I first worked with Kelly and Daniel for their first family session with a professional photographer a couple of years ago when their youngest was still a baby. When Kelly contacted the studio, she was so excited to hear that I helped clients with wardrobe planning and that there was a real, live studio manager available to answer her questions about the entire experience. Caroline (our studio manager) is pretty awesome! She’s so much fun to talk to, and our clients love her. I hired her full-time five years ago and have never looked back. Caroline helps ensure that everyone who comes into contact with the studio is served well from the very beginning, and her help allows me to focus 100% on working with my clients.
HOW TO BOOK YOUR FAMILY SESSION
Kelly knew that we book out our fall dates MONTHS in advance, and she made sure to reach out to us in late spring to get on the calendar for a fall date. After chatting for a bit about the different locations available, she decided that the mountain location fit her family and her vision the best. (I’m going to go into more detail later in this post about the mountain as a location, because there are things you NEED to know if you’re considering choosing it as your location!)
Once Kelly picked a date from what we had remaining on the calendar, we sent over her session paperwork electronically, and when she remitted it she was officially locked into the calendar. When you call the studio to talk about dates, you need to know that any dates given to you as possibilities are not confirmed until you are officially booked in with your paperwork. When we give a date as a possibility to a client, we may have also given the same date as a possibility to another that we spoke with earlier in the same day. Dates are considered open on our calendar until booked - so they are first come, first serve. Clients are always amazed at how quickly dates go! We’ve had several instances where a client asked for some date options and we sent them over. The client got distracted and waited for a week to reply back - and all the dates that had been given as options the week prior were already booked by other clients.
Kelly remitted her paperwork that same day, and we sent over our style guide. She already had it from the first time around, but it’s always good to have a refresher. When I asked if she would need any help styling like she did the first time, she told me she planned to send over what they were wearing, but that she was pretty sure she could handle it thanks to the style guide. She did email over photos of the family’s ensemble, and I gave her two thumbs up. She did SUCH a great job! The style guide really does make it easy, and I’m here to help however I can. If you want to schedule a style consult at the studio to go through your options and possibly borrow from the client wardrobe, I’m here for you! If you’d rather send over photos of your options for me to look at and reply with feedback, I’m here for you! I want to make your experience enjoyable and FUN - and if that means you need some extra help with planning, I’ve got you taken care of.
THE MOUNTAIN LOCATION: IS IT RIGHT FOR ME?
The mountain location is absolutely gorgeous in the fall, and I LOVE it. I do not recommend it for summer sessions because of the extreme heat and the entire surface being rock and will NOT shoot there during the months of July and August due to the risk of heatstroke and fainting for clients.
The mountain location is NOT an easy location, especially for families with little ones. Here’s why: (1) parking can be EXTREMELY difficult to find, necessitating a two mile walk/hike just to get to the top, and then back again. Think about how exhausted your toddler might be after a walk like this. (2) There are no bathrooms on the mountain. You’re out of luck if you need to go. (3) You cannot take strollers or wagons on the mountain, so you will need to plan to carry your children if they are young. When you carry them, it can result in wrinkled clothing, sweating dads, and exhausted kids by the time we get to the top. (4) If you have a maternity session there, you will only be able to have one outfit due to no changing tents being allowed on the surface of the mountain. There are very rare plants on the surface, and they are federally protected and yes, this is enforced! (5) The hike is moderate, but even my most physically fit clients are a bit winded on the way up. (6) I will not be able to assist you or carry anything for you. I will be handling my own heavy camera bag. It is very much every man for themself on the way up.
The good? It’s a gorgeous location that looks amazing whether it’s sunny or overcast and is worth the hike up.
THE FAMILY’S SESSION DAY | CRISIS AVERTED!
On the day of the session, I arrived an HOUR early in hopes of finding parking. There was zero parking to be found. I texted the family to let them know and the overflow parking was also full. We ended up parking three miles away at another lot and then put our heads together to come up with a plan. What ended up happening is we decided I would jump into their minivan (masked and the windows down) and we would head back to the mountain base parking. Daniel planned drop us all off, and then try and find somewhere to park and then do the walk himself. When we pulled up, a car just happened to be leaving and we snatched the spot. Crisis averted!
We started the session at the base of the mountain and took our time going up to the top. I photograph along the base and every session looks different. We were all excited because it happened to be the peak of the yellow flower season, and they looked absolutely beautiful in the background with the clothing the family had chosen to wear. I cycle through lots of variations of groupings when I shoot family sessions - parents together, kids together, whole family together, mom with kids, dad with kids, so on and so forth. When a child needs a break or loses interest, I change it up and we move on. Keeping it low pressure for children is 100% the key to a successful session!
Enjoy this absolutely gorgeous mountain session - I just love working with this family and cannot wait to see them again for their next session!
IT’S TIME TO STOP PROCRASTINATING
Do you need to schedule family photos? It won’t be long before the time slips away from you and you’re packing their bags for college, so don’t put it off. Contact us and we’ll chat about your vision and the goals you have, as well as discuss our approach to see if we’re the perfect match for your family pictures!
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.
