Tiffany has been a client of ours for a couple of years, and welcomed fraternal twins into their family last year! Documenting milestones is very important to her, so she booked maternity, newborn, six months, and one year - we love our frequent flyers and have a First Year Collection available to those interested with lots of perks! You can contact the studio to learn more about the sessions we offer! We have quite a bit of experience photographing twins, and we include the whole family in the session too. We don’t limit our milestone sessions to just your baby, and strongly encourage parents and siblings to participate too. These are the photos that your children will reach for when they are older.
THE BOOKING PROCESS
When the twins were about four months old, we contacted Tiffany to set everything up for them. We sent some date options to choose from and then once she had decided on that, we sent over everything she needed to secure her date. Our booking process is handled entirely online and it’s a very simple and streamlined process.
Once Tiffany remitted her electronic paperwork, we sent over our styling guide and resources for her to review. Even though she’s worked with us for several sessions at this point, we always send it again just in case a client can’t find it in their email! It’s a short and sweet e-mail outlining best practices, and helps our clients dress the whole family for their session. Designing a beautiful and cohesive look for your session that also looks like YOU is easy when following our guidance. For clients who want more assistance with styling, we’re available to help! Clients can either schedule a complimentary short visit to the studio and bring all their options, and I’ll assist them in putting it all together with their clothing or a mix of their clothing and studio clothing. For those who cannot make an in person consult work for their schedule or would prefer virtual, they simply send over photos of what they’re considering and we go from there with an email exchange! Clients are constantly amazed at how quickly I can select from their options and put it all together. This is all part of the service we offer to those who have chosen to work with us. We work to make your session experience as stress free and as easy as possible, because your portrait session process should be enjoyable and fun!
SOME NOTES ABOUT milestone SESSIONS WITH SIX MONTH OLDS
Our sessions with any baby are photographed very efficiently, and some clients are surprised by how quickly I am able to shoot. There’s a really good reason why: and that is that most babies don’t give us much time! The majority of little ones under the age of one are easily tired out from being overstimulated, so moving quickly is essential in order to make the most of our time together. I block off an hour for non-newborn portrait sessions, but that’s just to ensure we have enough time if baby needs a diaper change or a feeding break. I work hard to get everything I need in the first 20-30 minutes of a session and then play the rest by ear depending on how your baby is doing. Some babies will give me 45 minutes of total shooting time, but that’s definitely not the norm and is often the result of an intermission snack break after the initial 20-30 minutes of a session! ;) If they’re happy and doing well, we keep going. If they are OVER.IT. then we stop as long as I feel we have what we need. . Don’t worry though - if your baby melts down at 15 minutes into the session and I don’t feel like I have enough for a great gallery, we’ll take some time to see if we can soothe them back to happiness again. Sometimes that means I put down my camera and play peek a boo, or they take a nursing/snuggle break, or we look out the window or in the mirror. The key is to remain calm no matter what so your child feels safe and secure even when they’re unsettled. I have lots of techniques and tricks up my sleeve when it comes to photographing little ones, and with collaborative teamwork we’ll figure it out together!
When Tiffany arrived at the studio, and she her husband changed and then set about dressing the kids in their outfits. We don’t recommend dressing your children for the car ride! Changing them when you arrive avoids the possibility of an outfit being unusable for the actual session if an accident with food or spit up happens on the way to the studio. It also eliminates the risk of badly wrinkled clothing from seatbelt straps for both kids AND adults.
I started with photographing just the twins. Meg had some stranger danger anxiety, and was more comfortable with mommy, so that’s what we did until she felt safe enough with me to be photographed alone! We also took the time to photograph the twins together and with big brother as well. What you cannot see in these images is that I had a parent on each side of the bed ready to intervene if they rolled over. It’s a queen sized bed, so it would take about two rolls to get completely off the bed from where I position babies - but we all know how fast babies can be when you least expect it, so we ALWAYS have a parent diligently spotting. Safety first!
Six month old babies are often just beginning to show their personalities and expressions. Meg & Issac were more serious babies who flashed grins at me every once in a while. Every baby is different when it comes to how much they smile during portrait sessions. No matter what, I will be photographing your baby (or babies!) just as they are right NOW at this moment in time.
After I finished photographing the twins together and individually, I moved on to photographing them with their individual parents and immediate family photos of all of them together. Big brother Abel was hamming it up for the camera, and we all had a lot of fun together during their session.
the big question: SHOULD WE PLAN for ONE OUTFIT OR TWO?
For twin sessions, I really recommend just one outfit for the entire session. If you want to try for two, we need to start with the most important outfit first. I always discuss with parents what their desired “must have” images are in order of priority and go from there. The MOST important outfit to you is the one that I will have you wear to start the session with, and then we’ll go from there! This is an insurance policy just in case your babies won’t tolerate being changed into a second outfit and are done being photographed before you get a chance to change. The truth is: babies are unpredictable little humans. We never know how long they’re going to give us with anything. Some little ones really don't enjoy being changed and it’s stressful for them and for you to change them into a second outfit. You know your baby best, so you can be the judge of whether trying for a second outfit is a good idea, or if you’d rather play it safe with one outfit! :)
Enjoy a few of my favorite images from Meg & Isaac’s six month milestone session! As a gentle reminder: it is NEVER too early to get on the calendar for milestone sessions especially if you want a weekend date since those fill months in advance. Our First Year Collection members have scheduling priority and we take care of reaching out to schedule when it’s time to - one less thing to worry about in the whirlwind of your baby’s First Year.
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.
