Twin Love: Brisbane Family Photography

I’ve photographed a LOT of children over the past 8 years and I must say, twins Joshua + Sienna were one of the most behaved, caring and gentle siblings I’ve had the encounter of photographing. Not only did they always listen to directions, not complain once, and had fun along the way, we also did an added 45 minutes with Mum on her own and they sat to the side on their blanket with their lunches. Precious!

Check out the little angels and their beautiful Mum below <3

Em x

Brisbane Family Photography, Brisbane Family Photographer, Brisbane Portrait Photographer

Tips to creating a fun & enjoyable family photoshoot: Life Portraits tells you their secrets

A family photoshoot can be very daunting for most and it is our jobs as photographers to guide you through this process making you feel comfortable and at ease while having fun. 

The process of creating a seamless, fun and enjoyable family photoshoot starts with planning, clear communication and idea generation. Here are some tips below as part of our process:

• In your initial enquiry...

  • We supply our range of portrait packages which meet the needs of all clients: digital, albums and a la carte for wall art and beautiful keepsakes for the home.

  • We provide our full pricing booklet, there are no hidden costs or hidden prices with LP, we like to be upfront and honest with our clients
    

• In the planning stages...

  • We communicate with you and get to know your family and how we can customise and personalise your photoshoot to your family

  • We secure a date that works for us both

  • We send a welcome PDF that explains our processes; how to be prepared for the session; clothing styling; using props in your session to customise the photoshoot; and tells you more about Andy & Em.

  • We then discuss your location and what clothes to wear to match this scene, time of day to get the best imagery and lighting, and show you example imagery to make you feel more comfortable with posing
    

• The photoshoot....

  • Now comes the fun part, your photoshoot! On the day, we get to know you as a family in person, we have fun with the kids (without the camera in hand sometimes for them to get to know us), we let go, we have fun and you as a family get to relax and enjoy yourselves.

  • It's all about being yourselves and forgetting that we're even there! We are there to document moments within your family and the fun and love you share.

I had so much fun with Brenda, Drew and Christina on their family photoshoot recently and their family photoshoot is the epitome of what Life Portraits values are: Capturing precious moments in a candid photography style to really capture true emotion. See for yourself below! They are just the most beautiful family and we had great fun, such naturals. They relaxed so much that it was like I wasn't there <3

Em 

And so the adventure begins......

Recently Andy and I photographed a beautiful group of ladies graduating year 12 and they were all so very inspiring. They came together as a group with their families at one location and we photographed each family and each graduate in a unique way. 

We have to share some of the beautiful images we captured from their session. They were all so mature, glamorous and passionate about their futures. An amazing thing to see for a group of year 12 ladies, all destined for amazing things. 

Good luck for your futures ahead!

Em x

When a family reunites....

"Families are like branches on a tree....We grow in different directions, yet our roots remain as one..."

It was a special occasion for this lovely family last weekend, celebrating their youngest Jordan's 18th birthday. They made the most of the family all coming together, some travelling interstate, to capture these moments with a photoshoot. ⠀

It was a glorious afternoon at Gold Coast Botanical Gardens, the lighting was perfect, the location was beautiful and in front of me was a very fun, laid back family. When all of these things align, it makes my job easy haha

I always try to bring an aspect of the families personality out in their images. As the photographer, you slowly form a relationship with your subjects to make them feel relaxed. Once you reach this point of them feeling relaxed, you give them some fun ideas to work with and then they turn the shoot into their own. This is exactly what happened with this family and they rocked it!

There was some beautiful moments captured and even some that brought a little cheeky smile to my face. Thank you Gerrie, Jordan, Tegan, Ryan, James, Carla, Chris, Scott and Corey for a wonderful afternoon. 

Check out some of my favs below <3

Em

The MUST-KNOW tips to prepare for your photography session

A photoshoot is a daunting experience for any person which is why Life Portraits makes it a fun, easy and enjoyable experience. Your session, whether it be an hour or a full day wedding, is meant to be fun and unique to you!

Being prepared for your session is very important as this assists the photographer in creating something amazing and making your ideas a reality. Things you should consider before your session:

• Clothing/styling

• Location

• Props

• In what format do you want your images displayed - digital, wall art, book, table art

WHAT TO WEAR
Your clothing is a very important part of your photoshoot. It creates tones, moods and is a representation of the style of your family. It is ideal to match a tone of colours rather than the old favourite of jeans and a white shirt. The best way to choose the clothing for the session is to pick one outfit for one of the family members that you love and base the rest of the families clothing around that one. See examples below of how families have coordinated their outfits around a single tone for their photoshoot.

