First and foremost, I feel the need to make sure everyone knows that I am NOT a wedding photographer, and I have no intention of ever being one. No thank you! The images below are not from a wedding but are family portraits in bridal attire with a few bridal formals mixed in as well. I strongly believe in working with photographers who specialize in what your need is. You wouldn’t hire your landscaping company to come put a roof on your house, would you?
I’ve had quite a few clients come to me for a redo of their maternity, newborn, or family images after a disappointing experience with their wedding photographer… because more often than not, wedding photographers just don’t know how to work with or photograph newborns or families. They specialize in weddings & engagements, not tiny humans who don’t follow direction. ;) (Note: this is not ALWAYS true - I have a couple of out of state colleagues who do both weddings & newborns on a regular basis and are fantastic at both!)
That being said, if you need a wedding photographer and want a few recommendations, feel free to reach out to me because I have a short list of incredible ones in the Atlanta area.
I’ve worked with Aya and Peter before when they brought in their daughter for a newborn session, and then again for Santa each year and Emilia’s First Birthday session. I’ve loved getting to know their family over the past couple of years, and was so excited when Aya asked if we could do a session that was a bit out of the box. She and Peter wanted to have official bridal attire photos, and they wanted to have some images of Emilia at age two as well. I asked if she wouldn’t rather hire a wedding photographer, and she was firm that she wanted a family session with some emphasis on couples photos. “We want your style, and we’ll just happen to be in bridal attire.” Okay then! So, we decided to knock all the birds out with one stone! Because of the timing of Emilia’s birthday, the session was scheduled for July…which as the locals know - is not exactly the best month temperature wise to wear a wedding dress or tuxedo outdoors! We tossed around the idea of a sunrise session since those are often much cooler in the summer months, but waking up that early wasn’t a good fit for their family. If you’re thinking of a sunrise session: you will need to be AT the location about 5 minutes before the sun comes up. We’ve found that late September through October are great months for most families since that tends to be between 7:30-8ish AM. In the summer the sun rises in the 6 AM hour. If you have a baby that’s up before dawn every morning, that might be a perfect option for you! The other time of day that we schedule outdoor sessions is 90 minutes to an hour (depending on the location of your session) before the sun sets. When you contact us to discuss options for your outdoor session, we’ll talk about the different locations and times they’re available and you can make the best decision for your family! No matter what you choose, your session will be lots of fun!
Aya asked to add on hair and makeup services, and we paired her with Brielle who created a gorgeous updo and natural makeup look for her. That evening, we met at the gardens and we lucked out with a cooler July evening in the high 80’s with an overcast sky. While it was still pretty warm, it was much better than 100 degrees with blazing sun! Overcast skies are always welcome for my sessions because it creates beautiful, soft, and diffused light. It also offers more flexibility in terms of placement and where we can shoot. I can’t face my clients towards a setting sun and take a photo with everyone having squinty eyes. When it’s overcast, that’s not an issue, so I can shoot pretty much any direction we want to at any point. I love a gorgeous sunny day, but I love overcast days just as much. If you’re worried about your session day being too dark - don’t. I will be the first to let you know if I think the weather will be unfavorable to the final outcome, since I want the very best end result possible for my clients!
I photographed the family together right away while Emilia was still happy and interested. Toddlers are always a wild card during sessions, so I like to play it safe and get those family and parent images done right out of the gate. That way, if your toddler decides 20 minutes in that they are DONE - no stress! We’ve already got everything we need and I’ll focus on photographing the other members of your family while giving them a break. More often than not, when toddlers see the rest of us carrying on without them, they decide they don’t want to be left out and rejoin us. That’s pretty much exactly what happened with Emilia that evening too!
This session was so much fun. So if any of you out there would like to do a really fun session in bridal or formal attire to redo your wedding photos or celebrate an anniversary, I am 100% all for it! Let’s talk about your vision and get to planning!
In the meantime, enjoy some of my absolute favorites from this beautiful trio’s family/bridal session!
If you're expecting a baby or already a parent and looking for a newborn, maternity, or family photographer, I would love to work with you to create images that you will love for a lifetime. Watch this video to hear about my philosophy and see how I work in the studio so you can determine if I'm the right fit for you. I can't wait to meet you!
Lily Sophia Photography specializes in newborn, baby, maternity, and family photography in Atlanta, Georgia and surrounding areas.
