by Laura Priestley Photography | Morgantown, WV Family Photographer
It might seem basic, but it's the very first factor you'll want to iron out before booking that photo session.
And in order to answer it, it's helpful to know a little bit about the most common photo session types. We'll cover some of them in this post to get you started, with visual examples from my work where applicable, and tackle more types in another post soon.
Family Portrait Sessions
This is the type of photo session that many clients will book most frequently over the years; it's a session for one nuclear family unit. The years fly by so quickly once children arrive on the scene, and it's mind-boggling how fast little ones grow and change. Many families book a family session once a year or more, so they can preserve the memories of each stage of their family life.
The focus of a typical family portrait session is on the relationships among the family members, and of the family as a whole. When I shoot a family session, I will aim to capture images of the entire family together (both posed formally and unposed/candid,) and then as many arrangements as possible of different members of the family together.
Some client-favorite arrangements include Dad with all the kids, Mom with all the kids, the kids by themselves, and individuals of each parent with each child. It's nice to have a mix of posed portraits, with everyone looking and smiling at the camera, as well as candid, in-the-moment images of the family hugging, or playing a game of tag.
(About to book your own family session? Get pointers on what to think through before reaching out to your photographer, here.)
Maternity Portrait Sessions
Capturing the season of anticipation before the arrival of a new baby, and celebrating the beautiful pregnant mama and her glow, maternity sessions are ones I always look forward to shooting. Maternity sessions are typically shot when mama is around 36 weeks along for a first pregnancy. For subsequent pregnancies, I find it works better to schedule for a few weeks earlier than that; most mamas find that their bellies grow much faster, and they feel tired more quickly, in the second pregnancy and beyond.
Maternity sessions often involve more elaborate or dramatic gowns than a woman might typically wear for a family session (although I fully support elaborate gowns for family sessions as well!) and many photographers keep beautiful maternity dresses on hand for their clients' use, as I do for mine. Before you go out and buy a maternity gown, check with your photographer-- they may already have options you'll love!
I love to involve the whole family in a maternity session. We will shoot portraits of mama by herself, mama and dad, and mama with each of the kids, in addition the entire family together.
Because pregnant mothers are often dealing with fatigue and other symptoms from the hard work of growing a new life, the session location and process will need to be planned around how mama is feeling, and what she needs. It's important to communicate honestly with your photographer both before and during your session about how your doing-- we want to take good care of you during your session, and make sure that you're comfortable and safe!
Because pregnant mothers are often dealing with fatigue and other symptoms from the hard work of growing a new life, the session location and process will need to be planned around how mama is feeling, and what she needs. It's important to communicate honestly with your photographer both before and during your session about how your doing-- we want to take good care of you during your session, and make sure that you're comfortable and safe!
(See a few of my beautiful client mamas, and get ideas for your own maternity session here.)
Newborn Sessions
This one follows naturally after a maternity session, of course; in fact, my pregnant clients are usually discussing details for their newborn session with me as we walk back to our cars after our maternity session. A newborn session is baby's first portrait session, and it captures the precious details of what is likely the most fleeting season of your child's life. Your new baby will change more rapidly during their first few weeks after birth than perhaps any other time afterward.
Newborn sessions typically-- but not always-- take place somewhere during the baby's first nine days of life. (Read more on timing your newborn session on my newborn page here.)
Many newborn sessions take place in a studio environment-- whether that's at an actual studio, or via a pop-up studio set up by the photographer to the client's home. (Which solution is best for you will depend on how you and your baby are feeling after delivery, and which scenario sounds least stressful for tired new parents and their brand new baby. I offer both options for my clients.)
Newborn sessions often involve more props (wraps, baskets, miniature beds, and more!) and more time spent preparing for each image (wrapping the baby in pretty swaddles, soothing and posing) than other types of sessions. Newborn sessions are one of the most specialized types of photography sessions; inexperienced photographers can put a newborn baby at risk of injury by trying to copy poses they've seen on Pinterest without a proper understanding of handling, wrapping, and posing infants safely.
Some poses such as the popular froggy pose, for example, are only safely created by professionals as a composite image (multiple images blended together in Photoshop to create one final image.) If you are seeking a newborn photographer, make sure to vet them carefully to be sure that have the knowledge and experience to prioritize your baby's safety and comfort during your session.
Remember that labor, delivery and newborns are unpredictable, so it's wise to go ahead and get booked with your photographer as early in your pregnancy as you can!
Explore more images from my newborn sessions here.
