Ashley, John, Etta & Lake | An At Home Family Session
At home family sessions are one of my most favourite sessions to do. There’s something about capturing a family’s everyday moments in their everyday space that’s so fun and natural to document. The more I reflect on this session, in particular, the more I think about how significant the experience of snapping these captures truly is.
There are small moments throughout our day—every day—that we fail to soak in. On one hand, that’s totally normal. We’re always moving from one thing to the next. On the other hand, we should soak up all those precious memories as much as we can, no matter how itty-bitty they seem at the time.
And, it’s those little things that hold the most weight. It’s those things that fill our hearts with all the good stuff. It’s those things that will pop back up out of nowhere and remind us how good it felt to live through those moments.
“But what kind of things?”, you might be asking! Well- it’s the things you just live through that settle your heart and you don’t really even notice that they hold the weight they do.
It’s things like laughter over a late breakfast. Snuggling on the couch watching an episode of some contrasty animated show your kid loves (and it’s the eight time you’ve seen it).
It’s things like the way a couple's eyes meet and you can just see them having a whole conversation in one look. That look that is a whole other language only they are privy to.
These are such candid, heartfelt moments and capturing these moments for sweet families like this one is more than an honour and delight. I had a smile on my face the whole time during (and for about a week after) our shoot together.
Ashley, John, Etta, and Lake had actually just moved into this house shortly before the shoot. I bet you never would have guessed it from the photos. They were so comfortable and at ease in this space, and it really felt like they’ve lived there for so long.
I’m convinced that’s exactly what happens when your family finds themselves in the right home: Like it’s never been any other way. I can’t even begin to imagine all the juicy moments that will be unfolding there as the years pass by for them.
Another part of home family sessions is the part where I get to witness how families interact so uniquely in their spaces. No one session is better than the other, but they are always amazing in their own ways. I think it’s so cool that I get to play a part in capturing that.
When you book a family session, you might be thinking about the end results—the images you end up with at the end. But a family photoshoot is about so much more than that. Yes, having the pictures at the end to look back on is priceless. But so is spending the time intentionally during the shoot together and just enjoying being in one another’s company.
That’s why I always say you should never wait to do a family photoshoot. There’s never a “perfect” time—every moment is a perfect time. Don’t get me wrong, documenting a special occasion is also great, but spending time together in this way and capturing where you are as a family now is also pretty special.
Long story short, don’t wait any longer to book your family session. Every single day is something special. Your home has so much value, as does shooting in any other spot you might have some sort of memory attached too. And, sometimes it's just a pretty setting for you and your loved ones to let loose to be exactly who you are.
It’s such a delight documenting families. This summer and fall (wow! How is it fall already?!) has been one of the busiest yet but it’s only made me love these shoots even more than I started this year. And if you are interested in me capturing all the deliciousness of your family, don’t hesitate to reach out to me for more information.
