The Experience

Let's go beyond standing and smiling at the camera - My family photo sessions are all about the moments and less about poses. They're an EXPERIENCE! My mission is to deliver incredibly beautiful, authentic, heirloom quality images of your family in this sweet, fleeting season of life.  Let's slow down for just a moment and take our time playing, exploring, snuggling, tickling, and just loving on your kids and your partner. I love being able to document a family's story, and capture the love, joy, and personalities within each family. We'll start off our session by getting that perfect posed "Christmas Card Photo" out of the way. And then we'll start our adventure.  While we are planning your session, start thinking of things that you like to do together as a family, little games or small things you want to remember. Every session is unique because every family is unique, and I want to document who you are as a family and turn amazing moments into photos for you to look back on this season of life for years to come.​

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All of my sessions take place during golden hour, which is about 1 hour before sunset. Choosing the perfect location to set the tone for the setting and provide a gorgeous backdrop to your photos is very important to me.  I have a few favorite locations that I photograph all my sessions at. These locations in the general areas of Elk River, Anoka, and surrounding areas. However, if you have a spot for your session in mind (maybe it's special to your family, or you just love the way it looks) I am definitely open to chatting about that! 

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Prepping for our session

Worried your kiddos won't behave for photos? Well I have a secret for you... I don't want them to behave in a perfect manner - They're kids! I want to capture who they are and I can't do that by having them sit still and smile at me the entire session. From the moment you arrive for your session I am focused on getting your children comfortable with me. When they are playing and acting like their goofy selves - THAT'S how I get the most authentic images of them. Being a mom myself, along with years of experience working with little kids, I have so many tricks up my sleeve to get them comfortable with me very fast! So instead of prepping your kids before the session by saying things like "If you smile for pictures we will get ice cream after!" Instead get them excited for the session by telling them about the fun adventure you will have as a family in the days leading up to your session.

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Getting to know each other before our session together helps makes you more comfortable in front of my camera, which is crucial in photographing intimate moments! After you reserve your date, I will send you a questionnaire to help get to know you and your family better! From there we will discuss all the little details of your session.

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What should we wear?

Outfits play a huge role in the overall look of your photos. I love helping my clients chose what to wear for their session for this reason! Upon booking, you will receive my style guide to help you and your family chose what to wear for your session. Some of my packages even offer styling assistance, where I can send you a styling questionnaire to help get to know what your vision is and what your unique sense of style is, and then send you a custom style board with links!