As a Jacksonville Family Photographer I have worked with hundreds of kids over the years. Over the course of nine years of photographing families, newborns and schools, I have almost seen it all. While some kids are totally happy go lucky and fine to have their pictures taken, some may be a harder nut to crack. I want to help you have the most successful family photography session that I can. So today I am here to help you with tips on how to prepare your child for their Jacksonville family photography session.

The first thing I tell all of my families is to relax and have fun. Easier said than done, right? Here’s the thing. Kids feed off of their parents mood. If you are stressed, they are going to feel that energy and react in a negative way. If mom and dad are in a good, happy mood and ready to play with their kids during our session, the children are also going to feel that positive energy and are more likely to be in a better mood. And look at it this way: during our session you get to be the FUN parent. No scolding or yelling, just games and jokes and tickles and fun!

Here’s some simple ways you can prepare your child for family photos, broken down by age group, from your favorite Jacksonville Family Photographer.

Ages 0-2 years old
The best way to prepare this age group is to make sure they are well fed and well rested. If we are meeting in the evening for your family session and it’s past their normal bedtime, you may want to put them down for their nap slightly later in the day. I would bring some extra snacks (mess free snacks that is) in case they get peckish during the session. And feel free to bring a favorite toy, stuffed animal or lovey for them to cuddle with if they need it. Just make sure it’s something that you don’t mind being in photographs! Babies and toddlers at this age are pretty much going to do whatever they want, we will just go with the flow and let them lead.

Ages 2-4 years old
Ahh the toddler stage. Better at following directions and slightly easier to bribe than a baby. But they still have some big emotions. A day or two before your session, as well as on the day of, you can talk to them about going to see a friend that is going to take pictures of your family. You can tell them that we are going to play games and be silly and have fun. If you do want to bring some sort of incentive (ahem, bribe) for them to follow directions please make sure it is mess free and available to them right away. I find that often when parents promise a special treat after the session is done, it is too long for toddlers to wait for, and they start to get impatient. Instead you might try bringing a pack of smarties that you can dole out as needed, or another small, mess free treat. If your toddler is very shy please don’t worry. We will lean into that, focusing on lots of cuddles and time with the parents. Over time they will open up when they are given the chance to naturally open up to me.

Ages 5-8 years old
Now this is the age group where you can start to have a real conversation with your kiddos about your upcoming family photography session. You can mention it to them a couple of weeks before hand and say that on xyz day and time we are having family photographs taken. It’s going to be fun, we get to play games and laugh a lot. You can ask them to think of some funny jokes to tell during the session. If there is a treat at the end, please don’t threaten to take it away. I find that kids be anxious about “behaving” when the threat is made, and they start to get stiff or nervous. Instead, remind them that you’re all there to have fun, and if everyone has fun then at the end they will get a treat.

Ages 9-12 years old
I find this age group can be hit or miss with wanting to participate in photographs. More often then not they are fine with it, with some really loving it. If they have younger siblings ask if they can help you make them laugh, and if they have older sibling have a little chat with them about not annoying their older sibling. Tell them the things you plan to do with your photographs (give as gifts to family members, use as holiday cards, hang on the wall of your home) and see if they want to help you decide on a location or color palette. I let my ten year old daughter pick out her own dress (in a color that I approved) this year for our family photographs and she was completely over the moon and so excited for our family photos because she couldn’t wait to wear her new dress.

Ages 13-18 years old
Ahh teenagers. Gotta love ‘em, am I right? These guys are old enough that you can really level with them. If you sense hesitation or unhappy behavior during the session I would be honest with them. Tell them something like, “These photographs are really important to us as a family, I would really love and appreciate your cooperation”. I absolutely would not threaten them with a loss of phone/friend privileges if they do not “behave”. I have seen this backfire too many times. I am more than happy to level with them as well. When I get teens that are making silly/dumb faces I’ll show them a shot from the back of my camera. That usually gets them to straighten up, no one wants to look dumb!

Ages <All Dads> years old
For some of you, I know that getting your husband/partner/significant other to cooperate for family photographs is just as hard as getting the kids to cooperate. I GET IT! My husband used to be that way too. But after ten years of getting annual family photographs taken, he has definitely come around. He knows that they are important to me, he loves looking back at our old photographs as much as I do, and he knows that our session isn’t about looking perfect - it’s about having fun together and loving on our girls. You know your husband best, what will help him get on board? Is he self conscious of having his photo taken? I have poses to help with that. Will a date night afterwards be a nice way to end the evening? Call up the babysitter. Worst comes to worst, look him in the eye and tell him how important this is to you and he needs to get on your team. And hey, it’s better than sitting in traffic for an hour!

At the end of the day you know your family best, but with a little prepping your family photography session can be nearly stress free. Making sure all members of your family are on board may seem hard, but usually it just takes a little one on one chat to get everyone on board. Oh, and maybe an ice cream treat afterwards!

If you are interested in learning more about Family Photography sessions with me, please visit my Family page. To book your session, please visit my Contact Page. I can’t wait to work with you!