Bring your own style to the photoshoot. Some themes are featured below:
- Spring/summer
- Brights/neutrals
- Fall/winter
- Formal casual wear

Tip 1: Parents to be dressed neutral and kids in the brighter colours
Tip 2: Co-ordinate the whole family in cool colours or warm colours
Tip 3: Try and avoid out-there patterns as this can be distracting
Tip 4: Wear something that you are very comfortable in

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
A very important part of your photo session is the the location you choose. The location should reflect the personality of the family/couple or have some sort of personal connection. There are a number of themes or backdrops you can incorporate into your photography experience, some include:
- A bright wall
- A sunflower field
- A brown grassy location
- The local park
- The beach
- A fun location such as the local show
- The countryside
- Your backyard or home (if you want something more personalised)
- A plain wall creating a more styled shoot

PROPS
We always ask our clients the following question when they are planning their session:
- What characterises your family/relationship?
- What hobbies/loves do you share? Can this be displayed in a photo?
- Do you have something that you love doing together?
- Are there any props that you can use in your photoshoot that ‘tell a story’ about your family/relationship

Below is a list and some image examples of props/personal hobbies that Life Portraits have helped our clients incorporate into their photoshoots. This is a guide and we LOVE to see new things at all of our sessions. 

Kites  .  tee pee  .  books  .  picnic basket/ blanket  .  boat  .  letters  .  balloons  .  flowers  . bikes  .  animals  .  polaroids  .  sports equipment  .  bath toys  .  bubbles  .  trucks/cars/dolls  . swings  .  fruit (watermelon, strawberries)  .  paint/chalk  .  sparkles/wand  .  crown  .  lego  . lollipops  .  milkshake  .  signs/blackboards  .  suitcases  .  love heart cutouts  .  fishing gear  . gymnastics outift  .  swimming gear  .  Old cars

Capturing a family in the comfort of their own home...

When a client enquires about a portrait session with Life Portraits there are a lot of questions that are discussed around about clothing, props, posing, styling and location. A lot of the time most families want to go to a location away from their home and haven't considered their own home as their location for their photoshoot. 

I recently planned a portrait session with the Bayley family and they love water skiing, so we decided to take the boat out to the river to get their family photographs. However, last minute we had a change of plan and decided to do it at their home instead as they had mentioned they had a tennis court and loved to play tennis. As a photographer I thrive off this information, I love to know what a family loves to do together, their hobbies, what they have at their home and visualise the locations at their home. I was amazed when I arrived at the Bayley family home by how amazing the bushland was surrounding the home and the lighting over the tennis court at that time of the afternoon. 

This was such a fun photoshoot which embodied the essence of the family, the hobby they share and showed them in a familiar environment. In future, I will be suggesting to clients to consider their own homes as their photoshoot location as it makes them more comfortable, happy and there is no added stress of getting to a location on time, rushing the kids etc. When you are captured in the comfort of your own home, you are relaxed and that's the emotions we want to capture in our subjects. 

Check out some of the moments from the Bayley family photoshoot below. 

Sarah + Bradey: The definition of LOVE

Meet the stunning Sarah + Bradey. I photographed them on the weekend at the breathtaking location of Walkabout Creek, The Gap. Words cannot explain the love these two share for each other and I really enjoyed capturing these moments between the two of them. We had a lot of fun together and I feel as if I know them now as friends. Connecting with your clients is an important part of a photographer's job. You need to capture true expressions and feelings and getting to know your client allows you to bring that out of them. 

I was very inspired by this couple and we created some beautiful settings for the newly engaged couple. Enjoy!

 "The best kind of relationships begin unexpectedly. When you get that astonished feeling and everything happens so suddenly. That's why you don't look for love. It comes to you just at the right time, the time you never thought it would have." UNKNOWN

Em x

Photoshoot Tip: Add a touch of you....

We always ask our clients the following question when they are planning their session:
- What characterises your family/relationship?
- What hobbies/loves do you share?
- Can this be displayed in a photo?
- Do you have something that you love doing together?
- Are there any props that you can use in your photoshoot that ‘tell a story’ about your family/relationship

Below are some great examples of props/personal hobbies etc. that Life Portraits have photographed. I have listed below some ideas to inspire you. 

• kites

• tee pee

• fishing lines

• books

• picnic basket/ blanket

• boat

• letters

• balloons 

• animals

• Polaroids

• sports equipment

• bath toys

• bubbles

• trucks/cars/dolls

• swings

• fruit (watermelon, strawberries)

• paint/chalk

• crown

• logo

• lollipops

• milkshake

• signs/blackboards

• suitcases

• love heart cutouts 

• gymnastics outift

• swimming gear