel!

Although the entire experience was a bit different than what I offer, it felt so good to finally have a variety of documentary-style photos of me with my children and husband.

Self-portraits as a way to be in the frame

I often use a tripod to be in more photos with my family. However, I don’t always get the results I want because self-portraits can be hard to achieve.

Setting up the camera, getting what you want in the frame and nailing the focus take time and practice. So by the time you’re all set up, your kids are already tired of helping and you can forget about the photos!

I make it sound worse than it is, but it certainly isn’t the same when someone else can take the photos for you.

What I wanted for my photo session

Before the day of the session, I had a list of things I wanted photos of, like little moments of interaction with my kids that I knew were about to end because kids grow up way too fast.

So I made sure they’d happen during the session.

Things like washing my daughter’s hair in the tub and then drying it in our own unique way. Or me carrying my long-legged children, loving them, caring for them, reading with them, tucking them in bed for the night…

I wanted photos of intimate moments of connection that are hard to photograph on my own.

I also wanted to have photos of regular family activities like our evening walks in the neighbourhood, water gun fights, games…

And body painting photos! Because the kids and I had painted in the backyard a few times before and I’d never managed to get photos of myself with them.

So during the photo session, we combined the painting activity with the water gun fight and it was awesome!

How it felt to be on the other side of the camera

At first, it did feel like I was being observed. Someone I barely knew was there with us! I couldn’t help but pay attention to what our photographer was doing and notice her presence even if I wasn’t looking at her.

I quickly felt comfortable around her and her camera as we chatted and got to know each other.

And by the time six hours had gone by, I wished it had lasted longer because we barely had enough time to do everything we wanted to do!

All in all, it was a wonderful experience, and one to repeat because I need more photos of myself interacting with the people that I love.

What about you? Are you in enough of your day-to-day family photos?

Motherhood photo sessions in and around Edmonton

I’m currently booking Mother’s Day photo sessions to celebrate the wonderful mothers of Edmonton and the surrounding areas.

Book a motherhood photo session before May 13th and get a $25 gift certificate applicable to product purchases for each hour booked. Sessions can be held any time after Mother’s Day.